ATLANTA — Measured in their assessment, Seattle Seahawks players opted to smile and give kudos to running Marshawn Lynch for his throwback pass Saturday.
Lynch had just rushed for 37 yards on the previous play during his day-long bashing of the Atlanta defense. From the Falcons’ 43-yard line, Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson pitched the ball to Lynch, who was running right. He stopped, pivoted and threw a soft, somewhat wobbly lateral back to Wilson.
Wilson then threw a deep pass to wide receiver Jermaine Kearse, who made a leaping catch in the end zone, taking the ball away from Atlanta defensive back Thomas DeCoud, for a touchdown to cap a two-play, 80-yard drive that took 57 seconds.
“Marshawn’s probably creeping around here somewhere, so, I’ll say it was a good throw,” wide receiver Doug Baldwin said of Lynch’s lateral pass.
Wilson credited Lynch with a “strike” before downgrading the pass to “not a ball.”
The gadget play brought memories of the end of last season when the Seahawks began to run a more wide-open offense. It was also one of several big plays on the day.
Lynch had the 37-yard run to set up the Kearse’s TD catch. Baldwin had a 30-yard reception. Kearse averaged 25 yards per catch. Wide receiver Golden Tate had a 46-yard catch.
“We’re just growing as whole,” Baldwin said of the offense. “Offensively, I thought it was a complete game.”
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