The Seattle Seahawks turned in a dominant performance against the New England Patriots’ rushing attack in Week 1, controlling the line of scrimmage and giving the Patriots little room to operate on the ground.
The Patriots finished with 24 carries for 62 yards, at an average of 2.58 yards per attempt. Seattle’s defense consistently filled running lanes, held its ground at the point of attack and prevented New England from generating meaningful gains. The Seahawks’ edge rushers took away the outside, and the defense as a whole collected tackles for loss that impacted the game.
The Seahawks’ front played with physicality and discipline, while the second level reacted quickly to limit opportunities and stop runners before they were able to build
momentum.
Seattle’s performance provided an early look at what their elite run defense is capable of looking like on a regular basis. By limiting New England to such a low per-carry average, Seattle created a major defensive advantage and that translated to their execution against the pass, where they did not allow a single Patriots receiver to go for over 51 receiving yards in the game and allowed only one REC touchdown.
This article originally appeared on Seahawks Wire: Seahawks were great against the run vs. Patriots
