All eyes were on the NFL’s season opener; a Super Bowl rematch between the reigning champion Seattle Seahawks and the New England Patriots. If you were able to tune into the game, you may have been surprised to see the Seahawks led by backup quarterback Drew Lock instead of the starter Sam Darnold. Darnold went down on the first possession of the game with a hip injury. Lock stepped into the spotlight with ease, having an impressive 187 passing yards, a 72.6 completion percentage, one passing touchdown and zero turnovers. Lock is expected to start for Seattle in their Week 2 game against the Arizona Cardinals. Initially, Seattle fans feared the worst, as Darnold had been essential in leading the Seahawks to their Super Bowl victory. However, Darnold is only expected to miss Week 2 and make a speedy recovery.
Similar to the Super Bowl in February, this game was a defensive clash, with seven punts between the two teams in the first half. But unlike the previous matchup, the Patriots were able to strike first from their rookie tight end Eli Raradon for his first career receiving touchdown. The score remained Patriots 7, Seahawks 0 until halftime, and it seemed as though the Patriots had at least managed to quell some of their struggles with the Seahawks’ defense in Super Bowl LX.
Coming out of halftime, the Patriots extended their lead to 10 points with a field goal on their first drive of the half. Lock was then finally able to drive the Seahawks down the field and put them in position for a field goal to shrink the lead back to seven. Moving into the fourth quarter, Patriots quarterback Drake Maye had an opportunity to extend the lead. Maye instead threw a deep ball on second and nine down the field to Romeo Doubs, which was then tipped and intercepted by the Seahawks. Notably, Doubs signed a four-year, $68 million deal as a new weapon for Maye. Doubs ended the night with three targets, no completions and a costly drop for a first down, resulting in Maye’s second interception of the game on the next play. This does not bode well for Patriots fans as standout wide receiver A.J. Brown also went down with a high ankle sprain that will sideline him for up to six weeks. Two key receivers being battered physically and mentally could be detrimental to Maye’s passing output and the success of the team.
This interception breathed life into the Seahawks offense. Lock was able to connect with wide receiver Jackson Smith-Njigba on fourth and one with a short pass, but instead of getting a first down and putting Seattle in field goal range, Smith-Njigba converted the reception into a 45-yard touchdown pass. That tied the score 10 to 10. Maye now had an opportunity to take the lead back again. This time, Seahawks safety Julian Love made a spectacular play on the ball after Maye tried to find receiver Demario Douglas at center field on third and 14. This came right after the devastating drop from Doubs for a first down. This interception was then capitalized on by Seattle with a field goal, with a resulting score of Seahawks 13, Patriots 10.
Now, Maye was forced—on what was potentially the last possession of the game—to go down and put points on the board for the Patriots. After an almost five-minute drive, the Patriots were in position to kick a field goal to send the Super Bowl rematch into an overtime thriller. With 26 seconds left in the game, Maye simply had to throw the ball out of bounds after the passing pocket broke down. However, instead of allowing the kicking unit to tie the game, Maye threw up a ball towards the corner of the end zone, which was intercepted by Seahawks cornerback Josh Jobe, by dragging both his feet in the end zone to barely stay in bounds. Lock then simply had to get into victory formation after the touchback to secure the win for the Seahawks. The third interception marked three possessions in a row where Maye threw reckless balls that directly resulted in interceptions and thus a loss for the Patriots. Maye seemed to be seeing demons from the previous year’s Super Bowl and was once again bested by the Seahawks defense. Maye had five interceptions between the two games and ultimately threw the game away for the Patriots because of his poor decision-making. He is beginning to spark questions about his legitimacy as a quarterback on the biggest stages.
Both teams have easier matchups on the horizon, hopefully: The Seahawks travel to Arizona to play the Cardinals, while the Patriots go home to play the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 2.
Notable Stats:
Drew Lock (Quarterback): 16/22 Passing, 187 YDS, 1 TD, 0 INT
Jaxon Smith-Njigba (Wide Receiver): 8 REC, 122 YDS, 1 TD
Drake Maye (Quarterback ): Passing 23/33, 178 YDS, 1 TD, 3 INT
Seahawks Defense: 3 INT, 3 Sacks (4th quarter)