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The Seattle Seahawks lost their game against Los Angeles Rams in Week 11 and things might go from bad to worse as quarterback Geno Smith suffered a worrisome injury. However, the QB did come back off the bench late to replace his ineffective backup, Drew Lock, and got his team into field goal position before last week’s hero, Jason Myers, missed a 55-yarder to lose this crucial game.
The Geno Smith injury
Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith staked his team to a 16-7 lead before Aaron Donald broke through the Seahawks’ offensive line and blasted the QB as he was throwing the ball on a 1st-and-10 from the Seattle 36-yard line.
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Seattle medical staff brought Smith into the blue medical tent for an evaluation, and he emerged with a large warp that extended from his wrist almost to his shoulder.
When Smith exited the game Lock came in, but the offense was obviously not the same with the backup at the helm. It didn’t help that starting running back Kenneth Walker III also left the game with an oblique injury, per The 33rd Team’s Ari Meirov, and rookie Zach Charbonnet was carrying the load.
Before the injury, Smith was having a solid game. The Seahawks’ QB1 was 19-of-29 (65.5%) for 197 yards with a touchdown and no interceptions. He did take two sacks for 13 yards in losses.
The good news was that after the Rams ran down the clock to kick what would become the game-winning field goal, Smith was at least healthy enough to come back in with an elbow compression sleeve and try to mount a game-winning drive.
Smith almost did, too, going 3-of-4 for 36 yards to get the team in range for a potential winning field goal.
The Seahawks Couldn’t Preserve the Win
We’ll see how the Geno Smith injury affects the Seahawks in the long term, but in the short term, it was a disaster for Seattle. Drew Lock — who some fans clamored for when Smith struggled this year — couldn’t get it done.
Lock was just 2-of-6 for 3 yards with an interception heading into the final drive. The backup was so bad that head coach Pete Carroll pulled him in favor of the injured starter for the final drive.
The defense didn’t step up when it needed to either. Pro Bowl cornerback Riq Woolen did intercept Matthew Stafford after Smith went out but following a three-and-out by Lock and the offense the D gave up a methodical nine-play, 68-yard touchdown drive.
Then, after a Lock interception, the Rams again systematically drove down the field, taking the game down to 1:31 on the clock and kicking what would become the game-winning field goal.
Smith gave it a heroic effort to get the Seahawks in field goal range and many will question the decision to run on the last play and leave Myers with a 55-yard field goal attempt. The biggest news here is the injury, though.
If there is something wrong with Smith that will cause him to miss time, it could be a major problem for Seattle. Lock did not look good in relief on Sunday and now that Seattle has dropped to 6-4 on the season, the pressure will amp up.
This was the last obviously winnable game for Carroll and company for a while. The team’s next four games are against the class of the NFC as the Seahawks take on the San Francisco 49ers, Dallas Cowboys, 49ers, and Philadelphia Eagles in the next four weeks.
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Geno Smith Suffers Injury as Miracle Comeback Falls Short vs. Rams