The Seahawks' Biggest Weakness Is Something Hardly Anyone's Talking About
In dissecting the ineptitude of a team surely destined to finish toward the depths of the entire NFL, pundits have mainly singled out the Seahawks' woeful: (a) quarterback shituation, (b) offensive line, (c) special teams, or (d) secondary. And with the Arizona Cardinals and their shiny new quarterback, Kevin Kolb, visiting the Clink this weekend, (a) is sure to receive the most scrutiny, with another mediocre performance by Tarvaris Jackson sure to put Charlie Whitehurst back in the conversation about who should be putting his hands beneath Max Unger's rotund bum in the first quarter of every game.
But the correct answer is: (e) Marshawn Lynch and the league's worst ground game.
Lynch's 67-yard touchdown run in last year's playoffs against New Orleans, in which he seemingly broke tackles attempted by every Saint defender, will deservedly remain a high point in Hawk history. But it somehow duped coaches and press (including us) into thinking Lynch was a serviceable starting tailback. He's not: On a good team, Lynch would be nothing more than a short yardage specialist. His backups, Justin Forsett and Leon Washington, are similarly--albeit in different ways--limited.
Jackson and Whitehurst aren't the answer at quarterback, but there's enough talent among their targets to potentially inch the Hawks' aerial attack toward respectability. But unless Lynch & co. can figure out a way to rush for more than 47 yards per game, opposing defenses will continue to nickel the Hawks into the sort of all-around shitshow that saw them invade Pittsburgh territory only after the outcome of last week's shutout was solidified.
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