Defense Reigns Supreme in PFF's Highest Graded Seattle Seahawks From Preseason Week 1

The Seahawks had six defensive players earn a grade of 84 or higher in the team's 16-3 win over the Los Angeles Chargers on Saturday.

Aug 10, 2024; Inglewood, California, USA; Seattle Seahawks linebacker Patrick O'Connell (50) tackles Los Angeles Chargers running back Isaiah Spiller (28) during the fourth quarter at SoFi Stadium. / Jonathan Hui-USA TODAY Sports

The Seattle Seahawks finally put together some game tape on Saturday in their 16-3 road victory over the Los Angeles Chargers to begin the preseason.

It was a strong first showing for Seattle, holding the Chargers to just 71 yards of offense in the first half and allowing just 198 for the game. Offensively, the Seahawks picked up 20 first downs (11-for-20 on third down) and piled up 325 yards of offense — mostly with Sam Howell under center through the first half and into the third quarter.

As with any preseason game, the highs and lows should be taken with a grain of salt. Even with Seattle playing most of its starters on defense for two series, Easton Stick quarterbacked the Chargers the entire first half with Justin Herbert sidelined.

Regardless, there’s value in evaluating the standouts who are battling for roster spots. In addition to our own evaluations, here are the three highest-graded Seahawks by Pro Football Focus on both offense and defense from Seattle’s victory.

Offense

WR Easop Winston Jr. – 90.1 grade

Easop Winston Jr. played just 12 total offensive snaps for the Seahawks, but he made them count. The fifth-year pro out of Washington State caught two passes for 31 yards on just seven pass snaps. Winston is currently contending for the sixth wide receiver spot with Dee Eskridge, Dareke Young, Hayden Hatten and Ty Scott, and he only helped himself in his first preseason game of the season. This grade makes Winston the sixth highest graded receiver so far in the preseason, which may be a bit of an overreaction while also giving credit where it's due.

TE Brady Russell – 88.3 grade

As one of two touchdown scorers on the evening for Seattle, Brady Russell turned in a quality outing that saw him also finish with three catches for 25 yards in total. In 28 offensive snaps, Russell showed far more ability to contribute on a down-to-down basis than Seattle’s other tight ends competing for the third spot behind Noah Fant and Pharaoh Brown. On 15 run-blocking snaps, Russell also was given a 70.7 grade in that area — the highest on the team. Russell was excellent in the win, so this one checks out.

RB George Holani – 71.7 grade

Aug 10, 2024; Inglewood, California, USA; Seattle Seahawks running back George Holani (36) makes a touchdown against the Los Angeles Chargers during the second quarter at SoFi Stadium. / Jonathan Hui-USA TODAY Sports

After Winston and Russell, there’s a pretty steep drop-off to George Holani as the third-highest-graded player for the Seahawks. Holani played extremely well in his 24 offensive snaps, finishing the game with six carries for 24 yards. He was also the clear leader between him and Kenny McIntosh in pass-blocking, which will be critical to Holani’s bid to unseat McIntosh as Seattle’s third running back. Holani received a 60.6 pass-blocking grade while McIntosh came in at 5.4, possibly the worst grade in that area I have ever seen from a running back.

First three out: RB Kenny McIntosh (70.7 grade), WR Laviska Shenault Jr. (69.8 grade) and WR Dareke Young (68.0 grade).

Defense

ILB Tyrice Knight – 89.9 grade

Leading a group of six players who all graded at 84 or higher, rookie fourth-round pick Tyrice Knight played the fifth-most snaps of any Seahawks player on defense (30) and finished with four total tackles. With starter Jerome Baker out with an injury, Knight started the game alongside Tyrel Dodson on the inside. Knight was consistent and showed good instincts in coverage (84.7 coverage grade), and PFF is very high on him through one game. This grade places him seventh among all linebackers so far in Week 1 of the preseason, which also may be a bit too high despite Knight's quality play.

OLB Jamie Sheriff – 89.6 grade

Signed just four days before the game, undrafted rookie Jamie Sheriff was efficient in his 16 defensive snaps in the fourth quarter on Saturday. Sheriff logged just one tackle but also generated four pressures and a quarterback hit. Even though that production came against mostly Los Angeles’ roster bubble players, it was an encouraging first outing for the JUCO product who is also fighting to make the team. His grade, however, certainly benefitted from the lesser competition.

ILB Patrick O’Connell – 88.2 grade

Capping off three straight linebackers to lead Seattle, Patrick O’Connell finished with two total tackles in 22 defensive snaps. O’Connell put together a nice night in run defense and coverage, also receiving an 81.7 coverage grade. It’s a bit of a shock to see him so high and Jon Rhattigan (63.3 grade) so low, as Rhattigan finished with five tackles, two sacks and overall looked like the better player. That’s not to say O’Connell isn’t deserving, but it does leave some questions about the grading of linebackers.

First three out: S Coby Bryant (86.4 grade), ILB Tyrel Dodson (85.5 grade) and OLB Derick Hall (84.2 grade).