The Seattle Seahawks aren't winning pretty, but they are winning, and that is all that matters in the NFL.

Seattle took care of business against the Miami Dolphins, winning 24-3 to improve to 3-0 on the young season. It is enouraging to see that while the Seahawks are playing far from perfect football they are still finding ways to win games. In the end, a three-score win feels good no matter how you get there.

Here are the top takeaways from Week 3 at Lumen Field:

The Seahawks hired Mike Macdonald to be their head coach to help fix their defense. Through three weeks, he is well on his way to accomplishing this task. On Sunday, the Seahawks feasted on a Dolphins team playing without their starting quarterback, and eventually their second stringer. Skylar Thompson and Tim Boyle aren't exactly Pro Bowlers, but Seattle played them exactly how they should. Similar to Week 1, a Geno Smith interception put the Seahawks defense backed up deep in their own red zone. Once more, despite Miami being gifted the ball at the eight-yard line, all they could muster was a field goal... their only points of the day. To start the fourth quarter, Seattle forced a turnover on downs at their two-yard line. The Seahawks forced the Dolphins to punt or turn the ball over on downs on 11 of their 12 possessions, held them to 205 total yards, and recorded six sacks.

In the two-week absence of running back Kenneth Walker III, backup Zach Charbonnet has become the primary ball carrier for the Seahawks. Actually, he's borderline been the only ball carrier for the Seahawks. In Week 2 against New England, Charbonnet was the only running back who even took a snap. In Week 3, Charbonnet was once again the man who got the lion's share of pounding the rock. Third stringer Kenny McIntosh did get three touches, but one was negated by a holding penalty from Anthony Bradford. He ended the day with two rushes for 11 yards. Overall, Charbonnet had a considerably better day versus Miami, carrying the ball 18 times for 91 yards and two touchdowns. On the year, Charbonnet has found the end zone four times.

If you are a fan of sloppy football where the referees are the focal point of a game, then Seahawks vs. Dolphins was the television event for you! An explosive start to the game in the first quarter featured a score of 17-3, and 17-3 it would remain for the next two and a half quarters thanks to plenty of yellow laundry being tossed on the field. Seattle and Miami combined for a whopping 22 penalties for 177 yards. I suppose one could say is it was clearly an evenly officiated game, as the Hawks and 'Phins had 11 each. Most of Seattle's penalties came from their offensive line, who had yet another dismal performance. Fortunately, the penalties did not prevent the Seahawks from cruising to a 21-point victory. But they are going to have to clean it up when they play far more able opponents.

The Seahawks were playing without defensive linemen Leonard Williams and Byron Murphy II for most of the game, as both left early with injuries. However, it their absences did not slow down Seattle's defensive front from pinning their ears back to get to Miami's backup quarterbacks. Second year linebacker Derick Hall led the way with two sacks, both in the first half, crunching Skylar Thompson. Behind him, Tyrel Dodson, Dre'Mont Jones, Jarran Reed and Boye Mafe all recorded a sack each. Mafe now has a sack in each of the three games Seattle has played. Remember, Mafe set a Seahawks franchise record last year for getting a sack in seven-straight games.

The Seattle Seahawks are 3-0 for the first time since the 2020 season. Not only are they undefeated and in first place, they now have a two-game lead over the rest of the division. Arizona lost to Detroit (Seattle's next opponent) and the previously winless Rams upset the San Francisco 49ers. Translation: the rest of the division is 1-2. It's a long season, and these standings can change in an instant. But for Seattle to have already built up a bit of a buffer between them and all of their rivals is a great way to start. It's only been three weeks, but the Seahawks have the inside track to winning the NFC West for the first time since the aforementioned 2020 campaign.

Seahawks suffocate the Dolphins 24-3