National Football League

Seahawks 13, Cardinals 10

Published Sep. 26, 2011 9:56 a.m. ET

foxsports

It took less than a half for Tarvaris Jackson to hear a chorus of boos and for Larry Fitzgerald to once again torment the Seattle Seahawks.

Then Fitzgerald disappeared and Jackson did just enough to silence those boos and get Seattle its first victory.

Jackson put the Seahawks ahead with a bulldozing 11-yard touchdown run in the third quarter, the secondary shut down Fitzgerald for the final 32 minutes, and Kam Chancellor had an interception with 1:04 left to seal a 13-10 victory over the Arizona Cardinals.

After getting routed in their first two games, the Seahawks (1-2) returned home and got a stellar defensive effort to make up for their inconsistent offense. And it was Jackson providing the highlight by bulling through safeties Adrian Wilson and Kerry Rhodes at the goal line with what turned out to be the winning points.

''We're all for him. He knows he has all of us on his back. We'll ride and die with him,'' Seattle linebacker David Hawthorne said. ''We believe in him obviously, and we fed off that - his toughness and his ability to go the extra yard to get that done.''

It wasn't an easy home debut for Jackson. He was booed as Seattle's offense floundered in the first half, then heard sections of the home crowd chanting for backup Charlie Whitehurst.

Throughout it all, Jackson kept his perspective, and while his play and numbers weren't spectacular, he did enough to help Seattle avoid its first 0-3 start since 2002.

''I've been through a lot, man. It don't even bother me no more,'' Jackson said. ''It's to a point now where you want to play for your fans and all that, but I'm playing for the guys in that huddle. I'm playing for the guys in that locker room.''

Jackson finished 18 of 31 for 171 yards. His only turnover came on a desperation throw at the end of the first half, and Jackson made an immediate connection with old friend Sidney Rice, making his Seattle debut.

Rice helped Seattle's offense as a whole. He had eight catches for 109 yards after missing the first two games with an injured shoulder. Rice's presence also made it easier for the Seahawks to run. Seattle finished with 122 yards rushing after gaining just 95 combined in the first two weeks.

Marshawn Lynch finished with 73 yards on 19 carries.

''It's one game,'' Seattle coach Pete Carroll cautioned about the run game. ''We targeted better. There was some really good spacing in there. Marshawn ran really tough. He ran through some stuff to get in to the second level. We're just going to get a little bit better.''

Meanwhile, Seattle's defense managed to make Fitzgerald disappear. Fitzgerald entered Sunday with 88 career receptions against Seattle and nine touchdowns.

And he added another TD with a highlight reel catch in the second quarter, leaping above safety Earl Thomas and cornerback Brandon Browner to haul in a 12-yard TD pass as Kevin Kolb retreated from pressure. Fitzgerald caught a wide receiver screen later in the second quarter, then was shut out the rest of the game.

He was targeted only twice in the second half and was shut out in the second half for only the eighth time in his career, according to STATS LLC.

''There were a couple miscommunications, but that happens sometimes. Obviously, we need to clean that up,'' Fitzgerald said. ''This is a tough place to play. You have to tip your hat to Seattle. They played very hard, they played strong. They had a good defensive scheme, they got some pressure on us. They caused us some commotion back there. We have to do a better job executing. That's the basic point.''

Seattle almost squandered its lead late.

Anthony McCoy's pounced on a fumbled snap deep in Seattle's end to avoid a costly turnover. Later in the fourth quarter, Jon Ryan shanked a 9-yard punt with 2:57 left when Seattle had a chance to pin the Cardinals deep in their end. Carroll decided for the punt instead of a long field goal from Steven Hauschka, who hit from 30 and 52 yards earlier in the game.

From the 31, the Cardinals moved into Seahawks territory in a hurry. Arizona converted a fourth-and-1 thanks to a pass interference call on Marcus Trufant on a pass intended for Fitzgerald, and got to the Seattle 34. Kolb was sacked by Raheem Brock, then Chancellor sealed the victory, stepping in front of a pass intended for tight end Todd Heap at the Seattle 25.

Chancellor had seen the play on film and jumped Heap's route.

Kolb finished 25 of 39 for 252 yards and was intercepted twice. Kicker Jay Feely missed from 51 and 49 yards on a blustery day. The Cardinals (1-2) were also forced to use fourth-string running back Alfonso Smith because Beanie Wells and LaRod Stephens-Howling were inactive and Chester Taylor was ineffective early.

But Seattle's defense managed to hold the Cardinals scoreless on their six possessions after Jackson's TD run.

''I feel like when we face adverse situations, we always build. We didn't dwell on it. We didn't point any fingers. We answered the call,'' Thomas said. ''Kam came up with a big play. Our D-line played a hell of a game. Just credit to the preparation we put in during the week.''