Despite Rough Start, Stone Forsythe Views NFL Debut as 'Huge Building Point'
Only four plays into their first possession of the preseason, the Seahawks were closing in on midfield at the Raiders 47-yard line. Facing 2nd and 10 and trailing 7-0 early, backup quarterback Geno Smith and his counterparts broke the huddle and lined up in a trips left bunch formation.
After quickly scanning the defense, Smith took the snap from center Kyle Fuller and initially looked for receiver Freddie Swain, who ran a six-yard hitch from the slot. Before he had a chance to transition to his next progression, however, blitzing cornerback Nate Hobbs wasn't picked up by rookie left tackle Stone Forsythe and shot into the backfield untouched, rocking the unsuspecting veteran signal caller for a sack and forcing a fumble.
"We missed the look and should have keyed it and we didn't. We didn't do it right," coach Pete Carroll stated after Seattle's 20-7 defeat, insinuating Forsythe should have picked up Hobbs. "And so he [Geno Smith] gets pounded on the play. It was really a basic pressure that they ran and we missed it."
While the fumble recovery was overturned moments later and Seattle maintained possession, Smith laid on his back for several seconds after the jarring hit and once he got up, he quickly headed to the team's blue injury tent for evaluation. He returned moments later and played one more drive before eventually being ruled out with a concussion.
Playing in his first NFL game and making his first career start, albeit in a game that doesn't count in the standings, it wasn't the type of start Forsythe hoped for playing the role of blind side protector. While the sixth-round pick out of Florida may have simply adhered to an incorrect protection call and doesn't solely deserve the blame, the missed blocking assignment left Smith as a sitting duck back in the pocket and resulted in an injury.
Two plays later, interestingly when Smith checked back in, Forsythe's debut blues continued. Sliding inside to block former top-five pick Clelin Ferrell, he got himself turned nearly perpendicular to the line of scrimmage, leading to the 6-foot-8 tackle grabbing outside of the defender's shoulder pads in an effort to slow down his pursuit of Smith. A 17-yard first down completion to receiver Cody Thompson was nullified by the obvious holding penalty, pushing the Seahawks out of field goal range.
Then on the next snap, Ferrell worked Forsythe again on 1st and 20, beating him upfield with a speed rush and bending around the corner, forcing Smith to vacate the pocket scrambling to his right and throw the football out of bounds. After a second down misfire and a third down completion to Freddie Swain came up well short of the sticks, a once-promising drive fizzled and Seattle was forced to punt.
"It was a little rough start for me, just kind of getting settled in, not knowing who you're going to go up against, some kind of stuff like that," Forsythe reflected post-game. "So, I mean, kind of those first few series and kind of little miscommunications here and there, kind of settled in a little better in the second half."
Typically when preparing for opponents during the regular season, tackles have an idea which pass rushers they will facing off against in the upcoming game. Thoroughly dissecting film, they analyze every last detail from the rusher's stance to his hand placement to his go-to counter moves, looking for tendencies they can use to their own advantage.
But during the preseason, with teams rarely playing starters and game planning kept to a minimum, there's far less certainty in that regard. Though he wasn't using it as an excuse, Forsythe admitted that played a part in his early struggles along with adjusting to the speed of the game.
"It's much different than practice," Forsythe said. "You kind of don't know who you're going to go against and what moves they are going to do, so I just feel like once you kind of get in the regular season, you can game plan who you're going to be going against, so it'll be a little better."
Despite a rocky first drive, Forsythe did seem to find his comfort zone as Saturday's game progressed. Playing the entirety of the first three quarters for the Seahawks, he only allowed one quarterback pressure in the subsequent four drives. He also made a pair of nice blocks to open up creases and spring running backs DeeJay Dallas and Josh Johnson for quality runs in the second half.
While Carroll had yet to see the film to offer up an adequate assessment of the rookie's play, based on what he observed during the game, he felt Forsythe held up well in his first NFL action and will only benefit from seeing an extended workload.
"We got sacked once and I didn't feel like he had a tough time," Carroll commented. "I'm pleased that he got a ton of play time as well. It was a huge advantage for him to get that chance."
Following a roller coaster debut, Forsythe understands he has plenty of work to do before Seattle's second preseason game against Denver next Saturday. There's a chance he may get a handful of reps working against defensive ends Von Miller and Bradley Chubb, two of the best edge rushers in the AFC, which means he will need to clean up his footwork and hand placement. The line as a whole will have to iron out the communication issues that plagued the unit in the first half in Las Vegas.
But as the saying goes, iron sharpens iron and squaring off against top competition will give Forsythe the best chance to develop quickly. After taking his lumps last weekend, he's confident he will learn from his mistakes and make the adjustments necessary to steadily improve as training camp and the preseason progress.
"It's a good starting point. I mean, I know what I got to do. Kind of know what I got to fix and kind of little techniques here and there, what I got to do and stuff like that. So, I mean, it's huge building point for me."
