Closing Thoughts: Clutch Stops Key Another Implausible Seahawks Victory vs. Vikings
For 56 minutes on Sunday Night Football, the Seahawks got out-muscled and out-classed by the visiting Vikings.
Seattle was out-gained in yardage 449 to 314, including giving up nearly 200 rushing yards to Dalvin Cook, Alexander Mattison, and Mike Boone. They didn't convert any of seven third down opportunities, while Minnesota converted six of them to extend multiple scoring drives. They only had the football for 20 minutes, while the Vikings had possession for nearly 40 minutes.
Considering all of those factors, the Seahawks absolutely should have lost in Week 5. But as they've proven time and time again, this isn't a normal NFL team, they aren't led by a normal coach in Pete Carroll, and they don't have a normal quarterback under center in Russell Wilson. When it's time to win games, they will find a way, no matter how improbable it seems.
In a span of four minutes of game action, Wilson and the Seahawks put up 27 points, including a flurry of 21 points in less than two minutes in the third quarter to erase a 13-point halftime deficit and capture the lead. An offense that played dead in the first two quarters exploded with three touchdowns in rapid succession, starting with a 19-yard scoring toss to tight end Will Dissly.
The avalanche, as Carroll accurately called it, continued after defensive end Damontre Moore hit Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins' arm and forced a fumble. The Seahawks quickly recovered it and after a replay review overturned the original call of an incomplete pass, Wilson came back two plays later and found DK Metcalf for a touchdown to push his team in front 14-13.
Once Minnesota regained possession, Cousins tried to loft a pass to receiver Justin Jefferson, but K.J. Wright decided to do his best Spiderman impersonation with a ridiculous highlight reel-worthy one-handed interception. Starting another drive in excellent field position, Chris Carson broke through multiple tackles, including spinning out of Harrison Smith's grasps, to race 29 yards for another touchdown.
Give credit to the Vikings, however. They could have easily folded after such an onslaught. But they regrouped and went back to what worked in the first half: bullying the Seahawks' defense into submission.
Even with Cook sidelined by a groin injury, Minnesota fed Mattison and feasted on a suspect Seattle run defense, orchestrating back-to-back touchdown drives to regain the lead. After Russell Wilson was picked off by linebacker Eric Wilson, they then drove inside Seattle's 20-yard line with less than two minutes to play, ready to put a nail in the coffin and secure a road upset.
But if you've paid any attention to Seahawks games the past two years, you knew how this movie would end. And so did Wilson's teammates.
With their backs against the wall and in the shadows of their own goal post, Seattle had to make a stop on fourth and inches. Mattison had gone for over 100 yards in the half, so Minnesota's decision to go for the jugular rather than kick a field goal to extend the lead to eight points seemed like the right call.
Just as they did in a thrilling win over the Patriots three weeks earlier, a maligned Seahawks defense came through. Cody Barton, who had been harassed by blockers at the second level all night long, blew up fullback C.J. Ham. Defensive end Benson Mayowa split a double team, allowing Bobby Wagner to get downhill unblocked and corral Mattison short of the marker for a turnover on downs.
"You watch them go down the field on us," Carroll said after the game. "Why would we think we could stop them on fourth down? But we did."
Wilson was going to get another shot. As he had done 33 other times in his career already, he wasn't going to be denied.
With rain coming down as it had for most of the game, Wilson calmly guided the Seahawks down the field, exhibiting the rare poise that vaulted him to the top of the NFL's quarterback hierarchy. Even after misfiring on three straight throws to David Moore and Metcalf to set up 4th and 10 at Seattle's 23-yard line, there was no doubt on the sidelines or in the huddle about what Wilson would do next.
"I believe this is one of the top three or four most impressive things I've seen this team do," linebacker K.J. Wright said after the game. "And I knew that once we made that fourth down stop, I was like, we're about to win. You guys should see the confidence that we have on the sideline. Everyone was just so positive and optimistic and we knew, even when it was 4th and 10, it was like, we're going to find a way."
With pressure bearing down on him and running back Travis Homer making a key block in protection, Wilson lofted a rainbow down the left sideline to Metcalf. Taking advantage of cornerback Cam Dantzler struggling to find the ball in the air, the second-year receiver leaped up and snagged the catch for a 39-yard gain, keeping Seattle's hopes alive.
Following a pair of first down throws to Tyler Lockett and Metcalf, the Seahawks moved down to the Vikings six-yard line with a timeout remaining. 32 seconds remained on the clock, setting the table for another heart-stopping finish in the north end zone.
Just as the Seahawks did moments earlier, the Vikings held serve, forcing three straight incompletions from Wilson. On the second down throw, Metcalf looked to have a touchdown, but cornerback Mike Hughes punched the ball out of his hands to bring up 3rd and goal. The ensuing play, a fade to Metcalf went out the back of the end zone, bringing up fourth down once again.
After Seattle burned its final timeout, Wilson put the finishing touches on his latest masterpiece with his best throw of the night. Threading the needle between Smith and Anthony Harris, he connected with Metcalf on a crossing route, putting the ball where only his receiver could catch it.
"Just a great play by him," Wilson said about Metcalf's clutch grab. "I don't even know how to explain it. Just unbelievable."
Still with 15 seconds left to play, Minnesota made one last attempt to get into field goal range. But a strip sack by Benson Mayowa bled out the clock, allowing Seattle to finish off another implausible victory to remain undefeated and move to 5-0 for the first time in franchise history.
It's the type of win that has become commonplace for the Seahawks, particularly this season, as Sunday marked the third time so far this year a game has been decided in the closing minute at CenturyLink Field. When the defense has needed to make a play, they've gotten the job done, and Wilson has been magnificent as ever, continuing to stake his claim to the 2020 MVP.
While such finishes may not be good for the blood pressure of fans and can be compared favorably to playing with fire, Carroll and his players seem to relish those opportunities and thrive in them. Given Seattle's 14-2 record in one score games since the start of the 2019 season and the prevailing belief they will always find a way to win preached by Wilson, they wouldn't have it any other way.
"It's so much freakin' fun," Carroll smiled. "It's just going to make us that much stronger, facing whatever the odds are, the issues are coming down the road. It's just a process of building the mentality of a really successful team. These guys are doing everything. They have all the stories we need right now, and we'll keep building, hopefully."
