GLENDALE, Ari. - Taking the shotgun snap from the Arizona Cardinals' 19-yard line, Seattle Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith glanced at his first read with receiver Tyler Lockett running a quick 10-yard curl, but opted not to unload the football.
Unlike much of this season where the signal caller hasn't been able to go through his progressions due to chronic pressure, Smith calmly stepped up in a clear pocket, shifting his attention to Jaxon Smith-Njigba. With the second-year wideout matched up against Garrett Williams, who was lined up as a two-deep high safety, he lofted a perfect strike over the top of the defender to hit his target in stride on a corner route in the end zone for six points.
As part of a 17-point first quarter avalanche, Smith's touchdown pass to Smith-Njigba helped catapult Seattle past Arizona early at State Farm Stadium on Sunday, completing the season sweep in a 30-18 victory that fortified the team's lead in the NFC West. And, in an unexpected development, a maligned offensive line received much deserved roses for their efforts to secure a fourth consecutive victory.
“I thought they played phenomenal," Smith said of Seattle's offensive line after the game. "The way they played, we can win every game we play, I think our offensive line is only getting better. We have some young guys out there who are stepping in and stepping up. ... They've got to keep it up. They set the standard, so they've got to keep it up.”
Prior to Sunday's rematch in the desert, Smith had been sacked at least once in every one of Seattle's first 12 games, including five times against Arizona only two weeks earlier. Dealing with injuries to tackles Abraham Lucas and George Fant along with the unexpected midseason retirement of center Connor Williams, the offensive line had struggled mightily to the protect the quarterback, ranking 23rd in Pro Football Focus' pass blocking grade and 24th in ESPN's Pass Block Win rate.
Additionally, the Seahawks came into Week 14 with one of the NFL's worst rushing attacks, ranking 28th out of 32 teams in rushing yards per game (88.7) and 29th in yards per attempt (3.9), another biproduct of a subpar offensive line play.
But on the road for a pivotal divisional battle with major playoff implications, Seattle's offensive line easily turned in its best outing of the season thus far, starting with success creating push at the line of scrimmage in the run game. Getting off to a quick start, second-year back Zach Charbonnet rushed for 31 yards and a touchdown in the first quarter before following the pulling blocks of Lucas and rookie guard Sataoa Laumea on a counter trey to explode for a 51-yard touchdown run.
Along with Charbonnet setting a career-high with 134 rushing yards behind a mauling offensive line, Kenny McIntosh also got into the action to help offset the absence of injured starter Ken Walker III, rushing seven times for 38 yards and north of five yards per carry.
As for the aforementioned pass protection woes, Smith had to be taken aback by the extraordinary amount of time he consistently had to work with in the pocket and scroll through his progressions. Generating only two quarterback hits and no sacks on the afternoon, per ESPN Research, the Cardinals mustered just a 17 percent pressure rate, the lowest rate the quarterback has faced as a starter for the Seahawks since replacing Russell Wilson in 2022.
Making the most of his pristine protection and a strong game plan implemented by offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb, Smith turned in one of his most efficient performances under center for Seattle, completing 80 percent of his 30 pass attempts for 233 yards and a touchdown. Most importantly, for a second straight week, he didn't throw an interception or commit a turnover after having at least one turnover in each of the first 11 games.
"Anytime you get to sit back there as a quarterback and not get touched, it allows you to go through those reads and your clock is a little bit slower because you know those guys are going to hold up," Smith remarked. "I thought Grubb called a great game, but I thought the line powered us through this game and we’re going to need them down the stretch.”
What's behind the improving play up front for Seattle? For one, the return of a healthy Lucas has been a major game changer on the right side, and he seems to be getting his legs more and more underneath him and playing with greater confidence with each passing start after missing the first 10 weeks recovering from offseason knee surgery.
The Seahawks have also benefited from stellar play from two youngsters thrust into the starting lineup for different reasons. In the aftermath of Williams' sudden retirement coming out of the Week 10 bye, Olu Oluwatimi has stepped in without a hitch as the lead communicator for the line, while rookie Sataoa Laumea has flashed in his first two NFL starts replacing an injured Anthony Bradford, including dishing out a pancake on Charbonnet's 51-yard touchdown on Sunday.
Playing the same starting lineup two games in a row, which hasn't happened often over the course of this season, Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald can see the continuity leading to rapidly developing chemistry and ultimately better results from the group as a whole.
“It's great to go two games in a row with the same five guys. Anytime you have continuity and you can stack reps, that's important," Macdonald said. "Now sometimes you have to make necessary adjustments or guys go down and guys have to step, which has happened throughout the season, but it's been great to get two weeks in a row where the same five guys are out there and they can build off of these performances.”
As Smith and Macdonald both attested, one game doesn't make a season, and while Seattle should be excited about how the offensive line played in a hostile road environment with a playoff atmosphere, consistency remains the biggest question mark. Can a young line with two new starters since midseason build off of Sunday's performance and continue to get better? Or will it be viewed as a mirage down the line?
Ultimately, the answers to those questions won't be discovered until the games play out between the lines over the next four weeks, and Lucas, Laumea, and the rest of the line will have several stiff tests awaiting to continue to prove themselves. Among the difficult opponents remaining on the schedule, the Seahawks have back-to-back home dates with the Packers and Vikings, who each have quality defensive lines, as well as a looming rematch with the Rams in Week 18, so it won't be easy sledding.
But in contrast to the first three months of the season, after six quarters of steadily improving play at the line of scrimmage both in pass protection and the run game against the Jets and Cardinals, the Seahawks actually have tangible evidence that the offensive line has finally started to turn the corner. As the playoff race keeps heating up, Macdonald hopes the recent breakthrough is just beginning and the group will only elevate their play further in coming weeks.
"Hats off to the offensive line, I thought they blocked their tails off. I think what you're seeing is just continual progress on all of our processes and our guys getting on the same page. This is something that we need to build off of moving forward, but the guys did a great job.”
