Pete Carroll: Aaron Donald biggest reason we lost to Rams

The Seahawks got absolutely stunned in a 30-20 loss to the Los Angeles Rams in their NFC wild-card game on Saturday.

Seattle’s offense looked bad, and the Rams won despite having two injured quarterbacks (John Wolford exited with a neck injury, while Jared Goff played after a recent thumb surgery).

So what is the biggest reason the Seahawks struggled? Pete Carroll says it comes down to Aaron Donald, who is a major disrupter and difference-maker.

“There’s one factor in this whole thing, the whole thing, since we’ve been here playing these guys, and that’s No. 99,” Carroll said after Saturday’s game. “He hasn’t just torn us up, he’s torn everybody up, and he continues to be a significant factor. He tilts it somewhat.”

Carroll said he was hoping the Seahawks would be able to take advantage when Donald was out with a rib injury, but they were unable to do so.

“I wish we could find a way to stop him,” Carroll admitted.

Donald is a monster along the defensive line, which is why he’s won two Defensive Player of the Year Awards during his career. He’s been particularly tough against Seattle, posting more sacks (13), tackles (53) and quarterback hits (36) against them than any other team.

Of course, Tyler Lockett had some other explanations for what was going on with Seattle’s offense.