Sometimes things appear so bad you just have to laugh.
And if you’re into that kind of comedy, this Seahawks season could be the one for you.
If you’re not, there’s still plenty of football to be played and plenty of time to turn things around.
After falling to the Falcons on Sunday, the Seahawks sank to the bottom of most national media power rankings.
Here’s where the national media have the Seahawks after Week 3.
SI.com: No. 32
We’re going to ask a version of this question 100 times this year, but it’s so fascinating. What does this franchise look like 365 days from now?
ESPN: No. 27
Geno Smith has been good. And better than most observers expected out of a longtime backup who hadn’t entered a season as a starter since 2014. Smith ranks 10th in Total QBR (62.3) and is leading the NFL in completion rate by a wide margin (77.5%). He ranks 22nd in air yards per attempt (6.86), indicating how much of Seattle’s passing game has been short and intermediate throws. But Smith had some success down the field in the loss to the Falcons on Sunday that dropped the Seahawks to 1-2. His next step will be leading a game-winning drive, something he couldn’t do against Atlanta or in the three chances he had while filling in for Russell Wilson last season. — Brady Henderson
The Ringer: No. 27
After allowing 27 points in back-to-back games (against, checks notes, Jimmy Garoppolo and Marcus Mariota), the Seahawks defense ranks 31st in EPA per play allowed (-0.16) and 29th in yards per play allowed (6.34) over the last two weeks. Geno Smith played well enough to beat Atlanta on Sunday, but the Seahawks’ young secondary will force him and the offense to be perfect to outduel most teams they’ll face moving forward.
Bleacher Report: No. 30
That the Seattle Seahawks aren’t a good football team isn’t really surprising. But it’s at least a little surprising that it hasn’t really been Geno Smith’s fault.
The journeyman quarterback played well in Sunday’s loss to the Falcons, passing for 325 yards and two scores with a passer rating just south of 100. Three weeks in, Smith’s passer rating of 100.8 ranks seventh in the NFL.
However, while Smith has held up his end of the deal, Seattle’s defense has not.
The Athletic: No. 30
Here’s an exciting development: The Seahawks are still looking for their first punt return yards of the season. The Seahawks’ defense, which ranks 32nd in defensive EPA per drive, has only forced five punts all season, and only one of those has been returned (for zero yards). These are the kind of interesting tidbits that pop up when you win your Super Bowl in Week 1.
NBC Sports: No. 28
The only thing this team has in common with the ’72 Dolphins is that they were both 1-0.
CBS Sports: No. 31
This is going to be a long season in large part because the defense isn’t very good. They were destroyed by Falcons at home. That’s not what we expect from a Pete Carroll team.
NFL.com: No. 28
Geno Smith evacuated the pocket, scrambled to his right, kept his eyes upfield and unfurled a tight spiral. It looked like the setup for a special moment for the Seahawks, but there would be no fairytale ending. Smith’s pass was intercepted by Falcons safety Richie Grant, who slid to the turf to clinch a win for the Falcons. Smith has been about average in his three games as starter this season, but it’s the defense that presents the biggest issue for Pete Carroll. Seattle gave up scores on five of Atlanta’s first seven possessions, a worrying sign for a team that talked a lot about a new-and-improved scheme entering the year. Instead, it’s been more of the same.