Seahawks’ Galloway Shows the Way

Joey Galloway could be excused for cramping late in the third quarter Sunday. By then, the Seattle rookie already had done plenty of running.

Galloway caught two touchdown passes and brilliantly improvised on an 86-yard run for another score, finishing with 200 yards in total offense as the Seahawks overwhelmed the Jacksonville Jaguars, 47-30.

“When he ran that reverse,” Coach Dennis Erickson said of Galloway’s long run, “he exceeded every expectation I’ve ever seen.”

It was the highest-scoring game for Seattle (4-6) in more than 10 years, and Galloway’s run was a team record, eclipsing 67-yarders by Sherman Smith and Al Hunter in 1978 and ‘79, respectively.

Galloway didn’t return after his left calf cramped on a punt return with about two minutes left in the third quarter. He caught five passes for 114 yards, including touchdowns of 38 and 23 yards from Rick Mirer, but the play that left his mark on this game occurred early in the second quarter.

Galloway, the first-round draft pick from Ohio State, got the ball on a reverse on third and seven at the Seahawks’ 14. He escaped from Vinny Clark in the backfield but still seemed to be hemmed in along the right sideline short of the first down marker.

Suddenly, Galloway recognized that six Jaguars were bunched up. He cut back toward the far sideline, and there wasn’t a Jacksonville player in sight until linebacker James Williams caught up with him at the 10. But Williams was leveled by running back Chris Warren, allowing Galloway to coast into the end zone.

“I was just looking for a hole for a first down,” Galloway said. “When I saw Chris Warren ahead of me and I didn’t see anything else, that’s when I thought, ‘You know, there may be a lot of field.’ ”

Galloway, who probably ran at least 100 yards on the play, was too tired to thank Warren for his crushing block.

“I was thinking, ‘Please don’t let 90 [Williams] hit me because the guys might have to come on the field and get me if that happens,’ ” Galloway quipped.

While Galloway was handling the flashy plays, Warren was doing the grunt work with 121 yards in 27 carries. He scored Seattle’s first touchdown on a 29-yard run.

The 47 points were the most by the Seahawks since a 49-35 victory over the San Diego Chargers on Sept. 15, 1985.

The Jaguars (3-7) scored 30 points for the first time in franchise history but it wasn’t nearly enough against the Seahawks, who overcame a 27-21 halftime deficit and broke the game open in the final five minutes.

The Jaguars’ defense, which was allowing 335 yards per game, surrendered a season-high 481.

“It’s hard to pinpoint any one thing,” defensive end Joel Smeenge said. “We didn’t stop the run [allowing 246 yards]. We didn’t have enough pressure [Mirer was sacked only two times]. We had coverage breakdowns. All around, it was not a good game.”

The Jaguars’ offense, after equaling the team record for points with 27 in the first half, managed only a field goal in the final two quarters.