The day started with sunny skies, flashy custom Seahawks gear, and easy smiles. It ended under the lights, with toes tapping, and breathless victory. The smiles disappeared after an injury knocked Sam Darnold out of the game following the first drive, and the team fell behind by 10 points. The returned when Brian Fleury made a gutsy fourth down play call, and Jaxon Smith-Njigba reminded the world just how special he is. A final Patriots drive appeared destined to send the game into overtime before an ill-advised pass from Drake Maye settled into the hands of Josh Jobe, who managed to dot both sets of toes in the endzone for a game-sealing interception. Welcome to Seattle, Khosla family. You just bought a lifetime of agony and ecstasy.
History echoed through the stadium before the first snap as the team shared a video commemorating the breadth of experiences under the ownership of Paul and Jody Allen before turning attention to the Super Bowl run from last year. Kam Chancellor was on the mic when the Super Bowl LX banner was unveiled. Richard Sherman stood atop the Toyota Fan Deck to raise the 12 flag.
Moments later, Sam Darnold was limping off the field. The likeable leader of the offense took a sack on 3rd down that included all of the defender’s weight driving Darnold’s knee into the hard turf, which apparently jolted his hip. Initial speculation was a possible hip fracture, which would have not only season implications, but career and life implications.
Macdonald provided what he initially called “great news,” before pulling back to, “good news,” that a hip fracture had been ruled out, and that Darnold was undergoing additional tests to see the extent of the injury. Seattle should know more today.
Last night, that left the game in the hands of backup, Drew Lock. The same Drew Lock who has thrown 28 interceptions in his career, and had only one season where his touchdown total was at least two more than his interception total, all the way back in his rookie season (2019).
Seattle was already entering this game with a rookie play caller, a rookie running back, and facing a team eager to erase the pain of the Super Bowl. Lock’s propensity to turn the ball over made finding a path to victory daunting.
The only way the Seahawks walked away with a win was because Lock was able to avoid a turnover for just the 12th time in 29 career games where he attempted at least 20 passes. That allowed Seattle to extend a streak where to five games of turnover-free football. Macdonald has still yet to lose a game where his team has zero turnovers.
Seattle has now matched a franchise record with 11 straight wins, dating back to Week 12 of last year, and including the playoffs. It is no coincidence that they are number one in the NFL in turnover margin over that stretch.
Turnover margin is about taking the ball away as much as it is about protecting it. The injured and fresh-faced secondary took center stage. Nick Emmanwori was inactive for this game. Riq Woolen and Coby Bryant play for other teams now. Jobe re-signed as a free agent, but remains unheralded, even among the Seahawks fanbase. Ty Okada missed the game with a hamstring injury. Second round safety, Bud Clark, was lost for the season with a broken ankle during the preseason.
In step Nehemiah Pritchett and Rodney Thomas II as the latest obscure players to elevate their game in Macdonald’s defense. It was Thomas who made a break on a pass from Maye and tipped it enough to allow Pritchett to tip it to himself for an interception. The game turned on that play.
Seattle turned that turnover into a touchdown, and the defense finished the game with 3 straight drives ending in picks. This was the first time since at least 1999 the Seahawks defense had ended a game with three straight interceptions (data before 1999 is not available, so it’s possible this is the first time in franchise history). The last time they had three straight interceptions at any point in a game was last season against Max Brosmer and the Minnesota Vikings. The last time the Patriots had three straight drives ending in an interception was 2001, when Tom Brady had 4 picks in the fourth quarter against the Broncos. It was a remarkable finishing flourish that reminded everyone to never underestimate this Seahawks team.
Mixed in-between the interceptions was a crucial play call from Fleury on 4th and 1. The run game had been reasonably effective most of the day, but had been stuffed on 3rd and 1 at the Patriots 45-yard line. Fans wanted to see the Barnyard tush push. It was a long yard, and Macdonald typically avoids using that play on longer distances. A run still seemed a good bet given the injury at QB and the scuffling pass game.
Fleury made a call the belied his inexperience by drawing up a play action pass that found Smith-Njigba wide open a few yards down field. Smith-Njigba took in the pass and weaved his way through the Patriots defense for what became a 45-yard touchdown. Roughly 40 yards of that were after the catch. Add his ability to create after the catch to the list of aspects of his game that are underappreciated across the NFL.
Fleury’s overall game was difficult to assess. Week one is always challenging for new and experienced coaches. There is very little to go on in terms of tendencies for opponents, and the starters have had no live game reps in the preseason. Then, the starting quarterback leaves. Separating what this game said about Fleury and what it said about the circumstances is messy.
I liked the way the run game looked. Jadarian Price seems like the perfect fit for this scheme, and will command more snaps as the team gets further into the season. Keep in mind he never started a game in college and had no preseason snaps. The team does not want to burn him out early.
There were several terrific edge blocks from A.J. Barner and the tight ends. The offensive line seemed to get push and create seams and gaps for the backs to exploit. They did not get many chunk plays on the ground, but were regularly getting 4+ yards.
One sequence that stood out to me was on the game-winning drive, when they started with a run to the right with Price that gained four yards, and then ran what looked like the same run play in the same direction, but it was a play action pass to Barner for 9 yards and a first down. That ability to get a defense to pay attention to one thing, but do another, is one of the most fundamental parts of being a good play caller. Formation, personnel, motion can all look identical, and you need to call the play one way enough for the counter to be effective.
The biggest problems came in the red zone. Seattle had several operational issues that led to penalties, and cost them points. We won’t know how much of that was due to the Fleury being late getting plays called or the backup quarterback or the first game of the season. What we do know is that red zone operation needs to be much cleaner.
This was a vastly different game to what the Seahawks played in week one last year against the 49ers, but parallels are undeniable. The defense forced a heralded quarterback into costly mistakes, only to allow him a chance to win the game in the end. Only this time, the Seahawks corner made the play to seal the game, and their offense avoided costly turnovers on their side.
The 2026 season is underway. The 2025 season is over. What remains is a Seahawks team that wins, and sits atop the NFC West. The road ahead will be winding, but the men driving and occupying the bus know how to navigate what obstacles appear in front of them. The new owners may not want to look out the windows. It can be a harrowing journey.