Rashaad Penny Aiming to Build Off Strong Finish, Start 'New Legacy' For Seahawks
RENTON, WA - Following a brilliant finish to the 2021 season, Rashaad Penny could have easily chased after the money in free agency. In a depressed market for running backs, he had other suitors lining up and willing to pay more up front for his services than the Seahawks could.
But all along, Penny never intended to leave his comfort zone in the Pacific Northwest. Not after Seattle stuck by his side through numerous injuries in his first four seasons before he finally broke out in December and January. Staying hands-off in the negotiations process, he advised his agent to do whatever needed to be done to stay with the only organization he has ever known.
“Just feels like this is home," Penny told reporters on Monday. "Trying to build off of what happened last year and the success, and just get back to building these traditional ways of winning. Like I said, at the end of the season press conference, this just felt like home, I was more comfortable here. I think I got in a rhythm and a groove with the guys in the offense. So, I mean, it was easy. It was a no-brainer for me to know where to come back to."
In his first three-plus seasons after being selected No. 27 overall in the 2018 NFL Draft, much to the frustration of fans, Penny struggled to stay healthy for the Seahawks. He battled numerous soft tissue injuries along the way, but he was set back the most by a torn ACL suffered late in the 2019 season. Undergoing reconstructive knee surgery, he only played in three games the following season due to a lengthy rehab.
Last offseason, Penny underwent an additional procedure to clean up his knee. His misfortune continued when he suffered a calf injury in Seattle's season opener, leading to him missing the next five games. He would sit out two additional games after being activated to the 53-man roster with a hamstring issue and his days with the franchise appeared to be numbered.
But with his back against the wall and everything on the line in regard to his NFL future, Penny turned in a historic stretch of games at the perfect time as he approached free agency. Finally staying healthy after being inserted into the starting lineup in Week 13, he exploded for an NFL-best 706 rushing yards and six touchdowns while averaging a ridiculous 6.9 yards per carry in the final six weeks of play.
Showcasing rare speed and burst for a 235-pound back and running with more authority and decisiveness than he did at any point previously in his career, Penny torched opponents with four games of 130 or more rushing yards, including a pair of games with more than 170 rushing yards to close out the season. He joined former MVP Shaun Alexander as only the second player in franchise history with three straight games of 130 or more rushing yards.
Making those numbers all the more impressive, Penny ripped off eight runs of 25 or more yards, tying Colts star Jonathan Taylor for the NFL lead. He remarkably managed to accomplish this feat with 200 fewer carries on the season. Per Pro Football Reference, he and Lions legend Barry Sanders are the only two backs in NFL history to rush for over 700 yards, six or more touchdowns, and a 6.5 yards per carry average in the final six games of a season.
After enjoying his first sustained success in the league behind an improving offensive line, Penny wanted nothing more than to run it back with the Seahawks. With a new one-year, $5.75 million contract in tow, he's excited for the opportunity to prove he can stay healthy and put up gaudy numbers for a full season.
"I've always believed in my abilities and had confidence, but the injury part that just came into play. But I've always been confident in the abilities and what I can do, and I'm pretty sure everybody else has too," Penny remarked. "And I'm just thankful to be back here. I think this means a lot to me and to be back with the same running back group, same type of guys that's around the building. This is just a lovely environment, and I wouldn't trade it for anywhere else.”
Back in the saddle for 2022, Penny will be returning to a Seahawks offense without quarterback Russell Wilson, who was traded to the Broncos earlier this month. In his stead under center, the team acquired Drew Lock as part of that blockbuster deal and if the season were to start next week, the former Missouri star would be the one handing off to the standout running back.
While Seattle will undoubtedly miss Wilson's playmaking ability and leadership presence, Penny has plenty of confidence in Lock's ability to orchestrate the offense moving forward. With bruising backfield mate Chris Carson poised to return to action after undergoing neck surgery, he expects the team to lean heavily on the ground game to ease the burden on the young quarterback and has lofty expectations for what the two of them can accomplish together next season.
"Our goal is to be the best one-two punch that's ever played the game of football," Penny declared. "I mean, I feel like we really have the potential... Me and him [Chris Carson] both talk every day about it. We know what we're capable of doing. And again, we're just blessed and thankful. We get to play this game still and just try to go out and win games and just have fun."
Of course, Penny and Carson both have to stay healthy for the Seahawks to truly reap the benefits of having two star backs complementing one another. That has rarely happened in the four years they have played together, as when one has been healthy, the other one inevitably has been sidelined, preventing the team from seeing what they are truly capable of achieving in tandem.
Seattle also has question marks to address along the offensive line blocking for Carson and Penny, particularly at the tackle positions. Veterans Duane Brown and Brandon Shell both remain unrestricted free agents and the team recently struck out trying to lure former Pro Bowler Trent Brown to join the team, leaving second-year players Stone Forsythe and Jake Curhan atop the depth chart.
But at least from Penny's perspective, both players are past the injuries that have dogged them and the line will come together before training camp. On an individual level, he's looking forward to enjoying an offseason where he can focus on getting in top shape rather than rehabbing from surgery as he has the past two years. Coupled with a healthy Carson and weapons such as DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett on the outside for Lock to throw to, he thinks the Seahawks' offense will be ready to fly even without Wilson taking snaps under center.
"Ever since I've been in the league, Russ (Wilson) has taught me to be the best pro and be the best version of myself. I feel like it's him leaving the legacy here, and we’re just picking up where he left off. You can't really get anybody like that again, but we're thankful to have Drew Lock, and I'm behind him and I'm with him. And I think everybody else here are on the same board. So, it's just a new legacy that's starting here in Seattle.”
