Lack of Lead Running Back Yet Another Reason For Seahawks to Invest in Their Offensive Line This Offseason

Without an obvious lead dog in their backfield, the Seahawks' need to improve their offensive line stretches well beyond protecting quarterback Russell Wilson.

This offseason, discussion around the reconstruction of the Seahawks' offensive line has solely focused on how they can build a unit for the purpose of protecting Russell Wilson. But before the star quarterback publicized his frustrations about the state of his blockers up front, the biggest storyline following the team's early playoff exit in January was head coach Pete Carroll's desire to emphasize the run game more in 2021.

While the Seahawks need to prioritize keeping their most important player - Wilson - off his backside, they also have to ensure they can maintain success in their rushing attack no matter who the ball-carrier is. 

Chris Carson is one of the handful of running backs in today's NFL whose talent has the potential to occasionally transcend the situation around him. Even with an average or slightly below-average offensive line in front of him, Carson can succeed with his unique skillset of quickness, physicality, and elusiveness to make defenders miss in the backfield and win in one-on-one scenarios.

The Seahawks have been fortunate over the past decade to go from an all-time talent in Marshawn Lynch to a rare specimen in Carson. But now the latter is likely departing in free agency and, as the Seahawks learned following Lynch's first retirement, moving on from such a loss without skipping a beat is far easier said than done.

From Lynch's retirement at the end of 2015 all the way up to before Carson's first full year as a starter in 2018, the Seahawks were hit with a hefty dose of reality. Primarily using Chrstine Michael, Thomas Rawls, and a handful of other backs during the two seasons in between, Seattle was a bottom-third team in rushing efficiency. 

Their only player to eclipse 500 or more rushing yards in a season within that period wasn't even a running back; it was Wilson in 2017, putting up a team-leading 586 yards on the ground. The second-highest total on that team? Mike Davis, who played just six games, with 240. 

While there was a clear drop-off in talent once Lynch left, Seattle's struggles on the ground were not solely the fault of their running back group. Michael, Rawls, and Davis all proved they could be effective at times but rarely had space to work with and holes to run through. Per Pro Football Focus, the Seahawks finished 26th in 2016 and 30th in 2017 with poor run blocking grades of 68.1 and 55.3, respectively. 

Teams can put together a respectable or better rushing attack without a lead back and a strong offensive line is absolutely crucial to making the whole thing work—even for those that have top-shelf talent in their backfield. The Seahawks, appearing set to utilize a running back by committee strategy in 2021, can do the same.

Seattle should not concern itself with spending some of its limited resources on their running back room, especially if it ultimately takes away from what they can use to address the line. Even though no running back is expected to earn a massive payday this offseason, doling out a contract in the $6-8 million APY range is still too much for the Seahawks to put into the position, whether it be for Carson or anyone else. 

They have four capable backs right now - Rashaad Penny, Alex Collins, DeeJay Dallas, and Travis Homer - and will likely add more to the stable through the 2021 NFL Draft or the back-end of free agency. That should be more than fine, as long as the money they do have is partly used to shore up the two biggest holes in their interior offensive line: left guard and center.

Though they didn't crack the top 10 in rushing efficiency in 2020, they did have their best year as a run blocking unit since 2014 (76.6), per PFF. They landed the ninth-highest grade in the NFL at 72.3, but three of their top five graded run blockers - Mike Iupati, Cedric Ogbuehi, and Chad Wheeler - are either retired, a free agent, or have seemingly run themselves out of the league entirely.

Given Russell Wilson's demands, pass protection may suddenly be at the forefront of the Seahawks' minds when targeting offensive line talent over the coming weeks. But I also don't expect them to completely divert from their core philosophies, nor should they. They need to find a pair of interior starters who can keep their quarterback upright against the likes of Aaron Donald more often than in years past, but also serve as a bully in the trenches to pave the way for their running back rotation to switch up the flow of the game. 

This will be hard to find this offseason, but it's far from impossible. Even at the top of the free agency crop, there are lineman who only succeed in one facet and struggle in the other. But then there are players like Corey Linsley and Joe Thuney, who both dominate each area of the game, and that's where the Seahawks need to be aiming to address one of their two needs along the line.

Seattle has to shoot for the sky when it comes to this unit. They're not going to be able to acquire two elite linemen, but they certainly can get one and fill the other hole through the draft or with a reliable second or third-tier free agent. They have to in order to appease Wilson while maintaining some semblance of their physical identity to stay balanced and keep defenses guessing without a clear-cut lead back.