Halftime Observations: Seahawks Undone By Offensive Miscues, Trail 14-3 to Bills

The Seahawks rebounded from two ugly drives to start the game on offense, but horrific red zone play doomed them as they scored just three points.

Oct 27, 2024; Seattle, Washington, USA; Seattle Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith (7) passes against the Buffalo Bills during the first quarter at Lumen Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images / Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images

Partaking in a Week 8 comedy of errors inside the opposing 10-yard line, the Seattle Seahawks turned two promising red zone trips into just three points as they went into halftime trailing the Buffalo Bills 14-3 at Lumen Field.

Following two ugly possessions that resulted in a three-and-out, Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith found his rhythm on the team's third drive to open the second quarter, completing all nine of his pass attempts for 94 yards. At one point, he completed five straight passes that resulted in first downs, advancing the offense all the way down to the Bills two-yard line with first and goal, looking poised to tie the game up.

But after Ken Walker III got stuffed on a first down run for a one-yard loss, center Connor Williams uncorked a horribly errant snap that sailed over Smith's head, leading to a 19-yard loss. The disastrous snap wiped a potential touchdown off the board and Seattle had to settle for a 38-yard field goal by Jason Myers to cut the deficit to 7-3.

Moments later, cornerback Josh Jobe read Bills quarterback Josh Allen like a book on a quick slant to Amari Cooper, jumping the route and intercepting the pass before returning it to Buffalo seven-yard line. Set up with incredible field position, the Seahawks failed to capitalize on the gifted opportunity, however, as Smith tripped up over guard Anthony Bradford's leg immediately after taking an under center snap on fourth and goal from Williams, who was immediately knocked backward.

Smith wound up falling for a six-yard loss and Seattle went to the sideline empty handed, somehow failing to score any points after opening the possession inside Buffalo's 10-yard line and perfectly befitting a half choked full of mental and physical errors.

Aside from the Seahawks botching two excellent scoring opportunities on offense, coach Mike Macdonald's defense wasn't omitted from the slop fest either.

Following Smith's unfortunate trip at the goal line, the Bills marched 93 yards on 12 plays with Allen connecting with tight end Dalton Kincaid for a 12-yard touchdown to increase the lead to 11 points. But that play wouldn't have happened if not for a boneheaded mistake by outside linebacker Derick Hall, who blasted Allen on a 3rd and 7 play well after he had unloaded a pass, negating an illegal shit penalty on Buffalo and extending the drive with an automatic first down.

Only two plays later, doing something the Seahawks couldn't do on offense themselves, Allen took advantage of the gift from Hall by moving around the pocket to buy time before firing a dart to Kincaid for six points, increasing the Bills' lead with just 18 seconds left to play in the half.

On Buffalo's opening drive that ended with an Allen touchdown pass to rookie receiver Keon Coleman, Seattle also extended the drive with a penalty as a strip sack by Boye Mafe was wiped out by illegal contact from Devon Witherspoon in the secondary. Overall, the Seahawks were penalized four times for 26 yards, and even though the Bills were flagged more often, their penalties proved far more costly as they fell behind double digits in the first two quarters.