Reserve-Led Seahawks Drop Preseason Opener, Fall 20-7 to Raiders in Las Vegas

LAS VEGAS, NV - Kicking off the preseason at Allegiant Stadium, with the majority of their starters not participating, the Seahawks dropped a 20-7 contest to the Raiders.

On a night where a punch-less offense minus quarterback Russell Wilson produced less than 200 total yards, DeeJay Dallas provided the lone fireworks for Seattle, scoring on a 43-yard touchdown reception early in the third quarter. Defensively, Ryan Neal recorded an interception against Nathan Peterman and linebacker Cody Barton registered a pair of sacks.

With so few starters playing for both sides, trying to assess such a performance can be a futile exercise. With that in mind, here are five quick takeaways from the Seahawks' defeat in the Sin City:

1. Starting a second-string offensive line, Wilson remaining sidelined with a headset may have been the best part of the night for Seattle.

Fans who hoped to see what Wilson could do in new coordinator Shane Waldron’s scheme were left hanging out to dry, but it was the only decision Seattle could make due to a patchwork offensive line. Already without Duane Brown, who has been sitting out as he seeks a new contract, none of the team’s five projected starters were in the lineup in Vegas. Instead, rookies Stone Forsythe and Jake Curhan started in place of Brown and Brandon Shell, reserves Jordan Simmons and Phil Haynes started at guard in place of Damien Lewis and Gabe Jackson, and Kyle Fuller replaced injured center Ethan Pocic.

With those five backups starting, on the Seahawks first offensive drive, backup quarterback Geno Smith got rocked on a cornerback blitz by Nate Hobbs and spent time in the blue injury tent, eventually leaving with a concussion. Though the team would like to get their star quarterback a few game reps before the regular season arrives, exposing Wilson to such punishment in a meaningless scrimmage game would have been a fireable offense by the coaching staff and it’s best to keep him on the sideline this preseason until several starters are back in the lineup to protect him. In fact, they might just want to keep him in bubble wrap until Week 1 in Indianapolis.

2. Being one dimensional set up an already undermanned offense for failure.

Without any significant starters playing a single snap, Seattle wasn't really able to get untracked offensively most of the night. But whether it was by design or not, Waldron seemed to forget run plays were allowed in the first 30 minutes as he called only one run play the entire first half. The lack of balance to help out a makeshift offensive line was a bit perplexing and played into the team's struggles sustaining drives, as they converted on only one out of five third downs and picked up a total of three first downs in the first two quarters.

DeeJay Dallas goes 43 yards for the @Seahawks TD! #SEAvsLV pic.twitter.com/VQZhucwmiZ
— NFL (@NFL) August 15, 2021

On the Seahawks first possession out of the break, Waldron switched things up briefly, dialing up runs on each of the first three plays, including a read-option keeper by third-string quarterback Alex McGough that moved the chains. Four plays later, facing a 4th and 4 situation past midfield, McGough found Dallas wide open without any defenders in the same zip code on a quick dump off and he raced down the sidelines for a long score. From there, Seattle didn't run the ball much the rest of the night and wasn't able to put any more points on the scoreboard, finishing with only 11 carries by running backs on the night.

3. Making his first NFL start, Stone Forsythe endured a difficult night while gaining invaluable experience.

Going into Saturday's opener, Forsythe was highlighted by coach Pete Carroll as one of the players he was most excited to see play in his first NFL game. The sixth-round pick out of Florida has been thrown into the fire with Brown sitting out and Cedric Ogbuehi, Tommy Champion, and Jamarco Jones all dealing with injuries, holding his own on the practice field playing extensive reps with the first unit.

But in his first chance to face off against another opponent, Forsythe struggled mightily in pass protection, allowing four total quarterback pressures while playing deep into the third quarter. Former first-round pick Clelin Ferrell had his way with the rookie tackle early, beating him with speed off the edge twice to turn the corner and apply quick pressure on Smith and McGough. Ferrell also beat him inside and drew a holding penalty, which wiped out a 17-yard gain from Smith to Cody Thompson and helped knock the Seahawks out of field goal range.

Despite the rocky outing, Forsythe will benefit from the extended action in the long run and as long as he learns from the mistakes he made, he will have a chance to play much better against Denver next weekend.

4. Despite leaving sacks on the field, young pass rushers impressed throughout the evening.

Showcasing the impressive depth the Seahawks have at defensive end, even with Carlos Dunlap, Kerry Hyder, and Benson Mayowa receiving the night off, the trio of Darrell Taylor, Alton Robinson, and Rasheem Green made their presence felt throughout Saturday's contest. Robinson finished the night with five tackles and three quarterback pressures, including hitting Peterman's arm as he threw to lead to an interception by Neal, and also snuffed out a pair of jet sweeps in the run game. Green turned in a stellar night as well, producing a sack and three quarterback pressures while also blowing up a run play in the second quarter that forced the Raiders to settle for a field goal. Both players could have had even better nights, as they whiffed on one sack opportunity apiece.

PICKED OFF!

Ryan Neal was right there to snag the ball for the interception!

📺: #SEAvsLV on FOX pic.twitter.com/S8pLUD1mjV
— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) August 15, 2021

As for Taylor, his explosiveness and burst off the line of scrimmage were evident all night long, though he did look much the part of a player who hadn't suited up for a game in nearly two years. On several occasions, he pinned his ears back and rocketed past the tackle across from him, only to get too deep upfield and take himself out of position to make a play on the quarterback. If he would have flattened out the top of his rush a bit better, he could have had multiple sacks on the evening. But he did generate consistent pressure, including forcing Peterman to step up into the hands of linebacker Cody Barton for a sack in the third quarter. While the statistics may not have been there, the team should have plenty to be encouraged about by his play.

5. Diced up by Peterman, it wasn't an ideal evening for Seattle's cornerback competition.

Much like the offense, Seattle didn't play the majority of its starters on defense, as Dunlap, Bobby Wagner, and Poona Ford all took the night off. But in the secondary, with several players vying for starting roles at cornerback suited up, none of them did much to separate themselves from the pack, allowing Peterman to complete nearly 75 percent of his passes for 246 yards while the Raiders converted 11 of their 17 third down chances.

Veterans Ahkello Witherspoon and Tre Flowers played the first two series, with each player allowing several completions in coverage as Las Vegas marched down and scored a touchdown on the game's opening drive. Most notably, Flowers found himself in perfect position in coverage against receiver Zay Jones along the sideline, only to fail to turn his head to find the football and allow a 28-yard completion. He didn't do himself any favors trying to make up ground on Reed at the right cornerback spot, failing to capitalize on his latest opportunity.

While they didn't necessarily play poorly, rookie Tre Brown and Pierre Desir didn't do anything to make themselves stand out when they entered the lineup either. Interestingly, despite giving up five completions himself, the only outside cornerback who seemed to turn in a decent game was second-year defender Gavin Heslop, who produced a nifty pass breakup in the second half and also made a tackle for loss in the run game.

Add us as a preferred source on Google