The Seattle Seahawks’ 2023-24 campaign has officially ended, and it did so in unusual fashion with a 21-20 win over the Arizona Cardinals. For the second straight year, the Seahawks have finished 9-8. Unfortunately, there was no magic this year for a Packers upset at Lambeau Field, so Seattle’s season comes to a conclusion in the Valley of the Sun.
Seattle looked in control in the first half, scoring 13 points and holding Arizona to only a pair of field goals despite two deep red zone drives. But in the second half, the Cardinals completely took over, scoring touchdowns on two of their first three drives. Meanwhile, the Seahawks had four straight drives ending in a punt.
Fortunes began to shift for Seattle when the usually sure-footed Matt Prater missed from 43-yards out. Up to that point, Arizona was dominating the Seahawks, outgaining them in total yards 232-41.
From there, the stagnant Seattle offense turned on the jets and engineered a four play, 67-yard scoring drive capped off by a 34-yard strike from Geno Smith to Tyler Lockett. Having been eliminated and with nothing left to lose, the Seahawks decided to go for two. Once more, Smith found Lockett and gave Seattle a 21-20 lead.
Still, they were not out of the woods yet. With almost two minutes left, Arizona marched 42 yards in nine plays to get safely within Prater’s range. Fortunately for the Seahawks, Prater missed from 51 and Seattle survived.
While it’s always great to win, it’s hard to not feel like this season was a disappointment. The Seahawks had high hopes after a surprisingly resurgent 2022 only to have an almost carbon copy 2023 campaign, only no blowout playoff loss to the 49ers this time around.
Regardless, winning – even if it is “meaningless” or not – always feels better than the alternative. Whatever the future may hold for this franchise, I’m glad the Seahawks got to close out this season on a high note and finish as winners for their efforts.