Seahawks vs Cardinals: 5 takeaways from a painful loss

For the 3rd time in the last 5 games, the Seattle Seahawks laid an egg. The offense showed up late, and the defense left early in painful loss to the Cardinals.

The Seattle Seahawks confirmed what many of have suspected for months. This is a talented team, but their flaws are too big to overcome right now. They’re a good team, but it is too easy to take advantage of their weaknesses.

Seattle came into today’s game knowing that a win would make getting a first-round bye in the playoff almost a certainty. They were at home, against a team with 8 losses already and a banged up secondary. And yet the Seahawks lost 34-31 to the Arizona Cardinals.

The entire game was a disappointment. Even when it looked like Seattle might steal a win they didn’t deserve at the end, they came up short. The Seahawks decided that we weren’t going to be given what we all wanted for Christmas this season.

Let’s just straight into my 5 takeaways from this painful loss:

Dec 24, 2016; Seattle, WA, USA; Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson (3) talks with wide receiver Tyler Lockett (16) after Lockett suffered a leg injury during the second quarter against the Arizona Cardinals at CenturyLink Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports

Get well soon Tyler

Late in the first half, Wilson hit Tyler Lockett for what appeared to be a 28 yard touchdown pass. Lockett laid in the end zone, holding the football, and didn’t get up.

On replay, it was clear that Lockett suffered a gruesome broken leg. He’ll need surgery, and his recovery will be in the 6-8 month range.

The Seahawks are a lesser team without Lockett. He’s the most physically gifted WR on the team. He does everything right, including all the little things like blocking downfield.

You’ll be missed in Seattle Tyler. Please get well soon.

Dec 24, 2016; Seattle, WA, USA; Arizona Cardinals outside linebacker Chandler Jones (55) and outside linebacker Markus Golden (44) sack Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson (3) during the first quarter at CenturyLink Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports

The offensive line is trash

The Seahawks are young on the offensive line. Young, but talented. Everyone expected there to be growing pains this season, but they were supposed to gel like last season and help the team make a run at another Super Bowl.

It hasn’t happened. Instead, the opposite has happened. The line has regressed.

At times, the trio of Glowinski, Britt, and Ifedi looked like they were going to be a strength for the Seahawks. For the last month, Glow and Ifedi have been terrible. The guys who were supposed to be good have been two of the worst players at their positions in the entire NFL.

George Fant can’t handle a speed rush. Gary Gilliam can’t run block. The guards miss more blocks than they make.

This line has regressed. It was bad to begin with and it has gotten worse.

Dec 24, 2016; Seattle, WA, USA; Arizona Cardinals running back David Johnson (31) rushes for a touchdown against Seattle Seahawks free safety Steven Terrell (23) during the first quarter at CenturyLink Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports

Defense fell apart in the 2nd half

Seattle’s offense did nothing in the first half, but the defense kept them in the game. The offense woke up somewhat after halftime, but the defense laid an egg.

Steven Terrell gave up two long passes in the middle of the field that led to 14 points. The pass rush disappeared. Ultimately, the game was lost because the Cardinals scored 20 points in the fourth quarter.

The defense finally got a stop with a little over 2 minutes to go to give the Seahawks a chance to win, but the damage had already been done. The long touchdowns to Baldwin and Graham turned out not to be enough. The TD to Richardson tied it, but the defense couldn’t make it last. Less than a minute later, Arizona kicked the game-winner.

The Seattle offense isn’t good enough to overcome this kind of effort by the defense. A good offense is going have a tough time winning when the defense gives up 34. Too many mistakes and a sub-par effort all around is simply going to get it done.

Dec 24, 2016; Seattle, WA, USA; Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson (3) passes the ball against the Arizona Cardinals during the first quarter at CenturyLink Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports

Russell Wilson found his mojo again

The first half for Russell Wilson looked much like the last 3 games. He was 8 of 16 passing. He was sacked 5 times, and hit 10 times. The offense did nothing of significance, other than fail to punch the ball into the endzone on 7 tries from inside the 9 yard line.

The second half was a completely different story. After struggling with his accuracy again in the 1st half, Wilson settled in and started picking apart the Arizona defense.

Wilson’s final stat line was fairly amazing. He was 29 of 45 for 350 yard and 4 touchdowns. Wilson threw the Seahawks back into this game, matching the Cardinals drive for drive and point for point.

Wilson even got the read-option game working. With no holes being opened by the line for Thomas Rawls and Alex Collins, it was up to Wilson to create some balance for the offense. Wilson rushed 10 times for 36 yards despite some terrible blocking.

If Wilson can play like he did in the second half once the playoff start, the Seahawks can make some noise. If he plays like he did in the first half, it’ll be a quick playoff exit for the Seahawks.

Dec 24, 2016; Seattle, WA, USA; Arizona Cardinals wide receiver J.J. Nelson (14) catches an 80-yard touchdown pass against the Seattle Seahawks during the second quarter at CenturyLink Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports

This isn’t a Super Bowl team

The Seahawks have a ton of talent. This team isn’t all that different from the one that made it to the Super Bowl 2 seasons ago, and went into the playoffs as a dominant team a year ago.

Ultimately though, this team just isn’t as good. The defense doesn’t get consistent pressure on the QB quite often enough enough. They miss Earl Thomas too much in the center of field.

Plus, the offense is completely broken. They can’t run the ball. That can’t protect Russell Wilson. All that talent on the outside doesn’t matter if they cannot get them to the ball.

The Seahawks need to overhaul the offense. The offensive line needs multiple upgrades. Cable needs to go. If an upgrade on Bevell can be found, then that move needs to be made as well.

Even with all the injuries, the defense is capable of being championship caliber. It isn’t as dominant as it was when everyone was healthy, but it is still good. The offense is holding this team back, and changes need to be made.

Ultimately, it’ll be the offense that ends Seattle’s playoff run early this year. There is no way this group of guys can do enough to win 4 straight in the playoffs, with 3 of those game likely on the road.