The Seahawks came into Sunday's game unbeaten at home, but that streak came to an end thanks to a 17-12 loss to the Giants, who have now won four in a row.Â
The Seahawks had a chance for more late-game heroics, but weren't able to complete the comeback this time, and dropped to 8-4 on the season. Here are five rapid reaction's to Sunday's loss at Lumen Field:
1. It was a tough day for the offense.
The Giants came into the game on a three-game winning streak in large part because of the play of their defense, and that group spent the afternoon making life difficult on Russell Wilson and the Seahawks offense.
The offense started off the game moving the ball well on its opening drive, but that possession stalled out in the red zone with Seattle settling for a field goal, Jason Myers' 27th straight make dating back to last season.
From there the Seahawks struggled to sustain drives, punting five times and turning it over twice before putting together a 77-yard touchdown drive in the fourth quarter.
The Seahawks got the ball back with 1:48 left needing 80 yards for the win, but were unable to get the job done, in part thanks to another sack, the fifth taken by Russell Wilson in the game.
In addition to a season-low point total, the Seahawks were held to 327 yards and a season-low 4.7 yards per play average. With two turnovers Sunday, the Seahawks are now 0-4 this season in games with multiple turnovers.
2. The defense struggled at times against the run, but had another good overall performance.
The Seahawks were coming off of their best defensive performance of the season in Monday's win over the Eagles, and for the first half, at least, it looked like they were picking up right where they left off, allowing no points while getting one turnover against a Giants offense that was missing its starting quarterback.
The Giants were able to take the lead in the second half, however, by getting some big gains in the running game, something that hasn't happened much this season against a very good Seahawks run defense. Wayne Gallman Jr. did most of the damage, rushing for 135 yards on 16 carries, including a 60-yarder that set up the Giants first score of the game.
The defense did respond well after those two drives, however, forcing a three-and-out, getting a stop after a turnover to hold the Giants to a field goal, then forcing another punt to give the offense the ball back with a chance to win the game.
Even after allowing more on the ground than they'd have liked, the Seahawks did still hold the Giants to 290 yards, 13 first downs and a 5.3 yards-per-play average.
3. Ryan Neal made a couple of huge plays, but unfortunately left the game early.
Ryan Neal made a name for himself early this season when, taking over for an injured Jamal Adams, he made the game-clinching safety in Seattle's Week 4 win over the Cowboys, and continued to impress while filling in for Adams during a four-game absence.
Adams' return means Neal is no longer an every-down player, but that doesn't mean he isn't still finding ways to make plays, and that was never more evident than on Sunday when he made two of the biggest plays of the game for the Seahawks. Early in the game, Neal broke up a pass intended for Evan Engram, and the deflected ball found its way to Quandre Diggs for the free safety's fourth interception of the season. Late in the half, Neal blocked a punt that went out of the end zone for a safety to give the Seahawks a 5-0 lead.
Unfortunately for Neal and the Seahawks, he was unable to finish the game after sustaining a hip injury in the third quarter.
4. Jamal Adams is playing at a very high level.
Seahawks coach Pete Carroll last Adams' performance in last week's win over the Eagles was the safety's best yet as a Seahawk, and he followed that up with another strong effort.
Adams recorded 11 tackles, tied with Jordyn Brooks for the team lead, one of which was a great effort on third down to chase down Colt McCoy short of the first-down marker, leading to a punt. Adams also added another sack, giving him a team-high 7.5 this season despite missing four games. That total is also a career-high for Adams, who last week became the first defensive back to record 6-plus sacks in consecutive seasons since sacks became a stat in 1982.
5. Sunday's game was another strong performance on special teams.
As Carroll noted earlier in the week, special teams play has been one of the best parts of Seattle's game this season, and despite the loss, the Seahawks were strong in that phase of the game once again. Neal's blocked punt was the biggest play, but the Seahawks also got their usual strong play from the coverage units, saw Jason Myers continue to extend his perfect field goal kicking this season, Michael Dickson average 48.4 yards per punt while pinning the Giants inside the 10-yard line twice.
The best photos from Seattle Seahawks vs. New York Giants at Lumen Field. Fueled by Nesquik.