After two years of making it to the Super Bowl with mixed results, the Seahawks stumbled out of the gates and wound up finishing 10-6. They failed to win the NFC West for the first time since 2012. They needed everything they had defensively to escape Minnesota with a one point win only to be bounced convincingly by the eventual NFC Champion Carolina Panthers.
It is clear that last year was not good enough. and with the Seahawks getting slightly worse each year, they needed to absolutely kill it this offseason in order to return to the elite tier of teams that stood ahead of them last year. However, after a mediocre free agency period and draft, it begs the question whether they are still an elite team. Or, even a playoff team.
The Seahawks did have a few good free agency signings, but signing their quarterback Russell Wilson to a gargantuan contract hurt their ability to sign some of their better free agents. Brandon Mebane, Bruce Irvin, and Russell Okung will all be wearing different uniforms this year, and while the Seahawks brought in some promising players, none can replace the impact those three had right away.
The Seahawks will always have a deadly secondary with Earl Thomas, Kam Chancellor, and Richard Sherman lurking, but their front seven will undoubtedly be weaker . And their offensive line was atrocious last year and just lost one of its best pieces in Okung.
This all begs the question as to how good the Seahawks will be next year. After peaking in 2013, both sides of the ball have been declining each year, and there are plenty of teams on the rise in the NFC. The Cardinals should still be favorites in the NFC West, the Rams and Eagles drafted a quarterback who can make immediate impacts, and a lot of NFC teams made big improvements this offseason like the Falcons, Bears, and Saints. Not to mention the Seahawks also have a tough schedule.
Of course, the Seahawks still have enough talent to get back to the playoffs and they should be favored to go back. However, every year, there are usually 4-6 teams that make the playoffs the previous year that fail to make it again. For the first time since 2011, I would not rule out the Seahawks being one of those teams.
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