The Seattle Seahawks have answered many of the questions that lingered about their new-look offense coming into the season.
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With a new quarterback and new play-caller in the fold, Seattle’s offense has been one of the NFL’s best through the first half of the season, ranking fifth in scoring (28.9 points per game) and ninth in yardage (359.0 per game).
Much of the Seahawks’ offensive success has come from quarterback Sam Darnold, NFL leading receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba, and an efficient passing game that leads the NFL in yards per attempt (9.5), is fourth in yardage (255.1 per game) and sixth in completion rate (70%).
The offensive line also deserves some credit, especially in the passing game. Seattle is second in the league with just 1.1 sacks allowed per game, a huge improvement from ranking 28th with 3.2 sacks allowed per game a season ago. Through eight games last year, the unit surrendered 21 sacks. This year, it’s given up just nine, including three games where Darnold was kept clean.
Former NFL offensive lineman and three-time Super Bowl champion Mark Schlereth shared his insight on what’s led to Seattle’s big leap in pass protection during his weekly conversation with Seattle Sports’ Wyman and Bob on Wednesday.
The scheme
The Seahawks made it clear this offseason they wanted to become more committed to running the football, and the hiring of offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak, who’s known for his wide-zone scheme, was a clear attempt to try to achieve that.
Seattle hasn’t been all that successful running the ball thus far. It’s 22nd in the league in rushing (103.9 yards per game) and 31st in yards per attempt (3.7), but it’s remained committed to the run while ranking eighth with 28.3 attempts per contest.
The persistence in the run game has helped the pass protection, according to Schlereth.
“Even if I don’t get a great yard-per-carry average, I want those attempts because those attempts give me an opportunity to change up my pass sets to be able to take the passive out of pass protection,” Schlereth said. “That’s always a big issue with me is, if all you do is drop back and you don’t get those attempts and people don’t have to actually step up and try to stop the run, then your play-action game isn’t as good. Obviously, that doesn’t work as well.”
Schlereth also credited Kubiak’s scheme for its quick passing game and ability to get Darnold out of the pocket on bootlegs.
"Even if I don't get a great yard-per-carry average…the (rushing) attempts are important to me."@markschlereth explains why the #Seahawks remaining committed to running the ball has benefitted the entire offense, along with Sam Darnold's stellar play.
(Full interview… pic.twitter.com/40iFBjhDgD
— Seattle Sports (@SeattleSports) November 5, 2025
Darnold’s impact
Darnold has a history of being sacked often. Even in his breakout year with the Vikings last season, he was sacked the fourth-most times in the league (48). He was also sacked nine more times in Minnesota’s playoff game. The nine sacks Darnold has taken this year are 16 less than the amount he had through eight games last season.
Schlereth believes Darnold deserves some of the credit for Seattle’s improved pass protection.
“I think that Sam Darnold is one of those guys that’s more athletic than (he) probably gets credit for, and I think his pocket-movement skills have been very good,” Schlereth said. “Like being able to step up in the pocket, slide left to right, kind of roll his shoulders, avoid some contact and still be able to find his guys – I think that’s been really good.”
“So I think it’s a combination of all those things,” Schlereth added. “But if you show me an offensive line that gives up a lot of sacks, I’ll show you two things: a quarterback that doesn’t get the ball out, and I’ll show you an offensive coordinator/play-caller that doesn’t understand the value of the run.”
Hear the full conversation at this link or in the audio player near the top of this story. Listen to Wyman and Bob weekdays 2-7 p.m. or find the podcast on the Seattle Sports app.
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