Seahawks at Lions: Gameday diary

Welcome to the first of what I hope to be many installments of these running gameday diaries. I'll post my thoughts on any number of topics as the game goes along. I want this to be an interactive experience, so please post comments as we go, and I'll respond.

Find the live box score of the game here.

10:01 a.m. -- Begin diary: I'm settling in, getting ready to watch the first Seahawks game of the year in glorious HD splendor. Who better than a Coug, Jason Hanson, to kick it off?

10:03 a.m.: As the coin toss broke, we had our first camera shot of Mike Martz, new offensive coordinator of the Lions. I'm shuddering to think of how many times we're going to see him this game ... I'm setting the over/under at 13.5 camera shots of Martz. Any takers?

10:05 a.m.: Two plays, two passes, 45 yards. Looking good so far.

10:08 a.m.: Four more plays ... 3-yard run, incomplete pass, 2-yard loss, blocked field goal. Nevermind ...

10:16 a.m.: Lions take the lead on a Hanson field goal after moving down the field a bit easier than I'm sure Mike Holmgren would have liked. Saw a lot of typical Mike Martz offense on the drive -- formation shifts, misdirection, moving pockets. I'm not too surprised that it worked early, as Martz knows the Seahawks defense as well as anybody, and that can lead to a pretty good gameplan early on. I'm betting it won't continue, as the Seahawks' athleticism takes over.

By the way, it was awful good to see Ken Hamlin pop someone after missing a tackle on that draw play.

10:19 a.m.: The Willie Ponder era has officially begun, and I like what I see. I was pretty unhappy when the Seahawks once again went through a draft without picking up a true return guy; it seems to be such a simple thing that the Seahawks have ignored for a lot of years. Ponder seems to bring an element of explosiveness that the kicking game has lacked for most of the franchise's 30-year history.

10:24 a.m.: Two drives, a blocked field goal, an Alexander fumble ... yuck. The Seahawks offense has yet to meet the Lions' defensive intensity. Boy, never thought I'd use the words "Lions" and "intensity" in the same sentence. This is a bit embarrasing at the moment.

10:34 a.m.: Matt Hasselbeck looks like he's still playing in last year. He's poised and patient and is consistently finding the open receiver. Great sign, even though we have no points yet. If he keeps playing like this, the points will come. (Preferably to Darrell Jackson. My fantasy football opponent is starting Hass, while I'm starting Jackson ...)

End of the first quarter -- Lions 3, Seahawks 0.

10:40 a.m.: Um ... when was the last time you saw two blocked field goals in one NFL game? I don't know the answer to that question, but I definitely know the answer next time someone asks that question on "Stump the Schwab." All that time they spent working on special teams clearly has paid off.

10:47 a.m.: Hasselbeck scare averted. After taking a serious pop on that last sack, he's back in the game and hasn't missed a beat. By the way, he's now 12-of-13 for 120 yards. Wow.

10:52 a.m.: Just watched "The King" dish out his Double Whopper. Am I the only one just a little bit uncomfortable watching the creepy King from Burger King in these commercials? I still can't shake the image of those breakfast commercials where people are waking up with him in their beds ...

10:56 a.m.: Hallelujah. The first points of the season, and they even came on a field goal that wasn't blocked. I'm not sure whether I'm relieved that they scored some points, or irritated that they couldn't figure out a way to get the ball in the end zone. Probably some of both. Seahawks 3, Lions 3.

11:01 a.m.: It's a good thing I'm not a Vegas oddsmaker. One hour into the game and we finally had our second shot of Martz, even though they haven't stopped talking about him since the game started. I'd say the under is looking pretty good right now.

11:02 a.m.: Mr. Bradford, meet Mr. Tatupu. Mr. Furrey, meet Mr. Hamlin. Good to see the Hammer lay some wood, even though he made the catch. Looks like he's back to me, and not exactly shying away from contact.

11:07 a.m.: Julian Peterson's first sack of the season. Could have been a turnover, but a good thing nonetheless. Outside of that first series, the defense has looked very good. Workmanlike performance so far.

Halftime: Seahawks 6, Lions 3.

Analysis: While I'm not exactly feeling like a million bucks right now, I'm not all that discouraged, either. The defense has played very well, and the offense has had little trouble moving the ball. While I'm a bit concerned by our inability to put together much of a running game -- which is seeming to go hand in hand with very average offensive line play. Tough to say how much of that is missing Hutchinson's talent, and how much of that is a new line learning how to play together. Don't forget, this unit didn't play much togerhter during the preseason, due to various injuries to Womack, Tobeck and Jones. I look for the Seahawks to blow this thing open in the second half and win comfortably by a couple of touchdowns.

11:52 a.m.: Well, not looking so good so far. The defense appears to be missing Leroy Hill, because DD Lewis has missed a number of tackles. I know Kevin Jones is a tough runner, but it's not like this guy has set the league on fire in his short career ... let's wrap up and make a tackle.

11:56 a.m.: I love Lofa Tatupu. The dude just throws his body around and makes plays, even when he's not making plays. He just negated a first down by the Lions by drawing a holding penalty on a blitz. Totally awesome.

11:58 a.m.: Tough crowd. Kitna just threw the ball out of bounds, and the boo birds are back. The Lions are within three of the defending NFC champs midway through the third quarter ... I think that's more than they could have expected at this point.

Noon: What's with the stupid Nike high school commercials featureing Nike's stable of NFL players? Is anyone else bothered by the fact that a bunch of NFL players spend the better part of the commercial beating the crap out of high schoolers, then need a last second play from Vick -- a pass, no less, making the commercial even less believable -- to win in the end? Am I off base here?

12:10 p.m.: As the Seahawks are punting -- again -- I wonder: When was the last time a wide receiver caught a pass? For all that talent, I can't believe they can't get open against the Lions ...

12:15 p.m.: Gotta go do a little work around the house ... I'll check in again near the end of the game.

1 p.m.: Brown ends it with a field goal, and he's going nuts. What he ought to be doing is one of those Jordan fist pumps where he just kind of stands there, showing everyone that he knew it was going to happen all along. I'm relieved; a win, is a win, is a win. I'll check in with a full analysis tomorrow. Whew.

End of the game: Seahawks 9, Lions 6.