Analysis: How Did Seahawks Defensive Ends Perform in 2021?

After leading the NFL in sacks in the second half of the 2020 season, Seattle couldn't replicate such success even with several notable veterans and promising youngsters on the roster, creating major question marks at defensive end moving forward.

Despite entering the 2021 season with championship aspirations, the Seahawks lost five of their first eight games and never fully recovered, finishing in last place in the NFC West with a 7-10 record.

With key veterans such as Carlos Dunlap and Benson Mayowa returning on two-year deals and Darrell Taylor joining the mix, Seattle expected to build off a strong finish to the 2020 season and boast one of the best pass rushing units in the NFL. Aside from a few exceptions, however, the group unfortunately didn't play up to those expectations most of the year, which could lead to significant changes this spring.

Looking back at the season in retrospect, how did Seattle's defensive ends perform as a whole in 2021? And what comes next at the position?

Rasheem Green

2021 Stats: 48 tackles, 6.5 sacks, six tackles for loss

Overall Season Grade: B (83.0)

What Went Right: After battling injuries in two of his first three seasons, Green finally emerged as a regular starter for the Seahawks, logging a career-best 846 defensive snaps. Though he only had 3.0 sacks in Seattle's first 12 games, he contributed 33 tackles, nine quarterback hits, and four pass deflections during that span while seeing extensive action at multiple spots along the defensive line. Closing out the season with a bang, he turned in the best five-game stretch of his career in December and January, racking up 15 tackles, 3.5 sacks, six quarterback hits, and a trio of tackles in the backfield. He finished tied for second on the team in sacks, third in quarterback pressures, and first in quarterback hits, showing vast improvements as a pass rusher aligning at defensive end and defensive tackle. He also set a new career-high with 48 tackles and finished fourth on the team in tackles for loss.

What Went Wrong: While Green's pass rushing statistics were up across the board, much of that had to do with sheer volume rather than efficiency. Per Pro Football Focus, he generated 34 pressures on 514 pass rushing snaps, which equates to a mediocre 6.7 percent pressure rate. As has been the case throughout his career, the former USC standout struggled at times executing run fit assignments in the trenches and left too many plays on the field, finishing with nine missed tackles and an 18 percent miss rate.

Closing Thoughts: All in all, Green rose up as one of the few bright spots for Seattle during a down season, setting personal bests across the board statistically. Still just 24 years old, his best football likely remains in front of him and given his versatility at 285 pounds, the Seahawks should prioritize trying to re-sign him. That may be easier said than done, however, as his youth and strong finish could generate a strong market of potential suitors in March.

Carlos Dunlap

2021 Stats: 35 tackles, 8.5 sacks, seven pass deflections

Overall Season Grade: B- (80.0)

What Went Right: After inexplicably seeing his workload plunge to the point where he was playing single-digit snaps in Week 12 and Week 13, the Seahawks finally cut Dunlap loose in the final month of the season and he went to work ambushing opposing quarterbacks. Overpowering tackles with bull rushes and rip moves, the veteran edge defender racked up 7.0 sacks, nine quarterback hits, and 14 pressures in a five-game stretch, vaulting past Darrell Taylor and Rasheem Green for a team-best 8.5 sacks on the year. Using his incredible length to his advantage as he has throughout his career, he also got his big paws up to swat down six passes at the line of scrimmage, tying for the third-most in the NFL behind only Emmanuel Ogbah and Cam Heyward. Even considering his uneven season, he manufactured pressures on a team-high 11.5 percent of his rush attempts.

What Went Wrong: While Seattle's coaching staff deserves some of the blame for how they tried to use Dunlap, including dropping him into coverage far too often, the two-time Pro Bowler simply wasn't productive in the first half of the season. In three of the Seahawks' first five games, he didn't record any statistics, and in two of those games, he didn't muster a single quarterback pressure either. Ineffective rushing off the edge, he didn't have even a partial sack until a Week 6 loss to the Steelers. This played a role in the team's decision to phase him into a situational role 

Closing Thoughts: Despite a dreadful first half of the season, Dunlap showed down the stretch he still packs a mean punch off the edge and the rest of Seattle's defensive line followed suit. With a reasonable $6.5 million cap hit in 2022, he should be back for a second full season with the team looking to build off the momentum and lead the pass rush once again as he approaches 100 career sacks.

Darrell Taylor

2021 Stats: 37 tackles, 6.5 sacks, seven tackles for loss

Overall Season Grade: C+ (78.0)

What Went Right: Bouncing back from a lost rookie season due to a prolonged recovery from a stress fracture in his shin, Taylor got off to a fast start out of the chutes with 4.0 sacks and a forced fumble in Seattle's first five games. Exhibiting outstanding burst and quickness off the edge along with surprising power as a bull rusher, he amassed 16 pressures in his first seven NFL games, emerging as the team's best rusher. While his sack numbers dipped in the second half, he remained a nuisance for opponents invading the pocket, finishing the year with 34 total pressures and a respectable 10.3 percent pressure rate per Pro Football Focus.

What Went Wrong: Entering the season a bit on the light side under 260 pounds, Taylor struggled to consistently hold up at the point of attack as a run defender. For the year, Pro Football Focus gave him a dismal 47.1 grade defending the run, in part due to his issues with missed tackles. The outlet charged him with 11 missed tackles and an ugly 33 percent miss rate, with several of those misses coming as a pass rusher when quarterbacks slipped out of his grasp. To fulfill his full potential, he will need to learn how to finish plays far more consistently.

Closing Thoughts: There's a lot to like about what Taylor put on film in his pseudo-rookie year for the Seahawks. The physical tools that the front office loved when they traded up and drafted him in the second round out of Tennessee were evident throughout the season. He simply has to do a better job of wrapping up quarterbacks and ball carriers when he tracks them down and if he can do that, he could erupt with the first of many double-digit sack campaigns in 2022.

Benson Mayowa

2021 Stats: 30 tackles, 1.0 sack, two quarterback hits

Overall Season Grade: D (67.0)

What Went Right: Seeing snaps as defensive end and strongside linebacker, Mayowa enjoyed a stellar season debut in a win over the Colts, stuffing the stat sheet with a sack, two quarterback hits, and two tackles for loss.

What Went Wrong: After the season opener, Mayowa went into ghost mode for the rest of the season and didn't get many chances to do what he does best rushing the passer. While playing in 15 games, he didn't register another sack or quarterback hit on 477 defensive snaps, with only 132 of those coming as a pass rusher. Seattle put him in tough spots defending running backs and tight ends in coverage as an out of position off-ball linebacker, as he allowed eight receptions on nine targets for 63 yards and a touchdown.

Closing Thoughts: Seattle re-signed Mayowa last March to a two-year deal after producing 6.0 sacks in 2020. With a new defensive coordinator taking over for Ken Norton Jr., it's possible the veteran could bounce back if given more opportunities to rush quarterbacks off the edge. But the team could also save $1.5 million in cap space releasing the 30-year old after a disappointing campaign.

Kerry Hyder

2021 Stats: 33 tackles, 1.5 sacks, three tackles for loss

Overall Season Grade: C- (71.0)

What Went Right: After signing a two-year deal in free agency to join the Seahawks, Hyder started the season on the right foot as a starter at defensive end, recording 11 tackles, four quarterback hits, and nine pressures in the first four games. In terms of reliability, the seventh-year pro only missed two tackles the entire season according to Pro Football Focus and accumulated 23 pressures, nine quarterback hits, and two fumble recoveries while suiting up for 15 games with seven starts.

What Went Wrong: Coming off a career year in San Francisco, Hyder didn't even enter the same zip code in efforts to replicate an 8.5-sack season in 2020. Prior to the season finale in Arizona, he had only a partial sack on his resume and for most of the year, he was a non-factor as a pass rusher. Per PFF, his 23 pressures came on 334 pass rushing snaps, equaling just a 7.0 percent pressure rate. One year earlier with the 49ers, his pressure rate was nearly doubled at 12.5 percent. As the year progressed, he saw a reduction in field time as a result, playing less than 30 percent of Seattle's defensive snaps in seven games.

Closing Thoughts: Like Mayowa, Hyder remains under contract for the 2022 season, but underwhelming production from a player now on the wrong side of 30 years old could mean he's one and done in the Pacific Northwest. Depending on how he fits into plans with a new coordinator, he may or may not be back.

Alton Robinson

© Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports

2021 Stats: 22 tackles, 1.0 sack, five tackles for loss

Overall Season Grade: D+ (69.0)

What Went Right: Though he continued to be stuck at the bottom of the depth chart with limited chances to impress after a stellar rookie campaign, Robinson produced a clutch strip sack on Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill in Week 2 to set up a Chris Carson touchdown. He followed up with a stellar effort in a loss to Minnesota on the road, registering a season-high five tackles and a pair of tackles for loss. Despite logging only 173 pass rushing reps, he generated a quality 10.8 percent pressure rate.

What Went Wrong: While lack of playing time contributed to his lackluster numbers to an extent and he dealt with a knee issue in the middle of the year, Robinson only generated a single quarterback hit and no sacks in the final 14 games he played in for the Seahawks. Failing to make the most of his playing time as he did as a rookie, he had five games during that stretch where he failed to produce any pressures, unable to capitalize on minimal snaps. Like Green and Taylor, tackling woes plagued him at times, as PFF charged him with six missed tackles and a 23 percent miss rate.

Closing Thoughts: Still just 23 years old, Robinson has flashed immense upside in small doses during his first two seasons and it's worth wondering if the knee injury that bothered him midway through the year impacted his performance the rest of the way. Nonetheless, he didn't do near enough with the opportunities granted to him to carve out a more extensive role last fall and as he enters his third season with the team, he will have to be far more consistent in all aspects if he wants to see the field more in 2022.

L.J. Collier

2021 Stats: 

Overall Season Grade: F (58.0)

What Went Right: When Collier started playing regularly midway through the season, he found moderate success as an interior pass rusher. In 10 games played, he pressured opposing quarterbacks on 10.3 percent of the time, good for third among Seattle's defensive linemen with at least 100 pass rushing snaps. In limited playing time, he didn't miss a single tackle either.

What Went Wrong: Playing his way out of the rotation after an underwhelming training camp and preseason, Collier only suited up for two of Seattle's first nine games and sat out the other seven as a healthy scratch in favor of Robert Nkemdiche. When he did see the field, his lack of size hurt him defending the run in the interior and he struggled to hold up against single blocks as well as double teams in the trenches. Failing to show much improvement as the season progressed, he received a poor 42.3 run defense grade from Pro Football Focus. On top of that, while he did generate a fair amount of interior pressure, he only made four quarterback hits and recorded no sacks for the second time in three NFL seasons.

Closing Thoughts: After the Seahawks voluntarily chose not to play him for most of the first half of the 2021 season, it's tough to envision Collier vaulting his way back into the defensive line rotation with one year left on his rookie deal. Without any teams likely interested in trading for the former first round selection, the team could opt to cut losses this offseason. If he does remain on the roster heading into training camp, he faces an uphill climb staying on the 53-man roster.

Seahawks 2021 Positional Report Cards

Quarterback

Running Back

Tight End - Coming 1/23/22

Offensive Tackle - Coming 1/25/22

Guard/Center - Coming 1/27/22

Defensive Tackle

Linebacker

Cornerback - Coming 1/24/22

Safety - Coming 1/26/22

Specialists - Coming 1/28/22