Feeble

Seattle competed for the first third of the game.

Our first offensive drive was a thing of beauty, a creative mix of well-executed runs and passes, culminating in a touchdown by Marshawn Lynch.

After that, Jeremy Bates lost his mojo and lapsed into his customary predictability.

Our defense fought hard, but stopped Atlanta only twice when it mattered: once when Jordan Babineaux intercepted Matt Ryan, and again when we forced a punt in the third quarter.

Ryan dissected our secondary. We lost cornerback Marcus Trufant to injury early on. Again. I love Tru, but maybe he’s too fragile to be a reliable NFL corner.

Matt Hasselbeck continues to promote the starting prospects of backup Charlie Whitehurst. Rolling out in his own end zone, Hasselbeck would have been wise simply to throw away the ball when he saw a Falcons defensive end bearing down on him. Instead, the one-handed wonder took a strip sack. Touchdown, Atlanta. The Fox analysts blamed Hasselbeck’s injured hand. I blame the quarterback’s poor judgment, which seems to worsen every week

Matt followed up by throwing two picks.

Whitehurst looked good in relief. He threw well, made good decisions, and used his mobility to good effect. He deserves the start next week.

Our offensive line made some strides. Down 24 points, Bates wisely called several handoffs, knowing that victory was impossible, but that this new O-Line combination would benefit from the reps.

Russell Okung was a disappointment, committing two false starts and surrendering a sack.

What happened to the kid who shut down Julius Peppers in Chicago?

At the end of the first half, with the game still in reach, Leon Washington declined to take a kickoff out of the end zone, instead opting for a touchback. And then our offense took a knee rather than run a play. In both cases, I'm sure it's what the coaches advised.

Always compete?