Where do the Seahawks Go from Here? Potential 2022 Off-Season Plan
With the season getting towards the end, what better way to 'celebrate' some of the bad teams in our league by looking forward to ways they can improve this off-season. For bad teams that are out of the playoff race, we will start writing articles discussing potential moves in the off-season and where they go from here. First up, the shockingly awful Seattle Seahawks.
What went wrong?
Everything. Pretty much everything. The Seahawks had an amazing win in week 1 over the Colts in which both the offense and defense was dominant and Seahawks fans believed that FINALLY, this could the year where both units excel at the same time. Oh boy did things turn for the worst after that. Week 2 saw them blow a massive lead at home vs the Titans and fall in OT and then week 3 saw them get blown out by a mediocre Vikings team. That was when we knew things were not going to be good for this team. Things worsened even further with the finger injury to Russell Wilson that had him out for a month and saw the team go 1-3 in that span. Even when he returned, it was too late. The Hawks had lost too many and now Wilson is starting to look a little rusty himself. This offense cannot move the ball and the defense is great at times, but makes some head-scratching mistakes in big moments. What happens next?
Pete Carroll, the front office, and most of the coaching staff. Carroll has long had too much power in Seattle, especially since the tragic passing of owner Paul Allen. It's finally showing. Carroll has final say over GM John Schneider on any moves, he obviously oversees all coaching, and has even started to ruin the offensive game-plans with his ultra-conservative style. The once brilliant defensive mind is clearly having the modern game pass him by and he is unable to adapt. Carroll is the main man at fault here.
What's next?
While nothing is for sure, we think the Hawks will ride out the final 6 games of the season, and barring some kind of divine-miracle, they will head into the off-season under .500 for the first time in the Russell Wilson era with low morale. We think there should be and will be a lot of change in Seattle this off-season. Fire the coaching staff, trade Russell Wilson, rebuild and look to the future.
Core players to build around (not worth trading them, stick with them!)
-WR DK Metcalf (23 years old)
-S Jamal Adams (26 years old)
-S Quandre Diggs (28 years old)
-WR Tyler Lockett (29 years old)
-DE Darrell Taylor (24 years old)
-CB Tre Brown (24 years old)
-DT Poona Ford (26 years old)
-LB Jordyn Brooks (24 years old)
Off-season Rebuilding Step 1: Fire Carroll and his staff, find the future
Even if they don't go full on rebuild (by trading Russ and others), Carroll and co. still must go. It's clearly over for Pete. He doesn't even have answers anymore. The oldest coach in the league needs to go out and be happy with the Hall of Fame career he has had. Along with Carroll, the team should fully clean house. OC Shane Waldron may not have had a fair chance, and I could see a scenario where a new HC keeps him, but to be safe, we see him being fired. DC Ken Norton Jr. will be an easy fire as well as he has done nothing good as the DC of this team with his defenses looking lost much of the time. Anyone could do better than him. Lastly, this isn't for sure, but John Schneider, the GM, might as well go too. It's the end of an era in Seattle and his gambles haven't been working out as well recently.
Step 2: Hire a new, young, innovative HC
All of the best teams in the league (for the most part) right now are led by young football geniuses that have new outlooks on the rapidly changing sport. That is clearly what Seattle lacked with Carroll at the helm. There are a bevy of amazing candidates out there. We will list a few that could be amazing hires for the team:
-Cowboys OC Kellen Moore: Played QB for the Cowboys in the NFL for years. Just 33 years old. Currently the OC of one of the best, and most innovative offenses in the game. He would bring a fresh outlook on the game and do things that the Hawks' will have never seen in a decade-plus with Carroll.
-Chiefs OC Eric Bieniemy: Former NFL RB. He has been the Chiefs OC for a couple of years now and has been with the team for even longer. 52 years old so not as young as Moore but definitely more experienced and probably the safer bet. Has succeeding for years with the Chiefs and has been a top HC candidate every year but is waiting for the right fit to take a job. He would bring amazing innovation as well to the Seahawks offense and be a great locker room leader.
-Buccaneers OC Byron Leftwich: 41 years old, has been the Buccaneers' offensive coordinator for a few years now. Has obviously worked with Tom Brady a ton and had a lot of great success. He too is a major innovator who likes to take risks. Brady speaks very highly of him and he would surely be another great locker room leader.
-Cincinnati Bearcats (college) HC Luke Fickell: 48 years old, has been the head coach of up and coming college football powerhouse Cincinnati for awhile now. Would be an outside the box hire. Seahawks hired Pete Carroll after his success with USC, could look go the same route with Fickell. He's a program builder and a master motivator, like Carroll was. The Hawks could see a lot of similarities between him and a younger Carroll. Fickell is also much more innovative which the team needs.
These are 4 of many candidates that would be great for Seattle, but our personal top 4 if we had to make it. Any one of these guys would completely change the way Seattle played football and would likely bring in a really good staff around themselves. Would be a tremendous start.
Step 3: Trade Russell Wilson
This would be the hardest pill to swallow yet, but if the team wants to be set up for success in the future, they will make this move. Wilson is playing strange football right now. Is it because of the lingering finger injury or is he actually regressing? Hard to tell right now. What is easy to see is that Seattle needs to move him for max value while the still can. If they can trade Wilson and get multiple first rounders back and maybe a nice player, they will be set up so well to retool and be back to contending again soon. Here are some potential trade packages Seattle would be smart to accept:
-Seattle sends Wilson to New York (Giants) in exchange for 2 firsts (2022) + multiple later round picks + Saquon Barkley + Daniel Jones: This would be a nice package for Seattle as well. They'd get two early firsts from the Giants that they could also use right away this season and improve instantly. Along with that, they'd get some more good picks in future years and generational talent at RB Saquon Barkley. A new HC and GM could shape their roster around the draft picks and Barkley! Daniel Jones is in there too, I'm not sure if Seattle would view him as their franchise guy, but he could be a bridge-gap option.
-Seattle sends Wilson to Chicago for 2 firsts + Justin Fields + Akiem Hicks: Seattle would probably negotiate for Khalil Mack instead of Hicks, but I don't think the Bears would give up that much. Seattle would still be getting back an amazing haul for Wilson here. Two future firsts to aid the rebuild, Justin Fields who is showing star potential and easily could be the franchise QB in Seattle with a new, offensive coach, and Akiem Hicks who is an instant elite player to add to the defensive line.
Any of these moves would set Seattle up amazing for a rebuild!
Step 4: Free Agency
With a coaching staff, front office, and now a haul from trading Wilson, the Hawks would have a big FA to focus on. Out of their many impending FAs, who do they bring back, and what outside guys should they look at bringing in? Especially with Wilson's salary out the door, it opens up a lot of cap space for signings, even with Wilson, the Hawks have a lot of open space for 2022.
-Safety Quandre Diggs. Diggs will be their top priority to bring back. He has been an elite safety since they acquired him from Detroit and they can't afford to let him go. He will be a key piece to have in the secondary to build around.
-Cornerback DJ Reed. Reed has been an amazing find for Seattle. In two years with the team, he's been their no. 1 CB for much of that time. Although he's undersized, he makes up for it with his great coverage skills and his grit. If they can bring him back long-term, he would serve as an elite no. 2 CB if the team can acquire a true CB1 in the future.
-Tight End Gerald Everett. If they can get him back for the right price, Everett would be a great guy to keep around. He's become one of the best options in a great receiving core this season and serves as a major target for whoever is going to be QB for this team in 2022.
ALSO, EXTEND DK METCALF: PAY HIM WHATEVER HE WANTS. He is a generational WR talent and needs to have the rebuild centered around him! He is eligible for a rookie extension this off-season and Seattle needs to hand him a blank check, they can't let him leave!!
Key FA's to let walk:
-LT Duane Brown. Reasons: Old age, declining play, money
-RB Rashaad Penny. Reasons: Injury prone, bad player
-TE Will Dissly. Reasons: Money, mediocre player
-OL players Brandon Shell and Ethan Pocic: Reasons: Medicore/bad players, money
Outside Free Agents to Strongly Consider:
-Cornerback JC Jackosn (Patriots). If the Patriots fail to re-sign Jackson before he hits the open market, he has to be Seattle's no. 1 priority. Jackson who is just 26, has quickly developed into a top 5 CB in the NFL in front of our eyes and is likely to be an All-Pro member of the 2021 season. He is the definition of a ball-hawk which Seattle desperately longs for and would be the CB1 this team could rely on for years. He deserves a monster payday and would be worth every penny for Seattle.
-Running Back/Wide Receiver Cordarrelle Patterson (Falcons). In the midst of a breakout season in Atlanta, even if they offer him huge money, it's hard to see Patterson returning to Atlanta. They are just too bad. While he is 30 years old, his versatile skillset would be a game-changer in the Seattle offense. Pairing him with Chris Carson could be lethal. It would become more of a backfield split which could also benefit Carson's health. Adding Patterson to an innovative, new offense would be a great move.
-Offensive Tackle Terron Armstead (Saints). While there's little chance the Hawks could afford more than one of these guys, just any of them would be major adds. The 31 year old Armstead has been one of the best LTs in the league for almost a decade now and has at least 4-5 years in his prime left. OL has been such an issue for Seattle during all of the Pete Carroll era and so getting a rock solid edge protector to usher in the new era could be lifechanging. Getting Armstead, though it would cost a lot, would be an A+ move for this team.
-Edge Rusher Haason Reddick (Panthers). One more amazing FA fit would be former Cardinal and current Panther Haason Reddick. Carolina got him on a steal of a 1-year deal in the 2021 off-season but he is proving his worth with already double digit sacks for the Panthers with multiple weeks to go. Seattle is in desperate need of impact players off the edge and Reddick could instantly bring that juice and is young and could do it for years to come.
If Seattle could sign just one of these 4, it would be an insanely huge upgrade. 2 of them and man oh man, they would be looking good. If the plan of getting one of those coaches and also accepting one of those trade offers was going according to plan, then adding any of these guys would just be out of this world!
Step 5: Draft future impact players
While this part is the most hypothetical, if the team trades Wilson, they will likely have one or more high picks to work with in the 2022 draft, some players they could target include:
-OT Evan Neal: Next great tackle prospect
-Edger Rusher Aidan Hutchinson: Most productive rusher in the draft, could be the sack guy in Seattle
-S Kyle Hamilton: Jamal Adams on crack? Could be a do-it-all player on a boring defense.
-CB Sauce Gardner: Best lockdown CB in the nation. Could be CB1 of the future and potentially reunite with current college HC Luke Fickell if Seattle went that route...
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While this is a lot, and maybe hard to follow, these are all moves Seattle could and should make this off-season to try and move the needle and look to the future. If any of these moves take place, Seattle will be in a better place for next season and the future. I think the biggest thing that needs to happen is firing the coaching staff, mainly Pete Carroll, and getting a fresh perspective. Maybe the team fires him and the staff and with a new staff, gives the current roster a final chance? It will be so interesting to see how this team handles the off-season following such a disappointing season. Will it truly be the end of an era in the Pacific Northwest?
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