Mike Vorel
The Seattle Times
LONDON — The hardest hit David Moore took on Sunday came from an inanimate object.
Early in the second quarter of the Seahawks’ 27-3 win over the Raiders, quarterback Russell Wilson let a shotgun snap slip through his fingers. He corralled the football, pump faked, scurried forward in a shifting pocket and delivered a one-footed floater into the back of the Oakland end zone.
That’s where Moore — all 6 feet and 215 pounds of him — caught the football over his shoulder, tapped his feet in bounds, took a couple steps … and tumbled sideways over the barricade.
“I didn’t see that coming at all,” Moore said after the game. “I didn’t even know that was back there. It hurt a little bit.
“I looked up and saw the whole thing. I was like, ‘Oh, shoot. Just take (the hit). Just take it.’”
So Moore took it, tumbling over a narrow board flashing a Bud Light advertisement and an incorrect observation — “This is Raider Nation.”
On Sunday, “Raider Nation” was invaded by a tidal wave of 12s. Wembley Stadium was blue and green — and Moore might soon be black and blue.
But the rough landing was worth the final result.
“I have confidence in David Moore because he shows it every day,” Wilson said. “He’s worked hard all offseason. He’s shown it all preseason. He’s shown it all season so far.
“He’s a joy to be around. He brings great energy. He brings an attitude to the game. He’s fast as can be. He’s strong. He can go up and get the football. You saw him make the play tonight where he spun out and went upfield (for the touchdown). He just has a great awareness of the game.”
That awareness has shown up in the last six quarters, in which the 2017 seventh-round pick has snagged the first three touchdowns of his NFL career. Two of those scores have been the result of scramble drills.
Moore and Wilson both seem to find comfort in the chaos.
“The main thing that coach always tells us is, ‘No matter what, finish the play,’” Moore said. “I didn’t see what happened with Russ (on the shotgun snap) or anything, but I just saw him step up in the pocket and usually that means he’s scrambling. So I did a scramble drill like we always practice.”
In an easy win at Wembley Stadium, Moore translated preparation into production — and he wasn’t the only one. Tyler Lockett snagged his fifth touchdown in six games. Jaron Brown notched his second touchdown of the year to set off the scoring.
And, perhaps most important, battered standout Doug Baldwin logged six catches (on eight targets) for 91 yards after managing just one catch for one yard (and one target) in the loss to the Rams last week.
“I thought Doug had a fantastic second half,” Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said. “I mean, he had a couple balls that almost hit him on the run. Just missed him on the one downfield. But all in all, he played a great football game. He really looks like he’s back and ready to go, and that’s a big deal to us.”
Whether Baldwin is officially “back” is up for debate, considering that he’s worked through injuries to both knees this season and appeared to hurt his elbow somewhat on Sunday.
But Baldwin said that those minor setbacks don’t concern him, “as long as I can be able to pick up my future kids when they’re born and play with them.”
Until then, he’ll play with his teammates … and hopefully earn some targets along the way.
“We threw the ball in my direction,” Baldwin said, his answer dripping in sarcasm, when asked what changed from week to week. “I mean, that’s really what it is. I told you guys this last week: sometimes it’s like that. Sometimes you don’t get any targets and sometimes you get 20 targets. It’s just like that sometimes.
“I’m grateful I got an opportunity to contribute to the win tonight though.”
In a convincing win, just about everybody contributed. Eight players caught passes and three wide receivers entered the end zone.
Granted, some touchdowns hurt more than others. But if the wide receivers keep rolling, the Seahawks’ offense will be hard to stop.
“When you’re looking at the teams we play next, they’ve got to decide whether they want to stop the run or the pass,” Lockett said. “If they decide to try to stop the run we’re just going to sit there and pass the ball. You see what David Moore did today. You see what Doug did today. You see what (Jaron Brown) did today when he set it off with the first touchdown, and even when we threw that slant to Brandon Marshall.
“We feel like we’ve got a really great receiving corps, and we can really be able to play and feed off of each other. You see that’s what we do. We go out there and we have fun. We don’t care about who gets the credit. We don’t care about how many yards somebody gets or how many touchdowns somebody gets. As soon as you see somebody score, guess what? We’ve got a touchdown celebration for it every single week … just to be able to enjoy it.
“The more you’re able to enjoy it, the more you realize your plays are going to come.”
Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Doug Baldwin makes a 42-yard reception against Oakland Raiders cornerback Daryl Worley on Sunday, Oct. 14, 2018 at Wembley Stadium in London, England. (Bettina Hansen/Seattle Times/TNS)
