Seattle Seahawks: Will Russell Wilson finally be unchained?

The offense for the Seattle Seahawks was at its best in 2015 when they relied more on Russell Wilson, and less on the running game. Perhaps it is time to completely unchain Wilson and Seattle’s offense.

We’ve heard all the hate-filled rhetoric before. “Russell Wilson is just a game manager.” “He only good because of the running game.” “If he was as good as Seattle Seahawks fan think, they’d let him throw it more.”

Yawn. Haters gonna hate I guess, but those comments are at least becoming less frequent. Truth is though that I was still a bit shocked when this rolled across my Twitter timeline not all that long ago:

You mean that Seattle’s offense got BETTER when Wilson threw it more? *GASP!* This is my shocked face!

In all seriousness though, while Frank’s comment mas merit, it isn’t completely accurate. Marshawn Lynch will always be BeastMode, but he wasn’t the same caliber of player in 2015 as he had been the previous 3-plus seasons.

Thomas Rawls was the best RB on the roster season. That much isn’t up for debate. Both the stats and the game tape make that very clear.

Seattle’s offense performed at its best when Rawls got the majority of the carries. Best RB = Best results for the offense. The math isn’t difficult here.

At the same time, it is also true that the emphasis of Seattle’s offense changed when Lynch got hurt. They threw more on first down, and overall relied more on Wilson’s arm than they had previously.

Putting the ball in Wilson’s hands more lead to an improvement in the overall performance of the offense. Teams were forced to defense more of the field. Everyone, including the running game, had more space with which to work.

It will be interesting to see how the offense continues to evolve next season. Will Seattle return to their ground and pound ways, or will they open things up more to take advantage of Wilson’s talent as a passer?

Tyler Lockett will be even better with another year under his belt. Baldwin and Kearse will be back. Paul Richardson is finally healthy again. There is a host of young talent behind that foursome just waiting for their chance.

The Seahawks have the talent at receiver that they’ve lacked in years past. They have a proven quarterback, and data that tells us that the team is better when Wilson throws it more.

Next: Seahawks toying with fate by signing old players

While it it tough to imagine Pete Carroll allowing the Seahawks to become a pass-happy team, it should would be fun to see what Wilson could do with 40-plus pass attempts per game.