These Seattle Seahawks
For as long as I can remember The NFC West has been the doormat of the league. We all recall the fuss over The Seahawks hosting a playoff game with a 7-9 record. However, all that is changed in 2012. The NFC West is actually the strongest division in football right now. The NFC West is the only division with all 4 teams above .500. The Cardinals and Niners are 4-1 and The Rams and Seahawks are 3-2.
The perception that The Patriots have a weak schedule needs to be revised before we take on Pete Carroll's squad in the loudest road stadium around. Overlooking the Arizona Cardinals was a mistake, and hopefully mistake that won't be repeated come Sunday. This team has talent, and a good coaching staff. Seattle's Defense is fast and physical, and the unit is 2nd in points against with 14.0 per game. In fact, Seattle's D is better than this stat indicates because last week the team gave up 12 points, but the D only really surrendered 3 of them. Seriously, this Defense is scary. The Offense is not as scary, but it has a rising Rookie QB that is 3-2.
SEATTLE DEFENSE
Seattle's Defense is as good or better than San Francisco's Defense, and that is cause for concern. Although we think of The Patriots Offense as unstoppable, that is hardly the truth. The Offense will face two foes with the crowd noise limiting their communication. The crowd, self-titled "12th man" prides themselves on being the loudest crowd in the NFL. The no-huddle worked well at home against The Broncos, but Brady will most likely dial it back in Seattle.
The Seahawks D gets into the backfield with their speed, and so far the team has registered 16 sacks and 16 tackles for a loss. The unit has also forced 9 fumbles and grabbed 3 INTs. Rookie 1st rounder Bruce Irvin has 4.5 sacks so far to prove that he can rush effectively with his crazy speed (despite being labelled a "reach" by draft-gurus). Moreover, DE Chris Clemons has 5.5 sacks and DT Brandon Mebane adds another 2.0 sacks from the interior. Overall, the strength of this Defense is speed and athleticism, which fits the typical mold of a Pete Carroll team.
Carroll prefers athleticism to technique, and I expect Bill Belichick to counter The Irvin-Clemons edge rush by testing them with off-Tackle counters, draws, and screens. Solid execution on the edges by Nate Solder and The Vollmer-Cannon will be crucial, but my fears are on the interior: Donald Thomas has been adequate-impressive, but Mankins' injury is ongoing, and Wendell is still unproven. If Brady is constantly pressured, then we can forget about passing on The Seahawks' secondary.
The Seahawks CBs Sherman and Browner are great athletes that can stay with almost any WR, but The Patriots will test them with combination "pick" routes, savvy veteran moves, and good ol' honest route running. Likewise, The Patriots will look to create match-up problems with Gronkowski and (questionably) Hernandez. Despite an athletic LB-corps of Hill, Wagner, and Wright, The Patriots TEs will be a matchup problem downfield. Therefore, Safeties Kam Chancellor and Earl Thomas will need to help on the interior. The outside WRs will need to take advantage of single coverage to free up the middle of the field. However, in order to do that, Brady will need time to let the route develop, and a pocket to step up and throw.
All in all, The Seahawks Defense has the speed to match-up against The Patriots receiving weapons, but can The Seahawks stop the run against 13 personnel (3TE/1WR/1RB)? So far this year, Seattle is only allowing 66.6 ypg, but I expect this to change after facing New England. All that speed won't mean much between the hashmarks against bigger bodies. The Patriots will be fortunate if Aaron Hernandez can play effectively because the 13 personnel will be so much more balanced in run/pass if he's on the field. Still, if Brady is forced to throw a bunch, then The Seahawks pass rush will eat him alive.
Brady needs to out-scheme the Defensive talent, and I expect Ridley and Bolden to slow the pass rush by attacking the edges behind a Gronk/Fells seal-block. Likewise, I think Woodhead and Vereen will have some success on screen passes that bait and trick those speedy DEs. Remember though, that these Seahawks have forced 9 fumbles, and ball security must be priority #1 in the running game. Still, the match-up is strength vs. strength, and moderate success in terms of yards (100+ total rushing) should be sufficient. That is, 100 yards without fumbling.
SEATTLE OFFENSE
The Patriots Offense does not need to be explosive or high-flying against the Seattle Defense if The Patriots Defense can tackle Marshawn Lynch and force Russell Wilson to throw from the pocket. Broken plays and broken tackles have yielded some of the best Offense for Seattle so far.
Thus far, The Seahawks Offense has been disappointing. Although hopes are high for Russell Wilson, his leash is getting shorter. Some fans are clamoring for free-agent-signee Matt Flynn to earn his money. Wilson has not been bad, but he's far from good. His stat line thus far reads: 79/125 (63.2%) 5 TDs, 6 INTs, 10 sacks, and 147 ypg - good for a 75.3 rating. At best, Wilson is a game manager, and his 3-2 record is the result of fortunate refereeing and hard running from Marshawn Lynch.
Lynch is the key to The Seahawks attack, and he has been great after contact this season, registering 229 of his 508 yards after contact. Lynch leads the league in YAC, but The Patriots Defense leads the lead in NOT allowing YAC (0.96 per tackle) so something's got to give. I expect The Patriots D to continue their sure-tackling ways, but also Lynch will require gang-tackling. Marshawn Lynch is the kind of runner that requires Safety help. The Patriots will try to stop Lynch with only the front-7, but if its not successful, Belichick will force the ball into Wilson's hands by loading the box.
Wilson likes to lean on his TE Zach Miller and WRs Sidney Rice and Golden Tate, but his targets and completions are very spread out. Wilson finds the open man, especially when that guy is a check-down target. Wilson takes what the Defense gives and he can pick up yards with bootlegs and scrambles, and he is the team's second leading rusher with 27 carries for 92 yards. However, he gets into trouble against disguised Defenses, and he is responsible for all 7 of Seattle's turnovers this season. Not bad, but far from good.
The Patriots need to force 3rd and longs by limiting Lynch on 1st and 2nd. If The Patriots Defense can limit Marshawn Lynch to 80 or fewer yards, then Russell Wilson will be hard pressed to keep up with Brady. Even if The Seahawks Defense is the best in the league, Brady will have his moments. Likewise, if The Patriots Defense can force turnovers or even score on a return TD, Brady will not have to be spectacular. The Patriots Defense can force Wilson to beat himself. Basically it all comes down to stopping Marshawn Lynch on Defense and protecting the ball on Offense.
*All pictures are not mine, and I do not claim ownership, but hope to use the use the images fairly, for educational purposes.
The perception that The Patriots have a weak schedule needs to be revised before we take on Pete Carroll's squad in the loudest road stadium around. Overlooking the Arizona Cardinals was a mistake, and hopefully mistake that won't be repeated come Sunday. This team has talent, and a good coaching staff. Seattle's Defense is fast and physical, and the unit is 2nd in points against with 14.0 per game. In fact, Seattle's D is better than this stat indicates because last week the team gave up 12 points, but the D only really surrendered 3 of them. Seriously, this Defense is scary. The Offense is not as scary, but it has a rising Rookie QB that is 3-2.
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| espn.go.com/stats |
Seattle's Defense is as good or better than San Francisco's Defense, and that is cause for concern. Although we think of The Patriots Offense as unstoppable, that is hardly the truth. The Offense will face two foes with the crowd noise limiting their communication. The crowd, self-titled "12th man" prides themselves on being the loudest crowd in the NFL. The no-huddle worked well at home against The Broncos, but Brady will most likely dial it back in Seattle.
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| Bruce Irvin runs a 4.50 40-yard dash |
Carroll prefers athleticism to technique, and I expect Bill Belichick to counter The Irvin-Clemons edge rush by testing them with off-Tackle counters, draws, and screens. Solid execution on the edges by Nate Solder and The Vollmer-Cannon will be crucial, but my fears are on the interior: Donald Thomas has been adequate-impressive, but Mankins' injury is ongoing, and Wendell is still unproven. If Brady is constantly pressured, then we can forget about passing on The Seahawks' secondary.
The Seahawks CBs Sherman and Browner are great athletes that can stay with almost any WR, but The Patriots will test them with combination "pick" routes, savvy veteran moves, and good ol' honest route running. Likewise, The Patriots will look to create match-up problems with Gronkowski and (questionably) Hernandez. Despite an athletic LB-corps of Hill, Wagner, and Wright, The Patriots TEs will be a matchup problem downfield. Therefore, Safeties Kam Chancellor and Earl Thomas will need to help on the interior. The outside WRs will need to take advantage of single coverage to free up the middle of the field. However, in order to do that, Brady will need time to let the route develop, and a pocket to step up and throw.
All in all, The Seahawks Defense has the speed to match-up against The Patriots receiving weapons, but can The Seahawks stop the run against 13 personnel (3TE/1WR/1RB)? So far this year, Seattle is only allowing 66.6 ypg, but I expect this to change after facing New England. All that speed won't mean much between the hashmarks against bigger bodies. The Patriots will be fortunate if Aaron Hernandez can play effectively because the 13 personnel will be so much more balanced in run/pass if he's on the field. Still, if Brady is forced to throw a bunch, then The Seahawks pass rush will eat him alive.
Brady needs to out-scheme the Defensive talent, and I expect Ridley and Bolden to slow the pass rush by attacking the edges behind a Gronk/Fells seal-block. Likewise, I think Woodhead and Vereen will have some success on screen passes that bait and trick those speedy DEs. Remember though, that these Seahawks have forced 9 fumbles, and ball security must be priority #1 in the running game. Still, the match-up is strength vs. strength, and moderate success in terms of yards (100+ total rushing) should be sufficient. That is, 100 yards without fumbling.
SEATTLE OFFENSE
The Patriots Offense does not need to be explosive or high-flying against the Seattle Defense if The Patriots Defense can tackle Marshawn Lynch and force Russell Wilson to throw from the pocket. Broken plays and broken tackles have yielded some of the best Offense for Seattle so far.
Thus far, The Seahawks Offense has been disappointing. Although hopes are high for Russell Wilson, his leash is getting shorter. Some fans are clamoring for free-agent-signee Matt Flynn to earn his money. Wilson has not been bad, but he's far from good. His stat line thus far reads: 79/125 (63.2%) 5 TDs, 6 INTs, 10 sacks, and 147 ypg - good for a 75.3 rating. At best, Wilson is a game manager, and his 3-2 record is the result of fortunate refereeing and hard running from Marshawn Lynch.
Lynch is the key to The Seahawks attack, and he has been great after contact this season, registering 229 of his 508 yards after contact. Lynch leads the league in YAC, but The Patriots Defense leads the lead in NOT allowing YAC (0.96 per tackle) so something's got to give. I expect The Patriots D to continue their sure-tackling ways, but also Lynch will require gang-tackling. Marshawn Lynch is the kind of runner that requires Safety help. The Patriots will try to stop Lynch with only the front-7, but if its not successful, Belichick will force the ball into Wilson's hands by loading the box.
 |
| Pete Carroll thought Wilson beat Flynn for the job, and he's sticking with him. |
The Patriots need to force 3rd and longs by limiting Lynch on 1st and 2nd. If The Patriots Defense can limit Marshawn Lynch to 80 or fewer yards, then Russell Wilson will be hard pressed to keep up with Brady. Even if The Seahawks Defense is the best in the league, Brady will have his moments. Likewise, if The Patriots Defense can force turnovers or even score on a return TD, Brady will not have to be spectacular. The Patriots Defense can force Wilson to beat himself. Basically it all comes down to stopping Marshawn Lynch on Defense and protecting the ball on Offense.
*All pictures are not mine, and I do not claim ownership, but hope to use the use the images fairly, for educational purposes.
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