Written by Bob Condotta at Seattle Times.com
Maybe it’s a second game of the year thing.
The 9-3 defeat Sunday at Los Angeles marked the third consecutive season Seattle has lost in its second game, all on the road.
Or maybe it’s a Rams’ thing. Seattle has lost four of the past five against the Rams in whatever city they play, and five of nine.
Certainly, the Seahawks hope it’s a blip in the road and not a sign of something more. A few more games, though, are needed to know that.
For now, here are some immediate actions to an afternoon that began with the Red Hot Chili Peppers singing, and the Rams then pouring some salt in Seattle’s wounds.
OFFENSE
The two dominant story lines of the week — Russell Wilson’s ankle and the Seahawks’ potential struggles against the Rams’ defensive front — proved pivotal.
Coach Pete Carroll said the Seahawks didn’t change the game plan much due to Wilson’s ankle sprain but admitted he was a little limited.
Wilson’s mobility issues seemed most evident on a play early in the fourth quarter when on third-and-eight he took off running and was easily tackled in the open field for just 2 yards. Unquestionably, the Rams didn’t seem as worried as usual about Wilson’s running.
The Seattle offensive line, meanwhile, seemed to protect Wilson OK at times — notably on the 53-yard pass to Tyler Lockett on the final drive. But Seattle couldn’t get anything going in the running game, especially between the tackles, with the Rams obviously playing to the fact they didn’t have to account as much for Wilson tucking it and running on zone reads.
Thomas Rawls appeared as if he is still trying to find his 2015 form when he left the game in the second quarter after being kicked in the lower leg. With C.J. Prosise ruled out with a broken bone in his hand suffered last week, that left all the running to Christine Michael and rookie Alex Collins.
Michael had a brief flurry with 19 yards on the first three Seattle offensive plays of the third quarter. Otherwise, he was held to 41 yards on seven carries and then had the crucial fumble at the end to kill Seattle’s last hope of salvaging victory.
It appeared obvious Seattle wanted to attack the Rams’ suspect cornerbacks anytime they were in man coverage, and Lockett was able to get two big plays out of it. He had four receptions for 99 yards overall.
But with Lockett ailing much of the game and Doug Baldwin also nursing a few injuries — he said a knee is the most worrisome — Seattle had trouble doing much consistently in the passing game.
One bright spot was the sight of Jimmy Graham catching three passes for 42 yards as he got regular action throughout the game. But Seattle couldn’t get it to him during its one red-zone possession in the first quarter.
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