SEAHAWKS STACKED
Model franchise positioned for another championship
Seattle Seahawks general manager John Schneider isn’t big on comparing his roster to others around the NFL, especially this time of year.
“Don’t get me wrong, dude,” Schneider told USA TODAY Sports by phone Thursday. “You’re talking to me a couple days before the opener, right after the cuts. We’ve reviewed all the players that have been cut and the top players that we like and practice squad guys. I don’t have a good feel for what other teams look like. “I just feel like we’re always chasing the next ridge. Where do we got to get to next, you know?”
The work of Schneider, coach Pete Carroll and the Seahawks scouting staff over the last seven years speaks for itself, though.
As the 2016 season kicks off, no NFL team has more top-shelf talent in its prime, earning Schneider a recent contract extension and making the Seahawks the preseason pick here to reach a third Super Bowl in four years — and win their second title.
Schneider got his start with the Green Bay Packers under Hall of Fame GM Ron Wolf. Seattle uses a derivative of the old Packers grading scale, which divided players into color groups: blue (players who can consistently take over games), red (difference-makers), gold (starters) and so on.
At any given time, the leaguewide list of true blue players includes maybe 10 to 12 guys. Think names such as J.J. Watt, Aaron Donald, Khalil Mack, Luke Kuechly, Von Miller, Tom Brady, Cam Newton, Ben Roethlisberger and Aaron Rodgers.
Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson is on the verge of joining the blue list, if he hasn’t already, based on how he played down the stretch last season. And even with the retirement of tone-setting running back Marshawn Lynch, the Seahawks have as many players in the next group as anybody.
On offense, tight end Jimmy Graham — whose chances seem to be improving for returning from a knee injury Sunday against the Miami Dolphins — is a red player when healthy and has flashed blue traits in the past. Receiver Doug Baldwin ascended into red territory last season.
On defense, cornerback Richard Sherman, free safety Earl Thomas and middle linebacker Bobby Wagner are no-brainer reds. If strong safety Kam Chancellor recaptures his 2014 form, he’s one, too. Michael Bennett is a red disruptor. So is Cliff Avril. Outside linebacker K.J. Wright, one of the NFL’s underrated players, is pretty close.
That’s nine or 10 guys — half of them 27 or younger, none older than 30 — without mentioning young players who could be reds soon, such as running back Thomas Rawls and defensive end Frank Clark.
“I like the team,” Schneider said. “Obviously, there’s a lot of young players and there’s a lot of guys that are in their prime, our core players.
“I’m proud that we were able to retain as many of those core players as we possibly could and people said we wouldn’t be able to do it. I’m proud of our coaching staff that is so willing to work with young players and our personnel staff that just grinds it and keeps pushing and working and working and not feeling like they ever have a finish line.”
Paying so many studs on second deals in a salary cap league forces adjustments elsewhere.
The Seahawks have let some good players leave in free agency — Golden Tate, Byron Maxwell, Bruce Irvin, etc. Their 53-man roster entering Week 1 includes 15 rookies, seven of them undrafted. A string of injuries contributed to that figure, leaving depth Schneider considers good but not awesome.
If there’s a concern, it’s the offensive line. Both tackle spots were in flux during camp. Top draft pick Germain Ifedi was impressing at guard before suffering a high ankle sprain Wednesday that’s expected to sideline him for a few weeks.
There’s a gap on every roster, though. And that’s where all those difference-makers can help cover up weaknesses.
The Seahawks defense has allowed the fewest points in the NFL for four consecutive years. Their offense was more effective with Lynch sidelined for the last seven weeks of the 2015 regular season, largely because Wilson was excelling from the pocket as well as on the move.
And Carroll’s teams always seem to play their best football late in the season.
There are a lot of talented teams, including the defending NFC champion Carolina Panthers with Newton and Kuechly, who ended the Seahawks’ Super Bowl streak at two in the divisional playoffs in January. And talent isn’t everything.
But it’s a big piece of the puzzle, and in that regard, the Seahawks look as equipped as anyone to make another run.