Seattle Seahawks Roster 2018 Seahawks Roster

Seahawks Team Philosophy

If you are a Seattle Seahawk fan, then you may still be shaking your head about the way that the 2017 season ended; a 49-yard missed field goal that would have put the Seahawks into the playoffs missed and they were sent packing. There has been plenty of dismay for Seahawk fans since the team won the Super Bowl in 2012. Here is an in-depth analysis of the 2018 roster holds important insight as to whether this Seattle team has what it takes to make it to the Super Bowl in Atlanta on February 3, 2019.

This may be the year that the Seahawks finally get the competition for individual positions that the team needs to be competitive. Coach Pete Carroll says that in the years following the Seahawks Super Bowl win, they failed to draft players who were willing to go up against their top players to prove that they deserved a position on the team. That tide seems to have finally turned with top competitions occurring for running back, tight end and left corner.

Seahawks Offense

The Seahawks fired offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell and offensive line coach Tom Cable during the offseason; this may signal a return to Carroll's coaching philosophy of running the football. The team's offense that has been a joke in recent years may actually learn to pull together under new offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer. Carroll and Schottenheimer have said that the current Seattle playbook is 70 percent of what the team has been using in recent years and 30 percent of new plays introduced by Schottenheimer. While one cannot fault Schottenheimer's on-hands approach or his enthusiasm for working with players, it remains to be seen if he can turn around this team as he has had a less than a stellar career of doing so in the past.

Seahawks Defense

After defensive coordinator Kris Richard left the Seahawks, Ken Norton Jr. was given the coordinator's job. This may again be a signal that Carroll is trying to return the team to the way that it was when they won the Super Bowl; Norton was the Seahawks offensive coach from 2010 to 2014. The team lost three potential NFL Hall of Famers during the offseason, leaving them with a younger defense. The defense will need to prove they have what it takes to play in the professional football.

Seahawks Special Teams

After finishing in the lower half of the Defense-adjusted Value Over Average (DOVA) for the last four years, the Seahawks seem to finally be understanding that games can be won or lost by special teams. The rule changes to kickoffs may really benefit the team who drafted up to get Michael Dickson during the NFL draft.

Largest Rookie Impact

Seattle surprised many people when they took Reshaad Penny out of San Diego State's run-heavy offense in the first round of the draft. Coach Carroll may be signaling two things with this move. First, he may be signaling that the team intends to run the ball more during the upcoming season. Secondly, he may really like the guts that Penny showed in taking the running back position away from standout player Donnel Pumphrey early in his career with San Diego State.

With so many changes within the Seahawk organization this year, there is another one that must not be overlooked. The team has one of the toughest opening regular season schedules in the NFL. The team opens their season in Denver on September 9, and that can be one of the toughest places to play in the NFL. After taking on Bears, Cowboys, Cardinals and Rams, the team then travels to London on October 14 to take on the Raiders. Before the team finally gets a bye week during week 7, their season will likely look great or be a total disaster.