Rapid Reaction: Seattle Seahawks Outlast New England Patriots, Snag 23-20 Overtime Victory

Despite a second half scoring drought and struggles slowing down the run after the half, the Seahawks persevered for a hard-fought overtime win.

Sep 15, 2024; Foxborough, Massachusetts, USA; New England Patriots running back Rhamondre Stevenson (38) runs the ball against the Seattle Seahawks in the second quarter at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-Imagn Images / David Butler II-Imagn Images

Surviving a physical brawl in their first road test, the Seattle Seahawks overcame a second half offensive swoon to rally for a 23-20 overtime victory over the New England Patriots on Sunday, moving into first place in the NFC West.

Turning in one of his finest efforts, Geno Smith threw for 324 yards and a touchdown, orchestrating his ninth game-winning drive in the past two seasons in the extra period. DK Metcalf and Jaxon Smith-Njigba both eclipsed the 100-yard mark, while Zach Charbonnet added a short rushing touchdown and 31 receiving yards.

On defense, Boye Mafe produced his second sack in as many weeks and Leonard Williams dominated in the trenches, posting 1.5 sacks and four quarterback hits to pace the Seahawks defense. On the back end, Julian Love recorded seven tackles and a pass breakup along with a blocked field goal on special teams.

Improving to 2-0 in the Mike Macdonald era, here are five quick takeaways from Seattle's overtime win in Foxboro:

1. Pressure be damned, Geno Smith plays efficient football with masterful pocket work.

Playing behind an offensive line down to their third-string right tackle, Smith went down on a sack on the opening drive, suggesting it would be a long afternoon for the veteran quarterback. However, thanks in part to play calling and excellent pocket presence, he was able to overcome leaky pass protection for most of the afternoon, launching a 58-yard touchdown pass to a wide open DK Metcalf and completing nearly 85 percent of his pass attempts in the first half. On several occasions, he extended plays by moving the pocket, including a missile over the middle to Jaxon Smith-Njigba in the second quarter where he slid to his left before unloading the 24-yard completion.

In the second half, Smith's completion rate dipped by nearly 10 percent, but it wasn't the quarterback's fault. On back to back passes in the third quarter, he had well thrown balls to Metcalf and tight end Noah Fant slip through the receiver's fingers for incompletions, leading to a Michael Dickson punt. Then in the fourth quarter, facing a long second down after a holding penalty by tight end AJ Barner, he dropped a perfect back shoulder throw to Smith-Njigba along the sideline that would have been a first down, only for the wideout to bobble the pass out of his hands.

But Smith rebounded nicely late in regulation, completing throws to Fant and Metcalf to set up a 38-yard field goal by Jason Myers. After the Patriots went three-and-out to open overtime, the veteran signal caller finished the opposition off with first down throws to Metcalf and Lockett, who also drew a 20-yard pass interference penalty to aid the drive, allowing Myers to come on and win the game.

2. Winning in spite of them, both guard spots remain areas of concern across the board.

Subbing in for Fant and making his ninth start in the past two seasons, Stone Forsythe held up fairly well in pass protection, keeping Smith clean for the most part while dealing with the Patriots edge rushers. Unfortunately for the Seahawks, however, playing a third-string tackle wasn't the issue up front, as lingering problems at each guard spot continue to hold back the offense both in the pass and run game. Throughout the afternoon, Zach Charbonnet found himself getting blasted early due to missed blocks in the interior from Anthony Bradford, Laken Tomlinson, and even rookie Christian Haynes, who rotated in for a few series on the right side. Both guards failed to execute their blocks on a key 4th and 1 conversion attempt in the third quarter as well, leading to Charbonnet getting stuffed at the line.

Pass protection wasn't any better, as Tomlinson got beat badly on the opening possession to lead to a quick sack on Smith. The Patriots wound up getting seven hits and three sacks on Smith in regulation, with much of that pressure coming through the middle with the guards and center Connor Williams unable to prevent the front line from collapsing the pocket. Penalties also were an issue as Bradford drew a costly unnecessary roughness call as well as a holding flag that set back drives in the second half. Moving towards a tough matchup with the Dolphins next weekend, offensive line coach Scott Huff may have to explore mixing things up after two rough performances from the guard group.

3. Troubles covering tight ends continue under a new coaching staff with new scheme.

Throughout the Pete Carroll era, even when the Seahawks had dominant defenses anchored by the "Legion of Boom," the team consistently had problems covering tight ends, especially veteran ones like Hunter Henry. While there have been some refreshing changes for this new incarnation of Seahawks on defense under the tutelage of Mike Macdonald, as Sunday proved, that issue hasn't gone away even with wholesale changes on the sidelines and a new defensive scheme.

After New England punted on its opening series, Jacoby Brissett leaned heavily on Henry, connecting with him three times for 37 yards on the second possession with two of those completions moving the chains on third down to set up a touchdown pass to Ja'Lynn Polk. Scoring two field goals in the second quarter, the reliable tight end continued to star, including breaking free for a 35-yard gain on a tight end screen late in the half to finish just a yard shy of 100 yards in the first 30 minutes. Thankfully for Macdonald and company, they buttoned things up in coverage after the half, limiting Henry to one catch for 10 yards, though it did aid a touchdown drive early in the fourth quarter to put the Patriots back in front 20-17

4. After a strong start, old cracks in Seattle’s run defense started to show down the half.

Coming off a game where they rushed for 170 yards against the Bengals, the Patriots came out throwing a bit more with Brissett in the first half, but they still tried to establish Rhamondre Stevenson and Antonio Gibson out of the gate with minimal success. For a half and change, the Seahawks answered the call, limiting Stevenson to 25 yards on nine carries and holding the Patriots to just 57 total rushing yards and 3.6 yards per carry in the first half.

But after intermission, New England got back to its bread and butter, seizing the opportunity to bully as fatiguing Seattle defense as the second half unfolded. After a pair of three and outs, offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt went back to heavy personnel groupings with an extra lineman on the field leaned on Stevenson and Gibson, who fueled an 11-play, 66-yard touchdown drive primarily orchestrated on the ground. After Stevenson cashed in on a wild cat run for six points, Gibson somehow evaded Boye Mafe several yards in the backfield on a pitch play and took off for a 45-yard run, only for the Seahawks to block a field goal on that same drive.

Overall, the Patriots ran the ball 36 times for 185 yards, averaging north of five yards per carry against the Seahawks physically overwhelmed defense. But Macdonald's crew did show resolve in overtime, stuffing Stevenson on a 3rd and 1 carry to force New England to punt and setting the stage for Smith to orchestrate yet another game winning drive.

5. Special teams stands tall with the game on the line, ultimately winning the game for the 'Hawks.

In a game with a razor-thin margin for error, the Seahawks made key plays when they needed to on special teams in the second half and overtime. After the Patriots had driven 50 yards on eight plays, primarily aided by Gibson's 45-yard run, a split sack by Leonard Williams and Byron Murphy II pushed the home team back nine yards, setting up a longer field goal for Slye. Crashing off the edge from the right side, safety Julian Love shot into the backfield and blocked the ensuing 48-yard kick, sending New England to the bench with no points. Moments later, Myers delivered on a 38-yard field goal to send the game to extra time, and the kicker came through again splitting the uprights from 31 yards out in overtime to send Seattle to a second straight win.

Looking at the game as a whole, the Seahawks played near-flawless ball on special teams for five quarters. Rookie Dee Williams produced an impressive 23-yard punt return in the final two minutes of the first half to propel Smith and company to a quick field goal drive to go into the break up four, while punter Michael Dickson also pinned the Patriots inside their own 10-yard line once and averaged 53.8 yards per punt. Making major strides from a shaky opener, coordinator Jay Harbaugh has to be pleased with the progress from his group in the third phase of the game.