Takeaways from Seattle Seahawks 24-3 victory over Dolphins
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - SEPTEMBER 22: Skylar Thompson #19 of the Miami Dolphins is tackled by Derick Hall #58 of the Seattle Seahawks during the second quarter at Lumen Field on September 22, 2024 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Rio Giancarlo/Getty I (Rio Giancarlo / Getty Images)
SEATTLE - For the eighth time in franchise history, the Seattle Seahawks have opened a season with a 3-0 record following a 24-3 victory over a very limited Miami Dolphins team on Sunday afternoon.
With the win, Mike Macdonald became the first coach in franchise history to win his first three games at the helm of the team. And it's good news for Seattle as the team has made the playoffs each of the last five times they've begun a season 3-0, which includes the 2013 season that culminated in the only Super Bowl victory in franchise history.
There's still over 80 percent of the season left, so it's far from a guarantee. However, Seattle finds itself with a two-game lead in the NFC West with a strong test on tap next week on the road against the Detroit Lions on Monday Night Football.
The Seahawks jumped out to an early lead with 17 points in the first quarter, but were unable to truly put the game away until late in the fourth quarter. A strong defensive performance kept a Miami offense that didn't have quarterback Tua Tagovailoa from accomplishing much of anything. Skylar Thompson managed just 109 yards on 19 attempts before he left with a chest injury in the second half. Third-string quarterback Tim Boyle didn't find much success either as the Dolphins were unable to crack the end zone.
Strong skill position talent in Tyreek Hill, Jaylen Waddle and Devon Achane just couldn't get unleashed due to the deficiencies at quarterback. But all the Seahawks could do was handle the team in front of them, and they managed to do that quite well.=
Zach Charbonnet had 91 yards and two touchdowns on 18 carries as the running game bounced back from last week's struggles in New England. Charbonnet now has four total touchdowns in three games, including two starts in place of an injured Ken Walker III. Charbonnet's second touchdown capped an 11-play, 98-yard drive that served as the finishing blow for Seattle.
DK Metcalf's 71-yard touchdown on the final play of the first quarter was the highlight play of the day.
Here are the takeaways from the victory over Miami:
– Defense continues to show its high-ceiling potential in shutting down the Dolphins.
As noted earlier, the Dolphins playing a pair of backup quarterbacks instead of Tua Tagovailoa made their task far less treacherous.
But the Seahawks had some reserves in the lineup themselves and still played a really strong game against Miami.
Derick Hall had two sacks as part of five tackles in total on the day in his first start in the NFL.
"Derick played a tremendous game," Macdonald said. "… This is the type of player that you envision. He's a physical guy that can set the edge and drop when necessary. He's just playing at a high level right now, so we're excited about Derick."
Hall said his mental game has made a leap, which has allowed him to be more productive this year. He had no sacks last year during his rookie season and has three now in Seattle's last two games.
"I think the biggest thing was, the speed of the game wasn’t that big of a deal, but really understanding the game," Hall said. "Coming from college I thought I was a really smart guy, but you don’t have all the shifts and motions and different things that you have now. Just learning personnel and different guys and different things that are put in place and being successful on those plays, and picking up on those, and going out there every single week and trying to hone in on that. Little tips and tendencies to go out and be successful. I feel like that’s the biggest difference."
Defensive end Leonard Williams left the game early with a rib injury, and Byron Murphy II exited with a hamstring strain midway through the second quarter. Tyrice Knight was already starting in place of an injured Jerome Baker at linebacker as well.
Additionally, linebackers Drake Thomas and Tyus Bowser, and safety Coby Bryant, all saw defensive snaps as Seattle's depth made plays throughout the game.
"That's the expectation," Macdonald said. "You just go down the line. The guys are suited up, you know, that's how we expect our defense to play. It's kind of like, okay, they're down, next guy is rolling. Let's go back to work."
The defense twice had to defend short fields after Geno Smith interceptions. Depite beginning a drive on Seattle's 6-yard line after the first interception, the Seahawks held for a field goal that served as the only points of the game for Miami. After the second interception, the Dolphins drove all the way to Seattle's 2-yard line only to turn the ball over on downs.
"Good defenses have a mindset to go out there and you want to be tough for your group," safety Julian Love said. "We go out there and take it as a challenge. I know guys were excited for the opportunity to show what we could do in the red zone."
Miami finished the game just 1-of-12 on third down and with 205 yards of total offense. De'Von Achane was held to just 30 yards on 11 carries as the leading rusher, and Tyreek Hill finished with just three catches for 40 yards.
– Seahawks have an Anthony Bradford problem.
Offensive line struggles have been constant through three games with the Seahawks this season, but no player is more at fault than right guard Anthony Bradford.
In addition to poor play, Bradford has been called for six penalties in three games – two each week. Bradford had a holding penalty that ultimately thwarted a Seattle drive in the second quarter as Jason Myers missed a 53-yard field goal try after the penalty. He also had a false start penalty as well.
Then, when it comes to the on-field performance, that was a problem as well. Bradford was cleanly beaten by Da'Shawn Hand for a sack of Geno Smith on the opening drive of the game. Calais Campbell forced his way through Bradford for a sack of Smith in the third quarter, and swatted Bradford out of the way to deflect a Smith pass that was intercepted by Zach Sieler late in the third quarter as well.
Rookie Christian Haynes has played only sparingly at right guard with Bradford continuing to get the large majority of snaps through three games. Given that utilization, the coaching staff clearly feels that Haynes isn't ready to be given a longer look at the spot given the obvious struggles by Bradford.
"Just felt like throughout the week A.B. really earned all those opportunities," Macdonald said of Bradford. "It's kind of week-to-week thing right now. We'll see. We'll look at the tape. There was a holding penalty that A.B. had. I don't want to speak to how well he played because I don't know for sure right now. "
Another potential option to try out would be McClendon Curtis. However, Curtis has been on standby as the backup tackle with Abe Lucas (PUP) and George Fant (injured reserve) unavailable. Curtis has been active as the backup tackle the last two weeks with rookie Mike Jerrell not entrusted with that role just yet either.
Bradford hasn't been the only issue the offensive line is facing, but he's clearly been the most glaring.
– Self-inflicted mistakes keep the offense from putting the game away earlier.
The Seahawks gained 370 yards overall and did more than enough to win Sunday's game. However, the performance was pretty scattered as mistakes thwarted several opportunities.
After taking a 17-3 lead at the end of the first quarter, the next two quarters consisted of four punts, a missed field goal, and Geno Smith's second interception.
"We scored 17 points right there in the first quarter. We came out great," Smith said. "And then for some reason we just couldn't get over that hump and I kept trying to push the guys like ‘hey man, we’ve got to put our foot on the gas. We've got to score more points.' And I'm right at the forefront of that."
Holding penalties on Bradford, Connor Williams and Pharaoh Brown helped nuke multiple drives. Several sacks allowed and an intentional grounding on Smith sank more drives, and Smith's interception served as errors that kept Miami theoretically within reach.
"I think that's where we've got to take the next step is where we're up three scores or two scores, let's keep pushing the lead," Smith said.
"The way (the defense is) playing is lights out, man. It's going to give us a chance to win every single game we play. As an offense, we left a lot out there. And I'm going to be honest with you, I'm really pissed off at the way I performed. I think we got to get better."
Macdonald wasn't nearly as sour on Smith's performance. He had 289 yards on the day, completing 26-of-34 passes with a touchdown and two interceptions.
"I thought he played pretty dang well," Macdonald said. "You know, again, he's poised. There are some things that weren't going our way offensively. He just brings everybody along with him. I think like the drive at the end kind of speaks to our mentality offensively. Wasn't our greatest day, but operating for the most part I thought we did a great job. Getting in and out of the tempo stuff, and, yeah, I thought he played really well."
Charbonnet was the star of the final drive, but Smith had a couple key completions to help keep the driving moving nicely as well.
"That was kind of our moment right there to be able to close the gate and go put seven (on the board). Just be on the attack right there. I think we did a great job," Charbonnet said.
The Seahawks haven't played their best football just yet. Their first three opponents don't seem to be the best the league has to offer and Seattle did what they needed to win each game. It's much better than trying to learn lessons in losses.
The tests will get more difficult in the coming weeks, but the Seahawks have a bit of a cushion in the standings to play with now.
"I think we're right where we're supposed to be," Smith said. "We're won three games, we've had our ups and downs, we've had our great moments and we've had our not so great moments, and I think that's a good sign for us because I know that we're going to put it together and start clicking here soon."