Russell Wilson, Seahawks Offense Go M.I.A. in Unsightly 23-16 Loss to Rams

Even with the defense making dramatic improvements after halftime, it proved too little, too late for a Seahawks squad that suddenly can't stop turning over the football and scored just three points in the second half of a second straight defeat.

Still licking their wounds after giving up 44 points and turning the football over four times in a loss to the Bills, the Seahawks stumbled on both sides of the football in an ugly 23-16 road loss to the Rams.

Finishing without a passing touchdown for the first time this season, Russell Wilson struggled completing only 59 percent of his passes for 248 yards and threw two interceptions. Defensively, Seattle allowed 275 yards of total offense to Los Angeles before halftime, including 221 passing yards from quarterback Jared Goff, and fell behind 17-7 for the second straight week.

With the defeat, the Seahawks drop to 6-3 on the season and now sit in third place in the NFC West due to head-to-head losses to the Cardinals and Rams, who both share the same record.

Here are five quick takeaways from Seattle's third loss in four games:

1. After a fast start, Russell Wilson has crashed back to Earth and the team can’t overcome his subpar play.

Through the first five weeks of the season, Wilson threw 19 touchdown passes and just three interceptions, racing out to an early lead in the MVP race. But his play has noticeably dipped over the past month and Sunday may have been one of the worst games of his entire career. While he didn’t have as many turnovers as the week before in Buffalo, he threw his fourth interception in the end zone in the past six games and the timing couldn’t have possibly been worse. Immediately after safety Jamal Adams forced a strip sack, despite having tons of running room in front of him, he threw across his body trying to connect with Will Dissly on a wheel route and cornerback Darious Williams came down with a deflating pick. Over the past four games, a clearly-pressing Wilson has turned the ball over 10 times, including six times over the past two losses. Given the team's defensive struggles, they don't have much margin for error if he makes mistakes and right now, he's making far too many of them to win games against quality football teams.

2. Becoming one-dimensional caught up with Seattle for a second consecutive loss.

While Wilson should be criticized for questionable decisions on several throws and being indecisive at times on Sunday when he could have potentially hit DK Metcalf downfield, offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer didn’t do him any favors from moving away from the run game again too early. Making his first start since 2018, Alex Collins scored a 13-yard touchdown on the team’s opening drive and rushed for 43 yards on 11 carries. It felt like a game where giving him more opportunities could have helped slow down a pass rush that harassed Wilson throughout the second half and produced 6.0 sacks. Instead, while falling behind on the scoreboard again, they panicked and went into pass-heavy mode far too quickly, in part due to the notable absence of Chris Carson and Carlos Hyde. This played right into the No. 2 overall scoring defense’s hands and put the offensive line into yet another difficult spot for a second straight week.

3. With the exception of Jamal Adams and Poona Ford, the Seahawks weren’t able to disrupt Jared Goff.

Continuing to prove he’s the best pass rushing safety in football, Adams’ strip sack should have resulted in at least three points and he wound up recording two sacks and two quarterback hits on the afternoon. Some of his blitzes were countered with clutch third down screen calls by the Rams, who converted five straight third downs at one point in the first half. Still, it’s hard to imagine where Seattle’s defense would have been without his contributions blitzing off the edge as well as through the interior of Los Angeles’ offensive line. In the interior, Ford may have enjoyed his finest game as a pass rusher in three NFL seasons, hitting Goff to force a field goal on the opening drive of the game and making his first sack of the season in the second half. But away from those two players, only Carlos Dunlap recorded a quarterback hit through four quarters, again illustrating the Seahawks’ pass rushing issues.

4. Following a dreadful first half, Seattle’s defense deserves some credit for keeping the team in the game after halftime.

Surrendering nearly 300 yards of total offense in the first half and allowing a touchdown drive on their first defensive possession in the third quarter, the Seahawks looked poised to match their atrocious numbers from a 44-point outing in Buffalo last weekend. But then, something unexpected happened. Coach Pete Carroll's defense found a groove, forcing three consecutive punts and giving up only 23 total offensive yards on 16 plays. The Rams missed a few opportunities in there, including a potential dagger to tight end Tyler Higbee that went just beyond his reach after beating linebacker K.J. Wright in coverage. But nonetheless, the defense kept the Seahawks in the game even with Wilson playing one of his worst games and the offense being shut out in the second half until the final minute of the game. It's a stepping stone and with a few injured players potentially coming back soon, the final two quarters could be something to build off of with seven games left to play.

5. Special teams continued to be a rare bright spot for a team struggling in every other capacity.

If there's any silver lining after another challenging defeat, they've done all season long, interim coach Larry Izzo's special teams units were spectacular all day long for Seattle. When called upon to punt, Michael Dickson pinned the Rams inside their own 12-yard line twice, though the defense wound up allowing touchdowns on both ensuing drives. Establishing a new franchise record, Jason Myers booted a 61-yard field goal just over the crossbar before halftime to cut the Rams lead to 17-13 and now has made 21 straight field goals this season. In the return game, cornerback D.J. Reed exploded 49 yards to put Seattle near midfield down 10 points, but the offense didn't capitalize with a quick sack on first down and quickly gave the ball back on a punt.