Seahawks hoping improved run defense can have two-pronged impact
You don't need do too much digging to figure out why the Seahawks struggled on defense last season. Just take a look at the raw counting stats for Seattle's performance against the run and you get an understanding of the reasoning behind the Seahawks finishing a disappointing 21st in DVOA on defense. Seattle's 2,554 yards […]
You don't need do too much digging to figure out why the Seahawks struggled on defense last season.
Just take a look at the raw counting stats for Seattle's performance against the run and you get an understanding of the reasoning behind the Seahawks finishing a disappointing 21st in DVOA on defense.
Seattle's 2,554 yards allowed on the ground were the third-most in the NFL. The Seahawks gave up 21 rushing touchdowns, tied for fifth-most, and their 130 first downs given up on the ground were sixth-most.
Simply put, the Seahawks must be better at stopping the run if their defense is to go from below average to the top half of the NFL.
Seattle made wholesale changes to its defensive front in an effort to improving their rush defense. Those alterations involved signing Dre'Mont Jones, Mario Edwards Jr. and Jarran Reed to play on a brand new three-man starting defensive line.
Edwards was fourth among all Titans players in run stop rate in his final year in Tennessee last season, per Pro Football Focus. Reed, meanwhile, had the second-most run stops for the Packers with 23. However, he will be moving to the unfamiliar role of nose tackle in his second stint with the Seahawks, having only played one snap at that spot for Green Bay in 2022.
Reed's position switch represents a gamble, but it's indicative of just how great Seattle's desire is to fix a problem area that held back the rest of the defense.
There is belief that an upturn in their play against the run could unlock an area of the defense Seattle feels has the potential to be among the best in the NFL: the pass rush.
The Seahawks are not regarded as one of the premier pass-rushing teams in the league. However, their sack rate of 7.1 percent was higher than that of their main NFC West rivals the 49ers (6.7). The problem, however, is that while the Seahawks were good at translating pressures into sacks, they struggled to generate pressure consistently.
Indeed, per Sports Info Solutions, the Seahawks' pressure rate of 32.1 percent was only good enough for 21st in the NFL. The Niners, by contrast, were seventh (36.3%), and it's fair to say San Francisco's success stopping the run influenced their ability to create pressure.
The 49ers allowed the second-fewest rush yards (1,321), the fewest rushing first downs (77) and were the tied-eighth best run defense by touchdowns allowed (11). San Francisco's proficiency against the run set them up to excel on third down, with the Niners allowing opponents to convert 17.8 percent of the time on third down with at least six yards to go. That ratio was the fourth-best in the league, but the Seahawks (25.5%) were down in the 20th.
Second-year defensive coordinator Clint Hurtt knows narrowing that gap to the team Seattle will be competing with most directly in 2023 is hugely dependent on a stouter run defense.
He said in a press conference on Tuesday:
“Imagine if you get more opportunities to rush by defending the run game better. That’s the part nobody ever talks about. They act like we finished with three sacks in the season, but we finished tied for seventh. But, it’s always that nobody thinks Seattle can play.”
With Uchenna Nwosu, who signed a three-year extension last month, and Darrell Taylor each finishing last year with 9.5 sacks, the Seahawks have two edge rushers who have proven they can get to the quarterback.
Seattle stacked their deck in that regard by adding another second-round pick, Derick Hall, at the edge position having drafted Boye Mafe in the same round last year.
The Seahawks believe all four have the talent to elevate Seattle's pass rush to the NFL's elite. Yet as the numbers and their defensive coordinator have illustrated, it will likely take some improved complementary football for the Seahawks to realize that ambition.
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Featured Image Credit: Steven Bisig-USA TODAY Sports
