Seattle Seahawks' Defense 'Not a Finished Product' After Bye Week

Only four games into the season, the Seattle Seahawks still have plenty of questions to answer on defense. But with a tough test on tap in Cincinnati, coach Pete Carroll believes the unit hasn't come close to playing to its potential yet and is eager to see how the group performs coming off a bye week.

RENTON, Wash. - During a team's bye week, resting up and getting healthy during the rigors of NFL season remains the first and foremost goal. With numerous players banged up on both sides of the football, the Seattle Seahawks certainly used time off last week to recharge and heal up before entering the heart of their schedule.

But behind the scenes, regardless of when the bye week happens, coaches and players alike also have an opportunity to self scout. With an early bye this year, Seahawks coach Pete Carroll noted following Monday's practice that teams still are establishing tendencies only four or five games into the season, making the evaluation process a bit trickier both for his own team and opponents until they are "more committed to what they are doing."

“Everything we can think of," Carroll said when asked what kind of self scouting Seattle does during the bye. "We’re looking at it from our perspective, looking at it from our opponent’s perspective, look at it from a historical perspective and just try to gain as much as we can and use this week to make sure that we get a little better and a little smarter.”

Like the rest of the NFL's 32 teams, the Seahawks are still building an identity on both sides of the ball early in the season. But Carroll spent extensive time during the bye week assessing the current state of the defense, a unit coming off its best performance racking up a franchise-record 11 sacks in a 24-3 win over the Giants on Monday Night Football before the break.

From Carroll's perspective, Seattle's gradual improvement on defense over the past few weeks after a disappointing 30-13 loss to Los Angeles in the season opener has revolved around the team's pass defense, starting with a blossoming pass rush blending four-man rushes and a wide array of blitz schemes.

In that Week 1 loss to the Rams, the Seahawks generated just two quarterback pressures on Matthew Stafford, allowing the veteran quarterback to carve them up with 334 passing yards on the afternoon. But since that wake up call at Lumen Field, per Pro Football Focus, the team has racked up an impressive 87 combined pressures during a three-game winning streak with players from all levels of the defense contributing to the effort.

Led by the veteran presence of Jarran Reed, the Seahawks have stuffed opposing running backs all season long and the pass rush has caught up with three straight breakout performances / © Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports

While Carroll isn't unrealistic expecting Seattle to be able to replicate a historic performance against New York each week, behind the leadership and guidance of veterans Jarran Reed and Uchenna Nwosu, the front line has been hitting a "much better" batting average across the board harassing opposing quarterbacks. Coming out of the bye, he expects youngsters such as Boye Mafe and Derick Hall to keep growing and making strides as the season progresses, further elevating the rush.

“They’ve really started to mesh together and take advantage of the gameplan and the calls and listening to the right voices out there to make the calls and make the adjustments," Carroll explained. "I can’t tell you how important J-Reed has been to us. He’s such a veteran that he really commands the calls and the system and the gameplan and all of that. He’s a big factor. As the guys communicate with him, they seem to get more well-versed to take advantage of what we’re seeing. Sometimes it’s sets, alignments and formations and D-and-D’s. It’s a lot of stuff for guys to handle."

With the pass rush starting to click on all cylinders, albeit against two of the league's worst offensive lines in Carolina and New York, Carroll's optimism about Seattle's defense may actually be rooted in the development of the secondary, which could be the key to unlocking the unit's potential moving forward.

Statistically, the Seahawks haven't fared well slowing down opposing passing attacks. Along with yielding 280 passing yards per game, the defense has allowed 19 explosive pass plays of 20 or more yards, ranking third-worst in both categories. Per Pro Football Reference, even with one less game than most of the teams in the league, Carroll's unit has given up 745 air yards in the passing game, the second-highest total behind only the Chargers.

But over the past two games, first-round pick Devon Witherspoon has brought much-needed juice to the secondary, including winning NFC Defensive Player of the Week honors after racking up seven tackles, two sacks, and an interception against the Giants. Following the rookie's lead, they allowed a season-low 203 passing yards in that contest while generating a pair of picks and a pass breakup.

With All-Pro Jamal Adams set to exit concussion protocol on Tuesday and cornerback Tre Brown back at practice on Monday, the Seahawks will be close to full strength in the secondary after the bye week to square off with the Bengals in Cincinnati. Health permitting, teaming those two players up with Witherspoon, Riq Woolen, Quandre Diggs, and Julian Love should give the team one of the most dynamic secondaries in the game.

Of course, as Carroll acknowledged, Witherspoon and company won't be able to get the job done against Joe Burrow, Jamarr Chase, and an explosive Cincinnati offense without the pass rush showing up and turning up the heat. Following a pair of breakout performances, Seattle's defense as a whole will have to prove they can play at such a level against superior competition on the road.

Thinking big picture, it will be quite the litmus test for the Seahawks to see how far they truly have come on defense since September 10. After watching his team come to life in recent weeks defending the pass and the run, however, Carroll can't wait to see how his players respond to the challenge and how much better they can get as they pursue an NFC West title and a return to the playoffs.

“We’re just trying to grow with it. We’re doing better. We’re fitting together. You can see us, cleaner and sharper, communication is the best it’s been to this point. We have high expectations that we can keep going. As always it fits the coverages a little bit tighter and so the ball is held a little bit, our disguises are a little bit cleaner and sharper and more effective, that helps. Then the rush helps the ball coming out faster. Everything feeds off one another. We have a chance to keep getting better. We’re just getting there, it’s not a finished product, we’re still moving.”