Two key changes made the Seahawks a much better secondary

The Seahawks made  a couple of personnel changes that led to big improvements in the secondary against the Steelers. No Minkah needed.

The Seahawks secondary was lit up in week one by Andy Dalton. There’s no other way to put it. They allowed over 400 yards passing for the first time in 58 games, including the playoffs. The game featured more whiffs than a prime King Felix outing. Tre Flowers took really bad angles at least twice, and Tedric Thompson was repeatedly out of position.

Flowers played far too well as a rookie to shake things up on the basis of one game. But with Thompson injured, the Hawks turned to Lano Hill, who had played well in the last few games of 2018. Jamar Taylor stepped in as the slot corner with Ugo Amadi fighting shoulder trouble.  Seattle brought Taylor back after week one, and just in time, apparently. Both changes paid big dividends for Seattle.

I know there’s a closet Steelers fan crying that Roethlisberger was knocked out of the game early. His backup Mason Rudolph actually played better. It isn’t great when a backup plays well, that’s true, but teams prepare for individual players as well as schemes. Combined, Pittsburgh only passed for 187 yards.

Two of the Steelers three touchdowns came on scoring “drives” of 22 and three yards. Had it not been for a pair of critical fumbles, this game would have been a cakewalk. With the exception of a flea-flicker play, the Seahawks defensive backs never allowed a pass longer than 17 yards all day. Guys, you might want to watch out for the flea-flicker against the Saints. It’s only gone for 45 and 55 yards and a score so far, right?

Bradley McDougald played his usual solid game, and even came up with the Hawks sole interception. Well, that’s not quite true, as Jamar Taylor picked off a pass on a two-point conversion attempt. That was kind of important for the Hawks, considering they won by just two points. Hill was steady as well, and avoided the errors that had plagued the secondary in week one. Both Taylor and Hill were instrumental in this win.

There was a lot of discussion about the Dolphins defensive back Minkah Fitzpatrick. It’s possible the Hawks could work out a trade for him, sure. Based on this game, it looks like the Seahawks secondary is just fine, thank you. They’ll get another big test when the Saints come to town, whether Drew Brees is healthy or not.