3 Seattle Seahawks free agents who have already earned new contracts

Alex Collins

Ever since week 4, which was the last time Chris Carson played for Seattle in 2021, Alex Collins has been the lead back for the Seahawks. Collins has been underused. Seattle doesn’t establish the run consistently enough for any running back, even Carson, to make it seem like Seattle wants to make its run game a big factor in the game.

This is a coaching problem and not a player problem. Collins proved against a good Steelers defense in week 6 that if given the chance he can be very effective and help Seattle score points. In 20 carries against Pittsburgh, Collins gained 101 yards and scored a touchdown. In the last three games, Seattle has given Collins just 10 carries in each game which is not enough. Again, the issue is the offensive design of Shane Waldron and not the running backs.

In those 30 carries, Collins has gained 121 yards. In 94 carries on the season, Collins has rushed for an average of 4.1 yards a rush which is just below his career average of 4.2.

Collins can also catch the ball if thrown his way, which is another thing the Seahawks don’t do enough. In weeks 4 and 5, Collins caught 4 of his 5 combined targets for 59 yards. In the last three games, however, Seattle has targeted Collins just once. It’s confounding.

Collins may not be an All-Pro back but he is a very worthy number 2 and can be the lead back when needed. Seattle just needs to use him more, just like all of their running backs. Maybe next year if Seattle has a new offensive coordinator, and they need one, Colins will be able to show his merits even more.