Tariq Woolen issues response as Seahawks survive ‘unacceptable’ taunting penalty and heated sideline exchange

Tariq Woolen piped up at the worst possible time for the Seattle Seahawks, and he nearly cost them a trip to the Super Bowl.

In a back-and-forth NFC Championship Game at Lumen Field, Seattle found themselves with a commanding 11-point lead midway through the third quarter against the Los Angeles Rams.

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Sam Darnold was out-shining NFL veteran Matthew Stafford in a high-scoring affair, and the latter had just seen a crucial drive stall out — or so he thought.

Los Angeles were preparing to punt on fourth-and-12, when Seahawks cornerback Woolen was hit with a 15-yard taunting penalty for chirping at the Rams sideline.

That call meant LA’s offense stayed on the field, and they made Seattle pay immediately.

Tariq Woolen moment of madness threatens Seahawks Super Bowl dream

On the play that followed, Stafford tossed a 34-yard pass towards the corner of the end zone, where Puka Nacua plucked it out of the air and rolled in for the score.

To cap a horrendous few minutes for Woolen, who had also given up a five-yard penalty on the same drive, he was the DB in the area as Nacua came down with the ball.

Fox cameras then caught a heated sideline argument between Woolen and a number of teammates, including Nick Emmanwori, who clearly took issue with his behavior that could have cost them the NFC Championship.

Fans on social media also took issue with the taunting, deeming it a ‘historically dumb’ NFL moment.

“This is just unacceptable,” one said of Woolen’s behavior on the biggest stage.

“Act like idiots. Get stupid penalties,” another said.

“The dumbest s*** I’ve ever seen,” a third wrote.

“I’d cut him now. Tell him to pack his s*** and GTFO,” a fourth concluded.

“Riq Woolen getting pressed by his teammates after the taunting penalty and getting burnt for a TD,” one person added.

Woolen responded: “Wasn’t getting pressed. We brothers and we all chasing greatness we on the same mission.

Seattle survive Woolen penalty in dramatic win vs Rams

When the Seahawks offense took over possession, having seen their lead cut to four by Nacua’s TD, Rams safety Kamren Kinchens broke through and made a beeline for Darnold, before dragging him to the turf for a sensational nine-yard sack.

Seattle were then forced to punt, and handed the ball back to Stafford, who attempted to swing the game in LA’s favor.

He drove the Rams down the field but was unable to put up any more points when he failed to find a receiver in the endzone on fourth down.

That meant the Seahawks took over possession once more, after LA had killed 7:26 minutes of the fourth quarter clock.

Darnold and his offense did just about enough to keep the Rams at bay, and left them with 25 seconds to drive from their own seven yard line to the endzone.

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That task was too much, even for MVP candidate Stafford, who was unable to provide the heroics as time expired.

Seahawks reach Super Bowl behind Sam Darnold masterclass

Seattle, then, head to Super Bowl LX after winning a thrilling NFC Championship game 31-27, and it was QB Darnold who put them on the path to Santa Clara.

He completed 25/36 passes for an impressive 346 yards and three touchdowns.

Darnold set the tone on Seattle’s opening drive, and connected with Rashid Shaheed on a 51-yard bomb, before Kenneth Walker sqeezed into the end zone with a short run for the lead.

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He then came up clutch again before halftime, when his offense took over possession with 54 seconds left.

Darnold, it turned out, needed only 34 seconds to put another touchdown on the board, when he connected with star wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba who was wide open in the end zone.

On the other side of the interval, Seattle recovered a muffed punt, which allowed Darnold to take over in the red zone once again.

He made the Rams pay once more, throwing a 17-yard TD to Jake Bobo for 24-13 lead.

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One more score followed when Darnold connected with Cooper Kupp on a short pass to put the Seahawks up 31-20.

That was enough of a cushion to ensure Woolen’s moment of madness didn’t cost his team a trip to the Super Bowl, but he will need to avoid any repeat when Seattle meet the New England Patriots at Levi’s Stadium.

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