NFL Week 5 Analysis: Giants 29, Seahawks 20 Winners and Losers

At some point there would be a bad defeat under Mike Macdonald; This happens to every coach and every team. That it happened against a New York Giants team that was missing its star rookie receiver and top running back is concerning. There's no way to clean up the mess that was the Seattle Seahawks' 29-20 home loss, their first under Macdonald.

There are no winners for this week's winners and losers because the performance didn't deserve winners. Instead, I would like to praise Jerome Baker for the forced fumble that enabled Rayshawn Jenkins' touchdown, congratulate Jaxon Smith-Njigba on his first touchdown of the season, raise a glass to Tyler Lockett for 4 catches and 75 yards, and point out that Derick Hall has five sacks this season after Daniel Jones' self-fumble was ruled a Hall sack.

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Mike Macdonald's defense

Many of you disagreed with me that the Seahawks' defense was “completely humiliated” against the Detroit Lions due to the lack of players. Well, a lot of them came back. How would you describe the performance on Sunday? An evisceration? How about 420 total yards of offense (including 175 on the ground), 7/16 on 3rd down, and zero tackles for loss outside of sacks?

23 offensive points allowed protect the defense. The pass rush was disappointing, the blitzing was ineffective, the secondary was torn apart with only one pass defended, the tackling was substandard and the run defense issues continue. Some of the “stops” they got were the result of dropped passes from Daniel Jones. And that's that worst On offense, they are expected to play from now until the end of the season.

Almost nothing worked. It was a complete mess.

Ryan Grubb

Seven. Only seven carries total for Kenneth Walker III and Zach Charbonnet. If he doesn't trust Seattle's run blocking, that's a big problem, but you can't stop the run on kickoff. At least against the Detroit Lions you could justify the action because they were trailing and the passing offense was effective, but this wasn't the same situation.

This is the first serious mistake for Seattle's offensive coordinator. You can't be immediately discouraged by a few negative run plays.

Jay Harbaugh

For reasons already mentioned. I guess the Seahawks defended kicks and punts better today, but that special unit is just a mess and the responsibility is his.

Offensive line

Whoo boy. Some of those sacks were on Geno Smith/superior coverage downfield, but Smith took a beating. No one can hold their head up after this terrible performance. Everyone was involved in the poor blocking attacks and pressure allowed, even Charles Cross.

Dealing with Messrs. Burns, Thibodeaux and Lawrence was never going to be easy, but when Laken Tomlinson is pushed back by DJ Davidson? This is not sustainable. The Seahawks have the cheapest line in the NFL and it shows in the results. I could copy and paste the previous sentence from many other seasons.

This OL performance was as bad as most of the Tom Cable era.

Tre Brown

You can't have All-Pros everywhere, so I'm not saying Tre Brown has to be at that level when the Seahawks have two superior cornerbacks on the roster. This was easily one of the worst performances by a Seahawks corner this side of the Tre Flowers “era.” The fact that Brown has the same first name is purely coincidental. Brown made several holds and was hit deep twice by Darius Slayton, including for a touchdown. He was also teased when the Giants made their slant plays.

It's possible that the Seahawks' corners have been “hidden” by the pass rush and are only now being punished by better quarterbacks in coverage. Brown was by far the worst defensive player and that's bad news for him in a contract year.

DK Metcalf

Two weeks in a row with a lost fumble in enemy territory. He has effectively created 10-14 point swings in consecutive games. Metcalf is off to one of the best statistical starts of his career while continuing to have terrible issues with ball security and committing penalties. At least he avoided a penalty today, but the point remains that Metcalf can't continue to be a grab bag per snap with results ranging from hero to hindrance.

Jaxon Smith-Njigba

I can't drop the third down pass. I just can't do it. It's a little outside in front of him, but it almost has to be that way to avoid a possible interception. For someone who was praised for his excellent hands in college, he had some ugly losses in the pros, and this one was a killer.

Final remarks

• Definitely not one of Geno Smith's better games, even if the stats look good (281 yards passing, 72 yards rushing). He missed a few passes and was a bit indecisive on a few sacks he took. Missing a first down early in the fourth quarter was maddening and perhaps his worst play of the night, but how many ruinous moments did he actually have? I'm worried about the hits piling up because, unlike Russell Wilson, he doesn't represent incredible durability. If only the Seahawks could do something to ease the pressure on Geno… maybe throw in a few off-color plays…
• Rayshawn Jenkins had that touchdown, but also at least three missed tackles. That was my concern when he signed as a free agent, and he was at the forefront of the sloppy tackling efforts.
• Injuries to Riq Woolen, Derick Hall and Uchenna Nwosu mean depth will be tested even more. I'm not sure Nehemiah Pritchett is ready for any serious snaps, and I'd rather promote Artie Burns if necessary. Hopefully Boye Mafe is ready to return, and so is Byron Murphy II. Ultimately, it seems like the Seahawks' biggest defensive flaw is that they are undersized.
• The touches we saw from Kenneth Walker and Zach Charbonnet came primarily in the passing game, with Walker catching seven passes for 57 yards and Charbonnet catching three catches for 19 yards.
• It's clear that the Seahawks defense in Weeks 1-3 is the same false dawn we've seen over the last two seasons, where Seattle prevailed against weak opponents and then fell in virtually every other game. You can talk about “new scheme, new roles” all you want, but you’re losing track? You'll probably lose the game. Can't discipline your eyes when playing very simple gameplay? They will forego explosive passing plays. Can't you guys cover 1v1 at Slants? They give up easy first downs. That means it's up to the offense to keep the Seahawks going until the end. Unfortunately, the start of this offensive line doesn't fill me with much confidence. No problem, because what’s next on the agenda? The San Francisco 49ers. In a short week. I prepare for impact. This is the first real test for Mike Macdonald after his first three weeks of life on the road. They fell drastically short of expectations today, now let's see if they can outperform against a superior team (their 2-3 record be damned).