5 Seahawks Who Must Elevate Play During Closing Stretch
With six games left to play, all of the Seahawks goals remain in front of them. Sitting at 8-2, coach Pete Carroll’s squad finds themselves just one game out of first place in the NFC West and in the mix for one of the NFC’s top two seeds.
But gearing up for a challenging final six weeks, including a looming Week 17 home matchup with San Francisco, Seattle will need increased contributions from several players to capture a division crown and earn a playoff game at CenturyLink Field.
Which Seahawks have the most to prove? In order to surpass the 49ers for divisional supremacy, these five players will need to step up their games entering the final stretch run.
Ziggy Ansah
General manager John Schneider has hit several home runs with savvy roster moves this year, including trading for Jadeveon Clowney. But the decision to give Ansah a one-year, $9 million deal hasn’t paid dividends to this point, as the 30-year old defensive end has produced just 10 tackles, three quarterback hits, and a single sack in seven games. When in the lineup, he’s lacked the burst he once showed as a Pro Bowler for the Lions and has been a relative non-factor rushing the passer.
Still playing well below 275 pounds coming off offseason shoulder surgery, Ansah played a season-low 13 defensive snaps against the 49ers in Week 10. Instead, Seattle decided to give second-year linebacker Shaquem Griffin a chance to rush off the edge, keeping the veteran on the sideline. For the Seahawks defensive front to play to its potential, they desperately need Ansah to re-emerge as a competent rusher opposite of Clowney rolling into the playoffs.
Rashaad Penny
Following a disappointing rookie season, the Seahawk believed Penny would be an integral part of their offense in 2019, forming a dynamic duo with Chris Carson. But a hamstring injury cost the second-year back three games and since returning to action, opportunities to see the field have been few and far between. He’s rushed for a mere 167 yards and a touchdown in seven games while catching just three passes out of the backfield.
“Not enough opportunities,” coach Pete Carroll said while reflecting on Penny’s tough season. “I would’ve thought he had the ball a lot more than he has so far. I’m counting on him. He’s fresh and ready to go help us.”
Backing up Carroll’s comments, Penny has only carried the ball 36 times this year and when he’s had chances to find a rhythm, he’s been effective. He’s averaging 4.6 yards per carry and during wins over the Steelers and Falcons, he rushed for 117 yards on just 18 carries. Seattle can’t continue to have Carson log 90-plus percent of the snaps as he did against San Francisco or he’ll wear down, meaning Penny must rise to the occasion and provide his team with another productive runner capable of handling a large workload.
Ugo Amadi
The Seahawks have relied heavily on their base 4-3 defense with linebackers Bobby Wagner, K.J. Wright, and Mychal Kendricks on the field together, and for the most part, the strategy has worked. But when forced into playing nickel defense this year, the team has struggled mightily, as evidenced by Wednesday’s decision to release now-former starting slot cornerback Jamar Taylor. The veteran had allowed 40 receptions despite playing only 129 defensive snaps and heading towards postseason play, that simply isn’t good enough.
At some point, Seattle will play a team with an outstanding quarterback and will have to be able to defend with five or more defensive backs on the field. Rather than wait it out, releasing Taylor with six games left will allow the Seahawks to get an extended look at Amadi, who hasn’t played a defensive snap since Week 2. The fourth-round pick excelled at the position for the Oregon Ducks in college and Carroll will be banking on him growing into the role quickly to bolster their secondary.
“He’s gathered hundreds of reps more now. He’s better versed now, more than ever. He’s a real smart player and a real heady player. He really has his assignments in order and the techniques that we’re expecting him to play. If he’s the guy playing in the game, we can really count on him to know what’s going on.”
Josh Gordon
Unlike the rest of the players on this list, Gordon has only been with the Seahawks for a few weeks and the organization has done all it can to temper expectations for him. Given his checkered past, that’s more than understandable. But after losing tight end Will Dissly to a season-ending Achilles injury back in Week 6, quarterback Russell Wilson would certainly love for him to develop into a dangerous third receiving option alongside Tyler Lockett and DK Metcalf and give the team a boost in the red zone.
Even with just three practices under his belt, Wilson targeted Gordon on two key third down passes against the 49ers and the receiver rewarded his faith by reeling in both throws for first down conversions. Now that he’s had more time to work with Wilson and digest Seattle’s playbook, Carroll says Gordon should have "no limitations" moving forward and will be a bigger factor in upcoming games. If he can play up to his potential, his rare combination of size, speed, and hands could make the team’s aerial attack near impossible to stop down the stretch.
Jason Myers
After receiving a four-year contract from the Seahawks in March, Myers was supposed to finally bring an end to the franchise’s recent woes at kicker. But in what looks to be a league-wide trend, the 29-year old has struggled for much of the season, connecting on only 14 out of 19 field goal attempts and missing two extra points in 10 games. He’s also been sporadic from long distance, making just 50 percent of his field goals beyond 40 yards.
If there’s good news to be had here, Myers’ missed game winning field goal attempt against the Buccaneers wound up being irrelevant after Wilson threw a touchdown to Jacob Hollister in overtime. When given another shot to win a game in San Francisco the next week, Myers found redemption, sneaking a 40-yard attempt inside the right upright to give Seattle a statement win over its division rival. At a position where confidence is everything, the Seahawks better hope that success catapults the veteran to a strong finish, as they’ll need him to be kicking well to win games into January.
