Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald had a couple of early sacks of Russell Wilson on Saturday and he got another hit on the Seahawks quarterback to disrupt a deep shot to DK Metcalf in the third quarter.
Donald injured his ribs on that play and left the game with the Rams up 20-13. The loss of PFT’s defensive player of the year seemed to offer a chance for the Seattle offense to get on track, but it didn’t happen.
The Seahawks punted a play after Donald’s injury and the next three times they had the ball as well. D.J. Reed fumbled on a punt return and the Rams were up 30-13 before a late touchdown by Metcalf made the final score look a little better.
“We needed to get going there,” Wilson said of Donald’s injury, via Adam Jude of the Seattle Times. “The game kind of felt stale for us in a way -- we kind of flatlined. We needed to get going and make that happen. And the next thing you know, we didn’t.”
A stagnant offensive performance for the Seahawks didn’t come out of left field. It was a regular occurrence over the final two months of the season and a solution is something the team will have plenty of time to ponder after Saturday’s loss.