With 2:57 left in the first quarter Sunday, Geno Smith took a shotgun snap, looked left and saw a 6-foot-4, 235-pound blur behind the defense. The 33-year-old quarterback’s feathery spiral hit DK Metcalf in stride, and he high-stepped into the end zone for a 56-yard score.

The play was perfectly executed.

The celebration?

Not so much.

After crossing the goal line, Metcalf waved at and approached a member of the “Patriots Militia,” who sport (arguably) authentic 18th-century garb and fire celebratory muskets after home touchdowns. But unlike Benedict Arnold, this particular Patriot — donning a black hat and a bayonet — refused to switch sides.

Rather than participating in Metcalf’s personal re-enactment, he folded his arms and turned his back to publicly shun the wide receiver. Undeterred, Metcalf lifted his leg and raised his right hand, a presidential impersonation … in need of explanation.

“You know the picture of George Washington crossing the Delaware River? That’s what I was trying to impersonate, but it was terrible,” Metcalf admitted after the Seahawks’ 23-20 overtime win. “Everybody thought I was trying to take the guy’s musket.”

The play, and subsequent celebration, are appropriate symbols for the Seahawks’ 2-0 start.

The result obviously matters most.

But it has not always been pretty.

Through two weeks (and wins), it’s too early to confidently define the Seahawks’ ceiling. Is Mike Macdonald’s team NFC West-favorite good? Wild-card good? Or just good enough to beat two teams — the Broncos and Patriots — with two of the three lowest projected win totals before the season?

So far this has been a team of offensive opposites. In a season-opening 26-20 defeat of Denver, the Seahawks stumbled through an ugly opening half, before a rugged running game — totaling 146 rushing yards, 4.4 yards per carry and two touchdowns — finally found its footing.

But on Sunday, Seattle’s passing game emerged — as a sensational Smith completed 33-of-44 passes (despite five drops) and threw for 327 yards and the above touchdown. Without injured workhorse Kenneth Walker III, the Seahawks totaled just 19 rushing attempts (including 14 for backup Zach Charbonnet). And after exploding for 17 first-half points, they were held to a pair of field goals in the final two quarters and overtime.

Wins aside, this is an offense without a defined identity. It’s unclear if a front with issues at right tackle (where Abe Lucas and George Fant are both battling injuries) and guard (where starters Laken Tomlinson and Anthony Bradford have been occasionally exposed) will allow first-year coordinator Ryan Grubb to consistently implement his offense.

Against, say, Detroit or San Francisco, will Smith have time to operate? Will Walker — should he return from an oblique injury — be blessed with room to run?

Yes, the Seahawks have been inconsistent. But Metcalf has a happy spin.

“Whatever we need to do, whether it’s run the ball or pass the ball in that specific game, we can do it,” he said.

Time will tell if that’s the truth.

Likewise, it’s unclear if a unit that finished 28th in the NFL in opponent yards per carry (4.6) and 31st in rushing defense (138.4 yards allowed per game) in 2023 has significantly improved. On Sunday, New England’s Antonio Gibson and Rhamondre Stevenson combined for 177 rushing yards and 5.5 yards per carry, while playing their biggest hits in the second half.

There was Stevenson — a 6-0, 227-pound punisher — plowing through Seahawks safety Julian Love for an 18-yard gain in the third quarter, before capping the drive by bowling over Leonard Williams’ attempted bear hug for a 1-yard touchdown.

There was Gibson — a 228-pound, multipurpose performer — shaking free of a Boye Mafe tackle six yards behind the line of scrimmage, then bounding down the sideline for a 45-yard gain.

In a tiny sample size, Seattle has surrendered 142 rushing yards per game and 4.7 yards per carry, both almost identical to a season ago.

“Look, we can’t give up 180 yards rushing,” Macdonald said Sunday. “There’s plenty on tape. We had pictures [evidence on film] in the first half, losing some leverages, not playing some runs the right way. So we’ve got our work to do on that front.”

Still, the work is obviously more enjoyable when you win.

And the point here isn’t to pour freezing water on a (technically) perfect Seahawks start. Regardless of opponent, it isn’t easy to win in the NFL, and Macdonald is the first Seattle coach to take the first two games of his tenure. Plus, as injuries mount for the 1-1 49ers and 0-2 Rams, the Seahawks are suddenly the only unbeaten team in the NFC West — a sight worth celebrating.

Speaking of: there’s plenty more for fans to be encouraged by. Smith — whose four fourth-quarter comebacks and five game-winning drives last season both led the league — looks confident and dangerous in Grubb’s historically explosive system. Wide receivers Metcalf and Jaxon Smith-Njigba combined for 22 catches, 246 receiving yards and a touchdown Sunday, perhaps previewing future fireworks. Cornerbacks Riq Woolen and Devon Witherspoon were also unsurprisingly stingy, as the Seahawks surrendered a grand total of three catches for 19 yards to Patriot wide receivers.

There’s a lot to like, and it’s better to build off wins than losses.

But don’t fire your celebratory muskets just yet.

For the encouraging, occasionally concerning Seahawks, there’s so much we still don’t know.

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