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# Halftime Observations: Seahawks Dogged by Mistakes, Trail 17-10 to Commanders
- URL: https://www.emeraldcityspectrum.com/halftime-observations-seattle-seahawks-dogged-mistakes-washington-commanders/
- Published: 2026-09-27T18:55:15.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-08T05:52:09.000Z
- Author: Corbin Smith
- Tags: Analysis, Game Day, Seahawks, Sam Darnold, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Cooper Kupp, A.J. Finley, Jadarian Price

Harmed by a litany of penalties on both sides of the ball and a lost fumble by rookie running back Jadarian Price, the Seattle Seahawks allowed two touchdown passes to backup quarterback Marcus Mariota as the Washington Commanders took an unexpected 17-10 lead into halftime at Northwest Stadium.

Here are three quick takeaways from a mostly sloppy first half in Landover:

### 1\. Looking healthy and moving well, Darnold started to find a rhythm late in the first quarter as a facilitator.

Returning to the lineup after missing most of the past two games with a glute injury, Darnold’s mobility got tested early as Washington’s front line flushed him from the pocket a couple of times on Seattle’s first two offensive possessions. He moved well and didn’t show any reservations about taking off in his first game back in the lineup, but two of the first three series ended with quick Michael Dickson punts as he completed two out of four passes for just 16 yards, not attempting any throws beyond 10 yards up to that point.

Offensive coordinator Brian Fleury started to open things up for his quarterback late in the first quarter, however, with Darnold getting his superstar receiver involved to get the ball rolling. Smith-Njigba snagged 11 and 20-yard receptions over the middle to move the chains, getting the Seahawks near midfield. After a six-yard run by Emanuel Wilson, tight end AJ Barner hauled in screen pass and rumbled through multiple would-be tacklers, turning the play into an explosive 32-yard gain. On the very next snap to close out the quarter, fullback Brady Russell got into the act with a 20-yard reception, setting up Smith-Njigba’s fifth touchdown of the season to knot up the score at 7-7.

Later in the half, Darnold linked up with veteran Cooper Kupp for a 20-yard dump off into the flats and a 16-yard improvised completion on 3rd and 14 to move the chains. He followed up by letting it rip on a 17-yard connection over the middle to Tory Horton, advancing the Seahawks back into the red zone. Unfortunately, the drive didn’t end on a good note, as the quarterback had three incompletions inside the opposing two-yard line, including a fourth down toss to Barner that fell incomplete for a turnover on downs.

### 2\. Ball security emerges as an early concern for Price, latest fumble leads to instant offense for Washington.

Coming out of Notre Dame, Price didn’t have many red flags as the Robin to Jeremiyah Love’s Batman, but putting the ball on the ground was a problem at times. He fumbled five times during his three seasons with the Fighting Irish, and unfortunately, that concern has reared its ugly head early in his rookie season with the Seahawks. After losing a fumble in last week’s win in Arizona, he coughed it up again on Seattle’s second offensive drive on Sunday, this time having the ball squirt out at the Seattle 21-yard line with cornerback Amik Robertson knocking it out, gifting the home team phenomenal starting field position.

Unlike last week where the Cardinals couldn’t capitalize on Price’s turnover, Mariota cashed in by throwing a six-yard touchdown to White, who beat linebacker Drake Thomas and made a nice catch in the end zone to give Washington a 7-0 advantage. While the Seahawks quickly got the rookie back on the field last week to build his confidence back up, that wasn’t the case in the first half in Landover amid rainy conditions, as Wilson and George Holani received the vast majority of the reps with 17 yards on nine carries after the turnover on what appeared to be an unofficial benching. If he wants to be on the field and contribute, he will have to promptly address the fumble problem and re-earn the trust of the coaching staff.

### 3\. Lucky breaks prevent Seahawks’ defense from yielding more points in an up-and-down opening half.

Down multiple safeties in the secondary, Seattle entered Sunday far from being at full strength on defense, and to an extent, Washington took advantage of Julian Love and Ty Okada being sidelined. With the game knotted up at seven apiece midway through the second quarter, Mariota picked on reserve AJ Finley, who was making his first career NFL start, connecting with former first round pick Treylan Burks for an 11-yard touchdown to retake the lead. To close out the half, the veteran quarterback again went after Finley, completing an 18-yard pass to Terry McLaurin along the sideline that helped set up a 57-yard field goal for Drew Stevens right before halftime.

But looking back at the half as a whole, the Commanders may be kicking themselves with a few crucial missed opportunities. Most notably, running back Jacory Croskey-Merritt rocketed past multiple Seahawks defenders for a 48-yard touchdown run early in the second quarter, only for that play to be wiped out by an illegal procedure penalty against rookie receiver Antonio Williams. On that same series, receiver Dyami Brown couldn’t get his second foot down on what would have been a 21-yard reception along the sideline, taking away a chance to get at least three points out of the drive.