Vintage, exquisite Russell Wilson U-turns Seahawks’ day, season in rally win over 49ers
It was exquisite, vintage, how-did-he-just-do-that? Russell Wilson.
Rescuing Seattle from its own black hole, the team’s relentless leader spun, escaped, fired and willed his teetering Seahawks to a season-changing victory — all on one play in the third quarter Sunday. It’s a play that will go into Wilson’s highlight montage to show his grandkids.
Wilson was getting hit by free-blitzing 49er Dontae Johnson, seemingly a sack. Fierce pass rusher Nick Bosa was next to him, waiting his turn to hit. With Johnson grabbing his feet, Wilson spun his his head around to his right. He saw Freddie Swain break off his route to the goal line. Wilson shook free from Johnson. He avoided Bosa. He fired a dart that had no choice but to stick to Swain inside the pylon.
The exquisite touchdown gave previously broken Seattle a 21-7 lead in the third quarter. It was the signature play of its 28-21 victory at stunned, sun-drenched Levi’s Stadium.
It’s the signature play of Seattle’s season so far.
Fourteenth-year left tackle Duane Brown went up to Wilson immediately after his latest Houdini act with a declaration.
“You are a bad m effer,” Brown told Wilson.
“I mean,” Brown said later, “that guy’s incredible.”
Asked where he’d rank that escape act among all his plays he’s made while becoming the fastest quarterback in NFL history to 100 regular-season wins, the owner of 26 Seahawks records and only Seattle QB to win a Super Bowl smiled.
“We’ve had some guys plays in my career. Definitely a good one, though,” Wilson said. “We had Dontae rushing off the edge the edge there. And whenever you see Bosa right there next to you, with him, it’s always ‘uh-oh.’ One of those moments.”
Wilson laughed — at Johnson’s, Bosa’s and the Niners’ expenses.
“It was definitely one of the top 10, I think,” Wilson said. “It was a good one.”
Wilson joined Peyton Manning as the only quarterbacks in NFL history to win 100 games in his first 10 seasons. He finished 16 of 23 passing for 149 yards and two passing touchdowns, one rushing.
Manning won his 100th in the 10th game of his 10th season. Wilson just won his 100th in game four of year 10.
Eight of the other nine of the 10 fastest in league history to win 100 games are all in the Hall of Fame, or will be: Tom Brady, Ben Roethlisberger, Brett Favre, Jim Kelly, Matt Ryan, Dan Marino, John Elway and Terry Bradshaw.
“I thought Russ was spectacular today,” Carroll said.
Alex Collins also sparked the offense with long runs including a 28-yard catch and dash that finally got the Seahawks’ offense is up-tempo mode with its first first-down, midway through the second quarter. Collins also had a cutting, 14-yard touchdown.
Safety Quandre Diggs and extra defensive back Ryan Neal led the defense’s rebound from an awful start. Diggs intercepted Jimmy Garoppolo, Neal made four stops on third downs, and Seattle knocked Garoppolo out of the game with a leg injury. The defense also mostly throttled 49ers heralded rookie quarterback Trey Lance in the second half (9 for 18 passing, 157 yards, two touchdowns, one in garbage time late).
And the Seahawks (2-2) overcame themselves in the first half and resurfaced in an NFC West that was threatening to leave them behind.
Instead of wayward at 1-3, Seattle and its fans enter a quick-turnaround home game against the Los Angeles Rams (3-1), who lost at home to first-place Arizona (4-0), reminded of how long the 17-game season is.
“This was a must-win game for us,” Brown said. “
“We never lose three games in a row around here.”
The Seahawks also got a reminder of how fortunate they are Wilson plays for the Seahawks.
“He’s a Hall of Famer for a reason,” Adams said. “He’s the ultimate competitor. Great teammate, but an even better person off the field.”
Sacked three times and hit five others in his first eight attempts to throw Sunday, the unwavering Wilson kept on. He broke a 7-7 tie in the third quarter, after seeing none of four receivers open, by out-running every 49er back to Ronnie Lott to the goal line on a scramble run around left end. Most quarterbacks would have thrown the ball into row 3 and taken a third and 8. Wilson sprinted around Brown pushing Bosa to the inside then dived helmet first across the goal line for a 16-yard touchdown.
He looked more like 22 years old, not his 32, on that run.
Rhattigan’s big play
After Wilson’s touchdown run undrafted rookie Jon Rhattigan, the first West Point graduate to play for the Seahawks, turned in the best play by a would-be Army lieutenant in Seattle history.
After Wilson’s scramble-sprint score, Rhattigan raced down on Jason Myers’ ensuing kickoff. Recently signed 49ers running back Trenton Cannon dropped the kickoff near the 10-yard line, got up — and dropped the ball again when Seattle’s DeeJay Dallas hit him.
Rhattigan was there to pounce on the loose ball on the San Francisco 14-yard line for a fumble recovery and the Seahawks’ second forced turnover of the game.
“Special teams is a huge part of the game, as we saw today. We set up our offense for a score,” said Rhattigan, playing on a special service deferment from the U.S. Army of becoming an infantry officer. “Just always staying ready, and having the mindset if it isn’t a touchback I’m going to go make the tackle. I’m going to go make the big play.”
Rhattigan said a team equipment man kept the ball from his first NFL fumble recovery. It’s going to the home of his parents, Debbie and Thomas, for them to display in their home in Marco Island, Florida.
Wilson’s magical escape and touchdown pass to Swain came two plays after Rhattigan’s swipe. The Seahawks were in control of a game for the first time since the opener at Indianapolis nearly a month ago. They were up by two scores.
“It was perfect,” Carroll said. “It was a perfect throw to Freddie in the corner. ...
“It was crazy. Just the way we love to see Russ play, and do his thing.”
Avert your eyes
Wilson’s Houdini act erased memories of Seattle’s awful first half that threatened to derail the entire season.
Halfway through the second quarter, this game looked even worse than the Seahawks’ disaster in Minnesota the previous Sunday.
“It was so hard early (Sunday),” Carroll said.
“It just looked like it wasn’t going to happen.”
First-time play caller Shane Waldron’s new offense had minus-8 total yards and five consecutive three and outs to begin the game. Halfway into the second quarter, San Francisco (2-2) had a 207-yard advantage in total offense.
But partly because of Diggs getting the first interception of the season for Seattle’s besieged secondary— and largely because Seattle went more to six defensive backs than it had all season and got the play-making Neal on the field for his first extensive snaps in 2021 — the 49ers led only 7-0.
Then Wilson asked Waldron to go more up tempo on offense for a drive that began with 4:49 left in the first half.
“I told Shane, ‘Let’s go for it. Let me be a part of calling the game,’” Wilson said.
The first play was a throw outside left to Collins, who had 10 rushes and 44 yards spelling lead back Chris Carson (13 carries, 30 yards). Collins took Wilson’s short pass and ran 28 yards for Seattle’s initial first down. It was 35 more total yards than the Seahawks had in the first 20 minutes of the game.
“Yeah, that was a huge play,” Wilson said. “He’s just go sweet feet back there.”
Playing more quickly now, Wilson hit DK Metcalf on a long crossing route on third and 1, for 28 more yards.
Then Waldron sent three tight ends all outside to the right of a spread formation. But Wilson looked only to the left, to Metcalf split wide there running an inside slant. Metcalf caught the quick pass and bulled his way across the goal line for an 11-yard touchdown.
Suddenly, almost inexplicably, the malfunctioning Seahawks were tied going into halftime.
Neal saves them
The beginning of this for the Seahawks game was worse than the end of their loss at Minnesota the previous week.
And as bad as that left the Seahawks, that’s saying something.
The defense showed little resistance on San Francisco’s breezy, 71-yard drive to a touchdown on its first possession. Jimmy Garoppolo was not pressured by a five-man rush. New starting cornerback Sidney Jones, replacing benched Tre Flowers, got physically overwhelmed by 49ers tight end Ross Dwelley for an easy, 21-yard touchdown pass. Like against the Vikings, it looked like San Francisco’s coaches out-schemed Seattle’s on the play, isolating a 6-foot-5, 235-pound tight end on a 6-foot, 186-pound cornerback for the score.
The Seahawks’ defense started Sunday the way its previous Sunday had gone in Minnesota: unable to get off the field on third downs.
Then Neal entered the game.
After beginning the game with five defensive linemen for the fourth consecutive game to begin the season, Seattle began going to six defensive backs on third down in the second quarter. The sixth DB was Neal. He took outside linebacker Jordyn Brooks out of the game, leaving Bobby Wagner as Seattle’s only linebacker in passing situations.
In the second quarter Neal faked a blitz up the middle before the snap, then quickly got outside right to break up the blocking on a third-down screen pass to Kittle. That ruined the play, and the 49ers punted.
It was significant. Minnesota had shredded the Seahawks’ defense with screen passes the previous week, and 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan has an array of screens in his playbook. Neal’s play seemed to discourage Shanahan from calling many more Sunday.
“Yeah, that was film study, tendencies. Everybody was alerting it out there,” Neal said. “It wasn’t just me. We had Bobby out there, ‘Hey, alert! Screen! Alert! Screen!’
“So I just looked around, seeing what was going on and made a play.”
Neal then broke up a pass on another third down later in the second quarter. In the third quarter, Neal ended San Francisco’s first drive after halftime when he stopped rookie quarterback Trey Lance inside on a zone-read option run inside short of the line to gain.
Alarming
The beginning of this game was worse than the end of Seattle’s loss at Minnesota the previous week.
And as bad as that left the Seahawks, that’s saying something.
The defense showed little resistance on San Francisco’s breezy, 71-yard drive to a touchdown on its first possession. Jimmy Garoppolo was not pressured by a five-man rush. New starting cornerback Sidney Jones, replacing benched Tre Flowers, got physically overwhelmed by 49ers tight end Ross Dwelley for an easy, 21-yard touchdown pass. Like against the Vikings, it looked like San Francisco’s coaches out-schemed Seattle’s on the play, isolating a 6-foot-5, 235-pound tight end on a 6-foot, 186-pound cornerback for the score.
Late in the first quarter the Seahawks finally made a play in the secondary. Diggs cut in front of tight end George Kittle over the middle and intercepted Garoppolo’s pass. Seattle had a drive start at San Francisco’s 38-yard line.
But the Seahawks’ offense was in the middle of its five three and outs in a row then. It squandered Diggs’ interception and punted to stay behind 7-0.
Diggs out, in, back out
After his interception Diggs left the game for one play in the first half and bent over at the waist with a trainer, before returning to the game for the first snap of the second quarter.
He returned to play into the second half, then left late in the third quarter.
Marquise Blair replaced Diggs at free safety in the middle.
Diggs said he was fine, that he just had to “get right” on the sideline for a minute.
More DB confusion
Blair, usually a nickel defensive back inside closer to the line of scrimmage, was part of mess of a touchdown allowed to 49ers receiver Deebo Samuel late in the third quarter. Strong safety Jamal Adams tracked Samuel on his first move short near the line, then released Samuel as if he had outside, deep help.
He did not.
New left cornerback Sidney Jones went inside with Brandon Aiyuk’s deep in route. Blair was inside, too. No one was near Samuel when Lance’s throw arrived for the 72-yard touchdown.
That cut Seattle’s lead to 21-13 entering the fourth quarter.
“One huge error,” Carroll said when assessing his cornerbacks’ play Sunday.
“Really simple play.”
San Francisco missed the extra point when punter Mitch Wishnowsky pushed his second wide kick of the game. He was doing the placekicking because Robbie Gould injured his leg during pregame warm-ups.
This story was originally published October 3, 2021 at 4:19 PM.
