Seahawks-Chargers Final Score: Kasen Williams, Trevone Boykin, Seattle defense shine in preseason win

The Seattle Seahawks opened their 2017 preseason with a win over the Los Angeles Chargers, making it look easy in spoiling the home team’s debut in their new Hollywood-adjacent digs. The Seahawks took a 34-17 win into half and ended up getting a final score victory of 48-17.

After Russell Wilson went 3-of-4 for 41 yards, second-year QB Trevone Boykin entered and went 12-of-15 for 189 yards, one touchdown, one interception (on a third down deep throw), and another score on the ground. He found third-year receiver Kasen Williams four times on four targets, resulting in 119 yards. The receptions were all pretty impressive, making Williams a clear candidate for breaking through to the final 53-man roster against most expectations.

Chris Carson only further entrenched himself in that same conversation, rushing seven times for 19 yards and two scores. Eddie Lacy had four carries for 10 yards, not looking very impressive with the second team offense. Alex Collins also had a night he’d rather forget.

Among other receivers besides Williams, Paul Richardson looked fantastic on the first drive but left early with yet another apparent injury. Kenny Lawler looked like a nice, big target on his two-yard touchdown reception from Boykin. Tanner McEvoy had a 23-yard catch and rookie David Moore chipped in with a 17-yard reception. Even Cyril Grayson had a beautiful contested touchdown near-catch in the third quarter; though it was wiped out because his right foot never came down in bounds, it’s extremely impressive given that he hadn’t played a football game in six years.

On defense, Seattle did a great job of capitalizing on LA’s mistakes, tipping passes by Kellen Clemens that led to a 37-yard interception return touchdown by Terence Garvin and a surprise pick by defensive tackle Tylor Harris. Later in the second quarter, Christian French did a nice job of scooping up a fumble by Clemens and returning it to the one-yard line.

In the second half, rookie defensive tackle/third round pick Nazair Jones seemed to play very well and be continuously disruptive against Chargers’ backup QB Cardale Jones.

The Seahawks definitely have plenty to think about. Yes, they won by a lot of points, but all that proved was that Seattle’s third stringers may be a lot better than LA’s third stringers. The first-team defense was eaten up pretty good by Philip Rivers on the opening drive, and LA led 14-10 early. Some of the competitions at running back and receiver seem more complicated than ever, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing.

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