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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Pack pulls away

Seahawks 1-4, in last place after home loss to Green Bay

The Packers’ Aaron Rodgers looks for a touchdown call on a quarterback keeper. He got the score after a replay review. (Associated Press / The Spokesman-Review)
By Scott M. Johnson Everett Herald

SEATTLE — In his worst nightmares, Mike Holmgren probably couldn’t have envisioned this.

A decimated receiving corps. An injured quarterback. A defense that, for some unexplained reason, can’t stop anyone.

And now, a 1-4 record.

Holmgren’s final season as head coach of the Seattle Seahawks seems to be slipping away, and there is little the soon-to-be-retired 60-year-old can do to stop it.

“It’s a test of sorts,” Holmgren said after his team lost 27-17 to the Green Bay Packers on Sunday for the Seahawks’ fourth defeat in five games this season. “You know, we are not used to this. We are certainly not used to losing games at home, and we are not used to being in the position we are in.

“It’s been a long time, but here we are.”

Sunday marked a new low in a season full of lows for the Seahawks, and this time the offense found new depths. Playing without injured quarterback Matt Hasselbeck, the Seahawks managed just 177 yards of total offense behind starter Charlie Frye. The 64 passing yards marked the third-lowest total in franchise history, and the Seahawks’ worst output since 1992.

Frye was handcuffed for most of the game, and when the Seahawks fell behind and let him loose, the results weren’t pretty. Frye threw interceptions on back-to-back possessions in the fourth quarter as another game got out of the Seahawks’ control. He completed 12 of 23 passes for 83 yards and got sacked three times — the 19 yards lost on sacks accounted for the net total of 64 for the day.

The Seahawks have now lost two of three home games this season, leaving them with their first sub-.500 home mark since 2002.

“It’s been awhile since it’s been like this,” defensive tackle Rocky Bernard said. “Everyone’s shocked right now because for the last six years, we haven’t seen anything like this.”

On Sunday, the offense hit a new low point — the Seahawks didn’t go over 100 yards of total offense until midway through the fourth quarter — while the defense continued to struggle. A solid first half by Seattle’s D was overshadowed by a second half that saw Green Bay (3-3) score on three consecutive possessions to pull away from a 10-10 halftime tie.

The Packers took the first lead of the second half when wide receiver Greg Jennings got a step on cornerback Marcus Trufant and caught a picture-perfect throw from Aaron Rodgers for a 45-yard touchdown with 5:56 left in the third quarter. It marked the fifth touchdown of 30 yards or more the Seahawks have allowed this season.

Green Bay put together a 15-play, 84-yard drive on its next possession, during which Rodgers completed 5 of 6 passes and eventually hit fullback John Kuhn for a 1-yard touchdown and 24-10 lead with 11:23 remaining in the game.

The Packers added a field goal to put the game out of reach.

Seattle scored its final points after a 72-yard drive that included a 21-yard scramble by Frye and a 15-yard, roughing-the-passer penalty before Frye hit Keary Colbert on a 5-yard touchdown pass with just over three minutes to go.

In the end, the Seahawks’ passing offense finished with one of the worst statistical performances in their history. Only the NFL-record minus-7 passing yards in a 1979 loss to the Los Angeles Rams, and a 62-yard passing performance at Dallas in 1992, had lower totals by a Seattle air attack.

“I can obviously do a better job,” Frye said.

Seattle is tied with St. Louis for the worst record in the division. This is certainly not the way Holmgren expected to go out.

“It’s easy to slap people on the back, and coach and play, when things are going well,” he said. “That is a challenge right now, because it is hard right now.

“We are not playing very good football.”