The finger pointing in the Seahawks’ locker room after their home opener was rampant – and infectious.
No. Not that kind of finger pointing. After a 27-7 victory over the Dallas Cowboys at CenturyLink Field on Sunday that was as convincing as it was impressive, the players were falling all over themselves to share the credit with the guys on the other side of the room. Or in the next cubicle. Or just down the row.
And there was enough to go around, as the specials teams spotted the Seahawks to a 10-0 lead in the first five minutes, the offense ground out 90- and 88-yard touchdown drives in the second half and the defense bounced back from allowing a 15-play, 95-yard drive in the second quarter to shutout the Cowboys and limit them to 82 yards in the second half.
All three phases making major contributions to a needed victory? That works, and then some.
The Seahawks can use the confidence boost and momentum heading into next week’s matchup against the Green Bay Packers in a “Monday Night Football” game at CenturyLink. Then it’s trips to St. Louis, Carolina, San Francisco and Detroit sandwiched around an Oct. 14 home game against the New England Patriots.
But that’s all down the road – literally. Sunday, it was time to relish what a team that scored 16 points in a four-point loss to the Arizona Cardinals in its opener is able to accomplish when its gets contributions from its special teams, offense and defense.
This one was more than a blueprint for sustained success, it was an affirmation of what the Seahawks displayed during their unbeaten preseason – playing hard, playing aggressively, playing smart and making plays in all three phases.
“We prepare hard, and I want to give credit to the guys that don’t get enough of it – like the guys on special teams,” said Pro Bowl free safety 
After rushing for 122 yards and a touchdown on 26 carries,
“They did a great job today,” he said. “It is not always as easy as you may want it to be, but one thing about them is that they are real standup guys – each and every one of them.”
“Frank came in without any idea of him starting and he did a great job,” Lynch said. “J.R. came in and did a great job, as well. They just keep grinding and in my eyes they’re standup guys and I’m glad to have them.”
Along with the special teams and defense – which also contributed an interception by Pro Bowl cornerback
The push that got this one rolling in the right direction was the plays turned in by the Brian Schneider-coordinator special teams. Robinson forced a fumble on the opening kickoff and Thomas recovered at the Cowboys’ 29-yard line to setup a 21-yard field goal by
Three offensive plays into the game, the Cowboys were down 10-0 – which played into rookie QB
“We got beat in all three phases,” said Cowboys linebacker Sean Lee, who got beat up on a vicious block from wide receiver
In the second half, it was all Seahawks, as Wilson capped an eight-play, 90-yard drive with a TD pass to tight end
The poster player for this half-’n-half performance was Lynch. He had 22 yards on 10 first-half carries, but broke runs of 16 and 36 yards in the third quarter while rushing for 100 yards on 16 second-half carries.
“Usually in football, and especially in the National Football League, that’s how it happens,” Wilson said. “Those first runs go for two yards, three yards max. Then sometimes later in the game they bust open and you can get big hits from them. That’s just a good job of the offensive line staying on their blocks and maintaining their mental focus and just keep fighting.”
In the end, it was all good.
“For us to put together that kind of game and finish in the second half so aggressively and so tough, I’m really proud of that,” coach Pete Carroll said. “That is the way we’d like to do it.”
