The outcome of the
Seattle Seahawks upcoming 2016 season boils down to one position group, the offensive line.
There are other changes with the team, but none of them pose as big of a risk
to derailing the season as the big boys up front. If the offensive line fails
the team won't find success in 2016. If they jell and raise their collective
play above their individual talent this team should be looking for their fourth
straight NFC Championship game and probably their third Super Bowl appearance
in four years.
The line was one of
the team's biggest weaknesses in 2015 and the group didn't improve much during
the offseason, certainly not enough to inspire confidence. Starters Russell
Okung and J.R. Sweezey were allowed to leave in free agency. The team replaced them
with a rookie in Germain Ifedi and a career backup from Arizona named Bradley
Sowell. Both of these guys could turn into quality players. Like most rookies
Ifedi is an unknown quantity. He might make the adjustment to the NFL with ease
and turn into a 10 year starter or he might be the next Seattle offensive
linemen draft pick bust in what is turning into a long line of them in Seattle.
With Sowell, there is a chance that given the opportunity to start he could
take advantage of it and shine. Reports from training camp and the preseason
seem to indicate he is trending up.
However, it might also turn out there was a good reason why the
Cardinals let him leave.
Returning for
another year with the Seahawks are Gary Gilliam, Justin Britt and Mark
Glowinksi who will be playing beside Ifedi and Sowell. Gary Gilliam still
sucks. He is probably only going to earn a starting spot because his
competition is hurt. The guy was bad in 2015 and he is probably still going to
be bad. That is what happens when you try to convert TE into NFL linemen.
Justin Britt is on his third line position in as many years. He has just been
unable to stick anywhere. He hasn't been that good of a blocker. Many media
sources are claiming he is doing well in his conversion to center. They say it
is his best position yet, but that isn't saying much. Britt really only has
improvement to make, he can't get worse and stay on an NFL roster. As a rookie
Mark Glowinski had some good games last year. He is the offensive lineman I am
most optimistic about, but he only has one NFL start so there could be growing
pains. Hopefully these three guys play better in 2016 than they did in 2015.
All the questions
and potential terrible play from the offensive line puts a lot of risk into the
Seahawks season. Quarterback Russell Wilson is an amazing talent and he has an
unbelievable ability to avoid rushers. He regularly makes defensive ends look
silly in their pursuit of him. However, even with all his skill poor blocking
makes it hard to get the most out of your team and it greatly increases the
risk of injury to the quarterback. He might be able to avoid most hits, but
sometimes defenders still land crushing blows. Every one of these hits is a
chance at injury and allowing them to keep landing is playing with fire. If
Wilson misses more than two games with an injury the Seahawks season is very
probably sunk. Rookie QB Trevone Boykin doesn't have what it takes to carry a
team into the playoffs.
Even if they
Seahawks avoid the terrible fate of a QB injury, poor line play could still
sink the team. Constant pressure makes a QB gun shy. We saw that at the
beginning of the season last year. Wilson was unwilling to stay in the pocket
and wait for routes to develop. He tucked the ball and ran at the slightest
sign of trouble. His stats and the teams results suffered. When the offensive
line finally started to play acceptably mediocre at the end of the season
Wilson exploded with quality. He was the most dominate QB in the league during
the last several regular season games. Commanding play by Wilson is a force
that very few NFL teams can withstand. Protecting Wilson and letting him
dominate will bring the Seahawks to a lot of wins.
The 2016 season
could be another magical run for the Seattle Seahawks. It isn't unreasonable to
think about the team making it to the Super Bowl again. However, all of that
success is dependent of the lowest paid offensive line in the NFL. If Ifedi,
Gilliam, Glowinski, Britt, and Sowell can lay half way decent the team should
be fine. If those guys struggle, which is a very likely outcome, it could be a
long and disappointing season.
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