Seahawks open NFL title defense with dramatic win over Patriots: defense makes the difference in Super Bowl rematch
The Seattle Seahawks began the defense of their NFL championship with a 13-10 victory over the New England Patriots at Lumen Field, in a game that opened the new season on September 9 and offered almost all the elements that had made their previous meeting end with a title for the team from Seattle. The reigning champions fell behind 10-0, lost starting quarterback Sam Darnold early and struggled to find an offensive rhythm for most of the game, but completely changed the course of the contest in the fourth quarter. According to the Seahawks' official game report, backup quarterback Drew Lock connected with Jaxon Smith-Njigba for a 45-yard touchdown that pulled Seattle level, before kicker Jason Myers converted a field goal to give them the lead. The defense, however, did the main work, intercepting Patriots quarterback Drake Maye three times in the fourth quarter alone. The final interception, caught by Josh Jobe in the end zone late in the game, stopped New England's attempt to at least force overtime and sealed the defending champions' victory.
The same teams also met in Super Bowl LX in February 2026, when Seattle won 29-13 and claimed the second Lombardi Trophy in franchise history. Before the start of this game, the Seahawks raised their championship banner, but the celebration of last season quickly turned into a test of roster depth. Seattle came from behind without Darnold and despite 10 penalties for a total of 98 yards. It finished with 285 yards of total offense compared with New England's 277, while the Patriots possessed the ball for more than 34 minutes.
Darnold's injury changed the plan on the very first possession
Seattle's biggest concern appeared almost immediately. Darnold left the Seahawks' opening offensive possession after Dre'Mont Jones brought him down on third down, and he did not return to the game because of a hip injury. The club announced later that same evening that X-rays had shown no fracture, while coach Mike Macdonald said the following day that, based on the findings available at the time, the injury appeared to be muscular in nature. The Associated Press reported that the structural condition of Darnold's hip was encouraging, but that his availability for the next game against the Arizona Cardinals had not yet been determined. That means Seattle emerged from the first game of the season with a victory, but also with an important question at the most important position on the team.
Lock gradually stabilized the offense and finished the game with 16 completions on 22 attempts for 187 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions, according to the Seahawks' official statistics. His passer rating was 113.3, and both scoring drives in the fourth quarter came when Seattle no longer had any room for error. The coaching staff had to adjust on the fly because new offensive coordinator Brian Fleury was calling offensive plays in a regular-season game for the first time. Macdonald particularly highlighted the staff's adjustments and the team's resilience after the game.
Patriots controlled the score for a long time but failed to close out the game
New England started the game better and finished the first half with a 7-0 lead. According to the Patriots' official game notes, rookie tight end Eli Raridon turned the first catch of his NFL career into a two-yard touchdown on a pass from Maye. The drive received additional momentum after a pass-interference penalty against Jobe on a deep throw intended for A.J. Brown. In the third quarter, kicker Andy Borregales made a 50-yard field goal to increase the lead to 10-0; the club notes that the kick kept him perfect on the first five attempts of his NFL career from at least 50 yards. At that point, the Patriots were in control on the scoreboard, Darnold was already out of the game and Seattle's offense had still not scored a touchdown.
The game nevertheless began to change gradually. Myers cut the deficit to 10-3 with a 30-yard field goal, while New England could no longer turn long possessions into points. The Patriots possessed the ball for a total of 34 minutes and 17 seconds, almost nine minutes longer than Seattle, but late in the game they lost precisely the component that had maintained their advantage until then: ball security. Maye played with enough discipline through the first three quarters to keep New England ahead, but then three consecutive interceptions gave Seattle short fields, a change in momentum and additional offensive opportunities. In a low-scoring game, such a sequence of turnovers proved decisive.
Three fourth-quarter interceptions turned the game
The first major defensive play of the closing stages came from Nehemiah Pritchett, who intercepted Maye's deep pass and returned the ball 30 yards. It was the first interception of his NFL career, according to official league and Seahawks data. Seattle then faced fourth-and-one, a situation in which New England could have regained possession and preserved its lead. Lock, however, found Smith-Njigba, who broke free from the defense and turned a short situational play into a 45-yard touchdown. Myers made the extra point and the score was tied for the first time, 10-10.
On New England's next possession, safety Julian Love recorded Seattle's second interception of the quarter, again giving the home team an opportunity to attack from favorable field position. Lock and the offense moved the Seahawks close enough for Myers to make a 26-yard field goal and give them a 13-10 lead. Despite that, the Patriots received one more opportunity, and Maye moved them on their final drive into an area from which they could at least consider a field goal to force overtime. Instead of safely finishing the possession, the New England quarterback tried to extend the play toward the end zone. Jobe stayed with Mack Hollins and caught the ball right along the boundary, keeping both feet in bounds and ending the game.
Maye openly accepted responsibility for the ending after the game. In the Patriots' official transcript, he said his team had the game under control, but that he lost patience and made decisions that cost them the result. Regarding the final throw, he acknowledged that, in the worst-case scenario, New England had an opportunity to force overtime and that an interception was the one outcome he had to avoid. Coach Mike Vrabel maintained his support for his quarterback, stressing that the club had great confidence in Maye, while at the same time saying the team could not win if it turned the ball over in decisive situations. For a quarterback who finished second in voting for the league's Most Valuable Player award in 2025, this was an extremely difficult start to the season, particularly because the Seahawks had also caused problems for the Patriots' offense with pressure and disguised defensive concepts in the Super Bowl seven months earlier.
Smith-Njigba again the main target, Lock takes advantage of his opportunity
Although the defense decided the game, Seattle would have struggled to put itself in position for the comeback without Smith-Njigba. Club statistics show that he finished with 122 receiving yards, confirming his status as the first option in the offense after a season in which he established himself among the team's most important players. His 45-yard touchdown was the biggest offensive play of the night and came on fourth down, when New England's defense only needed to prevent a short gain. Vrabel admitted after the game that the problem was the Patriots' failure to finish the tackle after the catch: even if Seattle gained the one yard it needed, the defense could not allow the play to end in the end zone.
Lock's performance therefore cannot be viewed merely as that of a backup who preserved the result. With no preparation to start, against a defense that held Seattle scoreless in the first half, he did not throw an interception and managed to complete several of the most important passes of the game. In addition to the touchdown to Smith-Njigba, the Seahawks' official recap highlights his 24-yard pass to Cooper Kupp for a one-handed catch, as well as several other plays that helped Seattle finally move the ball down the field. That is also important information because of Darnold's health status: if the starter is not ready for Week 2, Lock could once again take over the defending champions' offense.
Seattle's defense once again showed the identity of a champion
The victory over the Patriots continued the pattern that carried Seattle to the Lombardi Trophy the previous season. In Super Bowl LX, the Seahawks brought Maye down six times behind the line of scrimmage and forced three turnovers, while the defense kept New England scoreless for almost the entirety of the first three quarters. In the new season opener, the statistical dominance was not as great, but the impact in key moments was very similar. Leonard Williams and Derick Hall recorded sacks in the second half, the secondary created three interceptions, and the Patriots' final two possessions ended in turnovers.
The Patriots were more successful at protecting Maye for most of the game than they had been in the Super Bowl, something they also highlighted in their own postgame analysis. However, quarterback protection was not enough once Seattle began taking the ball away in the secondary. New England had more possession time and fewer penalty yards, but Seattle turned defensive plays into points during the final 15 minutes.
A.J. Brown's injury adds another problem for New England
The loss was not the only bad news for the Patriots. A.J. Brown, the major acquisition brought in during the offseason, left the game in the third quarter because of an injury to his right ankle and did not return. According to the club's analysis, Brown caught three passes for 26 yards in his New England debut, and after the game he was seen wearing a protective boot on his right foot. Vrabel said on September 10 that Brown would undergo additional tests and that the team expected to have a clearer assessment of his availability afterward. The coach did not confirm public speculation about the exact diagnosis and said decisions on treatment would be made after the examination results.
The Patriots had already arrived in Seattle without running back TreVeyon Henderson, who had officially been ruled out of the Week 1 lineup because of an ankle injury. Brown's departure therefore further narrowed their offensive options just as Seattle began increasing the pressure. Hollins took on part of the responsibility late in the game and was involved in important catches, but Maye's final pass, which Jobe intercepted, was intended for him. New England plays its next game at home against the Pittsburgh Steelers on September 20, so Brown's health will be one of the central topics of preparation.
Super Bowl rematch showed how much the NFL can change in seven months
The game in Seattle was only the third instance in NFL history in which the participants from the previous Super Bowl met again in Week 1 of the following season, according to the Patriots. The most recent previous example came in 2016, when Denver played Carolina again after winning the championship. This matchup had an additional distinction because it was played on a Wednesday, and New England notes that it was the first game in franchise history played on that day of the week. For Seattle, the evening was organized as a ceremonial continuation of February's championship, but the roster at the beginning of September was no longer the same one that lifted the trophy in Santa Clara.
Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker III is no longer in Seattle after leaving for Kansas City, while first-round rookie Jadarian Price has been given a larger role in the backfield. Kubiak became head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders, and Fleury took over the offense. New England also changed its offensive personnel, primarily through the arrivals of Brown and Romeo Doubs. The 13-10 result is therefore more a confirmation that Seattle retained its defensive core than a simple repetition of the Super Bowl.
What the victory means at the start of a long season
One game in a 17-game schedule does not determine the direction of an entire season, something Vrabel also stressed after the loss. Nevertheless, Seattle survived the early loss of its starting quarterback, offensive inefficiency through three quarters and almost 100 yards in penalties. Lock did not turn the ball over, Smith-Njigba delivered the biggest offensive play, and the defense directly reversed the course of the closing stages. Seattle enters Week 2 with a 1-0 record and a road game against the Arizona Cardinals on September 20.
For New England, the picture is more complicated. The Patriots showed they can physically and tactically keep pace with the champions, and their defense held Seattle scoreless throughout the entire first half. However, the squandered 10-0 lead and Maye's three interceptions late in the game wiped out most of the good work. Vrabel's message after the game focused on eliminating the mistakes that decide close NFL contests, while Maye said he needed to regain his patience and improve his assessment of risk. In a season that has only just begun, that is not a reason for definitive conclusions, but the Super Bowl rematch once again showed how small the margins are between controlling a game and losing when the opposing defense manages to create turnovers at the most important moments.
For Seattle, the most important short-term issue remains Darnold's health. The initial information following the examination was encouraging because no fracture was confirmed, and Macdonald later said it was a muscular issue, but an exact timetable for his return has not officially been established. While a new assessment is awaited, Lock's performance against New England at least gives the Seahawks temporary confidence that the offense can function even if the starter has to miss time. The defense, meanwhile, already sent a clear message in the first game: the identity of the team that won the Super Bowl remains recognizable in the new season.
Sources:
- Associated Press - game report, course of the comeback, key plays and statistical context (link)
- Seattle Seahawks - official Game Center for the score, scoring and team statistics from the game (link)
- Seattle Seahawks - official announcement on the initial findings regarding Sam Darnold's injury (link)
- Associated Press - subsequent update on Darnold's injury and status for the next game (link)
- New England Patriots - official transcript of statements by Drake Maye and Mike Vrabel after the game (link)
- New England Patriots - official game notes and historical context of the season opener (link)
- New England Patriots - Vrabel's update on A.J. Brown's injury after additional examinations (link)
- New England Patriots - preview of the Super Bowl rematch with an overview of changes to the rosters and coaching staffs (link)
- Seattle Seahawks - official recap of the 29-13 victory in Super Bowl LX and the second championship in franchise history (link)