Seahawks Roster Analysis: Defense

Unlike the offense which doesn’t have a lot of holes but generally lacks quality, the defense is a swiss cheese mixture of outstanding an empty space. The Seahawks defense was the strength of this team in 2011, but even if David Hawthorne is re-signed the 2 biggest needs to be filled via the draft or free agency are both on the defensive side of the ball.

Seattle’s secondary is outstanding at both Safety and Corner., which is why the Seahawks ended the season with the #9 overall pass defense depite having virtually no pass rush. While they do not need any new starters in the secondary, there is a distinctive lack of depth at all positions.

Seattle’s front 7 was stellar against the run, but was also extremely poor against the pass. The Seahawks need to add both a Defensive End and a Defensive Tackle who can rush the passer, though neither of the new players will likely be a starter in 2012.

Linebacker is a huge weakness and needs to be addressed with upgrades at 2 out of 3 positions, as well as increased quality on the backups. It wouldn’t be out of the realm of of possibilities for KJ Wright to be the only LB on 53 man roster at the 2011 who will still be there in 2012. Hopefully that will demonstrate just how poor this position group really was in 2011.

This defense has a chance to be really special if the front office can fill in the holes. If they can upgrade the linebacking corps, and find the players who can generate a pass rush, this defense could easily be in top 3 in the league.