FOXBOROUGH—The Seahawks won in dramatic fashion on Sunday, riding a strong performance by Geno Smith and his receivers to beat the Patriots 23-20 in overtime at Gillette Stadium.
Here are seven rapid reactions to Sunday's win, which improved Seattle's record to 2-0.
- Geno Smith had a great game in some tough circumstances.
The Seahawks came into Sunday's game minus leading rusher Kenneth Walker III, who was out with an oblique injury suffered in the opener, as well as right tackles George Fant, who injured his knee last week, starting in place of usual right tackle Abraham Lucas, who is on the physically unable to perform list with a knee injury of his own.
Facing a tough New England defense, one that held Joe Burrow and the Bengals offense in check last week, the Seahawks weren't able to get much a running game going with Walker out, putting a lot on the shoulders of quarterback Geno Smith.
And Smith responded with a great performance, showing off the accuracy that helped him lead the league in completion percentage in 2022, as well as pocket movement hat helped him evade pressure and make throws on the run.
Smith finished the game 33 for 44 for 327 yards and a touchdown, leading a drive at the end of regulation to tie the game, then leading another drive in overtime to set up Jason Myers' game-winning field goal. And that stat line should have been even better, but Smith was the victim of several drops by his usually sure-handed receivers.
- Jaxon Smith-Njigba had the most productive day of his career, and came through in a big way on third-down.
With Walker unavailable and the running game struggling to get going, the Seahawks leaned more on a short passing game, and the beneficiary was frequently second-year wideout Jaxon Smith-Njigba.
With the ball coming his way often, Smith-Njigba had the biggest game of his young career, recording career highs in receptions (12) and receiving yards (117), and he did a lot of his damage to move the sticks on third down. Of Smith-Njigba's nine catches, four came on third down for a total of 46 yards, with three of those four catches resulting in first downs.
- DK Metcalf added another long touchdown, and big game, to a career full of both.
After a relatively quiet game in the opener, DK Metcalf made an early statement in Sunday's game, running free through New England's secondary for a 56-yard touchdown. The touchdown was the sixth of Metcalf's career of 50 or more yards, tying Steve Largent and Darrell Jackson for the second most in franchise history.
Metcalf went on to catch 10 passes for 117 yards, giving him the 13th 100-yard game of his career.
- Jason Myers is off to a great start this season, and was clutch in this win.
After making a pair of field goals in the opener, including a 50-yarder, Jason Myers came through again for the Seahawks Sunday, making all three of his field goal attempts, including a 38-yard kick to force overtime, and a 31-yarder to win it in overtime. Myers is now five for five on field goals and four for four on extra points through two games.
- Boye Mafe and Leonard Williams keep making plays in the backfield.
After a strong performance in Seattle's opener that included a sack, third-year outside linebacker Boye Mafe was once again a nuisance for an opposing offense. Mafe started his day with a third-down sack on New England's first drive, and applied pressure on Jacoby Brissett throughout the game. Mafe also drew a holding call on a running play that helped kill a New England drive, and finished the game with xfive tackles, two quarterback hits, and a sack.
Williams, meanwhile, followed an opener that featured four quarterback hits with four tackles, 1.5 sacks and four quarterback hits, splitting the second sack with rookie Byron Murphy II to give the Seahawks a crucial third-down stop late in the fourth quarter, setting up a blocked field goal and the game-tying drive.
- Julian Love makes big plays on special teams too.
Julian Love came to Seattle as a free agent last year having played a ton of special teams with the Giants, with the Seahawks, he has played less in that phase of the game as he became an every-down player on defense.
Love, who had 12 tackles, an interception and a forced fumble in the opener, still sees some playing time on special teams, however, and on Sunday he came through with a huge play, blocking a field goal attempt that would have given the Patriots a six-point lead late in the game, setting the Seahawks up to go tie the game with a field goal and force overtime.
- Missed tackles hurt the Seahawks a lot more than they did a week ago.
As defensive coordinator Aden Durde noted during the week, the Seahawks had several tackles in their first game, but because so many defenders were swarming to the ball, they rarely hurt Seattle. Facing a more physical rushing attack, however, it was a slightly tougher day for the Seahawks in the tackling department.
Led by bruising running back Rhamondre Stevenson, the Patriots rushed for 185 yards, with plenty of yardage coming after initial contact.
All of that being said, there were still a lot of positives from Seattle's defense, which forced six three-and-outs and had 2.5 sacks, and most importantly, got a quick stop to open overtime, setting up the offense for a game-winning drive.
Overall, there's a ton to like from what the Seahawks have done on defense through their first two games, but Mike Macdonald will no-doubt see plenty he wants to clean up when he reviews the film of this game.
Must-see shots of the Seahawks at their Week 2 game against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium on Sunday, September 15, 2024.