Seahawks News: Russell Wilson, Marshawn Lynch, Earl Thomas Among NFL Network’s Top-20
By Josh Davis
The Seattle Seahawks obviously have some of the best players the NFL has to offer and three of them are now officially part of NFL Network’s top-20 players in 2014. Quarterback Russell Wilson (20), safety Earl Thomas (17) and running back Marshawn Lynch (14) have cracked the list.
Wilson and his stats we’ve talked about in-depth recently, the debate rages on about the meaning and definition of an “elite” quarterback, so we won’t go there, here. But we haven’t talked about Thomas in a while so let’s give E.T. some love. Seattle’s super-safety from Orange, TX had become a compelling defender in his first three seasons in the league, but in 2013 he went off and had his best season yet.
The numbers were just part of the impact, 105 tackles, 2 forced fumbles and 5 interceptions, but he made even more of an impact with his incredible sideline to sideline range to make plays and the intensity and energy he brought to the entire defense. He’s a guy that strives to be the best at every part of the game and as far as safeties go he probably is.
Meanwhile Lynch was named the 4th-best running back in the league and obviously he has made a thunderous impact in his time in Seattle as well. Beast Quake once again went over 1,500 yards in 2014, rumbling for 1,545 yards and 16 touchdowns on 367 carries. The rumors are now officially out there (I went on record saying this was a possibility weeks ago) that the Hawks may look to release the 8-year veteran back in 2015 to save cap space, but for now, he remains the No. 1 back on a Super Bowl (repeat) contender.
The Hawks aren’t done on the NFL list either. Kam Chancellor cracked the top-100 list at No. 65 but we haven’t seen Richard Sherman yet, so it’s a good bet he’s somewhere in the top 10. We’ll keep an eye out for just how high he ends up.