What a crazy game. The Seahawks were 1.5-point favorites but couldn't cover thanks to a dropped two-point conversion, but the Rams couldn't win thanks to a short missed FG from one of the best kickers in the league. And the Seahawks couldn't close it out despite getting a turnover with two minutes left.
The other source of frustration -- especially if you had the Seahawks minus 1.5 was the terrible sequence at the end of the first half. Pete Carroll, up 14-6, refused to go for it on 4th-and-1 in Rams territory, opted for the field goal which Jason Myers missed. Not only did the Seahawks get no points, but they left time on the clock for another Rams drive. If the Seahawks make the 4th-and-1, they not only have a shot at a TD, but they cost the Rams a possession. Finally, on the Rams final drive of the first half, the Seahawks held them to a field-goal try (it was fourth down), but on the third-down incompletion they got a roughing-the-passer call against them. As a Seahawks bettor and Zuerlein owner, it was the worst of both worlds.
• Jared Goff looked shaky early, but came around in the second half, getting a lot of mileage out of his two tight ends in particular. The Rams offensive line also protected much better this game than it did against Tampa Bay, despite the venue and crowd noise.
• Todd Gurley didn't have much spring in his step, but he saw a nice workload (15 carries, five targets) and scored twice, though he lost a fumble. I still don't know what to make of him as a fantasy player.
• I said on the SXM show that the Rams lacked offensive stars, but I might have overlooked Gerald Everett, who had a monster game, carried players on his back and broke tackles. He also should have been credited with a TD, but they called him down inside the one. It's funny because on the Real Man Would podcast, I said I liked Greg Olsen, and Dalton Del Don mocked me, saying Olsen was done. So we made a bet that pays if Olsen (currently a top-10 TE) or a random guy in that ADP range he chose finished top-10 at the position. The guy he chose was Everett.
• Cooper Kupp always seems to get his. He's in a different tier than the more erratic Brandin Cooks and Robert Woods and maybe qualifies as a real-life star.
• Russell Wilson is one of the greatest players of all time. And this year, he's a fantasy star despite modest attempts (only 23 passes Thursday night.) He's almost impossible to corral, always finds easy yards on the ground, rarely takes big hits and makes unbelievable throws from every angle. Good reaction by Troy Aikman who was stunned Wilson fit the ball into David Moore at the back of the end zone in the first half.
• Chris Carson ran hard and well, didn't fumble and caught the game-winning TD, though he nearly dropped it. It was a fourth-down play too.
• Will Dissly looks like a player, and his success against the Cardinals last week apparently had less to do with the opponent than his skills and role.
• Tyler Lockett had only four targets, though one of them was a 17-yard TD.
• Overall, it was a tough loss for the Rams who had the win lined up, but the improved offensive line play and discovery of Everett as a weapon bodes well for them. My ATS loss does not bode well for me, however.