Takeaways from Seahawks 37-3 loss to Ravens

Games like this one remind you just how important the line of scrimmage can be.

The Baltimore Ravens delivered a masterclass in line of scrimmage play and completely dominated the Seattle Seahawks in a 37-3 loss on Sunday.

When you lose the battle up front this decisively, there’s not much hope for success. And it was every aspect of line of scrimmage play that was significantly in Baltimore’s favor.

"We couldn’t make any first downs and couldn’t convert on third down," head coach Pete Carroll said. "So, it’s just a really hard, long day against a really good team. They took it to us. I’ve got to give them a lot of credit."

The Ravens shut down the Seahawks rushing attack, harassed quarterback Geno Smith with four sacks, had four passes batted down by defensive linemen, and delivered the second-largest margin of victory by a Seattle opponent in the Pete Carroll era.

The 34-point victory matched that of the New York Giants in a 41-7 victory in Carroll’s first year as Seattle head coach in 2010. Only the 35-point loss to the Los Angeles Rams in a 42-7 defeat late in the 207 season serves as a larger margin of defeat.

And that was just the offensive side of the ball.

Keaton Mitchell led a rushing attack that gained 298 yards on the ground against Seattle on the day. Four separate rushers gained at least 40 yards rushing for Baltimore as the Ravens became just the ninth team to post over 500 yards of total offense in a game against a Carroll-led Seahawks team.

When the Seahawks did find themselves with opportunities to get back into the game, the Ravens had the right answer to slam the door right back in the face.

Given all the injuries along the offensive line this year, maybe it's a surprise this didn't happen sooner. Regardless, it leaves the Seahawks searching for some answers of how they can compete against a team that looked far better than themselves Sunday afternoon.

Here are the takeaways from the loss to the Ravens:

– Offensive line finally fell apart as Ravens dominated line of scrimmage.

The Seahawks were non-functional as an offense Sunday in Baltimore.

They converted just six total first downs in the game, were 1-for-12 on third down, and averaged just 3.2 yards per play. Even that figure is a misnomer as 50 yards came on one catch-and run from DK Metcalf. Take that play out, and the Seahawks gained just 101 yards of offense on 46 offensive plays run, which is just 2.2 yards per play on average.

"We got rushed today pretty good," Carroll said. "They rushed us and mixed their stuff really well. It was hard, like they’ve been on everybody. We just have to find out ways to make first downs. I think we were 1-for-12 on third down. You can’t play offense like that and expect anything. It’s as hard as it gets.

Damien Lewis was battling ankle injuries and an illness this week. Phil Haynes was questionable to play due to a calf injury. Anthony Bradford was ruled inactive and did not play because of an ankle injury as well. Injuries have been a constant on the offensive line all year, but it hasn't kept Seattle's offense from functioning. But nothing the Seahawks did on Sunday managed to adequately open rushing lanes or protect Geno Smith sufficiently to fuel a sustained attack.

"I think they did a really good job," Smith said. "I think we made it easy on them, especially with the mistakes that we made. Obviously, they capitalized on those. We know every game is going to be tough – this is the NFL. There are great players across the league and it’s a tough game. It’s a really tough game and you’ve got to get out there and you’ve got to play disciplined football in order to win. Today, we didn’t do it."

Ken Walker III and Zach Charbonnet combined for just 25 yards on 13 carries. The longest rush gained by either player in the game was six yards. Rushing attempts were frequently disrupted in the backfield or at the line of scrimmage. it kept Seattle from being able to even try to run it more than the 13 times they did.

"If you don’t convert, you don’t get the chances, and you’re off the field," Carroll said. "No matter how much you want to do something, it doesn’t matter when you have to sit down. You can’t call your plays sitting on the bench. We have to get off some winning third-down plays. We’ve got to do better than that. They were great at it today on their side. We weren’t."

Smith was interception and lost a fumble in the game as the pressure kept him under siege. The interception came on a miscommunication with wide receiver Tyler Lockett with both players taking blame for the play after the game.

"I just think it was miscommunication on both of our parts," Lockett said. "My part, I could have done better, but it was just miscommunication."

Said Smith: "Bad pass. It was on me."

The fumble came on a strip-sack by linebacker Kyle Van Noy late in the second quarter. After getting a field goal to get on the board and cut Baltimore's lead to 14-3, Tre Brown forced a fumble from Odell Beckham Jr. that gave Seattle a chance to get another score before halftime. Instead, Van Noy came up with a second down sack of Smith to force a third-and-21. Then he got to Smith's arm as he began to throw a pass and forced a fumble that gave the Ravens the ball back.

One more Justin Tucker field goal before the half made it a 17-3 game that felt like it was a 40-point deficit.

"When the defense gives you those opportunities, and you know, you kind of have a chance to steal some momentum right there, you’ve got to capitalize. We didn’t," Smith said. "We turned the ball right back over, we gave them points. Again, that’s one of the mistakes I’m talking about, and we’ve got to be better in these situations."

Lewis failed to pick up Van Noy on a stunt on second down as he came free up the middle for a sack of Smith. The third down sack came as Charbonnet didn't get a chip block on Van Noy off the edge and the Ravens rusher managed to get around the edge of Charles Cross to get to Smith's arm.

Even when Smith was protected, the Ravens defensive line was knocked down passes at the line of scrimmage. Former Seahawks Jadeveon Clowney had a pair of knockdowns with Michael Pierce and Travis Jones each getting a knockdown as well.

"We will have to take a look at the film and figure out what happened, but I’m sure that it’s frustrating for everybody. We will just see what happened and what needs to be done," Lockett said.

Smith completed just 13-of-28 passes for 157 yards with an interception in the loss. While he may have had a few things he could have done better, he mostly had no chance given the circumstances in Baltimore. 

"I don’t think this is about Geno at all," Carroll said. "I think this is about our football team, not answering the bell here. We couldn’t get it done. We came in here to slug it out, and they did a better job than we did with all of this. When they’re rushing the passer, that’s not Geno. This is not on one guy."

– Defensive line of scrimmage wasn't any better.

For as poor as the offensive play was up front, the defense didn't do much to outshine them.

The Ravens put up 515 yards of total offense against the Seahawks with Keaton Mitchell leading the way with 138 yards and a touchdown on just nine carries. Lamar Jackson had 60 yards on 10 attempts, Gus Edwards added 52 yards and two touchdowns, and Justice Hill had 40 more yards on 13 tries.

"They were just the better team today and they proved that through the whole game. So, they earn that win. We have to flush it and move on," linebacker Jordyn Brooks said.

Jackson also had just five incompletions on 26 attempts as Baltimore's offense had their choice of options to move down the field against Seattle. He finished with 21 completions for 187 yards before deferring to backup Tyler Huntley for cleanup duty. Huntley also completed 5-of-7 passes for 38 yards and a touchdown.

No matter who was touching the ball for Baltimore, they were finding success.

"We couldn’t tackle in the second half. We just didn’t tackle," Carroll said. "It shouldn’t have been any different. The big run that Lamar has early, gives them a good boost in yardage, but then after that, it’s just basic plays, and we didn’t get them on the ground. That’s the part I need to look at the most. That’s what I’m most concerned about, the way that happened like that."

After not allowing more than 127 rushing yards in a game for the first six games of the year, the Seahawks have two straight weeks allowing new season-highs. The Cleveland Browns gained 155 yards on the ground last week before the Ravens exploded for 298 yards on Sunday. And that's even after the trade deadline acquisition of Leonard Williams.

"It’s very frustrating, that’s not like us," nose tackle Jarran Reed said. "That’s not anything that we have put on the film all season, but you know, it is the NFL. We are going to take that to the chin and take it back Monday to the drawing board."

– Boye Mafe continues breakout season.

While there wasn't much positive to take away from the game in Baltimore, the continued second-season surge of Boye Mafe is one thing to feel good about.

Mafe had a strip-sack of Lamar Jackson in the first half when the game was still firmly in the balance. It came just two plays after Mafe had a prior chance to take down Jackson only to have the Ravens quarterback scamper away for a 23-yard gain. Mafe ripped around left tackle and knocked the ball from Jackson's grasp for a Seattle turnover that felt big at the time.

"Huge play," Carroll said. "He continues to do stuff in every game. He’s really a good football player, and it shows. It’s hard to do what he just did in the last six weeks. He’s just getting warmed up. He’s just so young and so fresh, and he’s just getting started. It’s exciting to know that. I wish we could have had some more contributions like that."

It's the sixth straight game with a sack for Mafe, which ties the team record set by Michael Sinclair. Mafe's six-game stretch comes within the same season whereas Sinclair's streak encompassed the final two games of the 1997 season and first four games of the 1998 season. Sinclair had 10 total sacks of those six games.

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