Hawks Edge Cards, Clinch Divison Title

by ROORshock | 7 years ago | 1 Comments

Capping of a roller coaster season, the Seattle Seahawks defeated the Arizona Cardinals 17-13 to clinch the NFC West division title and bid to host a playoff game.  Coming off of a heartbreak loss to Dallas in Week 16, during which a furious comeback attempt fell just short, the Seahawks rebounded nicely, showing no signs of fatigue or lingering effects of the previous game.

The stout Seattle defense has proven to be their X factor all season and on Sunday that was no different.  The Legion of Boom intercepted Carson Palmer 4 times, including 2 clutch picks by rookie Shaq Griffin, both in the end zone, one of which shut down Arizona’s attempted game winning drive.  The Seattle offense did most of their damage through the air, with fill in starter Thomas Rawls finding just 11 yards on 12 carries. QB Russell Wilson finished the game 13-16 for 266 yards and a score, while also throwing one interception.  Graham led the way with 4 catches for 117 yards and a touchdown.  

This one had no shortage of drama, as the game remained tight throughout.  After the Cardinals kicked a field goal to go up 13-10 with just over a minute remaining, Russell Wilson responded quickly and admirably, finding Jimmy Graham twice for 71 yards to score a touchdown in just 21 seconds.  The highlight of the drive was a beautiful spin move by Graham down the sideline to avoid a defender on his way to the end zone.  On the ensuring drive, Arizona, with all 3 timeouts, chipped away before Palmer launched a deep pass to John Brown, caught at the 5-yard line.  With just 23 seconds remaining and no timeouts, Palmer dropped back before slinging an ill-advised pass to the left side of the end zone.  Griffin jumped the route and sealed the victory for the Seahawks.

The Seattle Seahawks finished their season with a record of 10-6, and eagerly await the results of several other key matchups that will determine which NFC foe they face off against.