THE CHEAP SEATS with STEVE CAMERON: Seahawks, QB and Pete, are going backwards

You can quit wondering if the Seahawks will wind up with the best record in the NFC.

Instead…

Feel free to begin worrying whether or not they’ll still make the playoffs.

OK, perhaps an exaggeration, but…

A note on that: Thank goodness that there are games coming against the Eagles, Giants, Jets and the Washington Football Team.

Don’t laugh.

Those could be season-savers.

Back in the brutal NFC West, meanwhile, the Hawks are now 1-2 after losing 23-16 to the Rams on Sunday afternoon.

Yes, Seattle is banged up — especially in the defensive secondary.

Still, this ugly defeat to the Rams (the Seahawks’ fifth in their past six against L.A.) left you thinking that Pete Carroll’s bunch is going backwards in a hurry.

Pete himself made a hideous decision, choosing not to gamble on fourth down — with about four inches to go — on the Seattle 42 midway through the third quarter.

The Hawks were down just 17-13.

I mean, seriously…

Russell Wilson can’t sneak for a few inches?

INSTEAD, the Seahawks punted away, and watched the Rams embark on an 88-yard drive that put Seattle in a 23-13 hole.

Assuming Carroll locked up his five-year coaching extension sometime last week, you’ve got to say that decision was better than anything he devised against the Rams.

Even as the game was winding down and Seattle was wasting time — needing two scores for salvation — Carroll seemed intent on saving his last two timeouts.

Pete, Pete?

The game is ending, Pete!

The coach wasn’t solely at fault for this loss, though.

Wilson was shockingly poor, throwing two interceptions (both to the Rams’ Darious Williams) on balls that were late and, in the case of the first one, a heave that never should have been considered in the first place.

The timing was dreadful, too.

Jamal Adams had just knocked the ball loose from Rams QB Jared Goff for what appeared to be a critical second-quarter turnover.

But two plays later from the Rams 27, Wilson — despite acres of open space to run — waited forever before launching a fly ball into the corner of the end zone.

It was intended for Will Dissly (more or less), but Williams looked like the real target as he stepped in front for the easy pick.

THERE were other oddities from Wilson, too.

He seemed to hold the ball for ages — resulting in six sacks and some truly poor throws — and he basically ignored star receiver DK Metcalf.

Yes, DK was covered (most of the time) by Jalen Ramsey, who is arguably the best cover corner in the league.

Still…

Neither Ramsey nor ANYONE can handle the 6-4 Metcalf forever — yet Russell never even seemed to consider his best target.

He barely even looked at Metcalf.

Our onetime gunslinger seemed content to throw short stuff to his three tight ends.

If Russell were actually cooking on Sunday, he’d have served up cold broccoli.

Even near the finish, in a frantic rush to score twice, Wilson took off running — and slid at the end with the clock still running, instead of just hustling out of bounds.

(That was about the same time Carroll forgot to call a timeout.)

This was not a game that made you think Seattle will rally up in just a few days — Thursday night against the Cards and Kyler Murray — and find its lost mojo.

Remember when the world seemed to think the Seahawks were a serious candidate for the Super Bowl?

No, I can’t remember, either.

Email: scameron@cdapress.com

Steve Cameron’s “Cheap Seats” columns appear in The Press on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. “Moments, Memories and Madness,” his reminiscences from several decades as a sports journalist, runs each Sunday.

Steve also writes Zags Tracker, a commentary on Gonzaga basketball, once per month during the offseason.