Looking back at the Seahawks’ 2013 Super Bowl season: Week 8 at Rams

Longtime Seahawks followers don’t need much reminding of how strange the series with the Rams has been through the years.

Exhibit A may be a game that turned into one of the key wins for the Seahawks on their way to the only Super Bowl win in franchise history.

It featured the longest offensive play of the season in a game in which Seattle gained the fewest yards it did all year — and what remains the fewest yards Seattle has ever gained in a game coached by Pete Carroll or quarterbacked by Russell Wilson.

It also featured one of the most memorable goal-line stands in team history.

As we commemorate the 10-year anniversary of the Seahawks’ Super Season, let’s review what happened in Week 8.

Week 8: Seahawks 14, St. Louis Rams 9 

Star of game

Receiver Golden Tate

On a Monday night in St. Louis, the Seahawks ran just 40 offensive plays.

Thirty-nine of those went for a combined 55 yards.

The other went for 80, a pass from Wilson to Golden Tate with 3:45 left in the third quarter that put the Seahawks ahead 14-6.

The play served as an indelible image of the 2013 season as Tate caught the ball near the Rams’ 35-yard line in man coverage against Janoris Jenkins, who fell down trying to make the interception, allowing Tate a clear path to the end zone.

Tate, though, didn’t just sprint to six. Instead, he slowed some to wave goodbye to Rams cornerback Trumaine Johnson, who came from the middle of the field to try to make the tackle.

Tate — who also scored Seattle’s first TD in the game on a 2-yard pass in the second quarter that came on a 26-yard drive following a Richard Sherman interception — drew a taunting penalty and later a fine. After the game, he apologized.

“I’ve got to stay composed,” he said. “Act like I’ve been there before.”

No one seemed to mind too much in the moment, though.

Play of the game

Aside from Tate’s TD, which came just after the Rams had driven for a field goal to cut the lead to 7-6, the defining moment came in the final minute. 

The Seahawks appeared as if they might escape an erratically played game when Rams kicker Greg Zuerlein missed a 50-yard field goal with just over eight minutes remaining and Seattle clinging to a 14-9 lead.

But the Seahawks couldn’t move it, and the Rams got the ball back at their own 3 with 5:42 remaining.

It was easy to think that wouldn’t matter, as this was the Legion of Boom in its heyday, and the Rams were going with perennial backup Kellen Clemens at quarterback.

But the Rams surprisingly moved with ease down the field, reaching the Seahawks’ 6-yard line with 46 seconds left.

There, a first-down pass fell incomplete, then a run took it to the 2. An offsides penalty on Chris Clemons then set up third-and-goal at the 1, and enough time for the Rams to run two plays.

The Seahawks brought in their goal-line defense, which included Heath Farwell, the special-teams captain that season who played sparingly as a backup linebacker. He played just 42 snaps in 2013, most coming in mop-up time of blowout wins.

But he forever etched himself into his teammates’ hearts by leading the charge to stop a run up the middle by Daryl Richardson on third down for no gain.

“Heath did a great job putting his nose in there,” safety Earl Thomas said later.

The Rams decided on fourth down to try to catch Seattle off guard with a pass to Brian Quick. But Brandon Browner had him well covered — so well covered that the Rams later protested Browner should have been called for holding — and the pass fell incomplete. Seattle held on to win a game in which it was outgained 339-135 and had just seven first downs to St. Louis’ 23.

What it meant

Tangibly, the win improved the Seahawks’ record to 7-1 and kept them a game ahead of the 49ers in the NFC West.

Intangibly, it proved that even on a night when they were far from their best, they could still claw out a win.

“We didn’t expect them to score,” Farwell insisted later of the two plays from the 1. “We expected to stop them. It didn’t matter if they had 1 yard or 1 inch.”