Tag Archives: Seattle

The Seattle Seahawks and RAS

In regards to the Seahawks their front office has been in place since 2010. Trends come and go and front offices sometimes change. We are only going back through the 2016 draft which gives us six years worth of drafts to pull data from. You can also find Kent Lee Platte’s website here: ras.football

Quarterbacks:

The Seahawks have only drafted one quarterback since Russell Wilson, Alex McGough in 2018. So obviously not much to go off there. He did post an RAS score of 7.82.

Running backs:

To the running backs, the Seahawks have drafted 7 since 2016, which equals out to at least one a year. If you average out the scores you get a 6.81, which is only a bit above average. If Look at all the picks though outside of two guys Alex Collins and Deejay Davis they all scored a 7.28 or higher. This shows that overall Schneider and Carroll like their running backs to be relatively athletic. Looking further into the numbers the Seahawks like to draft bigger backs. five of the seven weight 217 pounds or more. They are all between 5’10-6’0. One key seems to be 40 speed. All of the running backs drafted have at least average speed or better.

Six of the seven outside of Alex Collins all scored at least average in explosion. Agility does not seem to be something that Carroll/Schneider emphasize. Three of the seven scored poorly where two only scored average. Going off this data we can say they like bigger backs with good 40 speed and at least average explosion.

Tight end:

Since 2016 the Seahawks have drafted four tight ends. Nick Vanett in 2016, Will Dissly in 2018, and Colby Parkinson and Stephen Sullivan in 2020. Their average RAS scores comes to a very average 5.77. That is mostly brought down by Dissly’s 3.79, although the rest are not all that high either. The highest is Sullivan with a 7.44. All four tight ends weight 250 or more. Interestingly enough they all vary in height. Vannett is 6’6, Dissly is 6’4, Sullivan is 6’5, and Parkinson is 6’7. Three of the four have good to great agility scores.

As for 40 times they do not seem important to the Seahawks. They vary from 4.89 to 4.66. Another interesting thing is three of the four had poor explosion testing. So that seems to be another test they do not find important. Two of them had 33″ arms and the other two had 34 and 35 respectively. So it seems Carroll and Schneider like their tight ends at least 250 and with decent agility scores.

Wide Receiver:

This position is some what interesting. The Seahawks have drafted eight receivers since 2016. The average of those eight is a decent 7.61. The one guy that really brings that grade down is Kenny Lawler, his RAS score was a 2.08. With his score removed the average goes up to 8.39. So it can be surmised that they look for pretty athletic receivers. Looking at the agility scores it seems this is another position that they do not care about agility numbers. Seven of the eight receivers drafted had average to poor agility numbers. Only John Ursua had high level agility scores. The Seahawks front office also seems to prefer receivers over 200 pounds; six of the eight drafted are 200 or over, with even four of the six being 214 or heavier. Five of the eight are over 6’0.

They do seem to prioritize 40 speed. Six of the eight ran 4.45 or faster. Seven of the eight though had a vertical of 35 or better (which is considered about average). Those seven also had broad jump scores of at least 10′ which is considered average, but six of those seven had a broad jump of 10’4″ or better which is considered above average. So it can be said they also prioritize explosion drills. Five of the eight also had above average bench scores. So it seems they like big, physical, explosive but linear fast receivers.

Offensive line:

The Seahawks have drafted eight offensive linemen since 2016. Four tackles, two guards and two centers. The average RAS score of the eight is 6.21. Two of their draft picks really bring the score down. Justin Senior and Jamarco Jones both had sub 1 RAS scores which is terrible, the rest were 7.76 or above. Also right off the bat the Seahawks seem to like bigger offensive linemen. Six of the eight are 310 or heavier, with four of the six being 320+. Their heights are kind of all over from 6’2-6’8, so it does not seem to matter to them. Of the offensive tackles all have had arm length’s of 34″ or more. The interior guys have all been around 33″

We have no testing numbers for Joey Hunt, not even arm measurements. Outside of Jones and Senior the rest all score at least average on explosion testing. As for speed testing, again outside of the two outliers they all tested at least average in speed. The agility testing is all over for them so they must be tests that the Seahawks do not worry about too much when it comes to OL. On the bench testing six of the eight all tested out at least average to very good.

Defensive line:

Since 2016 Carroll/Schneider have only drafted four interior defensive linemen. Jarran Reed in 2016, Nazair Jones and Malik McDowell in 2017, and Demarcus Christmas in 2019. The average RAS score of the four is an even 5. Looking more into those numbers you find that Malik McDowell is the one that really boosts that number up with his score of 9.03. The rest of them are 3.9 or lower. So athleticism does not seem to matter to the Seahawks.

They seem to prefer the linemen on the lighter side. The heaviest one is Reed at 307. Three of the four have a 40 time of 5.11 or faster. Another common factor across the roster is agility scores. They are all either average or below average in agility. Explosion drills are also treated the same.

Edge defenders:

The Seahawks from office has also drafted four edge defenders in the last six drafts. Rasheem Green in 2018, LJ Collier in 2019, Darrell Taylor and Alton Robinson in 2020. Taylor has no testing on file. So the three that do their RAS scores average out to a solid 7.09, mostly brought down by Collier’s 3.25. So none of them are over 6’4 which is kind of interesting. Two of them actually are under 6’3.

The Seahawks like them on the heavier side, the lightest one is 264. Two of them are over 275. All three have average to good testing numbers on the explosive drills. Green and Robinson had 40 times of 4.73 or faster. They both also had average numbers on agility testing. This might be the one position so far that they at least seem to look at agility numbers. There is not much else to go off in regards to this position, other than they seem to like guys who are relatively athletic.

Linebackers:

Linebacker is definably an interesting study in regards to the Seahawks. Schneider and Carroll have drafted five linebackers in six drafts. Jacob Martin and Shaquem Griffin in 2018, Ben Burr-Kirven and Cody Barton in 2019, and Jordyn Brooks in 2020. The average RAS score of four of the five drafted (Jordyn Brooks didn’t test enough to get a score) was a crazy athletic 8.72. So with those numbers we can assume the Seahawks like their linebackers to be elite athletes. With having athletes of this level there is of course a trade off, three of the four are 237 or smaller-with two of them being 230 or less. Also they are not exceptionally tall. Two of them are 6’2 and the other three are 6’0.

One test that definitely stands out is 40 times. They all run a 4.64 or better, with three of the four running a 4.56 or faster. The four that tested in vertical and broad jump all had at least average numbers there. This does seem to be a position that they prioritize agility testing. three of the four that tested put up elite agility testing and the other had a great 3 cone drill but a less than average short shuttle. The Seahawks definably emphasize speed and agility testing here with at least average explosive testing.

Defensive backs:

As for defensive backs they have drafted eight since 2016. Schneider and Carroll have drafted five corners, and three safeties. The Seahawks here are a bit of a mixed bag. Their average score is a slightly above average 6.91. They have two guys with sub 5 scores, but then they have three with scores over 8.3.

In regards to corners they seem to have two different types. They have three corners that were 6’0-6’3 194+ or 5’9 185-200, Tre Flowers is the talled at 6’3 the other two are 6’0-6’1. With the corners the Seahawks drafted they all ran 4.5 40’s or faster. Again they do not seem to care much about agility drills all the corners were average to poor in those drills. Four of the five put up average to above average scores in the vertical jump and broad jump. So it seems size and speed are of importance at corner with at least average testing in the vert and broad jump.

With the safeties all three are 6’0-6’1, but not exceptionally big, Delano Hill was 216 but Thompson is 204 and Marquise Blair is 196. Again explosion and agility testing was poor or average. Tedric Thompson ran a 4.6 but the other two ran sub 4.5, so it seems they emphasize speed at safety with average size for the most part. Somewhat similar thresholds to their corners.

Final Thoughts:

The Seahawks are anther interesting study in regards to what RAS and pro-day/combine testing says about their draft preferences. Roster wide it seems they do not care about agility drills outside of off ball linebacker and Tight end…kind of. They only take highly athletic linebackers. They like big fast receivers. Their defensive linemen are pretty unathletic. Their corners and safeties are held to similar thresholds. Finally they like their offensive linemen bigger guys with average speed and explosion.

Another Year to Re-define Seahawks Football

The Seattle Seahawks have had a rough couple years trying to re-define their old stereotypes and be the team they can be. After losing to the Patriots on what could be, The worst play call of all-time, the Seahawks have yet to fully bounce back. Going on almost six years since that point in time, and nothing has changed since that point. Russell Wilson being the quarterback of the Seahawks seems to be the only thing that is working right, but it has yet to be enough. With some help over the course of free agency, trades, and the draft, they are looking to bring a title back to Seattle in what could be, the most difficult year of Russel’s career.

The Seattle Seahawks have their guy, but his time in the league is closing down each year they wait to truly make a push. With recent developments on the offensive side of the ball, and the defensive side of the ball, they are going to make the push for the Super Bowl yet again. The Seahawks had multiple seasons in the NFC east that was incredibly easy, this year won’t be anywhere close to that. After the off-season that the Rams had, the potential bounce-back of the 49ers, and the Cardinals, the Seahawks are going to have quite the road ahead of them. However, where do expectation lie within the Seahawks organization and fan-base will be something to consider as well.

After getting into the playoff’s last season, and Russell having a great season, it’s clear that they are still in win now mode. With that being said, they will be looking to take on some of the toughest teams in the NFC this year that will lead to a lot of gruesome battle’s ahead. There is a chance that with that being in perspective that the Seahawks may not even make the playoff’s this year. In a win now situation, the Seahawks are not lacking offensive weapons with Chris Carson, D.K. Metcalf, and Tyler Lockett, they have one of the best offenses in football. So what could potentially hold them back? The answer is actually extremely simple, their defense.

The Seahawks office has tried to do a lot of different things to help keep teams off the score-board, but when you draft as poorly as they do, they need to do a lot more than just that. Looking at some of the players they have drafted over the past couple seasons: Jordyn Brooks in the first round, Deejay Dallas, Freddie Swain, L.J. Collier, Cody Barton, and a lot more. Now some of the names mentioned weren’t necessarily ‘bad picks’ but the value of the picks makes the picks bad. When looking to become a true contender, it starts with developing players through the draft process, not just through trades and free agency. That idea and concept has seemed to be lost on them, and it needs to be corrected.

Looking at what the Rams, 49ers, and Cardinals have done throughout the course of the last couple seasons, the Seahawks team doesn’t even hold a candle to them. With a head coach that has been holding them back for years, there has yet to be any growth within their team. As a defensive minded head coach, you would expect a good defense… that’s not the case. The Seahawks have had a rough go lately, but that doesn’t come as a surprise when your team selects L.J. Collier and Jordyn Brooks with their first round picks. Making selections like the two I just mentioned is going to be a big problem going forward. You need to have players on your defense who are leaders, but who can also perform, and unfortunately they don’t. So what can they do to change that?

Well at this point in time, there isn’t much they can do, but this off-season is a different story. Looking at their previous draft selections and the development of their draft picks, it’s not unlikely there could be a coaching change. There is only one thing that seems to be a problem each and every year since 2015, Pete Carroll. For those Seahawks fans who follow football, think back to the situation with Earl Thomas. Even while being a beloved fan of the Seahawks, he ended up wanting out due to the coaching and how the team was ran. It’s easy to say that he was just being a baby, but if that was the case, why haven’t they made a run for the Super Bowl since 2015? If they want to win again, they need to let Carrol go.

Alongside letting Carrol go, they should also look to bring in help on the positions of need. With money tied up into only a couple players, they should still be looking to bring in talent to help Wagner, Adams, and Wilson. Wilson has to be prepared to run for hundreds of yards each and every game due to horrendous offensive-line play. How can a quarterback make smart choices with the ball when he has be running outside the pocket for just about every play? The answer is he can’t. When teams started blitzing, like the Cardinals, you could see the decline from that point on. The Seahawks should be taking a note or two from the Chiefs off-season this past year.

The Chiefs had Mahomes run 500 yards in the Super Bowl due to offensive-line play, so what did they do? They signed offensive-linemen to help protect their quarterback. Russell Wilson can be considered by most a top five quarterback in the NFL despite always having to run for his life. If the Seahawks front office was able to take into consideration what it would mean to the organization if they could protect Wilson, they’d be so much better off. That start to any good organization is to make sure you build a team around your quarterback to: Keep him happy, and make sure he can be the best player he can be. There are a lot of problems within the organization, but the fact that they have not gone out to get him some protection shows how little they care about him.

Next, if you go back to the beginning of the off-season you can probably recall about Russ and the organization being in disputes about his role. As the leader, and heart and soul of the team, he felt as though he should be consulted and have an opinion in decisions. With that being said, normally I’d say that isn’t his role on the team but after years of playing with the organization, he felt disrespected. Which can you blame him? His job as the quarterback is to be the leader, but how can you win with a team who doesn’t help you out? It’s the same thing Rodgers had going on this off-season as well. As the quarterback, you should have a say in who you are going to have on your team and players you think would be a fit in the organization.

There are a lot of things that will result in the outcome of the Seahawks this season, but with the roster they have right now, they are going to be in for a tough season. It’ll take a lot of great situational coaching and great play calling, but it is obtainable. Russell is a great leader, and having him under center puts the Seahawks in a great position.