The Seattle Seahawks invested their first-round pick on the offensive line, drafting North Dakota State’s Grey Zabel to slot in as their new left guard. But aside from that, the Seahawks haven’t made any other major O-line additions this offseason.
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Instead, they’re largely counting on a new scheme and a new offensive coaching staff to fix their longstanding problems in the trenches.
So, how exactly can new offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak’s scheme help Seattle’s O-line to better protect the quarterback?
One way is by moving the QB out of the pocket – especially via play-action rollouts.
That’s something Kubiak did a lot as the New Orleans Saints’ offensive coordinator last season. According to ESPN’s Brady Henderson, the Saints threw from outside the pocket on 17.8% of their passing attempts, which was the third-highest rate in the league.
“That is offensive-line-friendly play-calling,” former NFL linebacker Dave Wyman said on Seattle Sports’ Wyman and Bob. “Because if you’re just gonna sit back and drop back in a pocket, you’re asking your (offensive linemen) to sit there and (win tough battles). Some of these defensive ends (are among the) highest-paid guys in the league, and they’re gonna get to the quarterback.
“But there’s ways to mitigate some of that pass rush by moving the pocket or (using) play-action pass. It frees everything up.”
Play-action passing and moving the pocket are aspects that were sorely missing from the Seahawks’ offense last season. Seattle ranked 29th in play-action rate, using play-action on just 15% of its pass attempts, according to Pro Football Reference.
Instead, the Seahawks ran a dropback-heavy passing attack that operated out of shotgun at the fourth-highest rate in the league. And with a sputtering rushing attack that was among the NFL’s worst, the result was a predictable Seattle offense that allowed opposing pass rushers to tee off. Former Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith was sacked 50 times last year, which was third-most in the league.
“That was one of the harder things for me to watch,” former NFL quarterback Brock Huard said during a Blue 88 segment on Seattle Sports’ Brock and Salk. “You just sat in shotgun over and over and over, and went to these very predictable plays and formations.
“You’re gonna be a movement team (this year under Kubiak),” Huard added. “You’re gonna throw on the run. You’re gonna really move as much as you’ve ever moved in your career. This is not gonna be playing the game from the pocket 80% of the time. This is gonna be a movement offense.”
Listen to the full Wyman and Bob conversation at this link or in the audio player near the middle of this story. Hear the full Brock and Salk Blue 88 segment at this link or in the audio player at the bottom of this story.
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