Through four weeks of the NFL season, the one glaring and often talked about weakness of the Seattle Seahawks has been the offensive line. During practice this week, head coach Pete Carroll indicated that he intends on sticking with the current personnel on the O line, with the reality probably being that there aren’t better options currently on the roster.

What Do The Advanced Analytics Say?

When trying to assess just how good or how bad the Seahawks offensive line is, one of the difficulties in using advanced analytics is the interdependence of each position. For instance, a really good quarterback isn’t going to perform very well if he has sub-par receivers and is constantly under pressure due to a porous offensive line. Really good running backs will suffer if the run blocking isn’t there. But, conversely really good offensive lines could look bad if they’re trying to spring, say, Trent Richardson.

The analysts at Football Outsiders have attempted to isolate the contribution of the offensive line by creating the statistic, Adjusted Line Yards. By weighting short rushes more heavily and longer runs less so, Adjusted Line Yards strives to distribute the “credit” for a rushing play between the offensive line and the running back. When the Adjusted Line Yards are more than the running back yards, the assumption is that the line is probably more responsible for success in the running game than the back. When the Adjusted Line Yards are less than the running back yards, the assumption is that the backs are succeeding largely on their own talent, with less than optimum contribution from the line.

Rushing the Ball

The Seahawks offensive line currently ranks 17^th in the NFL in Adjusted Line Yards with 3.77. Running back yards come in at 4.07. So, what success Seattle has had running the ball can mostly be attributed to the running backs. And it should come as no surprise that with Marshawn Lynch out of the lineup, the Hawks struggled to run the ball against the Detroit Lions.

Upon closer inspection, a large discrepancy in the efficiency of the line from position to position emerges. The Seahawks rank 7^th in the league running left outside the tackle and 4^th running left between the left guard and the left tackle. Compare that to the 25^th place ranking when running between either guard and the center, 25^th place ranking when running between the right guard and the right tackle, and 22^nd when running outside the right tackle. It would appear that LT Russell Okung and LG Justin Britt are doing a pretty good job, while C Drew Nowak, RG JR Sweezy, and RT Gary Gilliam are lacking somewhat.

(Just as an interesting side note – the New Orleans Saints, who received C Max Unger in the Jimmy Graham deal, rank 3^rd in running up the middle).

Pass Blocking

When it comes to pass blocking, the Seahawks rank dead last. Having allowed a league leading 18 sacks (tied with the Lions), Russell Wilson is getting put to the ground at a league adjusted 11.6% rate. In other words, when you’re sitting on your couch thinking Wilson is getting sacked a lot, he is.

How It All Stacks Up

For the sake of comparison, Andy Dalton of the Cincinnati Bengals, who the Seahawks play this week, has been sacked twice for a 2.2% rate. Wilson has been sacked nine times more often, at five times the rate, not a formula for sustained winning football. If the Seahawks are going to make a legitimate run at the NFC West, they are going to have to solve some issues on the offensive line, and more specifically on the right side of the offensive line. They’ll get their chance Sunday against a Bengals squad that ranks 10^th overall and 6^th against the run in Defense-adjusted Value Over Average (DVOA).