When the Seattle Seahawks lost to the San Francisco 49ers last season, Riq Woolen infamously looked to be in position to intercept Brock Purdy and seal a win up 13-10. The ball, of course, ended up in the hands of Jake Tonges for the game-winning touchdown, and it marked the shift of Woolen having to effectively share snaps with Josh Jobe instead of be the unquestioned second corner.
Fast forward to opening night against the New England Patriots, and the Seahawks are once again up 13-10 and needing to defend a red zone throw into the end zone that could win the game. Josh Jobe was in position to make a play, and boy did he make one hell of a play.
It goes without saying that this is a horrible, panicked decision by Drake Maye. In tying field goal range, only a turnover loses you the game, so any throw made into the end zone has to be out of harm’s way and preferably to a wide open receiver. Jobe still made a terrific play on the ball, and the replay shows his nifty toe-tapping ways to secure the W.
The context of this interception is relevant because, well, you don’t normally see a team in position to tie end up losing the game because they threw a pick with this type of field position. We needn’t look beyond the NFC West for the last time this type of ending happened.
This might be an oddly specific stat but it also underscores how rare it is to see a team in position to tie with a field goal end up losing because they threw a red zone interception in the dying seconds of regulation.
That’s how you defend home field and “Run it forward” toward another Super Bowl run.
