In the midst of their bye week, the Seattle Seahawks find themselves searching for answers in all phases after dropping five of their past six games to plunge into last place in the NFC West.

With nine games down and eight left to play, veteran quarterback Geno Smith has been under fire from some fans amid Seattle’s less-than-desirable start. But is that criticism fair?

Revisiting the first half of the season, how has Smith played in offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb’s offense so far? Midseason report card:

Areas of Strength: Continuing to excel as a deep ball passer, Smith currently ranks tied for first in Pro Football Focus’ Big Time Throw metric on passes traveling 20-plus yards (13) and has thrown six touchdowns on those passes, tied for second most behind only Eagles starter Jalen Hurts. Compared to other signal callers, he stacks up favorably against his peers in most major passing categories, including ranking first in passing yardage, 10th in completion rate, and 12th in yards per attempt.

Despite being tied for the league lead in interceptions, Smith only ranks 17th in turnover worthy play percentage (2.3 percent), suggesting not all of his picks have been his fault and that a high volume of pass plays has had more to do with that number than anything else. Making his numbers all the more impressive, only four quarterbacks have been pressured at a higher rate (39.6 percent), and his offensive line has been the main culprit with him only being held responsible for four percent of those pressures, the second-lowest rate ahead of only Rams starter Matthew Stafford.

While he hasn’t taken off to run as much as some quarterbacks and the vast majority of his yardage has been on scrambles and not designed run plays, Smith has been effective when tucking and running this season. He currently ranks 13th with 193 rushing yards and has averaged a healthy 5.4 yards per carry, an average bolstered by 10 carries of 10 or more yards, tied for the seventh-most by a quarterback this year.

Areas of Improvement: Though poor pass protection and botched snaps have played a part in Seattle’s struggles in the red zone, Smith deserves his share of the blame for the team struggling to finish drives with touchdowns. According to Pro Football Reference, he currently ranks 26th among quarterbacks with at least 10 pass attempts inside the opposing 20-yard line with a 51.5 percent completion rate and he’s been especially inaccurate inside the 10-yard line, completing just three out of 17 passes with three touchdowns and two interceptions.

When pressured, Smith has been hindered by sometimes questionable decision making and trying to do too much shouldering the load in a one-dimensional offense lacking a consistent run game. On 153 pressured drop backs, he has thrown a league-worst nine interceptions, three more than the next player (Kirk Cousins) on the list. With just five touchdown passes on those plays and under six yards per attempt, his 49.2 passer rating when pressured ranks 26th out of 27 qualified quarterbacks.

Midseason Grade: B+

Fans can bemoan some of the interceptions Smith has thrown, but based on a myriad of stats, no quarterback has been dealt a worse hand when it comes to shaky pass protection and constant pressure. Somehow, he ranks 16th in sack to pressure ratio despite being under persistent duress, and the fact he ranks in the top 10 in completion rate, yardage, and Big Time Throws in such an environment shows he deserves a hell of a lot more respect than he’s been receiving with circumstances around him being far from ideal.

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SEATTLE – A local business experienced a major setback after someone stole their bakery truck.

Lovely and Dapper Desserts sells small personal cakes at farmer’s markets and holiday markets, festivals and for catering. The owners say on Saturday, October 26, someone stole their 2006 Chevy Tahoe right out of their West Seattle driveway.

They bought the SUV earlier this year to expand their business, using it to transport all their cakes and supplies during the busy holiday season. The couple says without it, it’s a recipe for trouble. 

“We’d always wanted to own a bakery together since we met,” said Emily Crain, owner of Lovely and Dapper Desserts. “We decided to take the leap to start our business.”

The couple specializes in portable treats based on a design Drew first created years ago while working in a local restaurant. 

“We just took the same idea and figured out a clever way to package it,” said Drew.

“They are called tin can cakes,” said Emily.

The SUV was the bread and butter of their business. 

“It was the first one that we bought together, so it was pretty exciting. It really did help us grow and expand,” said Emily.  

“We really miss that vehicle. It was everything to us,” said Drew.

The Crain’s said it disappeared from their neighborhood near Westwood Village on October 26.

“It’s just scary and discouraging that it could get stolen right out of our driveway when we took all the precautions, we locked it, we put the steering wheel lock on it and everything,” said Emily. 

A tent and items belonging to their kids were also taken.

“I don’t like that the truck got stolen because there was a TV and my car seat was in there,” said Raya Crain, Drew and Emily’s 8-year-old daughter. 

With the Seattle Christmas Market less than two weeks away, the problems created by the theft of the family’s SUV are baked in.   

“It’s the worst possible time to lose our trick right now, before this event,” said Drew.

“Definitely discouraging, but we are not going to let it stop us,” said Emily.

To raise more dough for a new truck, the Crains started an online fundraiser with hopes for a better ending to the weeks-long nightmare. 

“We feel so grateful for all the love and support we have already received,” said Emily. “We are just trying to be as positive as we can and move on and just focus on all the love and support we’ve already gotten from friends, family and the small business community.”

If you would like to support the family business by purchasing cakes, Lovely and Dapper Desserts will be at Ounces Taproom in West Seattle on Thursday from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. 

Emily says they will be selling “Local Chocolate Stout Cake” and will also offer “Apple Pie Cake” made with McCormick Jam Co’s “Apple Pie Jam.”

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There have been several key dates deadlines that have passed during the offseason that have invoked roster moves from the Seattle Mariners.

Mariners outfielder Mitch Haniger opted in to his $17.5 million player option and the club declined the $12 million option on second baseman Jorge Polanco.

Seattle has made other roster moves, including selecting the contract of minor leaguer Blas Castano and activating Sam Haggerty, Matt Brash and Jackson Kowar off the 60-day injured list (as they were required to do per MLB rules).

But there’s been another big offseason even that’s flown under the radar so far: MLB General Manager meetings.

The annual meetings, taking place this year in San Antonio, started on Tuesday and continue through Thursday.

The General Manager meetings are usually when the ball truly starts to get rolling on offseason trades. Everyone is face-to-face and phone calls that were “checking in” on the availability of a player(s) quickly turn into the beginning stages of a deal.

And according to recent reports, a former Mariners prospect is a popular free agent target according to reports.

According to MLB Network reporter Jon Morosi, former Seattle minor league pitcher Luis Curvelo is a popular free agent target among the GM meetings.

Curvelo was an international free agent signing in 2018 out of Venezuela. Curvelo most recently pitched for the Mariners Double-A affiliate Arkansas Travelers in 2024. He had a 2.57 ERA with 78 strikeouts in 66.2 innings pitched in 49 appearances.

Curvelo’s minor league deal expired in 2024 and based on his most recent results, he’ll be a quality bullpen arm for any team that goes after him.

Seattle has been lauded for its pitching development over the last several seasons, and it looks like, based on reports, another team will reap the benefits of that.

PAIR OF MARINERS REACT TO WINNING GOLD GLOVES: Two Seattle Mariners players talked about adding some hardware to their trophy case on Sunday. CLICK HERE

MARINERS LINKED TO TOP INTERNATIONAL FREE AGENT: The Seattle Mariners are expected to be busy players when the international signing period starts in January. CLICK HERE

MARINERS COACH LEAVES TO JOIN AMERICAN LEAGUE RIVAL: A young Seattle Mariners coach will not return to the club in 2025. CLICK HERE

Continue to follow our Inside the Mariners coverage on social media by liking us on Facebook and by following Teren Kowatsch and Brady Farkas on “X” @Teren_Kowatsch and @wdevradiobrady. You can subscribe to the “Refuse to Lose” podcast by clicking HERE.