Tight ends will tell the tale of Seahawks-Giants
When the Seattle Seahawks face the New York Giants, Jimmy Graham and Evan Engram will have a huge impact on the outcome.
The Seahawks offensive and defensive lines will face big challenges in today’s game. For my money, the biggest contest will be how each team handles the opposing tight end. There’s a world of difference in experience between Seattle’s Pro Bowler Jimmy Graham and New York’s rookie Evan Engram. The difference in performance might not be nearly as large, though.
The challenge of four time Pro Bowler Jimmy Graham
Jimmy Graham hasn’t been the force many expected when he came to the Seahawks for center Max Unger in 2015. I’ve written that those expectations weren’t realistic. He is being targeted almost exactly eight times per game, throwing out the anomaly of just two targets against the 49ers. It is true that the Seahawks need to target him more often in the red zone. At least he caught his first touchdown of the season in his last game, versus the Rams.
Against the New York Football Giants, Graham will primarily need to get by linebacker Keenan Robinson and safety Landon Collins. He has the speed to handle any linebacker, and the size to outmuscle any safety. Add in the fact that the Giants have given up at least one touchdown to a tight end in all six games this season, and things look good for Graham today.
The only question is if the offensive line can give Russell Wilson time to connect with Graham. I expect they will, and that Graham will have his best performance of 2017 so far.
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Speedster Evan Engram presents his own challenges for the Seahawks
The terms “speedster” and “tight end” aren’t usually seen in concert. Rookie Evan Engram changes that, as he turned an eye-opening 4.42 40 time at the NFL combine. That’s less than five hundredths off Vernon Davis’s tight end record. With the injuries to virtually every wide receiver that’s played for the Giants this decade, Engram will see a lot of targets today. He’s coming off an excellent performance against a solid defense in the Denver Broncos.
Happily for 12s, the Seahawks performance against tight ends is much better than the Giants. Seattle has given up nearly as many yards per game, 60.6 yards to 65.0. However, the Legion of Boom has only allowed one touchdown by opposing tight ends, while the Giants open the gates once per game, as noted above. Safeties like Kam Chancellor and Earl Thomas III have a lot to do with that, as does the excellent linebacker corps. Engram’s speed will pose a challenge, but I see the Seahawks doing enough to contain him.
Both Graham and Engram are ranked in the top five for fantasy tight ends this week. Expect some fireworks. But expect more for the guy with the cool bird on his helmet.