Seahawks At Chiefs: Observations And Takeaways

By Raymond Schwabacher | Aug 22, 2015

So the Seattle Seahawks played again, and they lost, again. Time to pack away all those hopes and dreams you had saved up for the 2015 season and prepare for an Autumn of anguish. The team we expected to again take the league by storm has let us know one thing: they’re taking the year off. See you in 2016, fellas.

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Except this game was actually quite a success! Preseason wins and losses don’t mean a thing. The reason these games are played is to get a good look at how players perform – no more, no less. A preseason game is a success if players do good, not if the team does good. And yesterday the players did good.

Has anyone grabbed your attention more in the earlygoing than rookie WR Tyler Lockett? The 22-year-old speedster again had an impressive game, tallying 42 yards on three catches. That was the most receiving yards of anyone on the team for the day. But perhaps more exciting is who’s passes he was catching.

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Lockett caught two hucks from R.J. Archer – and one from Russell Wilson. The former Kansas State star played some sets with the first team offense, and he shone even when playing with the best. Wanna know what Pete Carroll has to say about this guy? Yeah, you wanna know what Pete Carroll has to say about this guy:

"“He’s so comfortable and natural doing stuff. We played him in the three-receiver group tonight and made him with the starters in that regard and he fit with Doug [Baldwin] and [Jermaine] Kearse really nice. He continues to be a really impressive kid. I can’t wait to just keep fitting him in. There’s nothing holding him back.”"

Another player with nothing holding him back? Jimmy Graham. Graham is pretty enormous for a tight end, and yesterday we got to see just how much of an advantage that can provide. Routinely matched up against defenders who were much, much smaller than him, Graham made a couple plays that were just absolutely defense-proof. When he gets running, he is simply too tall to be guarded.

Aug 21, 2015; Kansas City, MO, USA; Seattle Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll reacts to a call against the Kansas City Chiefs in the second half at Arrowhead Stadium. Kansas City won 14-13. Mandatory Credit: John Rieger-USA TODAY Sports

We knew this about Graham, as it’s what made him a star with the New Orleans Saints. However, seeing it play out in real time was pretty incredible. If he’s got time to get to a ball, well, then it’s his ball. Graham, just by virtue of showing up, is going to create a lot of hilarious mismatches. He’s completely unfair, and he’s ours, and it’s fantastic.

Strong safety DeShawn Shead is no more. The Seahawks stuck him at cornerback for this game, if only due to pressing need and the fact that he has a little experience there. The results were huge. He broke up two early passes, forced a punt, and fizzled a play in the red zone. Carroll said that he “always seemed to be a factor,” and it’s hard to disagree.

Remember how bad the pass protection was a week ago? Not a problem any more! Give Gary Gilliam all the credit in the world for this one. He’s had a great camp, and his game-changing play in KC only strengthens his case to make the team. Drew Nowak looked good, too, and is solidifying his case to be the starting center. The o-line had a good game, and that was perhaps the most critical goal of this game. They delivered, and now we can all sigh.

The Seattle Seahawks haven’t won a preseason game yet, but they’re in great shape. The team looks good, and they’re still just getting tuned up. Man, can Tyler Lockett fly! Jimmy Graham is a force of nature. This year is going to be some kind of fun.

Next: Felix Hernandez Is Still Great

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