Back in the early days of alternate-jersey use, quarterback Rick Mirer tossed a throwback uniform into the laundry bin following a loss and told the equipment man: Burn those.
Rick the loss had nothing to do with the jerseys.
Neither did they play a role Sundays 25-19 loss to the Bears, but its doubtful the Seahawks will be eager to pull out the electric Kool-Aid acid green jerseys again.
This one was the result of missed opportunities, of field goals being scored instead of touchdowns, and of a couple field-goal attempts floating wide left.
But if you ask quarterback Seneca Wallace, the loss was on him.
We just didnt finish, and I take a lot of responsibility in that as a quarterback, Wallace said. We should have finished a lot of drives. Its my job, on the offensive side of the ball, to put the ball in the end zone.
Wallace threw an interception and tossed up a couple other ill-advised attempts, and afterward he conceded that there were a few plays hed like to have back.
But he also passed for 261 yards and a touchdown, and he bought some time under pressure to complete 26 of 44 attempts.
He was tougher on himself than were his coach and teammates.
(Wallace) did OK, said Jim Mora, who proved with his comments on kicker Olindo Mare that hes not going to be bashful about frank postgame assessments. A couple decisions hed like to revisit. Seneca gives you that escapability to keep plays alive. They put some good pressure on. I thought he played admirably.
When starter Matt Hasselbeck suffered a fractured rib in the first half of last weeks loss to San Francisco, Wallace was called into duty and immediately threw a touchdown pass.
He started eight games last season in relief of Hasselbeck, and his play in December was particularly effective.
Although Wallace said afterward he wasnt trying to force plays late in the game, his interception and most dangerous passes came after halftime.
Seneca gets excited back there because he makes things happen with his legs, Mora said. In general, Seneca did a nice job there at the end. We didnt close it out, we didnt finish with a touchdown to win the game, but he kept his wits about him; he managed the game well; he made some good throws under fire.
The Seahawks are comfortable with Wallace running the offense, and also with his leadership. Last season at St. Louis, with a dismal record already assured, Wallace went off as the Hawks headed into halftime trailing an awful Rams team. He got in teammates faces, he challenged them, he appealed to their pride.
They bounced back to win the game. It didnt exactly alter the course of the season, but it established Wallace as more than just some guy who stumbles into the huddle after the star is hurt.
Ive got to give credit to Seneca, receiver Nate Burleson said. Once he gets out of the pocket, it creates space. Defenders dont know how to react. Some come toward him, some back off, so, at that point, I just find a soft spot.
Burleson called Wallace the most athletic person hes ever been around.
His elusiveness sometimes skews his passing stats. On a number of plays Sunday, Wallace was flushed from the pocket, evaded pursuers, and found time to throw an incomplete pass.Other quarterbacks might have been nailed for sacks under that pressure.
Theyre the Bears, theyre going to try to cause a lot of ruckus and try to get you to make mistakes, Wallace said. I left too many plays on the field. I say me because there were a lot of opportunities out there where I could have got the ball into the receivers hands.
Wallace didnt lose the game for the Hawks there were plenty of mistakes to go around. But he didnt come up with the late plays to win it, either. And he made it clear afterward that he expects nothing less of himself.
Dave Boling: 253-597-8440
dave.boling@thenewstribune.com
