Tyler Lockett’s return the highlight for Seahawks in 22-20 loss to Broncos
SEATTLE – The good from Seattle’s exhibition opener?
Tyler Lockett literally provided a good early return on Seattle’s draft class of 2015. His 103-yard kickoff return in the first half provided the only Seattle touchdown for most of the game.
The bad? Just about everything else as Denver walked away with a 22-20 victory at CenturyLink Field on Friday night in a game that wasn’t that close on the field.
Adding injury to insult, two key players – receiver Chris Matthews and backup quarterback Tarvaris Jackson – left and didn’t return.
Matthews hurt his shoulder in the second quarter while trying to recover a fumbled Denver punt. Jackson hurt his ankle early in the third quarter when hit by Denver’s Kenny Anunike. The severity of the injuries was not immediately known.
The mitigating factor? The Seahawks played with a patchwork secondary that didn’t include a single founding member of the Legion of Boom, and also gave all of its starters just two series of work.
And the coaches will also surely find some other pockets of positives, such as second-year defensive end Cassius Marsh, who was active throughout, and the defensive line in general.
Still, the manner in which the offensive line struggled throughout and the fact that some of the depth players on defense who got taken advantage of at times left more than enough room for concern for the Seahawks. They lost their exhibition season opener to the Broncos for the second straight year.
Other than Lockett’s return, the Broncos dominated the first half, with its defensive line feasting on Seattle’s offensive line and its passing game picking apart a Seahawks secondary littered with backups.
The tone was set on the second play of the game when Denver’s Shaquil Barrett raced around Seattle offensive tackle Justin Britt to sack Russell Wilson and force a fumble that led a Broncos field goal.
That left it to Lockett to create a little excitement as his 46-yard return gave the No. 1 offense good field position to get into position for a Steven Hauschka 33-yard field goal that tied it at 3-3.
The drive, though, ended when Wilson was sacked on third-and-9, typifying the pass-protection issues the Seahawks had throughout.
After a third Denver field goal made it 9-3, Lockett – who the Seahawks took in the third round of the 2015 draft after trading three picks to Washington to move up 26 spots – struck again.
Lockett took the kickoff 3 yards deep in the end zone and, after running upfield, cut left and was able to outrace the Denver defense to get to the sideline and sprint for the touchdown.
The rest of the play wasn’t without drama, though, as field judge Eugene Harris threw a flag that initially confused most of those watching.
The replay then made it clear why – Harris had collided with Seattle coach Pete Carroll and penalized the Seahawks for sideline interference.
The TD stood with the penalty assessed on the kickoff, giving Seattle a 10-9 lead – the only time the Seahawks had the upper hand.
The rest of the first half was dominated by Denver. Fourth-year backup QB Brock Osweiler – who started as Peyton Manning was among several Denver starters who didn’t suit up – completed 15 of 20 passes for 151 yards and a touchdown.
Seattle, meanwhile, could get nothing going offensively as Wilson and Jackson were a combined 2 of 5 for 20 yards passing in the first half while Seattle rushed for just 26 yards on 11 attempts.
Quarterback R.J. Archer, who played most of the second half with Jackson sidelined, led an 80-yard drive late in the game capped by a 19-yard screen pass for a touchdown to rookie Thomas Rawls. But the Seattle didn’t get the onside kick.
Falcons 31, Titans 24: Tennessee rookie quarterback Marcus Mariota, whose first two drives ended with an interception and a fumble, recovered to lead a touchdown drive in Tennessee’s loss at Atlanta. Atlanta’s Matt Ryan completed all six passes for 86 yards on his only possession, including a 13-yard touchdown to Julio Jones.
Panthers 25, Bills 24: Joe Webb’s short pass to running back Brandon Wegher led to a 42-yard touchdown with 54 seconds left and Carolina beat Buffalo on a 2-point conversion in Orchard Park, N.Y. The Panthers’ third-string quarterback hit Paul Browning for the 2-pointer to seal the win.
The loss spoiled new Bills coach Rex Ryan’s first game at Ralph Wilson Stadium.
Bengals 23, Giants 10: Andy Dalton completed all three of his passes and host Cincinnati’s starting offense was impressive in its only drive in a win over New York.
Jaguars 23, Steelers 21: Ben Roethlisberger threw a 44-yard touchdown pass to Martavis Bryant on the opening drive, and Pittsburgh beat host Jacksonville.
The Jaguars lost tight end Julius Thomas to an injured finger on his left hand.
Raiders 18, Rams 3: Derek Carr completed three passes to rookie receiver Amari Cooper on an opening field-goal drive and host Oakland won its exhibition opener under new coach Jack Del Rio.