Seahawks vs Cowboys - "Did anyone catch that play...?"

There were a lot of “WTF” moments in this Seahawks-Cowboys game, including a bizarre strolling touchdown call by Hill (correctly overturned), denying the Seahawks an interception (less correctly), Pete Carroll somehow getting away with having twelve men on the field, dubious first down calls, first down denials and more, causing puzzlement and irritation for both teams.

It makes a person wonder, it really does.

But at the end of the day, the score was 13 – 12, Seahawks.

Dez Bryant, the Cowboys wide receiver, had recovered from an injured foot and was back in the game. Not that it did the Cowboys all that much good. Richard Sherman played match up against Bryant instead of his usual zone defense and it certainly did pay off for the Seahawks. Sherman broke up play after play until Cassel quit throwing at him. After Sherman closed down a would-have-been touchdown from the Cowboys, the camera showed his trademark high-intensity glare into space until one of his teammates arrived to celebrate. Sherman can afford to talk a big game because he can back up every statement he makes.

While our outspoken cornerback did cost the Seahawks a significant return by Tyler Lockett with a holding penalty, it is OsQ’s opinion that Sherm’s performance against Dez Bryant more than made up for that. In fact, most corners would have had to hold several times and would have allowed myriad passes in a matchup against Bryant.

Our Ricardo Lockette was hit by Jeff Heath and fell like a rag doll. His eerily still, prone form was immediately circled by his teammates, who must have been relieved to find that it was not a spinal cord injury. 

Poor Jeff Heath looked sick as he watched the medics check out Lockette. The referees called it a blindside but honestly, I did not see a dirty hit. Heath was trying to put his shoulder down, the way he was supposed to do. Lockette was trying to put his head down, the way he was supposed to do. That is, he saw the hit coming and prepared for it, so it was not a blindside. The two guys were just the wrong height, angle and speed for Lockette to take a bad hit to the head.

In happier news, Russell Wilson took a few hits but he did not get sacked during this game, thanks to a much-improved offensive line. It is true that the offense was held to one touchdown and field goals. However, Russell Wilson mounted drives when it counted. Fans should be pleased to note that he spread the ball around, making use of Baldwin, Kearse, Luke Willson and Graham. This kind of versatility is one of the Seahawks’ best weapons as a team that relies on unpredictability and accumulated experience of working with one another. The more various things they are able to do, the longer they can keep the other team guessing and the more they can take advantage of other teams' weaknesses.

Wilson also took the read option several times for big first downs when the Cowboys took the bait and swarmed toward Marshawn Lynch.

In even happier news than that, the Hawks defense was ferocious. They were able to hang onto the lead given to them instead of crumbling in the fourth quarter, which has been their Achilles heel so far this season. In the last Cowboys drive with one minute on the clock and the Seahawks leading by just one point thanks to a late-game field goal, the combined efforts of the defense knocked Cassel back to fourth down and 21 yards… well out of field goal range.

The Good News:

The Seahawks have fought their way to 4 – 4, with two back-to-back road victories.

The Bad News:

Ricardo Lockette’s injury, obviously. The 12s are collectively hoping his concussion looked worse than it was. (update: according to Pete Carroll, doctors say Lockette did not suffer a concussion after all but they are still doing tests).

The Question:

Can the Seahawks keep their momentum to defeat the Arizona Cardinals, who currently lead their division?