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SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - AUGUST 15: Zach Charbonnet #26 of the Seattle Seahawks celebrates with teammates after scoring a touchdown during the first quarter of the NFL Preseason 2025 game between Kansas City Chiefs and Seattle Seahawks at Lumen Field on (Soobum Im / Getty Images)
SEATTLE - In what might be the only preseason look at the first-team offense of the Seattle Seahawks, the unit passed with flying colors.
The running game was a juggernaut against the Kansas City Chiefs on Friday night, and both Sam Darnold and Drew Lock looked sharp at quarterback moving the offense as the Seahawks piled up 33 points against the defending AFC champions.
"I think just right now our offensive operation I'm very pleased with," head coach Mike Macdonald said. "How we take the ball, the decisiveness in how we move and shift. Felt like we called our targets right. Just felt like we were going to the right guys for the most part really until about the fourth quarter. Backs ran really hard. Every (running) back today I thought ran the ball hard and going forward how we finish plays, can't wait to watch it."
Seattle scored touchdowns on four of five drives in the first half, and had their lone failed possession result in a turnover on downs at the Chiefs 2-yard line.
The starting defense – minus a few key starters such as Leonard Williams, Demarcus Lawrence and Tyrice Knight – weren't as sharp out of the gates, but did deliver a fourth-down stop to keep the Chiefs off the board on the opening drive.
While the Seahawks said repeatedly after the game that they still have plenty of work to do, it was just about the exact script for a game the team will be looking to replicate during the season.
"It’s really encouraging," safety Julian Love said. "I don’t think you could script it better on offense in terms of the flow of how we want to play. We were able to run the ball, obviously work play action, and all that stuff off of it. Make throws when we need to make the throws, but just keep the ball, keep the clock running. Then defensively, that first group out there wasn’t super clean. There was obviously errors to improve on, especially those third downs, but it just goes to show that the defense needs to stay ready when our offense is moving and grooving, because they can hold the ball for a big clip at a time."
Here are the takeaways from Seattle's 33-16 win.
A perfect night for the first-team offense.
It was only 10 plays for Sam Darnold and the first-team offense, but the unit quickly carved their way down the field for an opening touchdown that allowed Macdonald to give them the rest of the night off easily.
"Really sharp," Macdonald said of Darnold. "Pretty sure he wanted to keep going, but he showed what he can do, so really great drive."
Darnold completed all four passes he threw on the opening drive for a total of 34 yards. A.J. Barner, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Elijah Arroyo and Robbie Ouzts were on the receiving end of Darnold's targets, which saw Darnold frequently under center and used off bootleg action at times.
"Great to get different guys touches," Darnold said. "That's what we're going to be as an offense. We're going to be very multiple. We're going to use different guys in the pass game and the run game so that defenses aren't going to know what to expect."
Meanwhile, Zach Charonnet had 45 yards on five carries on the drive, which included a 15-yard touchdown run where he may not have been touched. It was the kick-start to a banner night for the rushing attack that saw the team rush for 268 yards.
"The way we were able to run the football like we talked about, mixing in keepers and play-action and even some dropback there on second down early in the drive, it was our style of football," Darnold said. "It's the style we wanted to create in OTAs and even training camp. We started to find our identity that way. Can kind of see it to come to life. It's August, so there is still a long ways to go in terms of where we want to be as an offense. It was really good to get out there and just take the field as a unit the way we wanted to."
Hello, running game.
The first-team unit wasn't the only group to find success on the ground. The success continued throughout most of the game for Seattle.
Five different players, including quarterback Drew Lock, had a run of at least 15 yards during the win. Charbonnet, George Holani, Damien Martinez and Jacardia Wright all broke for an explosive run with Lock adding a 30-yarder on a quarterback scramble as well.
"We're just plugging away," Macdonald said. "Our offensive line coaches are doing a heck of a job. John Benton, Rico (Rick Dennison), JO (Justin Outten), Quinshon (Odom). It's really clear what we're asking them to do. They're determined and playing really hard and practicing really hard. A lot of great stuff. A lot of great stuff."
If you account for scrambles, the Seahawks were able to have a 42-27 split in terms of run-pass calls against the Chiefs. Playing with the lead for so long, they were able to lean into the ground game for most of the night and the team finished with a 5.6 yards per carry average on their 48 total rushes in the game.
"Even on that first drive I was in, I threw one pass, and it was the five-yard screen to (Jake) Bobo, and we scored (on a 12-yard touchdown)," Lock said. If we can do that, throw one pass and it’s inside or at the five, it speaks wonders to those guys up front and our backs."
The offensive line has looked impressive through two games. They've allowed just one sack in eight quarters, which came on their final offensive snap last week against the Las Vegas Raiders. Grey Zabel has been terrific at left guard. And even with Charles Cross and Olu Oluwatimi being out of the lineup, the unit has looked much improved from the struggles of the last few seasons.
"That’s our identity as a line that we built over the offseason, in OTAs and with training camp still going on. It felt like what we’ve been waiting for," guard Anthony Bradford said.
Performances of note.
– Wide receiver Jake Bobo caught two passes, each one going for 12 yards and a touchdown. The way they happened was vastly different. The first was a wide receiver screen where his defender slipped and fell down, which gave him plenty of space to get running. The second was a perfect fade throw from Lock that beat cornerback Joshua Williams.
"Man, this guy is a Seahawk," Macdonald said. "The way he operates and then he goes and attacks the football. It was great to see him have that opportunity."
Bobo also had a 20-yard return on a punt, which was one of his first opportunities in that role since a few brief chances in college.
– Wide receiver Dareke Young has had a strong camp as well as he battles for a depth spot on Seattle's roster. He was the team's leading receiver Friday night with three catches for 52 yards.
"I think this is a great system for him because he can show his physicality in the run game and he's really fast, so all the vertical stretch stuff," Macdonald said. "And then just him in and out of his breaks is just way more decisive. You feel the burst, feel the flexibility, which is a tribute to his work ethic and the work he put on his body. The guy looks like a figurine out there, man. It's impressive."
– Guard Sataoa Laumea appears to be in danger of losing out on a roster spot.
Laumea hasn't had much opportunity to push for a starting role during training camp as he's been working primarily with the second- and third-team offensive lines. On Friday night, rookie Bryce Cabeldue even got into the game at guard before Laumea, who replaced Cabeldue when he left briefly with an elbow injury.
Laumea appears clearly behind presumptive right guard starter Anthony Bradford, and has been behind fellow second-year guard Christian Haynes as well. When Laumea did get into the game against the Chiefs, he had a holding penalty and a false start against him.
– Center Jalen Sundell may be close to wrapping up the starting job.
With the strong play of the offensive line the last two weeks, it's tough to see the team making a change to the five guys that have been working together over the last two weeks. Olu Oluwatimi has been out of action with a back injury, which has given Sundell the chance to run with the job.
Sundell looks fully capable of handling the role. At this point, a starting offensive line of Charles Cross - Grey Zabel - Sundell - Bradford - Abe Lucas should not surprise anyone.
NFL has to improve the "virtual measurement" process.
The NFL used their new "virtual measurement" process on back-to-back plays in the first quarter that resulted in a turnover on downs for the Seahawks defense.
The league is moving to virtual measurement this season as they move away from the traditional "chain gang" setup for measuring for first downs. After Julian Love tackled Chiefs running back Carson Steele on fourth down, the crew came out for a second time with the ruling ultimately being Kansas City did not get the needed yardage.
Perhaps the measurements being used on back-to-back plays highlighted just how much time it took to complete the rulings, but it felt entirely too long in the stadium.
The Automatic Ball-Strike System that has been used in spring training games and in the minor leagues in baseball provides a very quick result. So does the Hawk-Eye technology in tennis to determine whether a ball was in or out. The answer is immediate.
So far, through two preseason experiences in Seattle, the NFL's system is not. And for a sport that already has a LOT of downtime between plays, the league needs to find a way to speed the process up.
Steele was eventually ruled to be 13 inches short of a first down on the play. It shouldn't take much longer than 13 seconds to get the answer that he was short.
The Source: Information in this story came from FOX 13 Seattle reporting.
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