After forcing a three-and-out late late in the fourth quarter, the Seattle Seahawks had the Green Bay Packers right where they wanted them.
The Seahawks' offense took the field with 4:11 remaining in the game, and there was little doubt what head coach Pete Carroll desired his unit to accomplish while nursing a three-point lead.
"When we get the ball back, we've got to end it," left tackle Duane Brown told teammates on the sidelines, via the Seahawks' official website. "We can't give that offense the ball again. Our running game is too good, we're too physical; we've got to stay on the field."
With one timeout left and the two-minute warning, all Green Bay needed to do was stop the Seahawks from running the football to give the ball back to quarterback Aaron Rodgers.
But the Packers watched in vain as running back Mike Davis and quarterback Russell Wilson totaled 13 yards on the first two plays of the drive for a first down, forcing Green Bay to call its final timeout. Davis then sealed the 27-24 victory with two rushes for 11 yards and another first down, with Wilson's three straight kneel downs ending the game.
"We get the ball back with like, whatever, 4:15 or something, and then we run the clock out," Carroll told reporters after the game. "That's as good as you can do. I love it."
The Seahawks' commitment to the running game with Davis, Wilson, Chris Carson and rookie Rashaad Penny has been a recipe for success, and their abilities were on display in front of a national audience Thursday night.
Seattle pounded out 173 yards rushing and a touchdown on 35 attempts, marking the seventh consecutive game the team has rushed for at least 150 yards.
Carson's 83 yards and a touchdown led the way against the Packers; Penny chipped in with 46 yards; and Davis came in to seal it with 15 of his 26 yards rushing coming on the final possession.
"Another good night running the football, 170-something, that's just the consistency that's continued to be there," Carroll said. "That's those guys up front. All three runners ran really well tonight. They all had good numbers and it was a committee going in, but they did a great job. I'm really proud of them."
After starting the season 0-2, the Seahawks have gone 5-3 behind a balanced offensive attack armed with the league's top rushing attack.
The Packers, however, dropped to 4-5-1 and are in search of answers.
