Geno Smith and Kenneth Walker III highlight the Seattle Seahawks' first loss

Instead, Detroit extended its lead to 14 points on a 3-yard touchdown rush from running back Jahmyr Gibbs. The Seahawks had lost four defensive starters early in the game and were well below expectations after the first quarter.

Meanwhile, the Lions produced yards on the ground, giving Gibbs and David Montgomery a total of 88 rushing yards in the first half. The pair also accounted for all three of Detroit's first-half touchdowns against Seattle's decimated defensive front. That made it easy for quarterback Jared Goff, who completed 12 of 12 passes for 92 yards in 30 minutes of play.

Goff completed 18 of 18 passes for 292 yards and two touchdowns – the most pass attempts by a quarterback without an incompletion in NFL history. Seattle's back end couldn't stop the Lions while their front end was banged up. It really was that simple.

As the third quarter clock began, the flood gates opened. Seattle lost its fifth starter to an injury in safety Julian Love (hamstring), but Detroit and Seattle exchanged touchdowns on five consecutive drives.

Even though Seattle felt held at arm's length, the offense continued to make up for the woes of the failing defense. Walker scored two of his three rushing touchdowns in the second half, and rookie tight end AJ Barner caught another from Smith.

The Lions scored two touchdowns in the third quarter on a “Detroit Special” – a goal-line touchdown pass from wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown to Goff – and a 70-yard touchdown catch by Jameson Williams on a one-play -Drive.

Seattle forced just its third punt of the game with 1:59 left and trailed by eight. What would have been a fourth-down conversion at the Detroit 31-yard line thanks to an 8-yard catch by Seahawks wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba was negated by an offensive pass interference by Tyler Lockett – giving the Seahawks forced to punt on a drive that could have tied the game.

After another 7-play, 80-yard touchdown drive, not even an eventual safety mattered to Seattle's attempt. An interception in the end zone by Smith with 1:06 left sealed the deal.

“I wouldn’t say it’s a litmus test, it just shows us that we’re not the team we need to be at this point,” Macdonald added. “I mean, that's just – that's it.” Just wasn't good enough. They did what they did to win the game, they did a great job, they had a great plan and we came up short.”

Seattle's poor defense allowed Goff to set an NFL record for pass attempts without an incompletion against Macdonald's unit. Backups or not, this is unacceptable. Ultimately that has to be the responsibility of the coaching staff, otherwise it wouldn't be a record. The Seahawks are far from the first team to be so injury-poor.

Is this an indictment of Macdonald? Of course not. He built one of the best defenses in three weeks. But he'll have to go back to the drawing board in a replacement situation. The team had much of the week to prepare for starters' losses, and it was miserable.

“They work at a high level,” Macdonald said. “I mean, they had a really good plan. We have proven that Jared is a great quarterback – he played clean, they ran clear routes and we obviously didn't defend the ball. That’s as obvious as it gets.”

In a losing effort, Smith set career highs in attempts (56), completions (38) and pass yards (395). He was the engine of the Seahawks, and that wasn't enough. It's hard to constantly play with a one-two point deficit, but Smith did his best to keep the Seahawks in the game.

“We’re (3-1), that’s what it says, and now we have to move on to the next game,” Smith said. “It’s just football, it’s NFL football. I think the only team that went undefeated was the Dolphins (1972), so we just try to go out and win every game we can. We didn’t make it today, but that’s why we have time next week.”

His only interception came when the game was on the line – he constantly pushed his attacks forward despite the pressure around him. It doesn't take much more than an eye test to see Smith's effectiveness in this game. He's what makes Seattle's offense work. Put any other quarterback in this system, and a different (possibly even worse) outcome is likely.

Smith is Seattle's best player. He avoids negative offensive plays and creates wins when losses should be a given. Smith continues to be the best quarterback the Seahawks could have in 2024 — evading pressure, extending plays and creating positive plays — while the league is experiencing a decline in quarterback skill. There is no one better suited for the job.

Seattle was without four defensive starters (five key players, plus Byron Murphy II) entering the game and lost Love in the second half.

The Seahawks allowed touchdowns on five of Detroit's 11 drives, making it far too easy for the Lions to score points. No matter what the offense did, it couldn't keep up. The defense only forced punts three times – one of which was on the first drive of the game.

Gibbs, in particular, had his way with Seattle on the ground, running 14 times for 78 yards and two touchdowns (5.6 yards per carry). He consistently had to overcome huge gaps between tackles, leaving the Seahawks' interior defense at a disadvantage. There was little they could do to slow the onrushing attack.

Seattle was completely lost on the “Detroit Special,” where Goff caught the first touchdown pass of his career. This isn't entirely the fault of the backup unit, but it was emblematic of the night.

This game showed why the Seahawks have struggled to win despite a good offense the last two seasons. When the defense can't get critical stops, it's difficult for the offense to keep up with the weapons it possesses.

Apparently Macdonald was brought in to fix the problem. His largely substitution unit failed to get the job done on Monday, resulting in a 13-point loss on the road. Defense has been a bright spot for the Seahawks through three weeks, and it's understandable that they would take a step back despite all the injuries.

However, if Seattle wants to be a Super Bowl contender (like the Lions), they need to go full throttle. That wasn't the case on Monday evening.

Seattle (3-1) will face the New York Giants (1-3) on Sunday, October 6 at Lumen Field. Kick-off is at 1:25 p.m. Pt. New York suffers a 20:15 defeat against the Dallas Cowboys.