National Football League

Seahawks doomed by defensive miscues, fourth-quarter heartache in loss to Cowboys

Updated Dec. 2, 2023 1:42 a.m. ET

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Eric Williams

NFC West Writer

In a game with no punts and 257 combined penalty yards, the Seattle Seahawks finally clicked on offense.

Until the fourth quarter.

That's when the Dallas Cowboys stopped Seattle on fourth down on three straight drives, winning a tight game, 41-35 at AT&T Stadium on Thursday night.

For the first time in Seahawks history, a Pete Carroll-led team scored at least 35 points and lost. The Seahawks are now 36-1 in those situations.

If you're looking for moral victories and glass half-full analysis, Seattle's offense awakened from a two-game slumber. 

Entering Sunday's contest, the Seahawks had scored just one touchdown in two games and went 20 possessions without reaching the end zone. But against Dallas, Seattle scored touchdowns on four of the team's first five drives. 

Geno Smith had one of his best games of the season. He finished 23-for-41 for 334 passing yards, with three touchdown passes and one interception. Smith was sacked only once despite persistent pressure and posted a 97.1 passer rating.

It's no coincidence Smith's ascension coincided with the return of right tackle Abe Lucas from a knee injury that sidelined the Washington State product for 10 games. The Seahawks had four of five starters along the offensive line available for the first time since the start of the regular season. 

How the Cowboys held off the Seahawks

Smith's favorite target was DK Metcalf. The Ole Miss product had his best game of the season, finishing with six catches for 134 yards and three scores. Rookie Jackson Smith-Njigba added seven catches for 62 yards.

The Seahawks went after second-year cornerback Daron Bland, with mostly good results. According to Next Gen Stats, Bland allowed 10 receptions for 184 yards and three touchdowns as the nearest defender. However, Bland did haul in his league-leading eighth interception when he undercut an out route intended for Tyler Lockett late in the third quarter.

While Seattle's offense clicked for three quarters, the Seahawks struggled to move the chains when the game mattered most in the fourth quarter. The last three drives stalled near midfield for Seattle and ended with the Seahawks turning the ball over on downs.

On the final drive, the Seahawks had three chances to get two yards but attempted three passes. That included bad play design on fourth-and-2 from the 50-yard line, when Dallas sent an all-out blitz and Seattle left superstar pass-rusher Micah Parsons unblocked.

Parsons immediately pressured Smith, and he was unable to get the ball to running back DeeJay Dallas, who was attempting to leak out of the backfield on the play. 

"It is the design," Smith told reporters after the game. "He had to squeeze. The right tackle had to squeeze [block inside] right there versus zero [all-out blitz], so he did the right thing. Micah came free. We knew that would possibly happen. I tried to get the ball around him and just wasn't able to."

The glass-half-full perspective: The Seahawks hung with one of the top teams in the NFC on the road in a tough environment, which should bode well if Seattle sneaks into the postseason.

The glass-half-empty perspective: Seattle's defense was carved up by Dak Prescott and the Dallas offense. Prescott threw for 299 yards and three scores. The Cowboys ran for 136 yards on the ground, finished 8-of-14 on third down and 4-of-4 in the red zone.

Dallas scored on eight of the team's nine offensive possessions. The Seahawks sacked Prescott four times. However, Seattle finished with seven defensive penalties, including five on one drive. 

"Overall, I feel like the penalties really screwed us this game," Seahawks defensive lineman Leonard Williams said. "Over 200 yards (130 actually) in penalties is really tough to overcome. I don't care how good of football you're playing, if you give up over 200 yards in penalties, it's going to be really hard to climb out of that." 

At 6-6 overall, the Seahawks remain the No. 7 seed if the playoffs were to start today. According to the New York Times calculator, Seattle has a 27% chance of making the playoffs. 

The Seahawks face the NFC West-leading San Francisco 49ers on the road in 10 days. The 49ers easily handled the Seahawks 31-13 a week ago in Seattle. The following week, Seattle hosts the defending NFC Champion Philadelphia Eagles at home on Lumen Field.

Seattle might not be in playoff contention for very long.

"The story is not told," relentlessly positive head coach Pete Carroll said. "We've got great chances against teams in the next couple weeks that are worthy of being on top of this thing at the end. And we're going to show that we're worthy of being right there with them, and to get them – knock a couple of them off and do something right with this thing."

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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