The Seahawks have been a very successful team over the last 10 years. But here are three players who have outstayed their welcome in Seattle.
The Seattle Seahawks have a good roster, young and talented. But like most teams, Seattle seems to have players who show up every season on the opening day roster and makes 12s think, What do these guys have to offer? How can they help the team win a Super Bowl?
In fact, some players on the most recent Seattle rosters might actually hurt the team if they have to play. Couldn’t the Seahawks have found someone else to help fill the roster? Here are three players that Seattle needs to replace before week one of 2020.
Lano Hill
Lano Hill is a true strong safety. But that isn’t really a good thing. Seattle likes versatility among all its units. Most offensive linemen can play multiple positions, for instance. Among safeties, starters Quandre Diggs and Bradley McDougald can play both free and strong safety. Hill can play only strong.
And Hill doesn’t do that very well. He is slow. Any player with a decent amount of speed who gets down the sideline on a run and has Hill trying to play the angle on him as the Seahawks last resort is going to score. That player will outrun Hill.
Still, Hill will likely make this year’s team and should Diggs or McDougald or, heck, even Marquise Blair go down with an injury, Seattle is in trouble. Hill is nowhere near as good as those players and isn’t good enough to be a Seahawk.
David Moore
David Moore is maddeningly inconsistent. He will have a game where he catches four touchdown passes in three games (weeks five through seven of 2018) and then have a stretch of four games where he has a combined 16 yards receiving while catching 2 of his 12 targets (weeks 12 through 15 of 2018).
2019 wasn’t much better as Moore’s production actually went down. After catching 26 passes in 2018, Moore had just 17 in 2019. He had 5 touchdown receptions in 2018 and 2 last year. But then, this is the same receiver who over his three-year career averages 17.3 yards per catch.
The Seahawks need a good third option behind stars Tyler Lockett and D.K. Metcalf. Phillip Dorsett might be a good slot receiver and fill that role. But Moore shouldn’t make the roster. He is far too inconsistent and Seattle cannot have players disappear for games on end.
Seattle also chose two receivers in this year’s draft, Stephen Sullivan and Freddie Swain. Sullivan is bigger than Moore. Swain is faster. Either of these guys could easily take Moore’s roster spot and maybe both of them.
This would leave the Seahawks with a group that consists of Lockett, Metcalf, Dorsett, Swain, maybe Sullivan or maybe Josh Gordon. That is a better group without Moore.
Ethan Pocic
The problem with Ethan Pocic is that in his rookie season of 2017 he seemed like he might be OK with a little offseason NFL weight training program. But he hasn’t been. He seems relatively weak. I say that because Pocic is easily stronger than my weak self, but when it comes to NFL offensive linemen he is not as strong as he should be.
Pocic is big enough. He stands 6’6″ and weighs 320 pounds. But he simply hasn’t been good enough to fit at guard. Like now-former Seahawks center Justin Britt, it could be that Pocic bounces around for some seasons and then finds himself at center and is really good.
But to start, Pocic needs to stay healthy because he hasn’t been successful at that either. Pocic played in 16 games as a rookie. But then 10 games in 2018. But in 2019, Pocic was able to play in just four games. Whatever growth he might have shown in terms of being a professional blocker has been stunted by his injuries.
The Seahawks currently have 18 offensive linemen on their bloated, pre-training camp roster. Pocic is never going to be anything but a backup unless someone gets hurt. But Seattle has stronger players, like Jamarco Jones and Phil Haynes, ready to make the team. Pocic needs to be looking for a different team to play for in 2020 before week one.