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Pass defense is Seahawks biggest issue through 3 weeks and how to fix it

By Karley Sibert

Aug 8, 2019; Seattle, WA, USA; Seattle Seahawks outside linebacker Shaquem Griffin (49) reacts in the second half against the Denver Broncos at CenturyLink Field. The Seahawks won 22-14. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Aug 8, 2019; Seattle, WA, USA; Seattle Seahawks outside linebacker Shaquem Griffin (49) reacts in the second half against the Denver Broncos at CenturyLink Field. The Seahawks won 22-14. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Seahawks may have come out of week three with a win but it wasn’t exactly a pretty one.

There were poor performances all around for the Seahawks. The defense couldn’t stop Dak Prescott from driving the ball down the field and even Russell Wilson looked a little out of rhythm despite throwing for five touchdowns.

The Seahawks keep managing to win but it isn’t going to be enough to make a deep post-season run. The defense was abysmal in 2019 and the team still managed to make it to the divisional round out of luck—or out of thanks to Russell Wilson.

If the Seahawks want to learn from last years’ mistakes, then they need to get a jump on things early. The pass rush is the first place to start.

The defense is the Achilles heel of the Seahawks right now. Things were supposed to improve when Jamal Adams was added to the equation and in many ways, he has brought an unprecedented performance, but he alone can only carry the defense so much.

Seattle is allowing the most passing yards in the NFL through three weeks at 430.7 average yards per game. They have also allowed six passing touchdowns, which is tied for fourth place behind 10 other teams, and are 13th in average completion percentage allowed.

Football Outsiders has Seattle ranked 23rd in defensive DVOA at 7.3%. Pro Football Focus ranked Seattle as worst in pass rush at 50.7 prior to week three.

The secondary is also at fault for allowing opposing quarterbacks to rack up so many yards passing. While Shaquill Griffin and Tre Flowers have both shown brief flashes of being capable of leading the secondary, they really still have a lot to prove. As for the safety position, Seattle is now without Marquise Blair for the season and potentially Jamal Adams for their week four match-up against the Miami Dolphins.

How to fix the Seahawks pass rush

One good move the team has made so far was activating linebacker Shaquem Griffin from the practice squad in week three to help assist in the pass rush. He blitzed 10 times in his 17 snaps and had one quarterback knockdown. Seattle can certainly count on Griffin to step up in week four for the team.

The Seahawks need to start picking up the pieces and putting the puzzle together. They can certainly count on Griffin to step up and elevate their pass rush in the coming weeks. Seattle would be dumb to not sign Griffin back to the active roster.

But it’s going to take a lot more than Griffin to get this defense to step up and start firing on all cylinders. The Seahawks would be smart to bring in a handful of veterans. Here is a rough list of those available at their positions of need:

Next. Seahawks October preview and predictions!. dark

Let’s hope Seattle can find a way to put things together before it’s too late.

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