It has been a bizarre and sloppy first half of football for both the Seattle Seahawks and Denver Broncos. Increasingly, Week 1 games across the league are becoming this way due to lack of starters playing in the preseason, and this seems to be the case at Lumen Field.
Through two quarters, the Seahawks trail the Broncos 13-9. Things did not start well for Seattle. On their first two plays, quarterback Geno Smith was sacked then threw an interception. Despite the horrendous field position they were put in, the Seahawks did not allow a first down and held Denver to a field goal. Both teams traded punts for several possessions, until the Seahawks managed to tie the game at 3-3 on their fourth drive of the game.
The first highlight of the year for the Seahawks defense came courtesy of Pro Bowl safety Julian Love, who intercepted rookie Bo Nix at the one yard line.
https://twitter.com/Seahawks/status/1832886430286413928
Unfortunately, the good vibes did not last long for Seattle, as they were flagged for holding on the first play following the interception. Since the foul occured in the end zone, it resulted in a safety to give Denver a 5-3 lead. The Broncos did not do much with it, and had to punt the ball away…
…which they quickly got back thanks to a muffed Seahawks punt, putting the Broncos back within Seattle’s goal line.
https://twitter.com/Broncos/status/1832888497012912461
Once more, the Seahawks defense held strong and did their best with the terrible field position. Seattle held Denver to only three points. On their next drive, the Seahawks finally found the end zone thanks to the legs of Geno Smith. The 34-yard run gave Seattle a 9-8 lead, but the ensuring 2-point conversion fell flat.
The two points the Seahawks did not get loomed large. Denver punted once more, pinning Seattle on their own 1-yard line… which resulted in yet another safety to give the Broncos a 10-9 lead. For the first time in my life, I have witnessed a game with two safeties, and I’m sure I’m not alone.
So there you have it, folks. The weirdest way to a 13-9 score any of us have seen in quite some time, or perhaps ever.
The Broncos will receive the ball to start the second half. As for the Seahawks, plenty of adjustments are needed if they want to avoid the Week 1 upset for the second-straight season.
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