Seahawks gameday grades vs Chiefs: Offense shines

The so-called “dress rehearsal” has come and gone as the Seahawks defeated the Kansas City Chiefs 26-13 last Friday. With the Starters seeing their most extensive action of the preseason, let’s assign some grades.

Offensive Line: (B) 

I will give credit to the line for stepping up last week. There is always room to improve, but they got the job done. Russell Wilson looked a little more comfortable when standing in the pocket and only took one sack on the evening. That effort in pass protection is encouraging.

The offensive line also maintained a pretty consistent push in the run game. The backs had noticeably more room to run throughout the evening.

QBs: (B+) 

Russell Wilson was sharp once again and looks to be as ready as ever for the regular season.

Austin Davis did a nice job with his limited snaps completing 5 of 5 passes, including a touchdown toss.

Trevone Boykin’s poor play was concerning. The inconsistencies remain prevalent as Boykin was unable to complete a pass in six attempts, one of which was an interception.

Running Backs: (B)

Eddie Lacy looked much better this week turning four carries into 21 yards. It was nice to see the big fella rumble up field for some nice gains. I hope this can be somewhat of a turning point for Lacy heading into the regular season. It will be a big boost for this offense if Lacy can be a reliable option in the backfield.

I was once again impressed with Chris Carson. If this guy isn’t careful he could work his way right into the featured back rotation. Carson looked good in the passing game as well this week netting 42 yards on two receptions.

Tight Ends/Receivers: (B+)

The Seattle pass catchers once again looked solid. The highlight for me was seeing Jimmy Graham make a nice grab and proceed to drag defenders into the red zone. Graham is such a weapon and I hope Darrell Bevell continues to utilize him more and more in the passing game.

It’s worth noting that Tanner McEvoy made a beautiful touchdown grab in the fourth quarter.

Kasen Williams was quiet, hauling in just one pass for four yards. He was only targeted twice.

Defensive Line:  (B)

The Seahawks played well up front in Friday’s contest. The Chiefs couldn’t get much going on the ground all evening. I’m really enjoying watching Nazair Jones each week. He continues to draw my attention.

I would still like to see the pass rush apply pressure more consistently

Linebackers: (B) 

It may seem like these grades are getting repetitive, but honestly it was a solid effort all around on  Friday. The linebackers held serve and played sound football once again. It was good to see KJ  Wright back in action.

Defensive Backs: (B+)

Did you see Richard Sherman’s hit?

That was a thing of beauty. I absolutely love Sherman’s tackling ability. Most people view him as an elite coverage corner, but I believe Sherm is the best tackling corner in the league. He’s not afraid to mix it up on running plays that come is way.

Overall the secondary locked down the Kansas City passing attack. The Chiefs were able to muster just 156 yards through the air and didn’t throw a touchdown pass in the game.

Special Teams: (C+)

Overall I have liked what I’ve seen out of the special teams unit thus far. However, It’s tough to assign a high grade on a night where the Seahawks surrendered a 95 yard kickoff return to De’Anthony Thomas ( a Duck no less). Those plays can absolutely kill a team, so it will be important  for the Seahawks to learn from that play and make sure history doesn’t repeat itself in the regular season.

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Blair Walsh looked solid again connecting on all four of his field goal attempts. Hopefully Walsh can carry this momentum into the regular season. At some point this season he’ll big called upon to make a big time kick.