Tatupu seemed poised to lead a dominant defense after his inspiring
first season. Thus far, it hasn't been so.
Read the previous entry here.
The story of the Seattle Seahawks defense is long but not particularly varied. It's bad, and it's been bad for nearly the entirety of the team's 32-year history.
But with a strong nucleus already in place, talented newcomers and a young, energized coaching staff, the 2009 Seahawks defense appears to be on the verge of dominance.
If they manage to crack the top five in yards allowed, then they would be the first in team history. But this isn't the first time the defense carried such high hopes.
To continue...
Super Bowl highs
Following the Super Bowl run in 2005, many believed the defense to be the future of the team. While the offensive nucleus was getting older, the defensive nucleus was young and hungry.
Led by second-year LB Lofa Tatupu, the 2006 Seahawks should have been the beginning of the defensive renaissance, a team led by its stopping power, rather than its scoring power.
The Seahawks were solid at every position, led by bright, young stars and had already dominated on the most important stage, the playoffs. The offseason addition of Pro Bowl LB Julian Peterson seemed to cement this defense's place amongst the best in the league.
The offense breaks down, then the defense
It didn't take long for the defense to unravel in 2006. And it wasn't injuries that did the unraveling, not defensive injuries anyway.
Starting with RB Shaun Alexander's injury in week one, the once dominant offensive unit began to break down and performed poorly for the greater part of the season.
The defense, outside of the health of DT Marcus Tubbs, remained remarkably healthy and was in a position to step up. It didn't.
The defense, lacking a strong, ball-control offense to keep off the field, seemed to missAlexander's dominance more than the offense.
Flaws in the armor
Without a dominant, ball control offense to rely on, the defense was exposed. While the yards allowed ranking raised only three spots from 16th to 19th, the points allowed ranking plummeted from its 2005 standing of seventh to 19th in 2006.
S Ken Hamlin, coming off his off-field head injury in 2005, didn't seem to be fully recovered, and his pairing with the struggling Michael Boulware exposed the team to poor deep coverage.
Meanwhile, the pass rush dropped off, as only one player, newcomer Julian Peterson, managed more than four sacks on the season. He had 10.
Still rebuilding (2007-2008)
An offseason makeover in 2007 brought the defense back to the 2005 regular season levels, but it never returned to the dominance of that season's playoff run. In the 2007 playoffs, Seattle's small frontline was ground down by the Packers' power running game.
As had happened in 2006, the 2008 defense seemed to collapse as the offense collapsed. This time, it fell hard, finishing 30th in yards allowed despite no serious injuries on that side of the ball.
Again, GM Tim Ruskell has gone about rebuilding the defense this offseason. The main difference from before though is the emergence of an energetic, defensive-minded new head coach in Jim Mora.
Mora took the Falcons to the NFC Championship game in his first
season with them.
The new kids in town
While Mora went about crafting a defensive coaching staff that could implement the more aggressive style he wanted to play, Ruskell went about making sure Mora had the necessary tools on the field.
Led by rookie LB Aaron Curry, the 2009 defense boasts a front seven bigger, stronger and more versatile than any the team has had in the last 10 years. Miraculously, Seattle has done so without sacrificing much, if any, sideline-to-sideline speed.
The secondary, while largely unchanged, should benefit from a more active frontline and CB Ken Lucas' size should allow the team to press more, not giving up the easy underneath passes that have plagued them in the past.
A new era in 'Hawks football
It remains to be seen how Mora's takeover of the team will affect the other side of the ball, which he has entrusted to longtime accomplice Greg Knapp.
But like Holmgren did before him, Mora should be primed to give a huge boost to his area of expertise, and unlike Holmgren when he first arrived in Seattle, Mora has plenty of talent to work with.
Should Mora and company have what it takes to maximize the talent in place, one thing is for sure, a great defense in Seattle would be a welcome change and has been a long time coming.
And if Seattle can boast a fast defense that can get to the quarterback and remain stout against the run, then the offense may have just enough juice in the tanks to vault Seattle back to where it belongs, atop the NFC West and in Super Bowl contention.
Reach Jeff Richards at nextseasonsports@gmail.com
