Week 4 Game Recap: Seattle Seahawks 6, Chicago Bears 37

What you need to know

Seattle Seahawks

Seattle was completely dominated in their Sunday Night matchup with the Chicago Bears. The showdown was highly anticipated as both squads accounted for the only remaining undefeated clubs in the NFC, but the result didn’t live up to its expectations.

The Seahawks’ running game was highly ineffective, and as such was used for less than one third of Seattle’s total play selection. Maurice Morris attempted to replace Shaun Alexander in the lineup (out with a broken bone in his left foot), but was consistently denied by an aggressive Chicago defense. Nevertheless, Morris was Seattle’s leading rusher, with 35 yards on 11 carries.

With the running game effectively abandoned, the game was placed squarely on the shoulders of quarterback Matt Hasselbeck. The Bears’ defense was constantly in his face, sacking him five times while hitting, pressuring, and generally harassing him much more. He threw two costly interceptions in the first half of the game that led directly to ten Chicago points. The pressure and interceptions seemed to get in his head, as he never got on track. He finished the game with 196 yards on 47% passing and no touchdowns. Wide receivers Darrell Jackson, Bobby Engram, and Deion Branch were Hasselbeck’s favorite targets.

The defense played well, especially in the early part of the game, but seemed to get discouraged by the first half turnovers. They were tough against the run at the beginning of the game, but slowly wore down to eventually allow 143 yards on the ground. The passing game gave up 232 yards and two touchdowns, while not intercepting any passes and only sacking Chicago quarterbacks once.

Kicker Josh Brown provided the only points for Seattle, as he made both of his field goal attempts.

Chicago Bears

Chicago dominated the game nearly from start to finish. They did so on the strength of their lockdown defense but also thanks to the explosiveness of their offense. Quarterback Rex Grossman continues his impressive maturation as an NFL quarterback, throwing for 232 yards and 2 touchdowns on 55% passing. Notably, he committed no turnovers.

The running game started off slowly with Thomas Jones rushing for only minimal gains. As the game wore on, though, Jones and the Bears’ offensive line started to wear down the Seahawks’ defense. Jones finished with nearly 100 yards on the ground with one rushing score. Benson contributed in the running game as well, but was generally less effective that Jones, with a noticeable exception of a 19 yard run.

Muhsin Muhammad continues to be one of Grossman’s favorite targets, reeling in a team high five catches (one for a touchdown), while Bernard Berrian proved to be the Bears’ deep threat. Berrian hauled in 108 yards on three receptions including a 40 yard scoring strike.

The Bears’ defense maintained their ultra-stingy ways at home, continuing their streak of games without allowing either a touchdown or ten or more points. All units of the defense performed superbly. The defensive line, led by tackle Tommie Harris, sacked Matt Hasselbeck five times. Linebackers Lance Briggs and Brian Urlacher were the top two tacklers on the team. Cornerback Ricky Manning, Jr. had both of his team’s interceptions, which led directly to ten Chicago points.

What you ought to know

QB Matt Hasselbeck, Pass: 16 - 35 - 196 - 0 TD / 2 INT, Rush: 1 - 19 - 0

Hasselbeck was constantly harassed by the Bears’ pass rush, and it affected his performance. He was sacked five times, but was under pressure nearly every time he dropped back to pass. Hasselbeck threw two interceptions, the first where he misread a defender, and the second on a pass on the run, where he was chased out of the pocket by the Bears’ pressure. Both turnovers led to Chicago scores. He never got into any rhythm or flow, and as such he ended up with poor numbers. His favorite targets were wide receivers: Darrell Jackson, Bobby Engram, and Deion Branch. Hasselbeck finished with less than 200 yards and no touchdowns. He had a 19 yard scramble near the end of the first half.

QB Seneca Wallace, Pass: 1 - 2 - 6 - 0 TD / 0 INT

Wallace saw action on the last two series of the game, when the game was already decided. He threw two passes, one to Branch incomplete out of bounds, and one complete to fullback Mack Strong. Mostly he handed the ball off to Seattle running backs.

RB Maurice Morris, Rush: 11 - 35 - 0, Rec: 1 - 2 - 0 (4 targets)

Morris was unsuccessful in attempting to replace starter Shaun Alexander. He didn’t have much room to run against the stifling Chicago defense. Morris’ longest rush was 15 yards, and even that play was a check-off by Matt Hasselbeck, as the Seattle quarterback read blitz. Morris was an afterthought in the passing game, and only caught one of his targets.

RB Mack Strong, Rush: 4 - 15 - 0, Rec: 2 - 14 - 0 (4 targets)

Strong contributed in both the passing and running game, gaining nearly equal results in both. He was used as a checkdown option out of the backfield and also as a rushing compliment to Maurice Morris.

RB Marquis Weeks, Rush: 3 - 8 - 0 (4 targets)

Weeks saw his first action of the season on the last series of the game. He was activated from the practice squad due to Alexander’s injury.

RB Shaun Alexander

Alexander was out with a fractured bone in his left foot.

WR Darrell Jackson, Rec: 5 - 62 - 0 (7 targets)

Jackson once again led Seattle in receiving. His numbers were unspectacular as a result of a couple of drops and a suffocating Bears’ defense.

WR Bobby Engram, Rec: 4 - 33 - 0 (8 targets)

Engram led the Seahawks in targets, although he was used in his usual role as a possession receiver. Most of his catches went for small gains, as seen by his longest reception of 12 yards. It is clear that Hasselbeck is comfortable throwing to him as he is sure-handed.

WR Deion Branch, Rec: 3 - 57 - 0 (6 targets)

Branch is getting more comfortable with the Seahawks’ system and quarterback Matt Hasselbeck. He was second on the team in yardage, and third in receptions. Branch had Seattle’s longest play of the game, a 31 yard reception on their first scoring drive.

WR Nate Burleson, Rec: 1 - 19 - 0 (4 targets)

Burleson had the fewest targets and receptions of the four Seattle wide receivers that saw game action. He was targeted once in the end zone, but the pass fell incomplete.

TE Itula Mili, Rec: 1 - 15 - 0 (3 targets)

Mili had one catch as he continues to see playing time with Jerramy Stevens out. He was targeted once in the endzone, but the pass fell incomplete.

PK Josh Brown 2 - 2 FG, 0 - 0 XP, 6 points

Brown was responsible for all of the Seahawks’ scoring, hitting both of his field goals (from 23 and 24 yards).

SEA Rush Defense

The rush defense started strong but wore down as the game progressed. Chicago rushers combined for 143 yards and one score. Their longest run allowed was 29 yards by Thomas Jones.

SEA Pass Defense

The pass defense was burned on a few big plays, and never pressured Chicago quarterback Rex Grossman into any mistakes. They sacked him once, but got no interceptions. They gave up 232 yards and two touchdowns—one each to Muhsin Muhammad and Bernard Berrian. The later came on a perfect 40 yard strike. Safety Michael Boulware left the game and did not return after a nasty collision with Chicago tight end John Gilmore.

QB Rex Grossman, Pass: 17 - 31 - 232 - 2 TD / 0 INT, Rush: 1 - 2 - 0

Grossman had a highly efficient game, and continues to impress as a starting NFL quarterback. He made sound decisions and didn’t turn the ball over. Grossman favored his starting receivers, sending eight looks each to Muhsin Muhammad and Bernard Berrian. He also hit each for a touchdown. Muhammad looks to be his most reliable target, while Berrian is the deep threat. Grossman threw a beautiful pass precisely into Berrian’s hands for a 40 yard touchdown connection. He was only sacked once.

QB Brian Griese

Griese came in on the Bears’ last two series. He only handed the ball off to Chicago rushers.

RB Thomas Jones, Rush: 24 - 98 - 2, Rec: 2 - 9 - 0 (3 targets)

Jones came up only two yards short of his first 100 yard rushing game of the season. He started slow, but gained more and more yardage as the game wore on and the Seattle defense got tired and demoralized. Jones scored two touchdowns on rushes near the goal line. He converted two of his three pass targets. Jones ran hard, including a 29 yard rush early in the third quarter.

RB Cedric Benson, Rush: 11 - 37 - 0

Benson had 11 rushes in the game, and was generally ineffective with the exception of a 19 yard gain. He saw more work as the game went on, and the outcome was secure. Benson was not targeted in the passing game.

RB Jason McKie, Rush: 1 - 1 - 0, Rec: 3 - 12 - 0 (4 targets)

McKie was targeted by Grossman as a check down option out of the backfield, especially in the first half. He also ran the ball once in the fourth quarter.

WR Muhsin Muhammad, Rec: 5 - 45 - 1 (8 targets)

Muhammad tied with Bernard Berrian for the team lead in targets. He was Grossman’s most reliable target, pulling in five receptions including a first half touchdown.

WR Bernard Berrian, Rush: 1 - 5 - 0, Rec: 3 - 108 - 1 (8 targets)

Berrian tied with Muhsin Muhammad for the team lead in targets. He was frequently used as a deep threat, as evidenced by his 36 yards per reception average. Berrian caught a picture perfect throw from Rex Grossman for a 40 yard touchdown. His 108 receiving yards are a new career high.

WR Rashied Davis (1 targets)

Davis was Grossman’s target on his first pass of the day, but didn’t see any other looks.

TE Desmond Clark, Rec: 3 - 39 - 0 (5 targets)

Clark was injured during the week before the game and it was unclear how much action he would see. He entered the game only on obvious passing downs, where he proved to be a reliable target for Rex Grossman. Notably, he dropped a wide open pass in the end zone that should have been an easy six points.

TE Gabe Reid, Rec: 1 - 19 - 0 (1 targets)

Reid caught his first pass of the season, a 19 yarder that set up Thomas Jones’ first touchdown run.

TE John Gilmore (2 targets)

Gilmore converted neither of his targets, including one near the goal line where he got whacked by Seattle safety Michael Boulware.

PK Robbie Gould 3 - 3 FG, 4 - 4 XP, 13 points

Gould remained perfect for the season, connecting on three field goals (36, 20, 41) and four PATs.

CHI Rush Defense

Chicago’s rush defense contained the Seattle running game, only allowing 77 yards. They were aided by the offense’s explosive performance, as Seattle has to abandon the running game and only rushed the ball 19 times. The rush defense allowed no touchdowns and a long gain of 19 yards.

CHI Pass Defense

The Bears’ pass defense was spectacular, limiting one of the league’s better quarterbacks, Matt Hasselbeck, to less than 200 yards passing. Ricky Manning, Jr. picked Hasselbeck off twice. The defensive line, led by Tommie Harris with two sacks, combined for five total sacks of Hasselbeck. The pass defense allowed no touchdowns.