National Football League

NFC West Stock Watch: How Seahawks QB Geno Smith bounced back in win over Lions

Updated Sep. 20, 2023 1:23 p.m. ET

After a rough outing in Week 1 — a disappointing loss at home to the Los Angeles Rams — Seattle Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith rebounded in leading Seattle to an overtime victory on the road against the Detroit Lions on Sunday.

The Seahawks played in front of a raucous Detroit crowd rooting for a team that had won nine of its past 11 games entering last week's contest. Plus, due to injury, Seattle was playing without its two starting offensive tackles — Charles Cross (toe) and Abe Lucas (knee) — but Smith focused on getting the ball out quickly and taking care of the football.

He finished 32-of-41 for 328 yards, with two touchdown passes and no interceptions for a 116.3 passer rating. He completed passes to nine different receivers and was sacked just once behind a makeshift offensive line.

"We know who we are as a team," Smith said after the game. "We were looking forward to this opportunity. It's hard to win in this league, and sometimes you're going to lose. Last week was last week, and we've got to put this game behind us real soon and get ready for our next opponent."

Smith's big day also included an odd play in the second half where he was flagged for intentional grounding when Tyler Lockett converted a go route into a stop route and the veteran cornerback threw the fade.

While announcing the penalty, the official offered a few words to Smith as he argued the call: "I'm talking to America here, excuse me."

According to Next Gen Stats, Smith was 13-of-20 for 103 yards with a touchdown and just five quarterback pressures (25%) when either Cross or Lucas was in the game in the Week 1 loss against the Rams. However, with both tackles out against L.A., Smith was 3-of-6 for nine yards, with four quarterback pressures (50%) and two sacks.

With both starting tackles out vs. Detroit, Seahawks offensive coordinator Shane Waldron adjusted his scheme by using the quick game and play-action passing.

David Helman reacts to Geno Smith, Seahawks' gritty win over Lions

According to Next Gen Stats, 38.5% of Smith's passes against Detroit took 2.5 seconds or less to throw, and 53.8% of his passes traveled 10 yards or fewer in the air. Smith finished 12-of-15 for 161 yards and a touchdown on play-action passes, per Next Gen Stats.

"You saw us move the football all around with the quarterback and the actions and stuff," coach Pete Carroll told reporters this week. "I just thought they took advantage of the stuff that made it a game that we could really be highly productive."

On the final possession of the game, Smith finished 6-of-7 for 67 yards on a well-executed, 75-yard scoring drive. Smith found Lockett for the game winner on an out route, scrambling right to find the veteran receiver as he dove to the pylon for the score.

Afterward, Seahawks defensive back Jerrick Reed II trolled Detroit fans by wearing a blue ski mask during his team's locker room celebration.

"It was a classic drive," Carroll said. "Beautiful execution, timing was great, total confidence, didn't waver. We were talking about it going into OT, laughing about it, [saying], ‘Here comes our chance' on the sidelines. He was very much in the moment.

"I hope we just take the next step, come back next week, and get a good, solid game again, and start stacking them. He's shown us that."

Smith's bounce-back performance leads this week's NFC West stock watch.

RISING

Geno Smith, Seahawks

While the West Virginia product heated up the passing game, the Seahawks have yet to get the ground game going to balance things out on offense. Carroll wants to run the football, but through two games, Seattle is averaging just 83.5 rushing yards a contest, No. 26 in the NFL.

Ken Walker III, who finished with 1,050 yards his rookie season, is averaging just 3.7 a carry through two games.

Fred Warner, 49ers

San Francisco struggled to generate pressure against Rams QB Matthew Stafford early on Sunday. In the second half, however, defensive coordinator Steve Wilks blitzed more with Warner, generating a sack and six quarterback hits. That pressure also led to two game-changing interceptions to help the 49ers earn an important road win.

Warner served as the catalyst for San Francisco's defense, finishing with 11 tackles, a sack and a pass breakup.

David Helman, Kevin Kugler, Mark Sanchez react to Rams vs. 49ers

Kyren Williams, Rams

One of the reasons coach Sean McVay is ready to move on from Cam Akers has been the play of the Notre Dame product. Williams finished with 100 scrimmage yards and two scores in his team's loss to San Francisco last week.

Williams has been more decisive as a runner this season, is good catching the ball out of the backfield and has improved as a pass blocker. However, Williams did have a dropped pass that led to an interception for San Francisco.

FALLING

Jonathan Gannon, Cardinals

The new head coach is trying to build a winning culture in Arizona but experiencing some growing pains with close losses in the first two weeks of the season.

Gannon rightly shouldered the blame after his team failed to hold onto a 28-7 lead in the third quarter, losing at home to the New York Giants 31-28. "Exactly what we couldn't do to lose that game coming out of halftime we did," Gannon told reporters. "And when that is the case, that's on me explicitly."

The road doesn't get any easier for the 0-2 Cardinals as they host the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday.

Van Jefferson, Rams

While rookie receiver Puka Nacua has been on a historic run to start the season, Jefferson has struggled to find a role in the offense with Cooper Kupp out.

The Florida product has just five receptions for 33 receiving yards in two games, including two drops.

"He can play better than what he has these first couple games," McVay said. "I know he has it in him."

Jefferson is still just a year removed from two surgeries to fix a lingering knee issue, so perhaps that is affecting his confidence early in the season. The 27-year-old receiver is in the final year of his rookie contract.

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Jason Myers, Seahawks

Myers has been Mr. Reliable since joining Seattle in 2019. However, he had two uncharacteristic misses, from 45 and 56 yards, on Sunday in Detroit. Myers is 3-of-6 on field goals this season.

Still, since the start of the 2022 season, Myers has made 86% of his field goals, including 6-of-7 from beyond 50 yards.

Eric D. Williams has reported on the NFL for more than a decade, covering the Los Angeles Rams for Sports Illustrated, the Los Angeles Chargers for ESPN and the Seattle Seahawks for the Tacoma News Tribune. Follow him on Twitter at @eric_d_williams.

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