Commentary: Lumen Field finds groove again as Panthers called for 8 false starts against Seahawks

SEATTLE – The first one came on second-and-9 midway through the second quarter, followed by another one on third down two plays later. The next one came on the first play of the ensuing Panthers possession, and the next two on their final drive of the third quarter.

It was the next three, however – when the Seahawks led by nine early in the fourth – that restored this stadium’s reputation as the most maddening in the NFL for opposing offenses.

One came on third-and-4 from the Seahawks’ 39, then another on the next snap attempt from the Seahawks’ 44, then one more two plays later that caused Seahawks coach Pete Carroll to turn around and give an emphatic salute to the home crowd.

That’s eight Panthers false starts if you’re counting, the most for any NFL team since the Bears in 2011. And as the 12s forced Carolina to move back, it seemed Lumen Field got its groove back.

“They (the fans) were running the show. We were just playing off them,” Carroll said, emphasizing that the noise disallowed Carolina from getting coordinated. “It felt more unique than it’s felt recently for whatever reason. The fact that they responded like that in this early part of this season, after we screwed it up last time we were here – that’s where we start moving forward. I’m hoping that we can continue to fill them up and they can fill us up with the love they have for the Seahawks.”

Perhaps it was a coincidence that the “unique” atmosphere coincided with dozens of members of the Seahawks 2013 Super Bowl-winning team gracing the stadium for their 10-year victory celebration. Or maybe it wasn’t. Those title-winning faces hearkened back to a time when Lumen was the most intimidating atmosphere in football. The 2012 Seahawks, after all, were 8-0 at home. The championship team was 7-1, as was the group from 2014.

Obviously, those were some of the more talented squads this league has seen since the turn of the century and can’t be compared to the group of 53 on today’s roster. Still, heading into Seattle’s 37-27 win over the Panthers on Sunday, the Seahawks (2-1) had won just eight of their past 18 games at home. Perhaps the worst of those 10 defeats was against the underdog Rams two weeks ago, when L.A. won 30-13.

That’s not to say that Lumen faded into a nonfactor for foes who traveled to the Pacific Northwest, but its mystique had seemed to dwindle a bit. Not Sunday.

“I think we have the best fans in the world. … I think they’re always here for us,” Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith said. “The 12th Man was real today, and I’m just glad to be part of it.”

Sunday’s win was rather nondescript until the tail end of the third quarter. That’s when Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker finished off a 55-yard drive with a 1-yard run into the end zone. Carolina (0-3) – playing without starting quarterback Bryce Young – answered with a touchdown, to which the Seahawks responded with a 69-yard TD drive to go up 29-20.

Then, the Lumen decibels began to decimate. Hoping to try to get within one score – two points if they could manage a touchdown – the Panthers drew three false-start flags within four attempted snaps and moved themselves out of field-goal range. This forced Carolina to go for it on fourth down from its own 35 on its next possession, leading to a Seahawks touchdown, two-point conversion and total command of the game.

It was a group effort, no doubt – with Smith throwing for 296 yards on 23-of-36 passing, Walker racking up 97 yards and two scores on 18 carries, and receiver DK Metcalf tallying six catches for 112 yards. But the 68,699 announced in attendance were as valuable as they’ve been in many moons.

“It was loud. I’m glad I wasn’t out there having to deal with it,” said Seahawks receiver Tyler Lockett, who wondered if there had ever been a game at Lumen with eight false starts for the opponent (there were 11 in a 2005 game against the Giants). “It’s like, man, let’s just keep on building because this is a great atmosphere and it’s hard for teams to come here and be able to play through that.”

Many questions remain for these Seahawks, who struggled for much of Sunday against a subpar team. But concerns about the home-crowd atmosphere?

Those were – and one rarely associates this word with Lumen – silenced.