No such thing as an ugly gift

Sunday’s Seahawks game brought to mind a specific expression coined by one of my college roommates.

Believe it or not, this was not my favorite malaprop of Mark’s. He once advised us, “I know this place like the back of my head,” which I found to be particularly accurate given the fact we were lost at the moment he said this.

That doesn’t apply nearly as well to Seattle’s game, however. The Seahawks did benefit from a very amateurish second-half performance from the New York Jets, but if the great proposition gambler Amarillo Slim believed that it was a sin to let a sucker keep his money, well, it would be no more virtuous to let a team like the Jets make off with a win.

Not that the Seahawks didn’t try:

They fumbled away two first-quarter kickoffs in the span of 90 seconds.

They surrendered a 99-yard kickoff return for a touchdown.

They had an extra-point attempt blocked.

They had the ball at the opponent’s 4 yard line in the second quarter, and eight players later handed it back on the 16 after a mind-numbing sack on fourth-and-goal play inside the opponent’s 1-yard line.

But give the Jets credit: As intent as the Seahawks were upon shooting themselves in the foot in the first half, New York simply had more endurance when it came to self-harm. New York committed 10 penalties in the second half, including two that nullified fourth-down stops on what turned out to be the drive for Seattle’s game-winning touchdown.

A drive that only occurred because the Seahawks punter was suffering from back spasms, leaving him unavailable for the fourth-and-6 Seattle faced from its own 33 with just over 9 minutes remaining in the game.

The Jets were so certain the Seahawks were punting their returner was on the field, drawing a penalty for 12 men in formation. That led to a fourth-and-1, which the Seahawks promptly converted thanks to a penalty for defensive pass-inteference against some guy named Stiggers who was playing his first snaps in the NFL.

Turns out the Jets were just getting warmed up.

1. The Seahawks have a a legit defense.

   With 10:34 left in the first half, the Jets had the ball at their own 44 and a 21-7 lead. Their offense had gained eight first downs in the three possessions they’d had at that point. The Jets’ next eight possessions resulted in:

   • 1 (one) INT returned for a TD

   • 1 (one) fumble

   • 2 (two) turnovers on downs

   • 3 (three) punts

   • 1 (one) drive in which time ran out in the second quarter

   It is the latest proof of a turnaround we can now put some numbers to. On Oct. 27, the Seahawks allowed Buffalo to score four touchdowns in the first 50 minutes of the game. Each of those touchdown drives spanned more than 50 yards, and two were more than 90 yards. Over the past four games, the Seahawks defense has given up a total of six touchdowns. One of those occurred in overtime, and another came Sunday after the first of Seattle’s two special-teams fumbles set the Jets up at the Seattle 27.

2. Yes, Leonard Williams was worth it.

   I’m talking about both the second-round pick that Seattle gave up to acquire him in the middle of last season as well as the contract the Seahawks ponied up to re-sign him when he became an unrestricted free agent. No one that big and strong should also be that fast and agile that he can drop into coverage, tip a pass to himself and then run 92 yards for the touchdown as he did against the Jets. That’s in addition to the 4.5 sacks he’s totaled over the last two games so while his arrival from the Giants last season might not have had the impact Seattle was hoping for, he’s showing why the Seahawks not only sought him out but then decided to keep him around.

    

3. The Jets are a totally unserious franchise at this point.

   This team feels like a remake of “Weekend at Bernie’s” except instead of a party, we’re all just watching Aaron Rodgers make a series of gestures in frustration because his teammates aren’t doing what he expects them, too, which is kind of funny because it feels like half the receivers on the roster are there because they used to catch passes from Rodgers. In the future, the Jets should probably pass the next time the Packers decide they’re going to part with a former MVP quarterback.

1. Why are the Seahawks so good at the end of halves?

   Seattle has outscored its opponents by 37 points in the final 2 minutes of halves this season. It is the largest margin of any team in the league and the reason that Seattle is in first place in its division. In fact, the Seahawks have been outscored by 24 points in the first 28 minutes of halves this season. I’m going to put a magnifying glass over this aspect of the game later this week to show exactly Seattle has managed to establish this edge. However, it remains to be seen just how sustainable that is.

2. What’s the worst thing about this Seattle team?

   Is it the short-yardage offense or is it the special teams? There are compelling arguments to be made on either side. The Seahawks have now lost three fumbles on kickoff returns this season, one on a punt return and they’ve allowed touchdowns on both a blocked field-goal attempt and a kickoff return. The offense ran eight plays inside the opponent’s 5-yard line on Sunday, and not even two penalties allowed the Seahawks to reach the end zone. Two Jet penalties nullified what would have been fourth-and-1 stops on the final drive. As bad as Seattle’s pass protection has been at times this season, the inability to get anything resembling a push up front is painfully obvious whenever it gets in scoring position.

3. Is Riq Woolen physical enough?

   As someone who types for a living, I don’t feel comfortable calling football players soft. Having watched Woolen for three years now, I do wonder whether he’s got the appetite for contact that a cornerback needs in Mike Macdonald’s defense, and there was a play on the Jets’ final drive in which safety Julian Love angrily reacted to Woolen’s less-than-ardent pursuit of a Jets player who was angling out of bounds. Woolen has great coverage skills, and there is a long list of players at that position who’ve thrived in spite of being judicious about the hits they taken and administer, but Macdonald’s defense is best with corners have to do more than cover.