The Seahawks’ Week 1 win over a much-improved Patriots team did more than get Seattle to 1-0. It also gave a few players a real boost in standing, and not all of them were the obvious names.
Sam Darnold going down on the fifth play of the night changed the shape of the game fast, and Drew Lock ended up handling 43 of the next 48 snaps. That’s not just “most of the game” - that’s virtually the whole night.
Lock started slowly, and Seattle’s offense only managed 120 yards in the first half, with 42 of those coming from rookie running back Jadarian Price. But when the game tightened up, Lock did enough to put points on the board.
Thirteen points isn’t going to blow anybody away, but given how few first-unit reps Lock has had, it mattered. If Darnold has to miss time, the backup gave the 12s something to breathe easier about.
Nehemiah Pritchett may have been the biggest surprise of the night. After logging only 91 snaps last year, he was thrust into action with Woolen’s departure, and he answered with the kind of performance Seattle needed.
Pritchett came away with two pass breakups and the game’s first interception, a play that swung momentum toward the Seahawks. It was the kind of outing that turned a lot of doubt into trust, at least for one night.
Rodney Thomas II also made his presence felt in a big way. With no Nick Emmanwori and no Ty Okada, Thomas was activated from the Seahawks ready squad just hours before kickoff and stepped into a starting role.
Until Okada’s injury on Sunday, he had been getting all the first-team reps with the defense, so the ask was steep. Thomas handled it, and then some.
His play on the ball helped set up Pritchett’s interception, as he rose over Patriots receiver Romeo Doubs and tipped it into Pritchett’s hands. He looked more than solid throughout the game.
For Seattle, the night offered a reminder that this is very much a team sport, the kind Mike Macdonald likes to describe as a 70-man squad. And for these three players, it was a night when their stock clearly moved up.
In Other News...
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The sequence that drew the most attention came when Seahawks linebacker Derick Hall was flagged for unnecessary roughness after a late hit on Maye, a play the NFL is now reviewing for possible further punishment. Maye stayed in the game after the hit, and while the Patriots left with another narrow loss, they now have a short week to reset before facing the Pittsburgh Steelers on September 20. [Read more 🡒]
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Cabeldue entered the league as a 2025 sixth-round pick and saw action in a small but useful sample last season, logging snaps at multiple spots along the offensive line. For Seattle, his departure is another reminder of how quickly late-round development projects can become roster casualties, while for the Raiders it continues a clear pattern of looking toward familiar Seahawks connections as they build out their depth. [Read more 🡒]
Seahawks Opener Chaos Turned A Tense Win Into Something Else
The NFL season opener at Lumen Field had enough on-field edge already, but the scene in the stands briefly stole the attention away from the Seahawks and Patriots. A dispute over seating escalated when a Patriots fan allegedly would not move from seats belonging to other spectators, and what began as an argument turned into a physical confrontation that drew in ushers, security and police before order was restored.
For a few tense minutes, the football game was secondary to the disruption above it, a reminder of how quickly a night at the stadium can veer off script. The fan was eventually handcuffed, and while the crowd settled back in, the incident lingered as one of the stranger moments of an opener that already had plenty of bite. [Read more 🡒]