Indelible stains & silver linings

The game was not close. Losing never feels good. Still, a few good things happened on the field for Seattle today.

But first, let’s get the negatives out of the way.

A running back with a mane of braided locks shifted into Beast Mode today, repeatedly bursting through a clogged line of scrimmage to gouge the opposing defense. Unfortunately, it wasn’t Seattle’s Marshawn Lynch. It was Cedric Ivory of the Saints, and for much of the game, the Seahawks could not stop him.

Nor, for most of the game, could our defense stop Drew Brees. The league’s most accurate passer dissected Seattle, generally operating in a pocket so serene and with coverage so soft that the Saints offense resembled a 7-on-7 drill conducted by the first unit against waiver wire scrubs.

It hurt that Marcus Trufant exited the game after sustaining a head injury.

I lost count of all the missed tackles. It will take a long time for Ivory’s textbook stiff arm of Jordan Babineaux to fade from my tortured memory.

Meanwhile, when Seattle had the ball, Marshawn Lynch often reverted to Butterfingers Mode, dropping passes and coughing up costly fumbles to end promising drives.

Our offensive line continues to provide decent pass protection, but still struggles to open holes for our running backs.

Offensive coordinator Jeremy Bates generally called a good game, but he botched a few big play calls. For example, in the fourth quarter, after Hasselbeck audibled into a Justin Forsett run to the right that took the ball close to the goal line, Bates called essentially the same running play again. Of course, the Saints were ready for that. They easily stuffed the little running back at the line.

There are a number of reasons why that was a bad call:

1.       New Orleans had stacked the box; they were ready to defend against the run.

2.       Our offensive line—especially the wretched right side—is unable to dominate a defensive front that expects us to run the ball.

3.       Forsett is not a short-yardage back. If you want one yard, give it to Lynch.

4.       By that time, Hasselbeck had a hot hand. Why not let him throw for the touchdown?

Seattle players committed several costly penalties. Aaron Curry continues to be a sucker for the hard count, jumping offsides for the millionth time this year. Lawyer MIlloy’s idiotic personal foul after a New Orleans extra point deprived Leon Washington of a possible kick return opportunity. Chester Pitts got flagged twice, once for holding, denying us a field goal, and later for a false start. Perhaps he wants to join Stacy Andrews and Sean Locklear on the No-Pro Team.

A few questionable calls went against Seattle. Raheem Brock’s helmet-to-helmet late hit on Brees—which nullified what would have been a drive-killing defensive stand--was not particularly late, nor did the lineman appear to knock heads with the quarterback.

Similarly, Roy Lewis got flagged for hitting a defenseless returner, but the cornerback had been locked up with a Saints blocker and may not have seen the returner’s perfunctory fair catch signal

Sigh.

But even in the gloom of defeat, some silver linings shone through.

The biggest positive for Seattle was that the team never quit. A squad that had laid down for Oakland and the New York Giants just a few weeks ago stood steadfastly in the ring today, trading punches with New Orleans until the end. The Saints kept decking us, but we kept getting back up. Even when we knew we would lose the decision, we refused to let it be a knockout.

Dexter Davis didn’t quit. When Daniel Chase botched the hold on an extra point and ran for it, Davis showed great hustle and knocked the backup quarterback out of bounds just short of the goal line. (By the way, you have to admire the Saints’ protocol for botched holds on PATs. Rather than run for it immediately, the placekicker pretends to follow through on the kick, and the holder waits a split second for the defense to relax before taking off.)

Will Herring didn’t quit. The special teams stalwart demolished a New Orleans return man on a kickoff.

Neither David Hawthorne nor Earl Thomas quit. Both grabbed touchdown-saving interceptions in the fourth quarter.

And, of course, Matt Hasselbeck never quits. He had another great game, throwing for more than 300 yards in defiance of a New Orleans secondary geared to stop the long ball. Despite his broken left wrist, the quarterback competed heroically, scrambling, improvising, executing. At one point in the fourth quarter, when a Forsett run bogged down in a scrum, the aging quarterback charged into the fray, leading with his damaged left arm, trying in vain to push the pile.

Our receiving corps finally appears to be coming together. Ben Obomanu has emerged as a legitimate starting wideout. Although hobbled by an early injury, Mike Williams returned to the game and went as long as he could, making several clutch catches. When the big man finally left the game, our reserve wideouts stepped up, especially Brandon Stokley, who assumed his natural role as a dependable third down slot receiver. (Now, could someone please find Golden Tate?)

Tight end John Carlson emerged from several weeks in the witless protection program to catch a few good balls.

Justin Forsett injected new life into the offense in the second half.

Olindo Mare has reclaimed his title as the most dependable kicker in football. He makes even long field goals look as easy as extra points, and he nails touchbacks on kickoffs nearly as often as he splits the uprights on PATs.

Yes, the Saints beat us, but they did not humiliate the Seahawks. No one expected Seattle to field a Super Bowl caliber team this year, but by avoiding a blowout, the team made the case that we might indeed eke out a winning record, maintain the lead our weak division, and make the playoffs.

Atlanta helped us out today by keeping St. Louis a game behind us. If the Seahawks can build upon the positives in today’s defeat, perhaps the team can take its future into its own hands.