SEAHAWKS: Russell: "hopefully, I show up and help us a lot in terms of production"

It doesn't get much worse than Seattle's 2009 passing defense, ranked dead last in the league.

Naturally, players get blamed by the fans and a lot of that disdain fell on the shoulders of veteran free safety Brian Russell.

But, according to a Scout.com article, Russell is in camp with a mission.

"...as a secondary, we were real disappointed in last year," Russell said. "Aside from Ken Lucas we have the same bunch, and we want to get back to the way we performed in '07, when we felt like we were a special group."

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That 07' group gave up a league low nine touchdowns. However, what is often overlooked is the passing defense, which was still below average with a no. 19 league rank.

Even in 2007, Seattle needed a stronger pass rush to defend those third and longs that often killed them. With a healthy Patrick Kerney, things worked out OK, but without him, the team went down in history as one of the worst defenses the franchise had ever seen.

As it so often is, once the front four flourishes, so will the rest of the defense. The team picked up free agent run-stuffer Colin Cole and pass rusher Cory Redding to help alleviate the defensive line's struggles. Also, the addition of the big and fast LB Aaron Curry only improves things.

Brian Russell's 08' campaign
But the lack of a pass rush does not excuse the poor play of the free safety, who sometimes lagged behind the play or took poor angles to miss tackles.

"We got away from what we did well, which is attack, don't give up big plays and go after the ball," Russell said. "And this scheme seems to allow us to do that. So hopefully, I show up and help us a lot in terms of production.

Russell wasn't the playmaker the Seahawks needed, which should have been expected when Seattle resorted to playing a lot of cover-1, which leaves some of the secondary in 1-on-1 coverage. Suddenly, Russell has to cover the full width of the field as SS Deon Grant moves up to help stop the run.

As a result, Russell was held to zero interceptions for the first time in his career, a far cry from the nine he picked off in 2003 with the Vikings.

Seattle's defense hinges on improved line play. If they don't win in the trenches again, expect another awful, awful year.

Reach Aaron Weinberg at nextseasonsports@gmail.com