3 Seahawks Who Must Step up While Sam Darnold Is Out

Sam Darnold looks like he won’t be out for very long, but there’s still work to be done with him on the bench, and these guys need to amp it up.

Seattle Seahawks quarterback Drew Lock (2) reacts after defeating the New England Patriots at Lumen Field. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

When a team is forced to play their backup quarterback, the other players need to step up to make up for what is lost. Obviously, one of those players is the backup himself, but let’s take a look at three other players that need to bring their ‘A’ game over the next couple games to make sure that Drew Lock can get some wins and keep the Seattle Seahawks going.

Rashid Shaheed

Two-pronged here. Offensively, Shaheed provided very little in game one. His one catch was a four-yarder on third and eight, and he slipped and fell on one of his missed targets. He’s going to have to do better, lest the offense turn into The JSN Show. Maybe some of us wouldn’t mind that, but the team is better off with multiple players producing in the pass game.

Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Rashid Shaheed (22) runs in the first half against the Los Angeles Rams. | Steven Bisig-Imagn Images

But then you have special teams. Rashid Shaheed made a few conservative fair catch decisions against the Patriots, and was mostly forgettable when he did return it. Right now, we need all the yards we can get, and that means Shaheed turning those fair catches into returns. He’s among the best in the league at it, and now is the time for him to prove it.

George Holani

I don’t think Holani was as bad as Pro Football Focus indicated, but it’s undeniable that Jadarian Price looked much better than him, and I don’t know if Holani was a net positive. With Lock in the game, the team will probably run the ball more, but they shouldn’t overwork Price. That means Holani will continue to get touches, and he needs to find production.

Seattle Seahawks running back George Holani (36) runs during the second quarter against the New England Patriots. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

He might have to do it against stacked boxes unless Lock can force defenses to play him honestly as well, so the degree of difficulty could be higher. Also, if opposing defenses blitz Lock at the rate that the Patriots did on Wednesday, Holani will be called upon to pick up a lot of rushers. His ability to keep Lock upright is a huge part of this.

Jason Myers

With Lock in the game, it’s much harder for this team to finish drives in the endzone. I think that some of those issues will clear up in practice now that Lock will have time to practice with the starters, but Myers will probably get asked to do a lot here. The offense will be simplified, running will be harder, and more good drives will end in field goal attempts.

Seattle Seahawks kicker Jason Myers (5) celebrates with punter Michael Dickson (4) after making a field goal during the third quarter. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Myers made two short kicks against the Patriots, as well as an extra point, but at some point over the next couple games he’ll probably need to knock in a long one. Such kicks were an adventure in the preseason, so concern remains. We knew we needed him to come through before, but now we really need him to come through. Can he deliver?

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