2011 SEATTLE SEAHAWKS PREVIEW
A new-look offense is the name of the game for the Seattle Seahawks in 2011. The team will be without Matt Hasselbeck under center for the first time in 10 years. Although that change may take some getting used to for Seahawks faithful, it may be addition by subtraction for head coach Pete Carroll. Since the start of 2008, Hasselbeck ranks 30th among 33 qualified players in Total QB Rating. He was 32nd in 2008, 31st in 2009 and 26th in 2010. Hasselbeck's biggest struggle over the past three seasons has been throwing deep downfield.
Tarvaris Jackson may be the answer. Jackson was convenient and available to Seattle once the team decided against re-signing Hasselbeck for legitimate starter money. The Seahawks aren't banking on Jackson as their long-term starter. They're buying time to build up the rest of the roster before going after a quarterback next offseason. Sure, there's a chance Jackson or Charlie Whitehurst could surprise them but it remains an outside chance. Using a 2012 first-round pick on a quarterback seems more likely.
Since the start of the 2008 season, Hasselbeck has thrown 11 touchdowns and 23 interceptions on passes of at least 15 yards. He threw an interception once every 10.2 attempts of throws that length, the worst rate of any quarterback with at least 100 attempts over the past three seasons. Jackson threw just two interceptions on 46 attempts of at least 15 yards over that time span. Seattle's new offensive line needs to improve on rushing plays away from the middle. The Seahawks were worst in the league on sideline rushes the past two seasons with a 3.1-yard average, a full yard worse than the next team on that list, the Colts.
GETTING YOUNGER
Teams talk about getting younger. Few have the daring to go with so many younger starters when more established options were readily available. The Seahawks went through training camp and the exhibition season with the NFL's youngest projected starters for 2011. Marcus Trufant and Robert Gallery were the only ones in their 30s. Gallery was the oldest, and he turned 31 only recently. The Seahawks replaced longtime starters such as Hasselbeck, Lofa Tatupu, Lawyer Milloy, Sean Locklear and Chris Spencer with younger alternatives. Coach Pete Carroll's recent history in the college game has made him more comfortable going young than most NFL coaches would be.
HEIGHT FOR BETTER COVERAGE
Carroll wants big, rangy cover corners. Starting strong safety Kam Chancellor towers over most NFL defensive backs at 6'3. He wasn't even as tall as the Seahawks' tallest cornerback through training camp and preseason. 6'4 Brandon Browner was one of the more impressive cornerbacks in camp. The team used a fifth-round pick for cornerback Richard Sherman, who stands 6'3. Every defensive back on the roster is at least 5'10. Seven of 13 on the roster heading into the preseason are at least 6'0.
OFFENSE
With his top draft choices, Carroll intimated that he replaced the entire right side of his offensive line and picked up immediate starters at right tackle (1st rounder James Carpenter of Alabama) and right guard (3rd-rounder John Moffitt from Wisconsin). Most draft analysts, however, thought choosing Carpenter with the 25th overall pick was a reach, especially with the defensive line and quarterback upgrades that were still available.
The Seahawks are prepared to suffer with youth on the line, hoping for a future payoff. Left tackle will be manned by former 1st-rounder Russell Okung, who as a rookie was limited to 10 games because of a pair of high ankle sprains and showed only glimpses of his considerable promise. Center goes to Max Unger, who as a 2nd-year player missed all but one game in 2010 with a turf toe that required surgery after he started a full season at center and guard as a rookie. The left guard will be Gallery, the No. 2 overall pick in 2004 who spent the 1st seven seasons of his career in Oakland. The Seahawks are so determined to make inroads in a position area that’s been lackluster for three seasons that they hired the animated Tom Cable, former Oakland Raiders head coach, as offensive line coach. Cable’s job is to stabilize a group that used four left guards, three left tackles and three right guards in Carroll’s first season.
The running backs are adequate but nothing spectacular. Marshawn Lynch, a midseason acquisition from Buffalo in 2010, at least resembles the power runner Carroll demands, with no better example than his pinball-like 67-yard TD run against New Orleans in the playoffs. Leon Washington and Justin Forsett provide different gears as backups. Michael Robinson is an able blocker at fullback.
The Seahawks upgraded their receiving corps by signing Sidney Rice, one of the top free agents available at his position. Rice caught 83 passes for 1,312 yards two years ago but was limited to six games and 17 catches last season due to a hip injury. After a two-year layoff, Mike Williams resurrected his career and became Hasselbeck’s deep threat with 65 catches, making teams pay attention to him. Holdover receivers Ben Obomanu and Deon Butler return, but Golden Tate and 6'5 draft pick from Georgia Kris Durham will be given every opportunity to step in. The quarterback’s favorite target might end up being tight end Zach Miller, who averaged 60.7 catches in his final three seasons in Oakland.
DEFENSE
An offseason of change took another interesting turn in late July when the Seahawks released middle linebacker Lofa Tatupu, who anchored the Seattle defense in its Super Bowl season of 2005. Tatupu had been slowed by injury in recent seasons. Carroll announced the move as a “mutual decision.” David Hawthorne, an undrafted find in 2008, will move back from the outside to replace Tatupa in the middle. Hawthorne has led the team in tackles in two of his three seasons.
Across the defensive front, from right to left, the Seahawks trot out functional yet ordinary players in Chris Clemons, Red Bryant, Brandon Mebane and Alan Branch. Clemons was the closest thing to a playmaker, leading the team with 11 sacks. Don’t be surprised if Carroll gets impatient with these guys. The Seahawks promote themselves as a 4-3 team but often slip into a 3-4 alignment when the yardage piles up, choosing to put pressure on their linebackers to fix things.
The secondary is in transition. Free safety Earl Thomas comes off a productive rookie season. However, veteran cornerback Marcus Trufant has shown signs of age and slippage. The Seahawks has to groom Kam Chancellor fairly quickly as a suitable replacement for strong safety Lawyer Milloy. Roy Lewis and Kennard Cox, the returning cornerbacks, aren’ t the blanket cover guys Carroll wants, and they likely will give way to Walter Thurmond III and undrafted free agent Brandon Browner.
SPECIAL TEAMS
The Seahawks lost reliable kicker Olindo Mare, who set a club record with 30 consecutive field goals, to free agency. Steven Hauschka, who was waived by the Broncos in September, is the likely replacement. Jon Ryan, in his 4th Seahawks season, has developed into a reliable punter; the Canadian import utilizes a deft Aussie-style kick to repeatedly back up opponents. Leon Washington, fully recovered from a broken leg, set a club record by scoring on three kickoffs, giving him seven in his NFL career. He is a valuable weapon in the return game.
FINAL ANALYSIS
The schedule is rugged, with road games at Chicago, Dallas, Pittsburgh and the New York Giants, and home games against Atlanta and Philadelphia. If the offensive line can settle in, Carroll’s club could be a threat in the NFC West and, not to get too carried away here, flirt with a .500 record.
Sources: http://espn.go.com/nfl/preview11/team/_/name/sea, http://seattle.sbnation.com/seattle-...ks-by-position, http://www.athlonsports.com/nfl/seat...l-team-preview
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