Seahawks Running Game Falls Silent Without Ken Walker in Loss vs. Panthers
The Seattle Seahawks (7-6) offense rarely seemed in rhythm during Sunday's 30-24 loss to the Carolina Panthers (5-8) at Lumen Field.
After falling behind 17-0, Seattle faced an uphill climb but rallied to get as close as 20-17 after the first series in the third quarter ... before the offense ran a total of 14 plays on the following three possessions, all punts, before putting together a touchdown drive inside of the final two minutes to trim the final margin to one score.
Most of the attention will fall on quarterback Geno Smith, who threw two interceptions in the first half, and little resembled the player who some felt was a top-five candidate for the league's Most Valuable Player award.
But where was Seattle's rushing attack?
The best answer is straightforward enough: on the sideline, as Week 1 starter Rashaad Penny is on injured reserve, while his replacement, star rookie Ken Walker III, was out with an ankle injury ... as was his backup, DeeJay Dallas.
Still, the fall-off was shocking. Seattle's 18th-ranked rushing offense, which came in averaging over 115 yards per contest, mustered just 46 total yards on 14 carries in a game where Smith clearly didn't have his best stuff.
Travis Homer received the bulk of the work in relief, taking nine carries for 26 yards, averaging only 2.9 yards per carry. The offense as a unit averaged 3.3 yards per rush, a number aided by Smith's three runs for 20 yards. Of Seattle's 46 yards, 29 came on two attempts - a 16-yarder from Homer and a 13-yarder from Smith.
Homer, 24, made his first start since 2019 and played 91 percent of Seattle's offensive snaps - but, like the rest of the offense, simply couldn't find his rhythm.
"He never really got going," Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said. "He had one great run and just couldn't get going. We've continued to find troubles at the line of scrimmage; we haven't been clean for a bit. He couldn't get rolling."
The fact of the matter is that it's difficult to have success with your No. 4 running back - but there's still cause for concern. Carolina's run defense came in at No. 25 league-wide, allowing 135 yards per game. The Seahawks' 46-yard output was tied for the fewest yards allowed by the Panthers' defense all season and came on the heels of a stretch during which they'd given up at least 115 rushing yards in five consecutive games.
It opened up the opportunity to give the Seahawks a balanced offensive attack, but with the struggles in the run game, they were forced to become pass-heavy, which is something that's worked throughout the year ... but simply consisted of too many mistakes to succeed.
"We just needed to get first downs," said Carroll, when discussing why Seattle went away from the run. "As has been the case, we've had more success throwing the football, and we've been pretty darn good at it. But when you turn the ball over three times, you lose."
A six-point loss was, indeed, the end result, and with the San Francisco 49ers taking a dominant 35-7 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the Seahawks suddenly find themselves two games out of first place of the NFC West - but have a chance to get one back on Thursday night, as they'll host the 49ers at Lumen Field on Amazon.
For Seattle to get back in the win column, it'll need a much better rushing attack than it had Sunday ... and Carroll mentioned there's a chance that both Walker and Dallas will be back. But until then, it's wait, see and reflect on how to get better, because the Seahawks can't afford to drop a second straight in December.
Kickoff between the Seahawks and 49ers is set for 5:15 p.m.
You can follow Daniel Flick on Twitter @DFlickDraft
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