Six Questions For The Seattle Seahawks

In this final stage of the NFL offseason, we find ourselves put on pause. It’s annoying. With the Seattle Seahawks’ players and coaches scattered across the world, getting some R ‘n’ R in before returning for training camp on July 31, the Seahawks still have some vital unanswered questions.

It would be preferable to have those questions answered with actual football: practice, performance, production. Instead, any actual progress the Seahawks can make at this stage will only come from the business side, not from between the painted lines. Here are the top questions the Seahawks face as we wait for the hitting to return.

Do the Seahawks have a long-term solution at quarterback?

Short answer: Not yet. OTAs, mini-camps and offseason workouts have come and gone. Still, starting quarterback Russell Wilson does not have a long-term contract with the Seahawks. The possible unthinkable: Wilson’s next season (the last of his four-year rookie contract) is his last in Seattle. Unlikely, but possible.

It’s more than likely that the Seahawks and Wilson come to terms to keep the franchise’s best quarterback to date — and one with tremendous upside — in the fold for years to come. If they don’t, the future at quarterback for the Seahawks is not on the roster. Tarvaris Jackson (age 32) is a good veteran to have as a backup, but he has proven to be unable to lead a team to the playoffs. Newcomer R.J. Archer is a lowly regarded, unproven commodity that is unlikely to make the squad as the team’s #3 signal caller.

If it’s not Wilson, the Seahawks will be starting over at the quarterback position after the 2015 season.

Is the rookie class poised to contribute?

Short answer: Probably not. If the Seahawks’ freshman class of 2015 are capable of making an immediate impact, it will be the first time since 2010. For the past three seasons, the Seahawks have traded away their first-round picks. Not surprisingly, during that span the Seahawks have not gotten huge impact from their top college selections, with a few modest exceptions … if the futures of starter Justin Britt and third-stringers Paul Richardson and Christine Michael excite you.

To be fair, the Seahawks have one of, if not the most, talented rosters in the NFL. Cracking it to make an impact is tougher in the Pacific Northwest than just about anywhere else. Best bet: the Seahawks’ top draft picks, second-round defensive end Frank Clark and third-round wide receiver / returner Tyler Lockett are parts of the rotation, but not frontline starters.

Has the defensive line been adequately addressed?

Short answer: Iffy. Newcomer Clark is a question mark, based on character and inexperience. Cancer battler Jesse Williams, while a great story, probably cannot be counted on for great impact in 2015. For the most part, the Seahawks will hope to hold steady on the defensive line with returning starters Michael Bennett, Tony McDaniel, Jordan Hill and Cliff Avril. Bennett is a threat to hold out due to contract complaints. Hill may be an ascending player they can build around for the future. The other three starters are soon to be aging out of their roles.

The 2015 Seahawks are probably fine here. But one key injury could really wreak havoc.

Is this the year the Legion of Boom takes a step back?

Short answer: Not yet. Of course, this depends on whether you thought the LOB took a step back last year. As Super Bowl champions in 2013 and Super Bowl runners-up in 2014, the Seahawks have suffered through the inevitable talent drain. The Seahawks’ secondary has lost a handful of key defensive backs over the past few seasons but still retain three of the very best in cornerback Richard Sherman and safeties Earl Thomas and Kam Chancellor. The task they face this year is the same as last: field a LOB-worthy second cornerback (and keep him healthy).

Out went Byron Maxwell, Seattle’s erstwhile starter, who received a crazy-rich contract to be the Philadelphia Eagles’ leader in the defensive backfield. In comes former Eagle (and Raven, and Titan) Cary Williams. In the 30-year-old Williams, the Seahawks have a potential stop-gap solution, if not an even, one-for-one trade for the departed, younger, stouter and groomed-for-success Maxwell. Maxwell is exactly the type of home-grown talent championship teams often lose to other suitors. Williams, however, has proven to be a feisty and adaptable performer.

The LOB should be the top defensive back quartet again in 2015.

Did the offensive line get replenished?

Short answer: Nope. In Seahawksland, it goes like this: defensive line, thy name is continuity. Offensive line, thy name is, “Hey you over there! You ever play center? Or guard?”

The vacancy sign is lit. Last year, the Seahawks picked their preferred offensive line starters and watched continuity fall apart due to a litany of injuries. This year, continuity is a pipe dream to start, with two starting openings to fill at center and left guard.

To address the multiple openings, the Seahawks are content to let two of the Seahawks’ four starters at center last year, Lemuel Jeanpierre and Patrick Lewis, duke it out for starting honors this year. Both are veterans that have been bounced off and on NFL rosters throughout their spotty careers. Both are classic will-do-in-a-pinch-but-we’d-prefer-to-upgrade-if-possible talents. The Seahawks hope that opportunity spurs at least one of them to great growth.

In the draft, Seattle selected Terry Poole, Mark Glowinski and Kristjan Sokoli to bolster the offensive line. Glowinski and Sokoli are guards with at least outside shots at nabbing a starting guard spot opposite returning starting right guard J.R. Sweezy. Versatile Alvin Bailey may be asked to hold the fort at left guard if the rookies cannot supplant him. Poole is a tackle that will be expected to back up either or both tackle spots.

Among the Seahawks’ position groups, there are none that are a bigger question mark than the offensive line.

Is the Seahawks receiver corps capable of a jump forward?

Short answer: Yes. In the Russell Wilson era, the Seahawks have consistently toiled in the bottom third of the league’s passing rankings. This should be the year the Seahawks graduate a tier or two higher. It’s time for the passing game to grow, and the Seahawks know it.

Wilson is poised for greater passing success with the addition of a bona fide receiving threat in newly imported (elite) tight end Jimmy Graham. Graham’s presence will not only aid the efficiency and potency of the Seahawks’ passing game, but will also present matchup problems for defenses that will render more favorable matchups in the run game.

Beyond that, the needle should continue to point up for the continued growth of Super Bowl breakout star Chris Matthews and for at least one of Seattle’s two new receivers from last year’s draft: Paul Richardson and Kevin Norwood. Starting wideouts Doug Baldwin and Jermaine Kearse may not have glossy pedigrees, but their comfort and chemistry with Wilson should only continue to grow. This is the year the Seahawks will take a step forward in the passing game. Bank on it.

Five of these six questions will be answered one way or another in the month of August. The likely exception is Wilson’s contract status, which could end any moment, or drag on until next season. Seahawks fans will have to wait just a bit longer to know if the Seahawks have really solved these six issues.