It may have been ugly, hard to watch, unentertaining and very frustrating, but there are most likely only a handful of games left in the 2024 Seattle Mariners season.

As for the Seattle Seahawks, they are 3-0 for the first time since 2020. Their 24-3 win over the Miami Dolphins comes with the asterisk that Tua Tagovailoa didn’t play, but that’s not Seattle’s problem. We’ve seen the Seahawks stumble and come close to losing or even losing games like this before.

To my surprise, Miami’s poor performance, even as clear underdogs and behind the starting quarterback (and eventually his backup quarterback), really stirred the crowd, making for a more palatable Enemy Reaction than I expected. The icing on the cake is the San Francisco 49ers’ epic fourth-quarter meltdown against the Los Angeles Rams.

The comments on the Dolphins game thread are from The Phinsider. We’ll keep it light, because this wasn’t a particularly exciting match. At my discretion, I left some clearances on the cutting room floor because the 49ers will take up more space.

Zach Charbonnet scores the opening touchdown (10-0 SEA)

Geno Smith avoids the safety but throws an interception to Kader Kohou (10-3 SEA)

Geno immediately redeems himself with a 71-yard touchdown against DK Metcalf (17-3 SEA)

Derick Hall gets a ridiculous sack on Skylar Thompson to end the first half (17-3 SEA)

Geno Smith picked by Zach Sieler on the tip drill (17-3 ZEE)

Tim Boyle throws incomplete on 4th and goal (17-3 SEA)

Zach Charbonnet scores the victory with his second touchdown (24-3 SEA FINAL)

After the game: Mike McDaniel is not a good head coach (Todd Moser, Dolphins Talk)

I’ve been trying to warn everyone for a long time that, contrary to popular belief, fan favorite head coach Mike McDaniel is not a good head coach. He was on the Ugly list last week, will be on this week’s list, and was on the last four Ugly lists in the final games of the 2023 season. There are common denominators, which I’ll recap later .

But most immediately, here’s what irritates me (and should irritate you) about today’s 24-3 loss to the Seattle Seahawks. And forget about the quarterback play for a moment. For the third game in a row, the Finns trailed by 14 points or more early in the game. This is inexcusable and tells me that the head coach is not properly preparing this team to play. Second, this team is fundamentally below average. Eleven penalties, including numerous false starts, illegal formations and holding calls. This is a broken record. If you can’t figure out the simple basics, how can you ever compete for a playoff spot? I don’t know what happens in practice, but I blame the coaching. Last week it was seven flags. Opening week, it was nine. Need I say more?

The third thing that bothered me was the offensive game plan, knowing what you had at quarterback. This was a plan as if Tua was playing. Same violation. With the offensive line issues (and injuries), why not throw half the playbook in the trash this week, because Skylar Thompson isn’t a Tua, and half of those plays won’t work with the skill and decision-making required of the said backup QB who hasn’t started a game in over a year? And when McDaniel thought about Skylar could If he executes the full script, then that is also his responsibility, because there has been no evidence of that during his three-year tenure.

Post-game video: Mike McDaniel is discovered (560 WQAM)

BONUS enemy reaction: San Francisco 49ers lose to Los Angeles Rams!

Full video of the last three minutes

Jake Moody misses his field goal

Tutu Atwell’s 50-yard pass sets up a tying touchdown

Ronnie Bell drops another

49ers provide tremendous kicking efficiency

49ers commit three penalties in one game, including DPI in field goal range’

49ers LOSING!

Enemy Preaction: Detroit Lions

There’s not much more to say after that, right? Even by Niners Nation standards, that’s one for the ages.

Now it’s time for Week 4, the primetime lights and the Detroit Lions on Monday Night Football. Do you want to prove that you are one of the contenders? This is the first test for Mike Macdonald’s group, and if history is any guide, it will likely be another thriller between Seattle and Detroit.

Thanks for reading and go ‘Hawks!