Rapid Reaction: Seahawks Overcome Special Teams Gaffes in 26-21 Win Over Jets

Fending off a comeback attempt by Aaron Rodgers late, the Seahawks extended their lead in the NFC West with a gutsy five-point win in New Jersey.

Dec 1, 2024; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; Seattle Seahawks running back Zach Charbonnet (26) carries the ball during the first half against the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images / Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

Rebounding from an early two-score lead created by self-inflicted special teams mistakes, Leonard Williams returned an interception 92 yards for a touchdown and the Seattle Seahawks scored 19 unanswered points to secure a wild 26-21 win over the New York Jets and add a game to their NFC West lead.

Playing sound football under center, Geno Smith completed 20 out of 31 passes for 206 yards and threw a touchdown pass to tight end AJ Barner while not throwing an interception, while Zach Charbonnet paced the rushing attack with 28 yards and a touchdown on just four carries. Williams produced a pair of sacks along with his pick-six and safety Julian Love forced a fumble that led to a Jason Myers field goal in another splendid performance by coach Mike Macdonald's defense.

With the Seahawks tying their longest win streak of the season thus far, here are five takeaways from an ugly thriller at MetLife Stadium:

1. The Seahawks found just enough offensive balance to scratch back to a gusty victory on the road.

Rushing for 84 yards on 22 carries, Seattle still has a ways to go to get its run game where it needs to be in order to do damage in January. But Sunday proved to be a quality stepping stone in the pursuit of a complementary ground game to pair with the passing attack, starting with a pair of seven-yard runs by Ken Walker III and Charbonnet that paved the way for Smith's play action bootleg touchdown pass to Barner early in the second quarter, cutting the deficit to 14-7 at the time. They only had 37 rushing yards at the half, but that sequence set the tone for improved results coming out of the halftime intermission as the Seahawks continued to mount a furious comeback.

Finding most of his success between the tackles on zone runs, Walker led the charge with 33 of his 49 yards coming in the final two quarters, including 21 yards on three carries on Seattle's first possession of the third quarter that unfortunately ended without any points. But Charbonnet put the exclamation mark on Seattle's remarkable rally inside five minutes to play with his bruising style, powering through and bouncing off of multiple tackles on 3rd and 1 before making his way into the end zone for an eight-yard touchdown to give his team its first lead of the afternoon. Rushing 12 times after halftime, the Seahawks averaged a healthy four yards per carry, which opened things up a bit more for Smith to help orchestrate another fourth quarter win.

2. Short yardage and goal line offense continues to be shaky at best for Ryan Grubb's unit.

Despite improved overall numbers on the ground, in regard to situational football, the Seahawks should be thanking their lucky stars that the Jets decided to shoot themselves in the foot down the stretch. When tasked with short yardage opportunities on third and fourth down, the offensive line continued to struggle generating push at the line of scrimmage when it needed to, including Walker getting stuffed three times in an eight-play span inside New York's five-yard line midway through the third quarter on a red zone trip that ended with Smith getting sacked on fourth down. Coming away with no points on that possession easily could have cost them the game.

In part due to necessity with punter Michael Dickson ailing from a back injury, Seattle had to hit the pedal to the metal aggressively going for it on fourth down in the final quarter on multiple occasions. Inside 10 minutes to play, Smith looked ready to take a snap on 4th and 6 in Seahawks territory, only for the Jets to get nailed for 12 men on the field. After the penalty, DK Metcalf was tripped up by Qwan'tez Stiggers for a pivotal defensive pass interference call, extending the drive. Moments later, instead of opting for a field goal, Charbonnet received a hand off on 4th and 1 and got stuffed at the line of scrimmage, only for Solomon Thomas to be flagged for an illegal horse collar tackle. If either of those calls isn't made, the Jets likely chew up most of the rest of the clock and the final outcome could have been much different, leaving much to be desired in terms of effectiveness in those situations for the Seahawks.

3. Williams stakes his claim as an All-Pro candidate with another utterly dominant outing at his old stomping grounds.

Playing arguably the best football of his career in Macdonald's scheme, Williams created havoc against the franchise that drafted him out of USC from the opening snap, giving the Jets' interior offensive line fits from start to finish. His first sack on the opening drive wound up not counting due to a face mask penalty, but he amended for his mistake by blocking the point after moments later. His impact in the trenches wasn't the only thing that stood out on Sunday, as he flashed rare athleticism at 300 pounds dropping back into coverage on a zone blitz and picking off Rodgers off of an initial bobble deep in Seahawks territory, showing surprising burst at his size racing down the sideline behind a caravan of blocks from Devon Witherspoon and others for a game-changing 92-yard interception return for a touchdown.

Fast forwarding to the second half, as New York tried to answer Charbonnet's touchdown in the closing moments, Williams took on the role of closer. Early in the drive, he overpowered left guard John Simpson with a ferocious bull rush, walking him back into Rodgers lap before throwing the quarterback to the ground. After the Jets somehow managed to convert a 3rd and 26 situation into a new set of downs and march into Seahawks territory, he struck again, this time crashing down on Rodgers after Boye Mafe's initial pressure for a big loss on third down. One play later, safety Coby Bryant hit the quarterback as he flung up a fourth down prayer that shot out of the back of the end zone incomplete, securing the road win.

4. Witherspoon and Seattle's cornerbacks proved up to the challenge battling Garrett Wilson and Davante Adams.

Early on, Rodgers went to work picking on Josh Jobe, who made his sixth straight start since taking over for Tre Brown alongside Witherspoon and Riq Woolen. Matched up against Adams, the veteran quarterback went to his long-time favorite target for a 24-yard completion on a corner route and then capped off the second possession beating Jobe on a quick fade route to put the Jets up 7-0 early. But the Seahawks made adjustments to help their young corners, beginning to mix in more safety help with bracket coverages that took away those bread and butter throws.

By the time the final second evaporated from the clock, Adams had been held to just five catches for 66 yards on 12 targets, while Wilson wasn't any more efficient with five catches for 41 yards on 10 targets. Woolen generated a pass breakup in on New York's opening series, while Witherspoon stuffed Xavier Gibson on a screen for a one-yard loss and then mirrored Adams with tight coverage downfield on an incompletion on the next play, showcasing his all-around skill set. Even Jobe found his groove in the second half, playing sticky coverage to force a pair of deep ball incompletions from Rodgers with little room to sneak the passes in to his receivers. Add in Woolen's fumble recovery and it was another stellar day for Macdonald's secondary group as a whole.

5. Jay Harbaugh needs to go back to the drawing board after a gut-wrenching special teams performance.

Any win is a welcome one in the NFL, but the Seahawks managed to escape with a victory in spite of one of the most atrocious special teams showings in recent memory. Gifting the Jets 14 quick points in the process, rookie Dee Williams coughed up a fumble on a kick return following New York's first touchdown and immediately following Smith's touchdown toss to Barner, the kick coverage unit allowed Kene Nwangwu to explode through a big crease for a 99-yard touchdown. The situation could have been even worse after Laviska Shenault fumbled on the ensuing kickoff and the Jets recovered, only for Williams to return his pick for six points a few plays later to negate the mistake.

On top of the major problems in the return game - Shenault bobbled another kick return in the first half to go with the two fumbles - Jason Myers had an extra point blocked after Williams' defensive touchdown. Adding injuries to the equation, Dickson's back was in such bad shape down the stretch that the Seahawks were forced to go for it on several fourth downs without the option to punt. Thanks to Williams' blocked PAT and two field goals by Myers, Harbaugh's squad salvaged things a little bit, but some lineup shakeups may need to be implemented moving forward to avoid a similar disaster down the line, particularly on kick and punt returns where Williams has consistently struggled to field the ball and maintain possession all season long.

More Seahawks News

Halftime Observations: Seahawks Trail Jets 21-16 Despite Special Teams Implosion

5 Storylines to Watch in Seahawks' Week 13 Game vs. Jets

Seahawks Look To Continue Dominance at MetLife Stadium

Seahawks' Geno Smith Reveals Mindset vs. Jets

Seahawks Announce Offensive Line Shakeup vs. Jets