Greg Olsen, Seahawks Show Off Wealth of Offensive Weapons in Week 1 Victory
Now officially in his 14th NFL season, Greg Olsen has been around the block a time or two since breaking into the league as a first-round pick out of Miami.
But even as he enters the twilight of his career, the 35-year old Olsen still has plenty of butterflies in his stomach when he takes the field for the first regular season game each season. Given circumstances with the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and playing for a new team for the first time in nearly a decade, those nerves were taken up a notch or two for the Seahawks tight end in Sunday's opener in Atlanta.
“I’m glad that that first one is kind of behind us," Olsen said after the game. "I think there was a lot of uncertainty coming in with the lack of fans, no preseason. I know personally, having played a long time, first time in a new setting, new system. A lot of new scenarios playing out in your head leading up to the first game. You feel like a rookie again, you have your nerves about whether or not you can still do this."
Logging 41 snaps on the afternoon, Olsen made a few uncharacteristic mistakes in his team debut. As one of several penalties on the same drive, he drew a false start penalty in the second half. And later in the game, he and teammate Will Dissly went in motion across the formation at the same time, appearing to share a hug in the backfield during the telecast before Carlos Hyde plunged in from a yard out for the score.
"It’s so funny. Something so silly. I’ve had five people text me saying ‘why are you and Dissly hugging in the backfield,'" Olsen laughed. "We had a little of mix up coming out of the huddle so we had to switch sides and so we added a little shift to the play. I guess it looked funnier on TV. It didn’t feel that big of a deal on the field but I guess on the broadcast it seemed like we had a little moment.”
Away from his unexpected bonding moment with Dissly, however, Olsen played a near-flawless game, showing he definitely can still play at a high level. Along with catching all four of his targets for 24 yards, he found the end zone for the first time as a Seahawk, hauling in a seven-yard touchdown from Russell Wilson late in the third quarter to break the game open.
Though he was proud of the effort putting up nearly 40 points, Olsen felt the Seahawks did "not even play that great" in the opener, citing pre-snap penalties and other miscues that held them back from doing even more damage offensively.
"We have plenty to clean up," Olsen commented. "But Russ - he was pretty on fire all day. We spread the ball around to a lot of different guys. Running backs, wide outs, tight ends. Everybody really touched it and had an impact today. That’s kind of the style we’re looking to play and I think for the first game it was a good start.”
Armed with arguably the best supporting cast he's had in nine seasons, Wilson distributed the wealth all afternoon, completing passes to nine different receivers. Tyler Lockett led the team with eight receptions, while DK Metcalf produced 95 receiving yards on just four receptions, including a 38-yard touchdown on a 4th and 5 conversion.
Out of the backfield, Chris Carson reeled in six receptions and scored both of the Seahawks first quarter touchdowns as they raced out in front to a 14-3 advantage. David Moore added three receptions for 38 yards, while rookie Freddie Swain, Dissly, and Hollister each made one catch apiece.
By the time the final horn blew and the clock struck triple zeros in the fourth quarter, Wilson had carved up the Falcons for 322 passing yards. Completing nearly 90 percent of his passes, he threw as many touchdowns as incompletions and posted a 143.1 passer rating in one of the finest performances of his career.
“Obviously it starts with him," Olsen said. "He’s just so efficient and so good with his decision making and accuracy and all those things. Around him, we have a lot of different guys that can contribute... Obviously, Tyler and DK are going to get a lot of attention and when the rest of us get our opportunities, we have to make those plays and be there for Russ. It was cool to see the ball spread around to so many guys. It puts a lot of pressure on defenses.”
What makes the situation scarier for upcoming opponents is that Seattle isn't quite at full strength yet either. Phillip Dorsett could return as early as this week from a foot injury, while there's also a chance Josh Gordon could be reinstated in the near future, adding yet another viable target to Wilson's arsenal. Down the road, Rashaad Penny and rookie Colby Parkinson will also return from injuries to further bolster the attack.
As Olsen continues to enhance his chemistry with Wilson, he should emerge as one of the focal points in the Seahawks aerial attack, particularly in the red zone. With so many capable weapons at receiver, tight end, and running back catching passes from one of the game's premier quarterbacks, some long nights of game-planning await for defensive coordinators as they are forced to pick their poison.
