Seattle Seahawks 6-6 Arizona Cardinals
Monday 24 October 2016 15:26, UK
Seattle and Arizona played out the first tied game of the NFL season, finishing level at 6-6 as both teams missed overtime field goal attempts to claim the victory.
It was a case of defences on top as two of the NFL's finest limited attacking chances to almost zero and it became a battle of wills between the kickers.
Arizona will feel most hard done by having had the bulk of possession, almost double that of the Seahawks who managed just four first downs in regulation time.
The drama continued throughout the additional period with Chandler Catanzaro missing from 24 yards when his effort came back off the post, only for Seattle's Steven Hauschka to pull his own effort wide in the dying seconds.
In 140 characters
Defences dominate into overtime and both kickers miss simple-looking field goal attempts to win resulting in the first tie of the season.
MVP - Difficult to pick one man with both defences so dominant but Seattle's line had to take out the majority of the honours and Cliff Avril was relentless in his pursuit of Carson Palmer, picking up a couple of sacks along the way.
Game-changer - Catanzaro's blocked field goal attempt early on set the tone for the game - rather than missed opportunities, the defensive skills were to be applauded.
Stat of the Night - 113. David Johnson's 113 yards rushing on 33 carries underlined the battle that even the league's most potent offensive weapon was forced to feed off scraps, albeit a lot of them!
Keep across the final action of Week Seven on Monday night on Sky Sports when Denver Broncos host the Houston Texans on Sky Sports 1 from 1.15am,
The Game
As expected it was defences to the fore at the University of Phoenix Stadium, but no one could have predicted quite how dominant they would be or the drama that would unfold in overtime.
In the end it was honours in what could be a match-up for the post-season if the defences can continue to be so dominant.
Catanzaro gave Arizona the lead from 46 yards deep into the second quarter but the Cardinals would rue missed opportunities as Bruce Arians opted against further field goal attempts hoping Seattle would crack under the pressure.
But the Seahawks stood firm and despite being out outmaneuvered for much of the game were indebted to their incredible defence for keeping them in the contest and setting up Hauschka for a 40-yard field goal took the game into overtime.
It was the Cardinals who struck first in the extra period, Catanzaro on target from 45-yards with what looked to be the game-deciding moment but Hauschka levelled again before the drama went up a gear in the dying stages.
The Cardinals found themselves well in range for a 19-yard attempt, but when a penalty saw them drop five yards it seemed to make all the difference as Catanzaro's struggles continued, his effort coming back of the post.
With the seconds ticking away, there was more to come as Russell Wilson and the Seahawks found some attacking verve to march down the field thanks to a Jermaine Kearse reception and then Doug Baldwin's 29-yard dance down the sideline.
It brought up a 28-yard field goal attempt for Hauschka but he too was off target, pulling his effort wide and with two seconds left there was only time for Palmer to hurl a hopeful bomb which was crowded out by the Seahawks secondary, ensuring the game ended all square.
Keep across the final action of Week Seven on Monday night on Sky Sports when Denver Broncos host the Houston Texans on Sky Sports 1 from 1.15am,
