Seattle Seahawks fans had a lot of reason to celebrate on Saturday night (August 29), as Steven Hauschka connected on a 60-yard game-winning field goal. The Seahawks beat the San Diego Chargers 16-15 on the superb kick by Hauschka, making up for an earlier 58-yard attempt that he missed with 3:46 left on the clock. It became the first win of the 2015 NFL preseason for the Seahawks (1-2) and the first loss for the Chargers (2-1).
The offense didn’t look very good in this game for the Seahawks, as the team managed only 105 passing yards and 117 rushing yards on the night. Russell Wilson completed 7-of-15 passes for 56 yards, and backup R.J. Archer completed 7-of-14 passes for 55 yards. Christine Michael ran for 37 yards on seven carries, Wilson had 23 yards on four carries, and Thomas Rawls had 20 yards on six carries. Marshawn Lynch played a few downs, carrying the ball just twice for six yards total.
The Seattle Seahawks, a team typically dominating on defense, also had a tough time slowing down the Chargers on the other side of the ball. Philip Rivers was able to pass for 140 yards during his time on the field, and the Chargers finished with 250 total passing yards. The Chargers rushed for an additional 136 yards on 32 carries, which worked out to an average of 4.2 yards per carry. The key, though, was that the Seattle defense came up big when it needed to.
There are certainly a lot of question marks about the Seattle Seahawks this preseason, beginning with how the team might have to learn to play without holdout Kam Chancellor. The secondary really misses him, even though he probably wouldn’t be on the field for that many plays in these games. The offense also appears a bit lost, but could be given an excuse that this is also just practice. Without Marshawn Lynch seeing a lot of plays, the team can’t be expected to do that much on the field.
There is one more preseason game for the Seahawks to clean things up and that comes against the Oakland Raiders next week. Game time is 7 p.m. PT on September 3, giving the team a chance to close out the preseason strong. The Seattle Seahawks then open the regular season with a divisional game against the St. Louis Rams on September 13 at 10 a.m. PT. Starting off the season with a road game is a tough task, but it could also be a great way for Russell Wilson, Marshawn Lynch, and Richard Sherman to make a statement in Week 1.
[Image Source: Stephen Dunn/Getty Images]
