The Seattle Seahawks have started the exhibition season with a defensive 16-3 lead. It may not have been reflected on the scoreboard, or the offensive stat sheet, but the Seahawks absolutely dominated the Los Angeles Chargers, who hardly posed a threat without Justin Herbert against Seattle.

With that in mind, here are the biggest takeaways from the Seahawks' first win of the 2024 NFL (pre)season.

Sam Howell's night was better than the numbers would suggest

By the numbers, Sam Howell did not light the stat sheet up. Seattle's presumed primary backup started the game in place of Geno Smith, who did not play. Howell completed only 16-of-27 passes for 130 yards and one touchdown. However, there were a few throwaways mixed in there, as well as a couple of well defended plays by the Chargers' secondary. Howell was able to move the ball effectively against Los Angeles in the preseason debut.

The offense line still needs work

It was not a stellar performance from the Seahawks' offensive line in Southern California tonight. Seattle has struggled to field a solid offensive line for years, and those struggles continued into the first preseason game. The men up front allowed two sacks in the first half, one of which knocked the offense out of field goal range and a chance to extend the lead. It was not the only time they cost the Seahawks points, as they could not get a final push on 4th-and-goal on the opening drive of the second half, causing a turnover on downs with running back George Holani being stuffed at LA's 2-yard line.

The defensive line, on the other hand...

We all know how the most maligned unit for the Seattle Seahawks for the last few years has been their defensive front. Specifically the defensive line. From the get-go, it was clear improvement from Seattle's biggest Achilles Heel. Yes, backup quarterbacks Easton Stick and Max Duggan are hardly major threats, especially when compared to usual Chargers starter Justin Herbert. But they made life uncomfortable for LA's signal callers, recording 3 sacks, 5 quarterback hits and 4 tackles for a loss.

Seattle's offense did not score much in the second half, but ate a tremendous amount of time

The Seahawks had 5 possessions in the second half (including the kneel down) and only managed to score a lone field goal, but the offense took care of something almost as important: they dominated the clock. In two of those drives, Seattle's offense had 28 plays for 161 yards and 14:46 of game time. The Seahawks dominated time of possession keeping the defense fresh.

Oh, and speaking of the defense...

Mike Macdonald's defense shined

It may only be the first preseason game, but the Seahawks' defense already looks improved. Not just from a statistical standpoint - of which they excelled at - but from the eyeball test as well. The defense felt more alert, focused, and played the ball harder. The defensive line was stout, the secondary punishing, and stingy as all get out when it came to surrendering yards and points.

Oh, but statistically, they shined as well. The Seahawks held the Chargers to only 198 total yards. LA was a mere 2-for-13 on third down, and only picked up nine first downs the whole game. On the first six possessions of the evening for the Chargers, they were held to 21 total yards.

Moving forward, it is hard to not feel excited about this unit for 2024.

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This article originally appeared on Seahawks Wire: 5 takeaways from Seahawks vs Chargers