32 Teams in 32 Days, Team #21: The Seattle Seahawks

The Seattle Seahawks ended last season with a 10-6 record and a loss in the second round of the playoffs to the Green Bay Packers. There were good aspects of the team and of course there were bad aspects of the team. Losing fullback Mack Strong to injury and eventually retirement hurt this team a lot. He paved a lot of holes for running backs in Seattle. Star running back Shaun Alexander seemed to lose his game last season, he just never seemed to do something great. We’ll get back to the running game a little bit later on, but lets us first see what we can expect this year.

The Seattle defense is good, not great. There are stars on the defense and thats always an important thing. Having playmakers can only be good for a playoff contending team. Patrick Kerney, Marcus Trufant, Lofa Tatupu, & Julian Peterson all make big time plays for this team. Seattle also looked to improve upon their defense by drafting Lawrence Jackson out of USC & Red Bryant out of Texas A&M. I wouldn’t say that they are stand outs, but if developed probably, they could be a force to be reckoned with.

The receiving crew for Seattle is not one that I love. I was under the impression that they would improve with Deion Branch a member of their roster, however that is not the case. Deion Branch hasn’t been able to stay healthy long enough to make a huge impact and last year D.J Hackett also had trouble staying healthy. Hackett is no longer on this team, but Branch is. If Branch can stay healthy, I’m sure he will be able to produce, but that is wishful thinking. The other receiving stand outs include Bobby Engram, who is old and close to the end of his career, and Nate Burleson, who has been able to produce, but isn’t a big time playmaker. The Seahawks lack that big time wide out like a Randy Moss or a Terrell Owens and that does hurt them. It’s a good thing they have a very talented starting quarterback.

Last year’s running game didn’t exist. Shaun Alexander was not producing like the MVP he used to be, so the Seahawks did the only logical thing they could do, they released him. In the wake of that decision, the Seahawks acquired Julius Jones and T.J Duckett off of the free agent wire. Jones has been a starter for the Dallas Cowboys since his debut in the league, but over the last couple years, he has taken second fiddle to Marion Barber. Moving to Seattle is the best thing that could have happened to him. T.J Duckett was a backup to Kevin Jones last year in Detroit, but when he did play, he showed a lot of skill and determination. Maurice Morris will also be involved with the running back and I expect there to be a running back by committee situation going on for a couple weeks. It shouldn’t last long. I expect Julius Jones to eventually win the starting job and get the bulk of the work. He is the only sure fire starter on the depth chart and his skill will beat out both of the backups.

Matt Hasselbeck is a fantastic quarterback, that if given the proper weapons, would be among the leagues best. He is not on the best team, but his skill leads this team to the playoffs. Without Hasselbeck this teams chances of making the playoffs are slim to none. I think he will continue to produce and the skys the limit for this terrific quarterback. Seneca Wallace and Charlie Frye are nothing, but injury back up at this point.

Overall, the Seahawks are a good team. There is no doubt that they are the best team in a bad NFC West division. They have some pretty good talent on both sides of the ball with Matt Hasselbeck being the best they got. I’m interested to see how Julius Jones will fit into this offense and if its in a good way, this team can make a good run at the playoffs and the superbowl. I predict another 10-6 season with the possibility of an 11-5 one. They will win their division again and make the playoffs. I think they may be one playmaker away from a superbowl title. We’ll have to wait and see.