The smash-mouth football style of Marshawn Lynch’s running had the Baltimore Ravens staggered Sunday, although it was an agile fake on a swing pass that delivered the knockout punch for the Seattle Seahawks.
Categorize Lynch at your peril, as linebacker Ray Lewis learned with three minutes and 10 seconds left in Seattle’s 22-17 victory.
For that matter, Lynch proved as elusive to the media Sunday as he did to the Ravens, dressing and then disappearing into the evening before the press was allowed into the Seahawks lockerroom.
“He was a warrior again today,” center Max Unger said. “That last drive, that was the best four-minute drive I’ve ever been part of.”
“That last drive,” quarterback Tarvaris Jack said, “we just decided to ride Marshawn.”
It took more than Lynch, once the Seahawks had incurred a pair of short penalties that left them at their own 10-yard line with a first-and-20 situation and 5:46 left on the clock.
“We wanted to eat the clock, get a few first downs, but the penalties … you just can’t do that late in the game and get away with it very often,” Unger said.
Jackson completed a pair of passes to Golden Tate to move the chains, and from there, it was the Hawks offensive line and Lynch vs. whatever defense the Ravens chose to put on the field.
Seven consecutive times, Seattle went to Lynch on their final drive, and he bulled his way over the 100-yard mark for the second time in as many games, this time picking up the yardage to seal a victory.
“Whether he has 100 yards or 20 yards a game, he’s running like somebody stole something from him,” tackle Russell Okung said.
“I’ve said it before, the man walks aggressively,” fullback Michael Robinson said. “All he was talking about in the middle of that last drive was somebody give him some skittles.”
And then, there was that swing pass.
On third-and-5, the Ravens needed a stop to get the ball back. Jackson took the snap, then flipped the ball to Lynch on the right flank. As he caught the ball, linebacker Lewis was in his face.
Bull vs. bull? A clash of heavy machinery?
No, Lynch did a nifty little in and out fake that literally dropped Lewis to his knees – then ran for the first down that all but nailed this one down. It wasn’t just the play that gave the Hawks a first down with 2:21 to play.
He’d done it against the heart and soul of the Baltimore defense: Lewis.
Jackson had a great view.
“He made it like he was out there in the backyard playing against some of his cousins or something,” Jackson said. “He made a great move and got the first down. That was big. He’s a great player, he can pretty much do it all.”
“We’ve been emphasizing the run all year and it’s been slowly coming around,” Unger said. “You have to run to win, and we know every week Marshawn is going to bring it.
“Against a team like Baltimore, I know we’re all going to be sore (today), but we moved the ball and picked up the first downs on that last drive. That was satisfying.”
Unger said the Seahawks approach with the run was to hammer away for 2 and 3 yards a run in the first quarter, grind down the defense and pop a few big runs late.
“Tonight, we didn’t get that big gain, but in the fourth quarter we were getting 4, 5, 6 yards a carry at times,” Unger said.
In the past two weeks, Lynch and his offensive line have broken through a season-long drought – 135 ground yards for Lynch last week vs. Dallas, 109 yards Sunday vs. Baltimore.
But as the Hawks opened the second half of their season, they targeted Lynch through the air more than at any time in 2011. Coming in with 12 catches over the first eight games, Lynch caught five passes Sunday and averaged 11.6 yards per catch.
Although Lynch didn’t talk to the media after tje game, the Seahawks distributed a quote sheet from him. Among his thoughts on Seattle’s running game?
“With Justin (Forsett) being as quick as he is and Leon (Washington) being as fast as he is, I just want to run into people,” Lynch said.
Against Baltimore, Forsett ran one time for 3 yards, Washington carried three times for 9 yards. Lynch managed to avoid plenty of Ravens, but ran into his fair share.
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