SEATTLE — The Seahawks are not talented enough to win this way.

Which doesn't mean Mike Macdonald's team isn't talented enough to win. But if three losses in 11 days offer any take-aways, it's that a roster lacking superstars while stockpiling injuries can't overcome a mountain of mistakes.

The Seahawks — who fell 36-24 to the San Francisco 49ers on Thursday night — aren't talented enough to make every missed fit a mystery. Trailing 29-24 with 1:39 left and all three timeouts, Seattle needed a 49ers three-and-out to give its offense an opportunity. Instead, quarterback Brock Purdy immediately handed the ball off to Isaac Guerendo, who galloped through a gaping hole for a 76-yard gain.

When asked afterward to diagnose the play, Seahawks safety Rayshawn Jenkins produced a four-second pause, then declined to point a finger.

"I mean ... it just was not fit right. That's all I'm going to say," he concluded, sparing the culprit any public punishment. "But we have to get him on the ground."

The Seahawks are not talented enough to miss tackles, to consistently lasso the likes of — wait, who are these guys? In their past two losses, Seattle fell victim to Guerendo (a fourth-round rookie) and Giants backup Tyrone Tracy (a fifth-round rookie). The two combined for 228 rushing yards and 8.1 yards per carry ... which tells you more about the Seahawks defense than a deep draft class.

Through six games, the Seahawks sit 27th in both rushing defense (144.7 yards allowed per game) and opponent yards per carry (5.0). Seattle hired Macdonald in part to address a defense that conceded 138.4 rushing yards per game and 4.6 yards per carry in 2023, but those statistics have continued to slide instead.

Seattle is not talented enough to bleed turnovers and win. The Seahawks surrendered three more of them Thursday — a pair of Geno Smith interceptions and a Laviska Shenault Jr. kick-return fumble. Through six games, their 10 turnovers lead the NFL, and their four takeaways sit 26th. (Their minus-6 turnover differential ranks tied for 30th, ahead of the 2-3 Raiders and 1-3 Titans.)

Fact is, Seattle's defense has produced a single takeaway since the season opener.

"I think it's just playing clean ball," said safety Julian Love, who led the Seahawks with 10 tackles and a pass breakup. "You're not going to beat [San Francisco] going minus-3 in the turnover battle. And I don't know what the penalty numbers were, but they couldn't have been good for us. That's what it takes."

The penalty numbers were not good for the Seahawks.

But that, too, is nothing new.

Seattle — which committed nine penalties for 69 yards against the 49ers — averages 7.8 accepted flags per game, sitting 26th in the NFL. The most unfortunate error Thursday was an illegal shift on Jake Bobo and Kenneth Walker III, who failed to come set at the snap ... thus nullifying a 52-yard touchdown pass from Smith to wide receiver DK Metcalf with 4:39 left.

(The Seahawks needed 12 more plays, and nearly three minutes of critical clock, before Smith finally found Tyler Lockett for a 9-yard score.)

The Seahawks are not talented enough to operate with an undefined identity.

Seriously, where does this offense excel? While Seattle's 251 pass attempts are easily most in the NFL, it's yielded a mere six passing scores (19th) and an 87.0 passer rating (20th). The Seahawks have also been sacked 19 times, while producing 7.1 yards per pass attempt (16th).

And though they average an encouraging 4.6 yards per carry, Seattle has yet to consistently commit to the run ... managing just 96.5 yards per game (27th).

When asked Thursday what his offense does well, Smith simply said: "We need to get better at a lot of things. That's the reality. We need to find ways to win. Whatever the bread and butter is, we have to collectively come up with that and get to it."

Ultimately, this team isn't talented enough to survive its sloppiness — a Smith deep ball delivered late that never made it to Metcalf, a miscommunicated snap count on third-and-goal from the 9-yard line with less than two minutes left, a concerning lack of discipline (that typically comes down to coaching).

Because, after all, who are the Seahawks' stars? The team's reigning Pro Bowlers are Smith (who looked consistently uncomfortable despite being sacked just once), Metcalf (who managed just three catches on 11 targets), Love (who whiffed on a tackle that yielded a 76-yard Deebo Samuel touchdown), and cornerback Devon Witherspoon (who has not produced a tackle for loss, sack or interception in six games this season).

As for San Francisco's stars? Tight end George Kittle compiled a pair of touchdowns, Samuel added the aforementioned 76-yard score, and Nick Bosa's 14 pressures are tied for the most of any player in a game over the past four seasons (according to Next Gen Stats).

It doesn't help, of course, that Seattle's depth continues to dwindle on the defensive line (where Uchenna Nwosu and Byron Murphy II are obvious absences) and at cornerback (where Riq Woolen, Tre Brown and Artie Burns were unavailable for some or all of Thursday's game).

But without superstars, or desirable depth, Seattle's margin for error is exceedingly slim.

From a fan's perspective, the most disappointing aspect of this three-game losing streak can't be the lack of talent. It's that Macdonald's Seahawks have struggled in so many critical — and controllable — areas.

At the Virginia Mason Athletic Center, a small sign with three letters — T.N.T. — is posted near the practice fields. The abbreviation (which offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb brought from the University of Washington) stands for "Takes No Talent," the elements of winning football that any player can provide.

Numerous examples are listed inside those three letters:

GETTING LINED UP

COMMUNICATING

STUDYING

BALL SECURITY

SUBSTITUTION ERRORS

AVOIDING PRESNAP PENALTIES

At 3-3, the Seahawks are talented enough to turn this around and make a playoff run.

But not if the little things all prove lethal.

"It's very fixable," said Jenkins, who finished with two tackles. "Everyone just has to be open. I think we have the right guys. We just have to really hold each other accountable. We can't beat around the bush."

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