The Arizona Cardinals stifled the Seattle Seahawks, 17-10, handing Seattle their first home loss of the season. It’s also the first home loss in Russell Wilson’s NFL career. The Seahawks missed a chance to clinch homefield advantage in the NFC and will have to play their starters in the regular season finale.
Cardinals vs. Seahawks 2013 final score: Arizona stuns Seattle on the road, 17-10
Russell WIlson was finally beaten at home. The Cardinals used a strong defensive effort to suffocate the Seahawks on the road, 17-10. It’s Seattle’s first home loss since 2010.
With the Cardinals down one point late in the game, Carson Palmer hit Michael Floyd with an impressive 31-yard touchdown with less than three minutes left. They got the two-point conversion to take a 17-10 lead. Wilson attempted a comeback, but threw an interception with two minutes left. The ball appeared to hit the ground, but the officials upheld the call after review, sealing a stunning road win for the Cardinals.
The Seahawks got in trouble early when the Cardinals drove down to the goal line, but Kam Chancellor got an interception on a tipped ball. Seattle got another break on defense when Carson Palmer threw another pick to Richard Sherman. The Seahawks drove down the field thanks to strong running efforts by Marshawn Lynch, but the drive stalled in the red zone and they settled for a field goal for the first points of the game.
Arizona got on the scoreboard with a 39-yard field goal from Jay Feely. Arizona threatened again late in the second quarter, but Palmer threw his third pick of the game. Seattle was unable to capitalize, however--Steven Hauschka’s 19-yard field goal attempt bounced off the goal post. The teams went into halftime tied, 3-3, with plenty of missed opportunities on both sides. Russell Wilson in particular had a poor performance, completing just 6-of-16 passes for 47 yards and a passer rating of 45.8.
The offensive futility continued well into the second half--at one point the Seahawks had more punts (eight) than first downs (seven). Arizona took the lead with a 46-yard field goal and caught a huge break when Robert Turbin fumbled away the ensuing kickoff. Unfortunately for Arizona, Palmer made another critical mistake in the red zone. Under heavy pressure by Cliff Avril, Palmer tossed a wounded duck up for grabs, which was easily picked off by Sherman in the endzone.
Despite the turnover, the Seahawks once again failed to capitalize on opportunities, going three-and-out for the seventh time. The Cardinals took advantage of a huge pass interference call on Sherman to get back inside the red zone and Feely added his third field goal of the day to take a 9-3 lead. With time winding down, the Seahawks’ offense finally woke up. Wilson marched his team down the field and hooked up with Zach Miller from 11 yards out for the first touchdown of the game. It wasn’t enough, however, and the Seahawks are left scratching their heads after such a listless effort at home.
Fantasy studs and duds
Russell Wilson was dreadful in the loss, completing just 11-of-27 passes for 108 yards, one touchdown and an interception. Carson Palmer wasn’t much better, throwing for only 178 yards and four interceptions.
Injury report
Russell Okung left the game with an unknown injury. Jeremy Lane was shaken up late in the fourth quarter.
Did they cover?
The Seahawks were favored by 8.5 points, according to OddsShark. They failed to cover by losing.
What’s next?
Seattle vs. St. Louis, Dec. 29, 4:25 p.m. ET
Arizona vs. San Francisco, Dec. 29, 4:25 p.m. ET
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