Seahawks @ Patriots
Final Score: Seahawks 23, Patriots 20
Senior Writer: Benjamin Haller (@benjaminhaller1 on Twitter)
The Seattle Seahawks moved to 2-0 and sit atop the NFC West after an overtime win over the New England Patriots in an entertaining game played out in front of a patchy Foxborough crowd. Both quarterbacks had to look to score through the air in the first half as the defenses kept things stingy on the ground with just 78 combined rushing yards allowed. The half finished with a key six-play, 26-yard drive from the Seahawks that resulted in a field goal to give them a narrow 17-13 lead.
The Patriots found some rhythm in the second half on the ground with Rhamondre Stevenson and Antonio Gibson stepping up in the absence of a receiving threat. New England forced their way to a narrow three-point lead with the ball late in the fourth quarter in what was a tedious second half to watch. However, the Seahawks’ special teams blocked a field goal attempt from Joey Slye and gave Geno Smith good field position to go win the game. Geno stuttered in the red zone, however, and Jason Myers kicked a 36-yard field goal to send the game into overtime.
After the Patriots went three-and-out, Geno connected with each of his wide receivers to put Myers in place to nail a 31-yard kick to win the game in overtime.
Three Up
- DK Metcalf – an alpha performance from the big wideout who was a constant threat in the secondary and dominated on intermediate routes all contest – DK is the clear number one in Seattle
- Jaxon Smith-Njigba – after a quiet Week 1, JSN was electric across multiple roles in the formation, excelling on crossing routes and finding space between the linebackers and the secondary
- Hunter Henry – the fantasy tight end market is slim pickings right now but Henry may be a solid bet for production via volume after seeing nine more targets than any wideout. The majority of balls were easy completions over the middle.
Three Down
- Tyler Lockett – the stat line doesn’t tell the whole story for the veteran receiver, however, there is a clear ascendency of JSN in Seattle with Lockett suffering mightily – his two catches were a drastic drop from last week’s six
- Zach Charbonnet – this might be a little harsh as Charbonnet handled all the work out of the Seattle backfield with Kenneth Walker III inactive, but he didn’t do anything special, and if there was an opportunity to make a case for a starting role, the second year back did not take it by averaging just 2.7 yards per carry
- Patriots WR Room – apart from a touchdown pass to rookie Ja’Lynn Polk, the Patriots threw just 5-of-26 targets to wide receivers with nobody seeing more than two looks. Yikes!
Seattle Seahawks
Quarterback
Geno Smith: 33/44, 327 Yards, TD, 3 Sacks | 5 Carries, 8 Yards
This is why we love Smith as a bona fide streaming option at quarterback week-in, week-out – he’s pass-happy, has receivers who can muster extra yardage and he’s always in a meaningful position to be productive in a game. After the Pats dinked-and-dunked their way down the field to take the lead early in the game, Smith answered in style by connecting with Metcalf for a 56-yard score on a bomb that took advantage of busted coverage from the Pats.
DK Metcalf WIDE OPEN for a 56-yard TD!
📺: #SEAvsNE on FOX
📱: https://t.co/waVpO909ge pic.twitter.com/nLjzMeiUub— NFL (@NFL) September 15, 2024
Despite things going very quietly in the second half, Smith still managed to amass 17.88 fantasy points (in Yahoo!) while only throwing for one score. He showed his usual chemistry with Metcalf but also a burgeoning rapport with JSN that can only be promising from a fantasy perspective. When he needed to make plays to win the game for Seattle, he did.
Running Back
Zach Charbonnet: 14 Carries, 38 Yards | 5 Targets, 5 Receptions, 31 Yards
Enjoying a complete monopoly out of the backfield, Charbonnet was disappointing in limited opportunities in the first half and was averaging less than three yards per carry on five rushes as the Pats’ interior defensive line dominated the trenches. That was until a defensive pass interference call late in the half on third down put the ball at the Pats one-yard line and Charbonnet duly ran it in for a score.
Charbonnet finds a way. 💪 pic.twitter.com/Oi9Zm0DPtf
— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) September 15, 2024
With the Seahawks marching down the field on their first drive of the second half, the former UCLA back was stuffed at the line of scrimmage on the inside on a 4th-and-1 go-for-it play in field goal range. Smith threw the ball 44 times compared to just 14 designed run plays so Charbonnet never had the chance to amass a big score, however, he played his part with a huge catch-and-run to get a first down in overtime, beating his man and diving for a seven-yard gain.
Wide Receiver/Tight End
DK Metcalf: 14 Targets, 10 Receptions, 129 Yards, TD
A monster day from Metcalf, who sprinted deep downfield unchecked on his first catch of the game for a 56-yard score. The speed and size of Metcalf galloping away downfield was a joy to watch and his big play ability has always been a signature of his value as a wideout. What is less common is this type of target volume, with Metcalf seeing double-digit targets just twice last season. If this is to be a change under Ryan Grubb, we are all for it (note, DK only saw four targets last week).
Metcalf saw a number of chunk plays in the fourth quarter as the Seahawks chased the game, nabbing a beautiful catch down the sideline for 14 yards with less than two minutes left in the game to move the chains. He then took the next play into the red zone after hurdling a Pats defender. He added a 10-yard catch on the game-winning field goal drive in overtime.
Jaxon Smith-Njigba: 16 Targets, 12 Receptions, 117 Yards
Needing to take a big step after an encouraging if not subdued rookie campaign, JSN was heavily involved from the start as he hauled in six catches in the first half including a great grab downfield for 19 yards that set up Seattle’s second touchdown of the game. That kind of production continued in the second half with catches of 24 and 14 yards to take the Seahawks near the red zone on their opening drive. His 16 targets, 12 catches, and 117 yards are all career-best figures, and he has solidified his role behind Metcalf as the WR2 in this offense.
Tyler Lockett: 2 Targets, 2 Receptions, 15 Yards
The stat line is rough and this won’t help fantasy managers but Lockett made some key contributions that are worth noting. He was manhandled by Marco Wilson on a third-down pass that he was never going to catch anyway but it drew a DPI flag and put the Seahawks at the Patriots 1-yard line. Charbonnet took it in for six on the very next play. Lockett also made key contributions in overtime, again drawing a DPI before hauling in a 16-yard catch just outside the red zone on a broken play.
Jake Bobo: 2 Targets, 2 Receptions, 15 Yards
Noah Fant: 3 Targets, 1 Reception, 14 Yards
Laviska Shenault Jr.: 1 Target, 1 Reception, 6 Yards
Oh, Laviska Shenault Jr. is on this roster. Who knew?!
New England Patriots
Quarterback
Jacoby Brissett: 15/27, 149 Yards, TD, 3 Sacks | 2 Carries, 6 Yards
Patriots quarterback Jacoby Brissett has now just 51 passing attempts over two games, and even that feels too much. The aging Brissett looked every bit the “hold-the-fort” option at the position as he handed the ball off 33 times in this game. When asked to throw, Brissett was serviceable at best and went to easy options over the middle. He was effective outside of pocket on the Pats’ second drive, nudging the team down the field before finding rookie Ja’Lynn Polk in the endzone with a nice throw to the back of the endzone.
FIRST @NFL TOUCHDOWN JA'LYNN POLK!!!!!@jpolk_22 | @JBrissett12 pic.twitter.com/loEvUOB7H9
— New England Patriots (@Patriots) September 15, 2024
That was as good as it got, however, and he showed visible signs of pain in his lower body after taking a couple of hard hits on sacks in the first half. He looked to have reduced mobility in the second half and it cost New England despite the run game picking up some slack.
Brissett didn’t turn the ball over, and that’s the key for New England right now as they utilize the defense to try to win football games. But he is far from a viable fantasy option and he barely reached double-digit fantasy points after a single-digit score in Week 1. Can we get some Drake Maye yet?
Running Back
Antonio Gibson: 11 Carries, 96 Yards | 1 Target, 1 Reception, 7 Yards
Ironically, Antonio Gibson ended up leading the Patriots in rushing yards despite looking somewhat mechanical running to the outside on a jump run that ended up going for 19 yards in the first quarter. He then broke off a huge 45-yard run down the left sideline after a missed tackle to set his team up outside the red zone with a three-point lead with 5:44 remaining in the game in the fourth quarter. These were outliers in what was a struggle for most backs in this game. But, it is clear Gibson has an integral role in a run-heavy offense. That is worth noting for fantasy purposes. Just one target out of the backfield over two games is slightly disappointing, however.
Rhamondre Stevenson: 21 Carries, 81 Yards, TD, Fumble | 5 Targets, 2 Receptions, 9 Yards
Undoubtedly the lead back in this offense (he out-carried Gibson by 10 carries), Stevenson had a “mixed-bag” of a game as he had nothing going early inside as he was limited to just 16 yards on 6 carries in the first half. He did have a red zone target on their third drive but was well covered in the back of the end zone. He had back-to-back runs totaling 25 yards on the best drive the Pats had in the second half – he carried the rock twice in the end zone but fumbled the ball near the goal line. Luckily, the Pats recovered the ball before Stevenson took a wildcat play in for six to give his team the lead at the start of the fourth quarter.
.@dreeday32 direct snap 😤
📺: FOX pic.twitter.com/ZskVR2TB5B
— New England Patriots (@Patriots) September 15, 2024
It’s a really nice start to the year for Stevenson with 46 carries and 201 yards to go along with a score in each game. He has also out-targeted Gibson 8-to-1 in the passing game.
JaMycal Hasty: 1 Carry, 2 Yards
Wide Receiver/Tight End
Hunter Henry: 12 Targets, 8 Receptions, 109 Yards
We haven’t seen this kind of production from Henry since his days with the Chargers, and his last 100-yard game was back in 2019. The big-money tight end had three catches on the second drive of the game, all from Brissett scrambling and then short passes in space in between the linebackers and the secondary. That trend continued as he hauled in seven balls for 97 yards in the first half alone. He had key grabs on both Patriot touchdown drives and worked exclusively down the middle of the field. After only catching two balls last week, this effort should be taken with a pinch of salt.
Hunter Henry so far in this game:
7 catches for 99 yards. 🔥🔥
pic.twitter.com/ZxnlxGKj1a— Pats Buzz (@PatsBuzz) September 15, 2024
Ja’Lynn Polk: 3 Targets, 2 Receptions, 12 Yards, TDÂ | 1 Carry, 0 Yards
Hello, rookie! His second-ever NFL reception was a perfectly executed crossing route to the back of the endzone that Brissett nailed with a perfectly placed pass. Sadly, Polk was only targeted twice more in the entire game, with his second catch coming with seconds left in the game – a short pass for seven yards deep in his own territory on second down. “Getting Polk more involved in the passing game” does not mean fantasy relevance right now.
KJ Osborn: 2 Targets, 1 Reception, 7 Yards
Underrated when in Minnesota, the wideout showed nice hands on a sideline catch early in the contest that was thrown too wide and Osborn couldn’t get both feet in to move the sticks. He then hauled in a low pass from Brissett at the start of overtime but was generally under-utilized like the rest of the Patriots wide receiver room. Sigh.
Austin Hooper: 1 Target, 1 Reception, 5 Yards