Tuesday, January 17, 2017

Report Card On Seahawks 2016-17 Season


I will start with the offense side of the ball going position by position.

Quarterback: Russell Wilson played the majority of the season despite that he had three injuries early. The backup quarterback Trevone Boykins was able to get in on several occasions however Wilson did not want to leave the game even though he was hurt. I thought that Boykins should have started at least one game early on. It did not happen partially because of Wilson not wanting to leave and that Boykins was a rookie.  It is hard to know how much Boykins developed during the season. We would have to know how he did in practice. In his final press conference when Boykins was mentioned Coach Pete Carroll said that he thought the rookie did a good job however he mentioned to that Seahawks likely will bring in other quarterbacks to compete. Most likely they will either draft a quarterback somewhere or another rookie free agent like Boykins. This season shows that the Seahawks should bring in a veteran quarterback to compete as well. Wilson played good for someone who had three injuries however most of the season he was unable to run in the fashion we are accustomed in seeing from him. Also at times he was unable to get the ball to a receiver overthrowing the ball. I give him a grade of a B. If the Seahawks were able to get past Atlanta the grade would be a B plus.

Running Back: Here is a position that struggled throughout the season with the retirement of Marshawn Lynch and the injuries of Thomas Rawls and C.J. Prosise. Actually Lynch did not play much in 2015 so his absence really was not a big deal but Rawls who was the primary running back the same year before being injured late in that season. Rawls was unable to recover and he had additional injuries until late in the season.  He did a good job in the last couple games of the season and against Detroit Lions in the playoff game they won. Prosise showed flashes when he was able to play. If he can come back next season healthy he could not only be the third down back he can be a change up for Rawls. There is another question whether Rawls can stay healthy or not. Most likely the Seahawks will look at either drafting or bring in another running back. Christine Michael who ran the ball for more yards than any of the running backs was released late into the season. Alex Collins another rookie showed some flashes as well. Hard to know what the future goes for him. I am sure he will be asked back in training camp to compete for a spot; grade of C minus because the Seahawks had to have the offense go more toward the passing game.

Offensive line: Again the Seahawks went along in the season with a group of guys that lacked the experience. The one lineman that did a better job than expected was Justin Britt who was switched to his third position in three years. No one really new how he would do at the center position; in fact most would have thought he could end up being a backup if he wasn’t able to perform at center. Actually he turned out to be the only offensive lineman that had a good season and he was named as an alternate to the Pro Bowl. Garry Gilliam was expected to start the season as the left tackle however he underperformed during training camp that he was switched back to right tackle. Bradley Sowell started the season at left tackle but because of his poor performance there and that of Gilliam at right tackle he was switched back there. George Fant who had never played left tackle at any level because he was a former basketball player was put in at left tackle the rest of the season. Sowell eventually was benched and Gilliam returned to right tackle where he actually played better. The guard positions were OK I would say however the Seahawks will have to look what they will do along the offensive line. Britt is the only one that could return to starting along the offensive line. I will get back to the offensive line for 2017 down the road. The Grade D.

Wide Receiver:  This position was the highlight of the offense or the whole team. They were the ones that made this last season a success. Since the running game was inconsistent the passing game made the team go. Again it was led by Doug Baldwin who had another outstanding season. He didn’t have as many touchdowns as the previous season but had more catches. Jermaine Kearse was one receiver that did not have the kind of season he at least expected. We hope that he returns better than ever next season. Tyler Lockett had an up and down year because of injuries. His last catch was outstanding however it landed him on the disabled. There was Jimmy Graham who had an outstanding year after ending the previous season with an injury. I am putting the tight ends in here to because in some respects Graham played some at receiver as well. He made some great blocks to which is not his strength but he is getting better at. Paul Richardson rebounded to having a good season after being injured the last couple years. He especially performed when Lockett was injured and into the playoffs. He made outstanding catches against the Lions. I expect that we will see him a lot next season especially if Lockett is slowed to return from his injuries. Luke Willson had a good year though he had to battle through injuries. He is a free agent going into next season however he and the Seahawks hope that he returns. Since the receivers were the best part of the offense I give them an A.

The defense will look at them next time.

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