There is Always Next Year

One of the great things about sports is that teams get a chance to start anew every season. Your record from the previous season is whipped away and you start fresh with a 0-0 record just like all the other teams. Your team has a chance to win it all. This perpetual refresh of the records lets fans continue to hold out hope for the future. Even if the current season is going poorly there is always next year, when things will be different.

After the Seahawks loss on Sunday Night Football to the Arizona Cardinals I find myself convince that the 2015 season is, for all intents and purposes, over for my beloved NFL team. Sure, they are not officially eliminated from the playoffs. The Atlanta Falcons could continue their free fall and the Seahawks could maybe sneak into the playoffs as a wild card. Even if they did manage to pull off that impressive feat it would mean that to get to the Super Bowl they would have to win three road game in a row against playoff caliber opponents. This is highly unlikely.

 

All season, with the possible exception of the game against the Dallas Cowboys, the Seahawks offensive line has been terrible. As I discussed in an early post Pete Carroll and John Schneider really blew it with this year's offensive line. They seemed to think their track record of finding diamonds in the rough and developing stars was enough to let them turn two defensive players and a tight end into an NFL quality offensive line. It completely backfired.

Instead of the offense featuring a punishing ground game followed by explosive plays through the air, we have had to suffer through one of the most inept and truly awful offensive performances by the Seahawks since before Mike Holmgren was the coach.  The line consistently make drive killing penalties. When they aren't doing that they are blocking with the skill of a matador. Defenders find themselves in the backfield at unbelievable speeds. The offensive line forces the Seahawks into situations with 10+ yards required to convert over and over again.

The Seahawks offenses inability to sustain drives and stay on the field has impacted the defense.  The Seattle defenders are asked to play 35-45 minutes of the game. Their stamina and conditioning is constantly put to the test and it has failed several times this year. The volume of snaps they are asked to defend means they are bound to make a mistake eventually. The other team's offense just has too many chances to figure them out. This has resulted in five blown fourth quarter leads in five Seahawks losses. Yes, every Seahawks loss has come in the fourth quarter.

However, not all of the defense's problems can be pinned on the big boys tasked with defending the trenches. The defense is not as deep or as talented as in years past. The Legion of Boom only has four interceptions through nine games. Former All Pro cornerback Richard Sherman still doesn't have an interception, though he has had plenty of chances slip through his fingers. Byron Maxwell's replacement, Cary Williams, has looked somewhere between mediocre and bad. Cliff Avril and Michael Bennett are playing at the highest levels of their careers, yet there isn't much in the way of depth on the defensive line. When Avril and Bennett need a breather the pass rush is noticeably worse. The defense just isn't as good this year.

Quarterback Russell Wilson has struggled this year. Instead of taking the expect next step to the true upper echelon of NFL quarterbacks, Wilson has regressed. He is missing throws to open receivers. He forcing balls that have little or no chance of being caught. Many of these issues can be at least partially attributed to the offensive line. They have failed so miserably at protecting their quarterback that he appears to be getting anxious in the pocket. He doesn't wait for routes to develop. He avoids pressure that doesn't exist. He fumbles the ball in crucial situations. However not all of the problems can be blamed on Gary Gilliam et al. Wilson has played worse on his own as well.

Some people think he is distracted with off the field issues. Others think he is finally running out of the luck that propelled him to two consecutive Super Bowls. I think he is just having a down year at the most inopportune time. Whatever it is Wilson is clearly playing at a lower level than we have come to expect in Seattle.

All of this negativity and complaining brings me back to my opening thoughts. Sure, the Seahawks are bad this year. Their team's talent is too shallow and their offensive line too horrendous for them to have any legitimate chance at winning the Super Bowl. Their once dominate defensive has started to come back down to earth and their talent quarterback is struggling through a slump. However, they still have some key pieces in place.

Their quarterback is young and talented. Just a year ago we were debating if he belonged in the list of top five quarterbacks in the whole NFL. The Seahawks key defenders are locked up for the next few years and their front office has shown a knack for finding guys in free agency and the draft. Rookie running back Thomas Rawls has shown signs of having the skills required to replace Marshawn Lynch as the cog that makes the offense work. Things aren't all bad in Seattle. There are signs of good things to come. They should be able to make a run in the near future. There is always next year.