As Pete Carroll explained it, letting kicker Steven Hauschka attempt a franchise-record length, 61-yard field goal with 13 seconds remaining and his team down two points gave his team the best chance to win.
“If we get the ball knocked down or something doesn’t happen and we come up short on fourth down, then we don’t get a shot to win the game,” Carroll said. “So in that instance it was 60 and we’re going to take a shot to make a historic kick.”
Of course, Hauschka’s attempt into the wind never had a chance, barely making the end zone – an anti-climactic end to an otherwise breathtaking finish with Seattle falling short against visiting Atlanta at CenturyLink Field, 30-28.
While the Seahawks dropped to 1-3 – two games behind NFC West division leader San Francisco (3-1) – they did discover something during the process – an offense.
After scoring 30 points through three games, the Seahawks scored 28 points and battled back from a 27-7 deficit in the second half to make the game interesting.
Quarterback Tarvaris Jackson finally delivered on the potential Carroll had raved about, finishing with a career-high 319 yards and completing passes to nine receivers.
The Seahawks again used the no-huddle offense effectively, keeping Atlanta’s defense off-balance by speeding up the tempo.
“I felt like any time we got the ball we just knew they couldn’t stop us,” Jackson said.
But with the offense clicking, Seattle’s defense struggled to contain Atlanta’s plethora of weapons.
Atlanta running back Michael Turner set the tone, rushing for 70 hard-fought yards on 26 carries, including 21- and 1-yard touchdown runs.
Receiver Roddy White, questionable coming into Sunday’s contest with a thigh injury, proved more than healthy, finishing with 11 catches for 127 yards.
As if that weren’t enough, Atlanta quarterback Matt Ryan completed 28 of 42 passes for 291 yards and a 1-yard touchdown to Tony Gonzalez. Seattle had trouble putting pressure on Ryan, who finished without being sacked.
“You’ve got to be able to stand up and make plays,” Seattle cornerback Marcus Trufant said. “They got their plays today.”
