Russell Wilson picked up right where he left off in Super Bowl XLVIII, as he went 10-for-14 for 121 yards and a touchdown pass in the first half to lead the Seahawks to a seven-point halftime lead, 17-10.
Our Full Packers/Seahawks First-Half Report
Seattle's offense took over to start the third quarter and went right back to riding the running game. RB Marshawn Lynch was extremely fresh after just seven carries in the first half, and the Seahawks used that to their advantage for two explosive first-down rushes out of the gate.
A reinvigorated Green Bay pass rush would stop Seattle in their tracks from there, as QB Russell Wilson went 1-for-3 for six yards on the ensuing set of plays.
Despite a hostile crowd and some miscommunication at key junctures in the first half, Packers QB Aaron Rodgers was beyond solid as went 14-for-18 for 86 yards. However, that lasted all of one play on the Packers' first possession of the second half as Aaron Rodgers led WR Jordy Nelson a little too far on a curl route.
Seahawks CB Byron Maxwell picked a deflection right off of Nelson's fingertips, and Seattle was in business inside the Green Bay ten thanks to Maxwell's opportunistic interception.
The Packers defense wasn't ready to concede a touchdown, though, and Green Bay was forced into taking a 25-yard Steven Hauschka field goal to extend the lead to ten, 20-10.
On a critical response possession, the Packers mixed up their play-calling in an attempt to break RB Eddie Lacy loose. That didn't exactly work as Lacy couldn't crack the first level on three carries. Aaron Rodgers would have to turn his cannon loose to lead the Pack past midfield (with special thanks to a great 23-yard grab by WR Randall Cobb in traffic).
The Packers would once again run smack into the wall that is the Seahawks defense from there, with Rodgers forced to eat a sack on 4th-and-5 from the Seattle 41.
After being handed the ball on downs, the Seahawks would march the ball just inside the Packers 40-yard line before Lynch was stuffed for minimal gain on third down.
Green Bay would start their next series at the Seattle 10, but things would go from kind-of bad to horrible in a split second. Seattle DE Michael Bennett swung wide and untouched to Aaron Rodgers' right, as he proceeded to hit him square on the ball to force a game-changing fumble.
Packers OT Derek Sherrod would smother the ball in the Green Bay end zone, as the Packers big man saved the Pack from an extra five-point hit by taking a safety.
With a 22-10 lead in hand, the Seahawks weren't ready to take their foot off the accelerator. The Seahawks' rushing attack opened up play-action for Russell Wilson, as Seattle evaded the Green Bay pass rush to once again cross the Green Bay 30-yard line.
Following a Percy Harvin reception that positioned them inside the red zone, Wilson ended the third quarter with a big play off of - you guessed it - play-action, as he bolted down to the Seattle 3 on a 13-yard scramble.
Marshawn Lynch capped off the drive with a three-yard burst into the end zone off of left tackle. His second score of the game pushed the Seattle lead to 29-10, as the 12th Man roared their unmistakable (and unwavering) approval.
With less than a quarter to go and a three-score deficit in front of him, Aaron Rodgers captained a surgically-precise desperation push by the Packers to move Green Bay inside the Seattle 40.
An obvious holding penalty would send them backwards for a second, but Aaron Rodgers (and an absolutely mesmerizing pinball-like 12-yard run by RB James Starks) kept the momentum going for the Packers.
Rodgers would cash in with his first TD pass of 2014, rolling to his right to escape pressure before making a connection with a wide-open Randall Cobb in the middle of the end zone.
Green Bay failed to convert on a two-point conversion, but the Seattle lead had still been trimmed down to two scores at 29-16.
Obviously buoyed by the offense's quick strike, the Packers' defense (in particular, their front seven) ratcheted up their intensity on Seattle's first three plays. However, a killer defensive holding penalty nullified a three-and-out and handed the Seahawks a fresh set of downs.
Russell Wilson would then use his legs and some deft downfield vision (along with a horrifically-timed 15-yard face mask penalty by Packers cornerback Casey Hayward) to basically walk the Seahawks offense inside the Packers 30.
It was a perfect clock-killing drive for the dynamic game manager, as he drew from his full arsenal of offensive weapons to milk the clock down to under three minutes.
From there, Wilson would add an exclamation point to the proceedings, as he faked a handoff on 4th-and-1 before hitting FB Derrick Coleman for an easy 15-yard touchdown strike. The Seahawks lead had ballooned to 36-16 and the game was, for all intents and purposes, over.
A Green Bay offensive holding penalty wiped a long first-down pass off the board in their final possession, as the Packers would be forced to punt it away from there.
The Seahawks would kneel on the ball to put a wrapper on the game, with a dominant 36-16 victory in hand.
Top Player: Marshawn Lynch
Lynch provided a huge amount of pop to the Seattle offense, as he dropped tacklers left and right to pick up 110 yards and two scores on just 20 carries. For the first three-quarters of his touches, "Beast Mode" was virtually Teflon - with the Packers front seven repeatedly losing their angle on the All-Pro running back. Russell Wilson managed a near-perfect game and deserves massive consideration for the honor, but Lynch once again silenced doubters with an absolute clinic of power rushing and sneakily top-shelf footwork.
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