Lessons and beauty in an undeserved victory, and why Lynch should have been benched

In a just world, the Seahawks would have lost to the Rams on Monday night. That's what's supposed to happen when you get outcoached and outplayed.

Lowering the Legion of Boom

Last week, I opined that the Seattle defense "is generally sound."

Yet, the Rams ran the ball down our throats. Everyone knew that was their game plan, but it didn't matter. St. Louis offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer cracked the code, drawing up inspired schemes to exploit previously unsuspected weaknesses in the Seahawk run defense. Those schemes were effectively executed by an average offensive line and by Zac Stacy, a 5th-round rookie who had never cracked the century mark in three previous starts, but then busted out for 134 yards against a defense stacked with high draft picks, pricy free agents and All-Pro and Pro Bowl talent.

Before Monday, the Seahawks had the 5th best rushing defense in the NFL. After giving up more than 200 yards to the Rams, Seattle's rank fell to 15th.

Last week, I wrote that the "pass rush appears to be coming together," but the Seahawks managed only three sacks.

Last week, I wrote that Seattle's "remaining regular season schedule appears to offer only two opportunities" (against the Falcons and the Saints) to "establish that our defense can shut down capable quarterbacks who run fast offenses from behind solid lines, choosing among multiple talented receivers."


I was wrong. You don't need a capable quarterback, quick tempo or multiple gifted receivers to challenge Seattle's pass defense. Between runs, Schottenheimer found ways for career benchwarmer Kellen Clemens to complete passes to a gaggle of inexperienced receivers at the expense of the vaunted Legion of Boom (and against our justly less-vaunted linebackers). The humble backup threw two early picks and missed several easy throws to wide-open teammates. A more accurate passer would have cut our defense to ribbons, but if your all-world defense can't shut down the passing attack of an undistinguished journeyman like Clemens, then maybe it's not really an all-world defense.

Yes, our defenders stepped up in the end with a heroic goal-line stand that saved the game. In the end, the Seahawks' superior athleticism barely trumped better coaching and execution by the Rams.

Future opponents will study and steal the schemes Schottenheimer used to shred the Seattle defense. Coach Carroll and defensive coordinator Dan Quinn failed to adjust adequately during the game on Monday night, but I hope their postmortem analyses have helped them figure out how to counter Schottenheimer's schemes, because our future opponents will execute them with better offensive athletes than St. Louis can currently field.

Time will tell whether St. Louis exposed an overrated defense, or if Monday represented a rare lapse for an otherwise solid unit.

I'm betting on the latter, and I'm betting the defense and the 12th Man come out to re-establish our reputation for domination against a bad Bucs offense. I would hate to be quarterback Mike Glennon tomorrow.
 
Losing our identity as a run-first team

Last week, I predicted that the Seahawks would "pound the rock relentlessly."

Wrong again. Offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell gave up on the run. The Rams surprised everyone by playing good run defense, but Seattle made no attempt to grind them down. Marshawn Lynch only carried the ball 8 times for a mere 23 yards.

Fullback Michael Robinson was woefully underutilized, taking the field for only 11 offensive snaps. What's the point of re-signing a battering ram if you're not going to use him?
Not running the ball enough meant attempting too many passes, calling too many designed runs by the quarterback, and Russell Wilson taking too many sacks and quarterback hits. Most of those plays yielded no yardage, or negative yards.

Consider the strategic options we had against the stout St. Louis defense:

1. Hand off the ball and run. This allows your offense to attack the defense. Your O-linemen fire out and hit defenders. Your wideouts get a chance to put a lick on the corners for a change. Your fullback becomes a guided missile who's going to make someone pay. Your big running back is going to dish out some punishment before he goes down. Your quarterback gets out harm's way.

2. Try to pass the ball. This allows their defense to attack your offense. Their corners bump your receivers. Their D-linemen and linebackers run over and around your hapless O-line and crush your little quarterback, over and over and over again.

If you're not gaining any yards, it is better to hit than to be hit. The nice thing about option #1 is that it tends to wear down the defense and create holes where none existed formerly.

Even when the Legion of Boom put our offense in great field position, Bevell's playcalling nearly prevented us from scoring. In the first quarter, a convoy of defenders helped Richard Sherman return a Clemens interception 38 yards to the St. Louis 26. A quarterback run and a Rams penalty then made it first and goal on the one yard line. Rather than line up in the I-formation and let the O-line and Rob clear the way for Lynch to pound the rock into the end zone, we came out in the read option on first and second downs, and Wilson twice ran the ball, taking unnecessary hits and losing a yard. A touchdown pass to Golden Tate salvaged the drive, but the poor play calls compounded Lynch's growing alienation and subjected our franchise quarterback to unnecessary physical punishment.

I was correct last week to characterize Seattle's offensive line as "absolutely dreadful," but I failed to anticipate our coaches' complete failure to account for the fierce Rams pass rush. For most of the game, Bevell and O-line coach Tom Cable left backup tackles Paul McQuistan and Michael Bowie stranded on an island, alone against stud defensive ends Chris Long and Robert Quinn. Predictably, Long and Quinn racked up 3 sacks each, plus innumerable brutal quarterback hits.

Something must be done. Cable says Seattle will start the same five offensive linemen again this week, so personnel changes are evidently off the table until starting tackles Breno Giacomini and Russell Okung return from injury.

Clearly, we need to establish the running game to preserve the health of our quarterback. When we do pass the ball, tight ends and running backs need to stay in to help with pass protection.

Unfortunately, establishing the run against Tampa Bay won't be easy. The Bucs rank 7th in the league in rushing defense. After completely shutting down Seattle's ground attack on Monday, St. Louis still ranks just 22nd in the league in stopping the run.


Why Lynch should have been benched


You read that right. I know Marshawn Lynch wants the ball. I want more Beast Mode, too. However, his frustrations don't give him the right to flip off his coaches two weeks ago in Arizona when Bevell didn't call his number in the red zone. He pouted again during and after the game last week. It is not known how they team responded to Lynch's obscene gesture. However, on the way back from St. Louis, Carroll sat by the moody prima donna on the plane and consoled him.

Lynch should have suspended for a game without pay for flipping the bird to his coaches in Arizona. Robert Turbin and Christine Michael could have carried the load in St. Louis. When coaches fail to draw the line against that kind of misconduct, they imperil team morale and discipline.

Beauty

Anyone who has ever endured losing seasons knows that there is really no such thing as an ugly win. When you have been forced to subsist on a steady diet of defeat, you learn to savor every victory, to find the beauty in each win.

The 80-yard bomb from DangeRuss to Golden Tate was beautiful. Wilson underthrew the ball, but Tate adjusted brilliantly to rob the cornerback of an interception and score. Sadly, his showboating and taunting penalty detracted from what was otherwise arguably the best play of his career. (Prompt contrition brought partial redemption, however.)

Everything about the way Earl Thomas plays free safety is beautiful. At one point, he rocketed out of nowhere to blow up a running Kellen Clemons. On the game's penultimate play, he knifed into the scrum to help clutch backup linebacker Heath Farwell stop the Rams runner one yard short of the goal line.

The goal-line stand itself was beautiful.

7-1 is beautiful.

8-1 would be even more beautiful.

Go, Hawks!