This was an uncharacteristically poor performance from the Seahawks. Three turnovers, all converted into touchdowns by Washington, essentially decided the game.
Seattle’s defense — which was put under pressure by the offense turning the ball over — couldn’t muster a big play to flip the momentum — whether that was a turnover of their own, or a key stop at the end when two third down conversions iced the contest.
It created an odd situation where it always felt like the Commanders were in control and deserved to win — yet clearly the Seahawks contributed massively to their own downfall.
It was surprising they couldn’t have more success against a banged-up Washington team missing key players, while also losing Leo Chenal during the game. Yes, the Seahawks badly missed Julian Love. Yet it never felt like the Seahawks truly maxed out the losses on the Commanders’ roster.
Even so — they should be able to rally after this and come fighting back. They did a year ago after each of their defeats. There’s no reason to think that won’t be the same again this time.
After all, they still possess arguably the best current player in football in Jaxon Smith-Njigba and they have enough proven, big-game players to make this a one-off disappointment.
However, there are some concerning issues emerging that could derail any hopes of the 2026 Seahawks going on a similar run to last year.
The first one is the situation at running back and the running game in general. It has stuttered to start the season, aside from at the end of the Cardinals game when the white flags were being waved.
Jadarian Price has fumbled twice. His latest mistake put him in the doghouse today — but it became quickly apparent that Emmanuel Wilson, try as he might, simply isn’t going to be able to carry this running attack or produce much of anything short of a few power runs up the gut. The way he was easily chased down by Chenal on a promising outside run in the red-zone was a great example of his limitations.
When Zach Charbonnet returns — and the Seahawks must be hoping that’s sooner rather than later — it might be a moot point and they can get back on track. In the meantime however, the Seahawks have a problem.
They used their biggest off-season asset on Price. When you spend a high pick on a runner, it typically comes with the expectation they will produce quickly. They didn’t draft him for three years down the line. He had to be a direct replacement for the departed Ken Walker.
While Walker continues to thrive in Kansas City (two more touchdowns today), Price was in a raincoat watching Wilson plod for 1.6 yards per carry.
Simply put — he has to fix his fumbling problem pronto. And the Seahawks then need to commit more to him, to try and get some production out of their top pick. He has to provide the kind of juice that Wilson isn’t capable of, to provide a dynamic spark to get things going with the running game.
In many ways, they’ve kind of made their bed and have to sleep in it now. He fumbled three times last year for Notre Dame in limited reps. We knew this was a thing. We also knew Walker and Charbonnet hardly ever fumbled. Now that you’ve drafted Price as high as you have — don’t you have to run him, for better or worse? Don’t you have to use the dynamic back you made a big commitment to?
You’re not benching the defensive backs for a badly timed pass-interference or Sam Darnold for a bad pick-six. This is the path they have chosen, shouldn’t they stick to the plan — rather than put Price on the sideline, while a lesser talent basically takes away any running threat?
Having taken no reps during pre-season — does he have to take his lumps now in the regular season? Is that not the decision you’ve taken?
A year ago it felt somewhat inevitable that they’d fix the running game. Walker and Charbonnet were too talented, the Shanahan system too productive for things not to click. And they did. Right now, it’s harder to be confident a turnaround is coming — and the Seahawks, short of that final quarter against Arizona, have been pretty one-dimensional so far.
Some of that is on the blocking too. It has to be better.
There are two other curious talking points.
Rashid Shaheed had two catches for 14 yards today. In three games he now has six catches for 53 yards. He has no meaningful returns on special teams.
This is a problem.
They appear further away than ever to finding a consistent, productive role for him on offense. Now — every target could and should initially be aimed towards the brilliant Smith-Njigba. But other players — Cooper Kupp, and today AJ Barner — are finding ways to be involved. Shaheed’s most impactful play was a roughing flag for a hit to the helmet he earned on an incomplete pass.
It’s especially challenging when Shaheed is now earning $17m a year. People are eventually going to point to the fact Ken Walker’s contract in Kansas City is worth $14.4m a year and wonder if they got this decision right.
John Schneider has rightly been lauded for his team building and whatever happened this year doesn’t change anything. But it’s also OK to approve and trust any move he makes — then in time, wonder if he got it right. It’s at least fair to wonder right now whether the Seahawks would be better fielding Walker as a focal point in the backfield, while having their top pick in the draft to use elsewhere (pass-rusher? receiver? cornerback?) working around replacing Shaheed (who would’ve brought back a comp-pick).
Finally, the pass-rush. There’s no doubting the Seahawks have major talents in the interior and they are still producing. Do they have enough juice off the egde?
The likes of Derick Hall, DeMarcus Lawrence and Uchenna Nwosu all do an admirable job. None are flying off the edge, however, and producing quick wins or it feels like consistent pressure. Dante Fowler has been fairly anonymous through three games.
This felt like an area they had to add to in the off-season and I’m not sure they’ve done enough. Next season it’s plausible only Hall will remain under contract from the four. What then? Would it have been wise to add some youth and quickness to the group via the draft, to have that now and also for the future? Maybe.
Perhaps it wouldn’t have mattered with Love starting today? Or if the offense didn’t turn the ball over three times? It might not feel like it but the defense contained Washington to four yards per play today. They more or less did their job, apart from producing a key turnover or third-down stop at the end.
It does still feel like they’re missing some speed off the edge though.
I don’t want to second-guess too much after one loss, following a 12-game winning streak. But staying at the top of the tree is incredibly difficult and watching that today shows why.
The Seahawks won a Super Bowl playing excellent football in all three phases. Today, they had issues in all three phases and are faced with finding answers ahead of some big upcoming games.
