Yesterday’s 25-19 loss to the visiting Chicago Bears has a lot of fans shaking their heads. The Hawks dominated the first half, so much so that it almost seemed unfortunate to go into the locker room only up 13-7.

The missed FG at the end of the first half may have been an omen, because the second half was filled with missed opportunities and poor execution. A truism in the NFL—and as I predicted yesterday—turnovers lose games, and they killed Seattle yesterday. TJ Housh made his first catch of the day for a Seattle first down as the second half opened, and then promptly fumbled the ball. Just like that, Chicago punched it in five plays later to take a 14-13 lead. That touchdown, that early in the second half must have felt like a punch in the gut to those donning the “blinding, nuclear green jerseys” (as ESPN described the Hawks’ new outfits). They had thoroughly dominated the game for most of 35 minutes and were now losing.

Another missed field goal by the usually-reliable Olindo Mare on the next drive brought some boos from the partisan crowd at Qwest, and later another Wallace INT led to another Bears field goal.

The Hawks rebounded with a sustained drive that led into the fourth quarter and a Chicago turnover on their next possession led to another field goal to give the Hawks a 19-17 lead. But Chicago QB Jay Cutler led the Bears down the field, and scored a TD to go up 25-19, and the Hawks couldn’t execute in the 2-minute drill.

The fans at Qwest were rightfully stunned and disappointed. This is the type of game the Hawks absolutely have to win to be competitive this season. I see 3 things that made this loss a reality, two of which are simply inexcusable at the NFL level. The third—injuries to key defensive players—is out of the control of the team, but was a factor.

But beyond the injuries, the Hawks should have won this game. Turnovers and poor execution did the Seahawks in—and turnovers and poor execution are what separate good teams from bad teams in the NFL. Yesterday, the Seahawks showed which category they currently belong in. It doesn’t get any easier, as the Hawks travel to Indy next week to face Peyton Manning and the Colts. Mora needs to right this ship, and fast.