Salvage-in Lock lifts Seahawks: ‘We wanted a win’

SEATTLE — Pete Carroll had his hat on backward, reveling in an thrilling win that marked the tip of the longest dropping jog of his tenure as Seattle Seahawks head coach.

Safety Julian Love had an ear-to-ear smile on his face, beaming as he broke down his two fourth-quarter interceptions.

And Drew Lock had a lump in his throat, changing into emotional at some stage in an on-field interview after main the Seahawks to a 20-17 win over the Philadelphia Eagles that will perchance also honest relish saved Seattle’s season.

“It takes a assorted neighborhood to rally around a man that used to be coming into his second sport of the year,” he told ESPN’s Lisa Salters after making his second straight inaugurate fairly than an injured Geno Smith. “They’re ragged to the an identical command all year long, identical cadence, identical jog of the ball, all the pieces. For a crew look after that — not true the offense, the defense — to rally around me tonight, man, that used to be unbelievable.”

Requested concerning the emotion in his relate, Lock talked about, “It’s been a truly long time. It’s been a truly long time.”

That used to be factual for every the quarterback and the crew. The Seahawks entered Monday evening having not won since Nov. 12, dropping four straight games for the first time since Carroll took over in 2010. Lock, meanwhile, had lost his old seven starts dating to December 2020, when he used to be soundless with the Denver Broncos.

Lock place an cease to every streaks in dramatic vogue Monday evening.

Down 17-13 with 1:52 to switch and one timeout, he led the Seahawks on a 92-yard a success pressure. All 10 performs were Lock passes. He carried out 5 of them, including three passes to DK Metcalf for 58 yards as smartly as a 29-yard traipse ball to rookie receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigbawho made a fingertip get within the tip zone for the a success ranking.

“Elegant soccer, true sexy soccer,” Carroll talked about. “The poise that we talked to you about final week, that’s where he’s been. He is been on it. He is been in command. There could be a pair incompletes in that pressure; he came proper serve and hit it and transformed and made the first downs. Then to throw the landing to win the soccer sport, true unbelievable stuff.”

In his first inaugurate of the season final week, Lock threw two landing passes and two interceptions in a loss to the San Francisco 49ers. He delivered a technique more even efficiency Monday evening, despite the proven reality that he did not get rid of darkness from the stat sheet. Lock went 22-of-33 for 208 yards and the one landing. He carried out passes to eight assorted targets, took easiest two sacks and did not turn the ball over, even supposing he overthrew a large-originate Tyler Lockett on a Third-quarter deep shot that can even relish tied the sport at 17 apiece.

He used to be soundless kicking himself for that omit in a while nonetheless used to be nonetheless jubilant.

“For us to reach serve out tonight and play the system we did and to find a win in a single of two opportunities I had this year to inaugurate, gosh, I used to be excited,” he talked about in his postgame recordsdata convention. “I used to be emotional. I used to be emotional for myself nonetheless I used to be emotional for these guys on this locker room. It’s been a tough couple weeks. We wanted a win.”

Monday evening’s sport used to be steeped in drama even sooner than kickoff, with uncertainty as as to whether Smith or Lock would inaugurate lasting beyond the announcement on inactive gamers. Smith used to be restricted all week, soundless slowed by the groin injure he suffered in observe Dec. 7 nonetheless bowled over the crew with how smartly he moved at some stage in a pregame exercise. He looked wholesome ample to be spicy in case of an emergency — Seattle also elevated Sean Mannion from the observe squad — nonetheless Carroll went with Lock as the starter, asserting he feared a setback in Smith’s recovery.

“Drew took many of the performs at some stage within the week,” Carroll talked about. “We if truth be told tried to build Geno as noteworthy as we would also and never overexpose him due to it be been this form of short span of time since the strain. We went out tonight to to find could well perchance well also he play if we wanted him to play. … He looked if truth be told genuine within the exercise, nonetheless that used to be if truth be told the one taxing exercise that we place him thru. So we knew we would also dress him and if we wanted him, we would also traipse to him in hopes we have not got to so we would also purchase him one other week of healing due to it used to be if truth be told too soon.

“It used to be a anxious resolution. It used to be exhausting as could well perchance well also be on Geno due to we bought him your complete system to that level after which talked about, ‘No. Robe, be there if we desire you, nonetheless we’ll traipse with the assorted fellas and stumble on if we would also produce it to subsequent week so that it is in all probability you’ll also reach serve and play subsequent week.'”

Did Smith fight Carroll on the resolution?

“Oh yeah,” Carroll talked about. “Oh yeah, we were combating. We were combating, nonetheless he understood.”

Lock talked about Smith is an “unsung hero” for the give a enhance to he has showed him the previous two weeks, calling Smith “an unselfish dude.” He talked about Smith encouraged him on the sideline sooner than the final pressure, telling Lock he used to be one of the effective quarterback on the field.

“I relish we hugged look after 10 times within the locker room tonight,” Lock talked about. “He is true so excited for me and I admire genuine excitement out of him in opposition to me due to that’s not straightforward to lift out, man. It wasn’t straightforward when he bought named the starter for me final year. It’s not straightforward for him now looking out at from the sideline. I know the vogue of competitor he is. He has to be accessible each snap.”

Carroll confirmed that Smith will inaugurate Sunday in opposition to the Tennessee Titans so long as he’s wholesome.

“Yeah,” Carroll talked about. “Geno’s our starter.”

Within the interval in-between, Lock can soak in a victory that keeps the Seahawks’ playoff hopes alive. In holding with ESPN Analytics, their chances of reaching the postseason jumped from 32% to 55% after beating Philadelphia. They would relish dropped to 16% with a loss.

“I’m so overjoyed for the baby, if truth be told,” Carroll talked about. “First off, it be a memory you are never going to lose. He is going to follow it to this Monday evening eternally. He earned it. He deserved it. He conducted as much as the gargantuan moments within the sport and came thru. … It’s been exhausting for him. Any man that backs up that has the mind of a starter, the mind of a championship baby, it be anxious as heck to relish to serve. He is had to lift out it. He had his chances and he nearly place together a sport genuine ample final week, and this week he did your complete command. It used to be unbelievable.”