Rashid Shaheed returns kickoff 100 yards for TD and Seahawks blow away hapless Falcons 37-9

ATLANTA (AP) — With the game tied after a lackluster first half, Mike Macdonald knew his team needed a spark.

The Seattle coach called on newcomer Rashid Shaheed to provide it.

Shaheed returned the second-half kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown and the Seahawks never looked back, beating the hapless Atlanta Falcons 37-9 on Sunday.

“Coach Mike, he called it,” safety Nick Emmanwori said, breaking into a big grin. “Right before we went back out from halftime, he literally called it out. He was like, 'Sheed, go take one back to the house.'”

Shaheed was acquired a month ago from the New Orleans Saints for a pair of draft picks, leaving one of the league's worst teams for one of its best.

He's starting to get accustomed to his new surroundings, also making four catches for 67 yards as he develops a connection with quarterback Sam Darnold.

“I've not been able to play for a playoff team yet,” Shaheed said. “This feels different. This feels like everyone has bought in.”

The Seahawks (10-3) broke away from a 6-6 tie at halftime with a 31-point beatdown of the Falcons over the final two quarters.

Seattle's defense came up with three turnovers as the Seahawks won for the seventh time in eight games. Darnold threw for 249 yards and three touchdowns, with a pair of scores to Jaxon Smith-Njigba and another to Cooper Kupp.

As for the Falcons, this all feels very familiar.

With its seventh loss in eight games, Atlanta (4-9) sealed an eighth straight losing campaign — matching the worst stretch in franchise history — and was officially eliminated from playoff contention with a month to go in the regular season.

Atlanta hasn't made the postseason since 2017, a year after its infamous Super Bowl meltdown to Tom Brady and the Patriots.

“The kickoff return was a backbreaker,” said embattled coach Raheem Morris, whose future is sure to remain a major topic in the A-T-L.

Shaheed's TD marked the third week in a row that Atlanta has given up a huge kickoff return. He was barely touched on his way to the longest touchdown of the NFL season, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. It was the longest return for the Seahawks since Tyler Lockett's 105-yarder against Chicago in 2015.

That wasn’t the only miscue on another awful day for Atlanta's special teams. Zane Gonzalez’s 50-yard field goal attempt was swatted away by Emmanwori, who streaked in off the edge without being blocked.

“We’ve got to go figure it out," Morris said. "We’ve got to put more people out there. We’ve got to change it up.”

The Seattle defense forced a fumble by Bijan Robinson when the Falcons were driving for a potential tying touchdown in the third quarter. DeMarcus Lawrence knocked the ball away and Devon Witherspoon scooped it up at the Seahawks 12.

On Atlanta's next possession, Kirk Cousins' pass for Kyle Pitts was deflected and picked off by Emmanwori, his first career pick. Witherspoon also had an interception on a wacky play when the ball ricocheted high in the air on a short throw by Cousins.

The Seahawks were bolstered on the defensive side by the return of safety Julian Love and tackle Jarran Reed from injured reserve, making the first time all season that unit was at full strength.

The Seahawks have one of the league's top defensive units, and they're not shying away from expectations.

Coming off a shutout of the Minnesota Vikings, Seattle held the Falcons to three field goals. Even in the closing minutes, with the outcome no longer in doubt, the defense took pride in stopping Atlanta near the goal line on fourth down.

“This defense is super special,” Emmanwori said. “We've got a lot of special dudes on this team, from the first level on the D-line to the linebackers to the secondary. I think this defense can be historic almost.”

The Falcons appeared to score the game’s first touchdown late in the first half when Darnell Mooney hauled in a 26-yard pass from Cousins down the left sideline.

But the Atlanta receiver stepped out of bounds just short of the end zone, and officials ruled that he did not re-establish himself on the field before making the catch. The Falcons were forced to settle for Gonzalez’s 43-yard field goal and a 6-3 lead with 1:01 left in the half.

That left enough time for Seattle to tie up before halftime. Darnold scrambled for a 12-yard gain and connected with Shaheed on a 16-yard pass, setting up Jason Myers’ 48-yard field goal on the final play of the half.

Seahawks: TE Elijah Arroyo and NT Brandon Pili both went down in the first half with knee issues. Macdonald said Pili should be OK, but Arroyo's injury could be more serious and will require further evaluation.

Falcons: WR Drake London (knee) missed his third straight game with a knee injury and was joined on the inactive list by DL Brandon Dorlus (groin). Edge Jalon Walker (quad) was injured in the first half.

Seahawks: Return home to face the Indianapolis Colts next Sunday.

Falcons: A short week before they travel to Tampa Bay on Thursday night to face their NFC South rival Buccaneers.

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

Seattle Seahawks cornerback Devon Witherspoon celebrates a fumble recovery against the Atlanta Falcons during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Cooper Kupp, center, celebrates his touchdown with wide receiver Rashid Shaheed, left, during the second half of an NFL football game against the Atlanta Falcons, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)

Atlanta Falcons head coach Raheem Morris looks down on the sideline as his team trails against the Seattle Seahawks during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)

Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Cooper Kupp, second from left, celebrates his touchdown with teammates Jaxon Smith-Njigba (11) and Nick Kallerup (89) against the Atlanta Falcons during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)

Seattle Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold (14) runs the ball against Atlanta Falcons cornerback Mike Hughes (21) during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)

Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Rashid Shaheed (22) looks back as he runs for a touchdown on a kickoff return against the Atlanta Falcons during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

NEW YORK (AP) — The Iran war has effectively halted oil tanker movement in the key Strait of Hormuz. But it's also disrupting the wider global supply chain beyond oil, affecting everything from pharmaceuticals from India, semiconductors from Asia and oil-derived products like fertilizers that come from the Middle East.

Cargo ships are stuck in the Gulf or making a much longer detour around the southern tip of Africa. Planes carrying air cargo out of the Middle East are grounded. And the longer the war drags on, the more likely that there will be shortages and price increases on a wide range of goods.

“This is really causing some major impacts within the global supply chain,” said Patrick Penfield, professor of supply chain practice at Syracuse University. “As this conflict keeps progressing, you’ll start to see some shortages, you’ll see some major price increases.”

Clarksons Research, which tracks shipping data, estimates that about 3,200 ships, or about 4% of global ship tonnage, are idle inside the Persian Gulf, but that includes about 1,231 that likely only operate within the Gulf. About 500 ships, or 1% of global tonnage, are currently “waiting” outside the Gulf in ports off the coast of the United Arab Emirates and Oman, according to the firm.

While those may seem like small percentages, they have a domino effect that will lead to congestion elsewhere, said Michael Goldman, general manager North America of CARU Containers.

“The supply chain is kind of like a long train with many cars and each car represents, let’s say, a port in the world. Well, if one car gets derailed, it can very often have a domino effect to many other cars behind it or in front of it,” he said. “So although we only have a small number of ports affected by this military action, it can really have a big effect on the total supply chain.”

On Tuesday, President Donald Trump pitched a plan aimed at getting oil and trade moving again through the Strait.

Trump said on social media he ordered the U.S. International Development Finance Corp. to provide political risk insurance for tankers carrying oil and other goods through the Persian Gulf “at a very reasonable price.”

Political risk insurance is a type of coverage intended to protect firms against financial losses caused by unstable political conditions, government actions, or violence. Marine insurers had been canceling or raising rates for insurance in the region.

He said that, if necessary, the U.S. Navy would escort oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz. The Navy has at least eight destroyers and three, smaller, littoral combat ships in the region. These ships have previously been used to escort merchant shipping in the region and in the Red Sea.

A wide range of products are shipped through the Mideast region. Along with about 20% of the worlds oil that comes from the region, products made with natural gas such as petrochemical feedstock — used to make plastic and rubber — and nitrogen fertilizer come from the Middle East. Pharmaceuticals exported from India and semiconductors and batteries exported from Asia to the rest of the world are all shipped through the region and could face delays.

In addition to constraints on the Strait of Hormuz, the instability has put a damper on transit in the Red Sea and the Suez Canal, which had just begun to see more transit after years of instability due to Houthi attacks on ships in the region. Shipping company Maersk had resumed transit in the Suez Canal and Red Sea but said Sunday it was rerouting that traffic around the Cape of Good Hope in Africa, a move other companies have been making to avoid the volatile region.

That journey adds 10 to 14 days to the trip and about $1 million extra in fuel per ship, Syracuse' Penfield estimates.

With higher fuel prices, longer routes and higher risk in the region, shippers have begun adding fuel and “war risk” or “emergency conflict” surcharges to what they're charging clients, leading to higher costs all around, he said.

Air cargo has also been constrained. Closed airspace and airports in countries including UAE, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, Iraq, and Iran have stranded tens of thousands of people - and cargo.

Each of the three major Middle Eastern airlines — Emirates, Qatar Airways and Etihad Airways — operate fleets of cargo aircraft, and the airlines also transport goods in the belly of their passenger planes.

The amount of goods that travels through the air typically accounts for less than 1% of all freight moving globally, but the products that do travel by air tend to be perishable or high-value goods like pharmaceuticals, electronics and produce that together account for about 35% of the world trade value, Boeing estimated in its World Air Cargo Forecast.

The longer these airports in the Middle East remain closed the greater the potential disruption to the economy if these sensitive shipments don’t arrive or have to be rerouted around the conflict. Even before the war in Iran began over the weekend, air freight and airlines were already contending with closed airspace over Ukraine and Russia.

Flights through these Middle Eastern airport hubs are a key route for passengers and cargo from India. Henry Harteveldt, an airline industry analyst with Atmosphere Research Group, said it’s going to be hard to get to India now, and passengers may have to switch to different routes that fly west across Asia. Airlines may have to resort to longer flights, and in some case even add fuel stops on some routes.

“Remember, there’s a lot of pharmaceutical products that are made in India and then exported to different countries around the world. If that’s disrupted, that has a huge, huge, huge impact,” Harteveldt said.

Air cargo costs are expected to rise due to reduced capacity, increased demand, and surcharges.

Maersk said in an operational update Tuesday that it expects air freight rates to rise due to capacity constraints.

“Airlines are also introducing or reviewing the possibility of introducing war risk surcharges on shipments routed through or near the impacted regions,” Maersk said in a statement. “There may also be added costs linked to jet fuel which in turn can push up costs.”

Despite the supply chain upheaval, however, Michael Goldman, general manager North America of CARU Containers, said the industry will adjust. Over the past few years it has faced other major disruptions like COVID supply shortages and other recent Mideast conflicts and has become more nimble.

“The specific situation that’s happening is pretty unprecedented, so it’s very unique from that perspective,” he said. “(But) for the last few years the industry just kind of runs on disruption. So in terms of our industry having disruption, that is nothing new. That's more of the same.”

Josh Funk in Omaha, Nebraska and Fatima Hussein and Konstantin Toropin in Washington contributed to this report.

FILE - Fishermen work in front of oil tankers south of the Strait of Hormuz Jan. 19, 2012, offshore the town of Ras Al Khaimah in United Arab Emirates. (AP Photo/Kamran Jebreili, File)