Colby Parkinson, Tight Ends Take Center Stage in Seahawks Upset Win vs. Broncos
SEATTLE, Wash. - Facing second and 6 from the Broncos 25-yard line with under three minutes left to play in the first half, Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith motioned tight end Colby Parkinson out of the backfield from a three-back diamond formation to the H-back role outside the right tackle and immediately recognized a mismatch.
After taking the snap from center Austin Blythe, Smith promptly identified man coverage with cornerback Ronald Darby following receiver Tyler Lockett across the field on a crossing route. Safety Kareem Jackson ditched the post in the back third, leaving linebacker Jonas Griffith on an island covering Parkinson without any additional support behind him.
Wasting little time capitalizing on the matchup, Smith took a three-step drop out of pistol alignment and lofted a perfect strike down the seam to Parkinson, who had several yards of separation on Griffith. Pushing Seattle back in front and breaking a 10-all tie on the scoreboard, the 25-yard touchdown connection further ignited a boisterous crowd at Lumen Field, leading to chants of "GE-NO! GE-NO!" reverberating throughout the stadium.
The touchdown toss proved to be the difference for the Seahawks, who held on for a thrilling 17-16 season-opening home win fueled by Smith's impressive efficiency and a breakout game from Parkinson and his tight end cohorts.
"I'm not going to tell you all the plays, but he was in the read," Smith told reporters as he described the design of the play. "The way they played it, the safety ended up vacating the post, and then the linebacker had to basically carry the seam. There was really no one back there, so I had a good spot back there that I could find with him. Colby is a 6-7 tight end, so you can't miss him if you put it high."
Starting off the game completing each of his first 13 pass attempts, Smith got all three of his tight ends involved early. On the opening drive of the much-anticipated prime time contest, the veteran signal caller evaded a sack on 3rd and 2 and stepped up in the pocket, flipping a pop pass to a wide-open Will Dissly for a 38-yard touchdown that sent the 12s into an ear-splitting frenzy.
On the next series, Smith went right back to targeting his trusty tight ends, scrambling to his left and heaving a difficult throw across the field to Dissly to draw a pass interference penalty. One snap later, he fired a strike to Noah Fant, one of the centerpieces of the Russell Wilson trade received in return, for a 13-yard gain down the seam on a run-pass option play to pick up the first down.
While Smith wound up getting stuffed on a fourth down quarterback sneak to end that drive, he continued to spread the wealth getting five different receivers involved on Seattle's third possession, leading to a short Jason Myers field goal to extend the lead to 10-3.
After Wilson knotted the game up with a 67-yard strike to Jerry Jeudy, Smith went back to work with Parkinson emerging as an unlikely spotlighted weapon. Following a splendid 16-yard sideline grab by receiver Marquise Goodwin that earned the Seahawks a new set of downs, the third-year tight end came open on a shallow crossing route and the quarterback hit him in stride on a bootleg rollout for 18 yards to move the chains again.
Two plays later, Smith put an exclamation mark on an impressive first half by dropping a dime to Parkinson down the seam for six points. In total command of the offense, he wrapped up the first two quarters of play completing 17 out of 18 passes for a sizzling 94 percent completion rate with two touchdowns and a 141.7 passer rating.
At the center of Smith's prime time passing clinic distributing the football to eight different receivers, tight ends took on a starring role with Dissly, Parkinson, and Fant combining for 98 of Seattle's 164 receiving yards in the first half. As the quarterback indicated after the game, that was by design in the game plan against an opponent featuring a talented secondary led by cornerback Patrick Surtain II and safety Justin Simmons.
While the Broncos dedicated much of their attention in the secondary to slowing down DK Metcalf and Lockett on Monday night and held both star receivers in check, the Seahawks executed their objective of attacking Griffith and a suspect linebacker group with tight ends in the passing game to near-perfection.
"One of our matchups was our tight ends on their linebackers and safeties. You never know who is going to make the play," Smith said. "That's the interesting thing about offensive football in the NFL. It could be a tight end, running back, receivers. Tonight the tight ends stepped up ... I don't think there's a better group in the league."
It's a welcome development for the Seahawks, who have played a game of musical chairs trying to find pass catching tight ends to complement Metcalf and Lockett on offense ever since Jimmy Graham departed in 2017. Two years ago, the team signed Greg Olsen, who failed to eclipse 250 receiving yards in his lone season with the organization before retiring. Last season, Gerald Everett battled issues with drops despite posting a solid stat line with 478 receiving yards and four touchdowns.
Though it's only one game, coach Pete Carroll and his staff raved about Parkinson and the tight end corps throughout training camp and the preseason. With offensive coordinator Shane Waldron in his second year at the helm, the group was expected to be featured more prominently in a 12 personnel-heavy scheme.
Based on how often Smith targeted his trio of tight ends, Monday night could be a sign of things to come in an offense that will undoubtedly operate far differently than the one orchestrated by his predecessor. Holding the utmost confidence in Fant, Dissly, and Parkinson, it's clear the veteran signal-caller won't have any hesitations about throwing the football to them moving forward.
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