We are officially in the awkward part of the schedule where one season is slightly in limbo (2024 All-Star Weekend, '24 title game next week) and the next season is starting up with gusto ('25 Shrine Bowl, '25 Senior Bowl, '25 draft positioning set). The Seattle Seahawks' brass should be noting any and all data points that come through from all directions.
Data about team success and the elements that lead to it: What strategy are your rivals attempting to carry out? Which positions are being valued? Where is the league headed? What trends are taking hold? What curves necessitate getting ahead of?
When you have the same team going for a historic third Lombardi Trophy in a row, and that team has been in the final match five of the last six years, you have to start asking some questions. The matchup itself is a rematch from three years ago for crying out loud.
How investment in the offensive line looks all the more dire for the Seattle Seahawks
The best teams all year were able to consistently put points on the board on offense. Why was first-year Seahawks offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb fired? Maybe the regressed efficiency numbers for both Geno Smith and the ground game? The fact that the Seahawks went all year without scoring a TD on their opening drive (the scripted drive) didn't help. Neither did an 89-27 pass-run ratio against the Packers and Vikings, a crucial stretch of games against NFC playoff teams, didn't help.
Fans were calling for Grubb’s head and he hasn’t even completed his first season in the league yet. Consistency is needed, and that starts up front. You cannot become a contender if your offense cannot score points when needed. I don’t care how good Macdonald props that defense up to be.
Looking at Pro Bowl rosters and playoff seeding, on the AFC side, the usual suspects in the contender discussions, the Ravens, Bills, and Chiefs all had arguments as owning top-five-in-the-league type offensive line units. While it's true that these teams all have elite quarterbacks, it should be noted that they also have elite protection.
Both Baltimore and Buffalo had two blockers named to the annual all-star game. The champion Chiefs had three Pro Bowlers running security for Patrick Mahomes.
The two clear best teams in the NFC all year (Eagles and Lions) both had three players on the offensive line named to the Pro Bowl. Even though the Commanders had none and yet made it to the NFC Championship Game, they were ranked as a top eight unit by some sites. All five teams mentioned also had a pro bowler on the interior of the line as well.
This needs to be a RED ALERT PRIORITY for the Seahawks. The 2024 Seattle Seahawks had zero blocking linemen make the Pro Bowl and were ranked as a bottom-three team to end the season. It's a wonder they made it as far as they did, despite that glaring weakness.
Ok, we have to revisit that infamous quote by John Schneider, and don't act like you don't know which one I'm talking about, either. Seattle's GM was talking about how offensive guards are “overpaid and over-drafted” in a preseason interview. He may have been speaking with a little bit of overemphasis because he had been asked the question a lot.
Reporters were worried about the lineup until that point… but he still must answer for it. The fact that it became the greatest Achilles heel of the 2024 Seattle Seahawks makes this situation spicy/ironic. Spiceronic?
It’s sort of like warning your boy that his car is getting low on gas, and then he dismissively tells you that he knows his car… before you proceed to break down on the highway. Well, gee whiz bud, ya know? I'm still scratching my head here.
Now, who could’ve expected the “pro-ready RG, Christian Hayne to not even be able to hold down a starting spot against terrible competition? That’s a question for another day, and John and the team must swallow the pride and address it this offseason.
Protection issues grounded the Seattle offensive operation to a halt at times this year. They lost to the pitiful Giants at home this year. What could this team, on the brink of possibly an 11-win season, have done with a competent offensive line? To be a true contender in the NFC, you must have a consistently productive offense. Take the lesson, John, fix it, and we won't say anything else about it. Most likely...
