NFL Seattle Seahawks

Seattle Seahawks Fall Short In Battle at Arrowhead Stadium

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By @The12thDude

Jamaal Charles

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If you missed the matchup between the Seattle Seahawks and the Kansas City Chiefs, then you missed a really good one. It was almost as if Arrowhead Stadium brought these two teams back to their days as division rivals in the AFC West. This was a good old fashioned slobber-knocker, and the Chiefs edged out the Hawks to win at home, 24-20.

You have to give respect to Kansas City for stopping Seattle when it mattered most. I thought without a shadow of a doubt that the Hawks would score a rushing touchdown, but I was wrong, and the streak continues for Kansas City — but it was so, so close to coming to an end.

Being so close is the story for the Hawks. There were a handful of missed opportunities, and had they converted a single one, the outcome could have been different. There was the dropped pass by Jermaine Kearse in the end zone. There was the final two plays of the drive where Russell Wilson missed tight end Cooper Helfet up the seam for what would have been a first down. Then, on the very next play, rookie Paul Richardson was unable to bring down a tough, but catchable ball from a pressured Wilson on fourth down.

The two biggest blunders, however, should be placed on offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell, and they both came on fourth-and-short. The first came at the goal line, where Wilson took the snap, dropped back and put the ball in the air for receiver Doug Baldwin to come down with — except that didn’t happen. Instead, Baldwin was knocked off his route, and nothing came of the play except for a goal line stand by Kansas City. I know the Chiefs haven’t given up a rushing score all season, but who are we again? You have a back nicknamed Beast Mode, run the dang ball up the gut. And I realize that defensive pass interference maybe should have been called against Kansas City, but the play selection was still awful.

The second fourth-down try was maybe even worse. With time winding down, the Hawks found themselves at fourth-and-short once again. And once more, Pete Carroll decided to go for it. I don’t hate the fact Seattle went for it, but the formation they took was horrifying. Wilson was in shotgun, with Marshawn Lynch by his side, essentially adding on an extra two to three yards because hey, why not? Oh, and let us not forget that starting center Max Unger was out of the game due to injury.

The Hawks came up short, and that is pretty much the story of this game. You would think Bevell would have lined up in power formation with a full back, and either give it to Lynch, the FB or even have Wilson run a QB sneak. Just about anything would have been better than the play they ran.

But hey, this was football the way it should be played — power football with far less penalties. You almost forgot that quarterbacks and wide receivers have a huge advantage in today’s NFL. This game was straight old school.

The Chiefs are in great position after the Denver Broncos‘ surprising loss to the St. Louis Rams. The Hawks are still in good position, but I would never call it great with their remaining schedule. Kansas City has a legitimate chance to take the AFC West, while I imagine the Hawks would have to win out to take the NFC West, regardless of whether or not the Arizona Cardinals lose today.

Seattle will wait in anticipation to see how serious the injury to Unger is. Unger is the anchor on the offensive line, and the running game has already missed him badly for a big portion of the year. On the other end of the ball, the loss of Brandon Mebane was very apparent today, as Jamaal Charles had his way with the Hawks (159 rushing yards and two touchdowns). One has to be concerned with how Seattle will fare in the final stretch if they are to be without Unger, which is likely the case since he left on a cart with a leg injury.

Regardless of what unfolds over the final stretch of the regular season, I hope to see both teams in the playoffs come January.

Tyson Sweet is a sports writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @The12thDude, like him on Facebook, or add him to your network on Google.

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