SEATTLE — After opening its season with three consecutive wins, the Seattle Seahawks are in freefall after its third straight loss.
The Seahawks are now 3-3 this season after losing 36-24 to the San Francisco 49ers on Thursday Night Football.
Here are three takeaways from the Seahawks loss.
Establishing the run gone wrong
After running the football just five times in last week's 29-20 loss to the New York Giants, the Seahawks reversed course and worked to establish the run against the 49ers.
It, uh, did not work.
The Seahawks ran on eight of the first 16 plays of the first half with meager efficiency. Running back Kenneth Walker III totaled just 17 yards on these runs.
Geno Smith, meanwhile, was not much better. He completed nine of 18 passes in the first half for 109 yards and an interception. Only one of his completions was for more than 10 yards downfield.
Seattle eased up on the run throttle in the second half, but it still wasn't enough to overcome a 20-point deficit.
Special teams injects life
With the Seahawks trailing 23-3 early in the third quarter, the game was teetering on the edge of being a rout.
Enter Laviska Shenault, who resuscitated the Seahawks with a glorious 97-yard kickoff return for a touchdown.
Hasta Laviska, baby.
Losing streak continues
Who are the Seahawks, exactly?
Are they the 3-0 outfit that was one of the early bright spots of the NFL season? Or are they the 3-3 team that blew a winnable game against the Giants and didn't do enough to beat a pair of contenders (Lions and 49ers)?
The schedule doesn't lighten up either, with games against the Atlanta Falcons, Buffalo Bills and a (healthier?) Los Angeles Rams on tap.
It's time to see if the Seahawks' hot start was a mirage, or if they'll find a way to return to winning football.
