Seahawks show Rams who rules
Seattle muscles way to win in key NFC West matchup vs. upstart Los Angeles
There was something vintage about the way the Seattle Seahawks re-established their control of the NFC West on Sunday in a 16-10 win against the Los Angeles Rams.
It was safety Earl Thomas, punching the ball out of Todd Gurley’s hands at the goal line, forcing a fumble, and resulting in a touchback. It was middle linebacker Bobby Wagner leading a stifling run defense that held Gurley to 43 rushing yards. It was quarterback Russell Wilson dodging and scrambling and throwing on the run.
“It felt right,” cornerback Richard Sherman said. “It was the most complete game we’ve played all year.”
Seattle’s win pulled the Seahawks even with the upstart Rams, both at 3-2, atop the NFC West. But it was a reminder that despite the Rams’ impressive offensive resurgence under new coach Sean McVay and secondyear quarterback Jared Goff, the Seahawks have been the division’s best team in recent years for many reasons.
September road losses to the Green Bay Packers and Tennessee Titans, when the offense struggled behind a shaky offensive line and the defense experienced uncharacteristic lapses, led to questions about the Seahawks’ sustainability as a premiere team in the NFC. Injuries were taking a toll, from the loss of left tackle George Fant during the preseason to the broken ankle starting running back Chris Carson suffered last week. The Seahawks played Sunday without two starters, defensive end Cliff Avril and cornerback Jeremy Lane.
Yet these Seahawks looked more like the Seahawks of old than they have at any point.
“I think people look for reasons to write us off,” Sherman said. “Our demise was greatly overstated.”
Seattle forced five turnovers at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, including two interceptions of Goff, the former No. 1 overall pick. Goff had thrown one pick in the first four games. Goff also lost a fumble on a strip sack late in the fourth quarter.
The Rams scored three points on five trips to the red zone and were shut out in the second half, the type of problems Los Angeles didn’t have during its 3-1 start. The Rams averaged 35.5 points per game in the first month of the season, but Goff made several critical mistakes. His interceptions came on bad passes, one a screen to Gurley that was too high, the other as Goff was under pressure and he just sailed an offtarget pass down the middle.
“I think there were a couple uncharacteristic decisions that he did make,” McVay said of Goff. “When you play an excellent front like that, they cause some disruption, got to him, and they forced some of those errant throws and got some turnovers. But that’s what great defenses do.”