ATLANTA—Back when the Seahawks selected Michael Jerrell out of University of Findlay, he was asked why, as an offensive tackle with much athletic upside, he didn't transfer away from his Division II school in order to play for a bigger program.

Jerrell's answer at the time was one that demonstrated loyalty as well as confidence in his game. It was Findlay that made him the player he was, so Findlay would get to be the school called out when he was selected in the 2024 draft.

"I'm a loyal guy, and I stick with those who stick with me, and that's why I stayed at Findlay," Jerrell said not long after being drafted. "They believed in me from the start, and I couldn't see myself leaving for another team that would get the credit for what my coach and the University of Findlay helped build. I wanted to stay there and give them the credit. It means everything to me to see 'Michael Jerrell, University of Findlay' on the screen rather than another school.'"

And six months after Jerrell was selected in the sixth round, bringing a little more notoriety to Findlay, he was able to make his school proud once again, making his first career start and playing a big role in Seattle's 34-14 win over the Atlanta Falcons.

The Seahawks turned to Jerrell this week with Stone Forsythe sidelined by a hand injury, setting him up to make the start after appearing in just one of the first six games, playing a total of four snaps on special teams. And as was the case beginning with his play in training camp, Jerrell showed the leap from Division II football to the NFL wasn't too much for him to handle.

"How 'bout Mike Jerrell stepping in?" quarterback Geno Smith said. "Rookie, sixth-rounder stepping in and playing some big-time football today. I thought he did a great job."

Added Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald, "I thought Mike played great. I was excited to see him play, and I'm proud of him. The guys had his back and I'm excited for his NFL road."

With Jerrell at right tackle, the Seahawks totaled a season-high 34 points, rushing for 103 yards while Geno Smith put on a great performance in the passing game, throwing for 207 yards and a pair of scores without turning the ball over, and Smith was sacked only once.

Jerrell and the rest of the line had a big role on two of Seattle's biggest offensive plays. First, Jerrell and fellow rookie Christian Haynes, who continues to split time at right guard with starter Anthony Bradford, opened up a hole on the right side that Kenneth Walker III was able to run through on his way to a 20-yard touchdown. Then at the end of the half, Jerrell and the rest of the line gave Smith time to make one of his best throws of the season, a pinpoint pass with time running out in the half for a 31-yard touchdown to DK Metcalf. Had protection not held up long enough for Smith to make that downfield throw, a sack or a completion anywhere in bounds would have meant the Seahawks not getting points out of that promising drive.

"I think our guys held up well," tight end Noah Fant said when asked about the pass protection in the game. "Obviously we had a rookie in Mike Jerrell in his first start, and I was super happy and proud of him the way that he played.

"He just stayed composed. Obviously coming in as a rookie, first start, kind of getting thrown into the fire, I think he did a really good job of staying composed, staying in the right mindset, knowing that it's not going to perfect; there are going to be places we can continue to improve on. But I think he did a great job of blocking, doing his thing, and composing himself out there regardless of what was happening on the field."

With veteran tackles Jason Peters, who is on the practice squad, and George Fant, who is on injured reserve, both there to support Jerrell, he was able to stay composed throughout the game.

"He was in his element," Noah Fant said. "That was the coolest thing; he didn't any pep talk or anything like that."

George Fant and Peters were able to help Jerrell throughout and especially when things got tough at times, like when he was beat for a sack on a second-quarter drive.

"I want that play back, just because you want to leave the game perfect. I don't want nobody touching Geno," Jerrell said. "But it happens. They told me, this is the NFL, you're going to get beat. These are the best athletes in the world. Good play, bad play, go onto the next play. It happens. Once they told me that, I was all good."

Despite being a big moment in his career, Jerrell said there were "no butterflies when I went out there," and he backed that up with a solid performance, soaking in that first jog onto the field with the starting offense before getting down to business.

"When I took my first snap, it was like, 'OK, it's real,'" he said. "When they kicked it off and we got the ball, it was time—It's real, it's real, it's time to go."

And as well as that debut went for Jerrell, both in terms of his individual play and the final score, he is anything but satisfied.

"Hopefully this is the first of many," he said. "I just know I can get better from this. This ain't the ceiling, this is just the floor. I can build off of this game."