Frustrated by a two-game skid, the Seattle Seahawks went into playoff mode.
asserted
Seahawks → go → mode
Jaxon Smith-Njigba caught nine passes for 150 yards and a touchdown, and the Seahawks handed the Kansas City Chiefs their first loss of the season, 20-3 on Sunday night.
asserted
Seahawks → catch → night
Sam Darnold threw for 257 yards and a score for the Seahawks (4-3), while Emanuel Wilson had 24 carries for 100 yards and a TD.
“Playing a team like Kansas City and all the killers that they got on that side, we knew how big this game was, and we wanted this one badly,” said Smith-Njigba, the NFL’s leading receiver and reigning Offensive Player of the Year.
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Njigba → throw → Year
“You know, we saw it as a playoff game.”
asserted
we → know → game
Patrick Mahomes struggled, throwing for 165 yards with an interception for the Chiefs (5-1).
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Mahomes → struggle → Chiefs
Kenneth Walker III, the Super Bowl MVP for the Seahawks last season before signing with the Chiefs in the offseason, was held to 36 yards on 14 carries.
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III → sign → carries
Walker entered the night averaging a league-leading 133 yards per game, but the Seahawks shut him down, along with the rest of Kansas City’s offense.
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Seahawks → enter → offense
The Chiefs had 213 total yards, 50 on the ground.
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Chiefs → have → ground
“Listen, all three phases we struggled, so we’ve got to do better, and that’s my responsibility,” Kansas City coach Andy Reid said.
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Reid → listen → phases
“So I take full responsibility for this.
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I → take → this
We’ve got to play better as a team.”
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We → get → team
The Super Bowl champion Seahawks have not allowed a 100-yard rusher in 36 games, the league’s longest current streak.
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Seahawks → allow → games
“We know what kind of running back was coming in here, but we don’t allow people to run through our defense,” linebacker Ernest Jones IV said.
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IV → know → defense
“That’s just us.”
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That → ’ → ?
The only bright spot for Kansas City’s offense was a milestone for Travis Kelce, who had four receptions to reach 1,104 for his career, moving past Marvin Harrison and Cris Carter for fifth in NFL history.
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who → have → history
After Darnold hit Smith-Njigba for a 33-yard gain early in the second quarter to get the Seahawks in the red zone, Jason Myers kicked a 25-yard field goal for a 3-0 lead.
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Myers → hit → lead
On the next series, Ty Okada intercepted Mahomes on a pass intended for Jalen Royals.
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Okada → intercept → Royals
Seattle’s ensuing drive was kept alive by Darnold’s 7-yard scramble.
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drive → ensue → scramble
He then connected with Smith-Njigba for a 28-yard touchdown to put Seattle up 10-0 with 1:44 left in the first half.
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He → connect → half
Another 28-yard pass from Darnold to Smith-Njigba got the Seahawks to the Kansas City 1 in the closing seconds of the half, but Darnold was intercepted by Nohl Williams in the back of the end zone.
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Darnold → get → zone
Williams returned the pick 64 yards, but Harrison Butker’s 58-yard field goal attempt fell short as time expired.
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time → return → pick
Myers made a 35-yard field goal to extend Seattle’s lead to 13-0.
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Myers → make → 13
Before the third quarter was over, the Chiefs drove to the Seattle 30, but Mahomes fumbled on third down and Kansas City had to settle for Butker’s 50-yard field goal.
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City → drive → goal
Mahomes found Kelce for a 19-yard catch early in the fourth quarter, but the Chiefs came away with no points when Butker missed a 45-yard field goal attempt wide right.
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Butker → find → attempt
Butker has missed 10 field goals since the start of last season.
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Butker → miss → season
“He’s off a bit.
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He → ’ → ?
Got to fix it,” Reid said.
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Reid → got → it
The Seahawks pushed their lead to 20-3 on Wilson’s 21-yard scoring run with 3:47 left.
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Seahawks → push → 3:47
“I think this game reminds the guys what we’re capable of,” Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald said.
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Macdonald → think → what
“I think our guys understand that there’s more levels to where we can go, and so I hope they feel the sense of urgency that we can get there because it is stuff that we can control.
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we → think → that
You know, talking about procedural stuff, red-zone stuff, negative plays, how we rush our red-zone defense, all those things we’ve been attacking.
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we → know → defense
The Seahawks moved running back Zach Charbonnet to the active roster this week, but he was ruled out for the game.
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he → move → game
Charbonnet rushed for 730 yards and 12 touchdowns for the Seahawks last season before he tore an ACL.
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he → rush → ACL
The Chiefs were without receiver Rashee Rice, who missed his third straight game with a hamstring injury, and starting tackle Jaylon Moore, who is in the concussion protocol.
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who → miss → protocol
Seahawks receiver Rashid Shaheed left early in the second half with a knee injury.
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Shaheed → leave → injury
He did not return.
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He → return → ?
Tackle Charles Cross left in the fourth quarter with an ankle injury.
asserted
Cross → leave → injury
Up next
The Chiefs visit the Denver Broncos next Sunday.
asserted
Chiefs → visit → Broncos
The Seahawks host the Chicago Bears on Monday, Nov. 2
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asserted
Seahawks → host → Monday
The Aporia
