Dodson played the Dolphins twice a year during his time with the Buffalo Bills and entered the game with a healthy dose of respect for the pressure that players like Hill, Achane and receiver Jaylen Waddle can put on a defense. He was pleased to see the defense limit Hill to 40 yards on three catches, Waddle to 26 yards on four catches and Achane to 30 rushing yards and 28 receiving yards.

“As an AFC East player, I have so much respect for those guys,” Dodson said. “At the beginning of the week, I told the guy, ‘Put your running shoes on.’ And boy, we put our running shoes on today, we were in the Olympics. We ran to the ball, we met each other on the ball, we trusted each other with the angles and stuff like that.”

What made the performance even sweeter was the fact that Seattle’s defense started the week disappointed with the way the Patriots pulled off last week’s win over New England, largely due to the way the Patriots managed to rack up 185 yards.

“We didn’t play well last week, and I was honestly pissed off about that,” Dodson said.
“And you see how we responded today. We just have to keep piling on. We’re 1-0 for the week, but we have to get back to 1-0. So after tonight, this game means nothing.”

Thanks to a big day from the defense, Seattle looked to be in control of the game after two quick touchdown drives in the first quarter gave the Seahawks a 17-3 lead. Seattle’s offense stalled for a while before mounting a game-sealing 98-yard drive late in the fourth quarter, and while there will be games where the offense has to do more to pull out a win, a dominant defensive performance ensured that offensive woes weren’t a factor on this particular Sunday.

“When we talk about complementary football, those are the things we talk about,” quarterback Geno Smith said of the way the defense handled the offense. “Situations aren’t always going to be perfect. Again, we’ve got to eliminate the mistakes, and that starts with me. I’ve got to make sure we don’t put our defense in tough situations. To see them go out there and not blink, not bat an eye, go out there and lock down that offense and hold them to three points, the only points they made all game, and then they had a big stop late in the game, right before that big drive. You know, so the way they’re playing is awesome. Man, it’s going to give us a chance to win every game we play.”