How does JS see the Seahawks roster, going into the 2015 season??? Yes, I know the SB is a week away.. and why should we care. Well, dammit, I care. This is the most exciting time of the year.. how to reload and improve the roster (and of course the SB)!! I’ll give a brief outline of each roster position… and there is a plan on following it up later with a few mock drafts for the Seahawks. To make SKA look legitamate, I’ve broken the piece up into two articles.
Sorry Cardinals, Rams and 49ers fans… I do not know your teams well enough to do an “expose” of your teams. Hell, several of the other NFCW teams have not even settled their coaching staff, so it is even harder to guess who / what they will be looking for *looking at the 49ers*
Note: The Seahawks will have somewhere between 11 and 13 picks for the 2015 draft, unless they trade players or picks away for more picks or 2016 future picks.
Quarterback
#1 QB / Franchise QB – Russell Wilson
#2 QB / Backup – Tarvaris Jackson; This is where a later round pick might be used, to push the back-up slot / make it younger and cheaper (5-7 rd pick)
#3 QB – BJ Daniels; Doesn’t matter, developmental QB
JS: We are set at QB, but might want a cheaper option for a backup.
Running back
#1 RB – Marshawn Lynch; This is the biggest unknown. He is under contract, but might retire after the SB.
#2 RB – Robert Turbin; Viable back-up, unknown if he can be a bellcow RB.
#3 RB – Christine Micheal; He has shown flashes, but his ceiling is unknown
JS: A position of weakness in the long term (more than 1 year out), this area might warrant a 2-4 rd pick of a RB and a late round RB FA pickup to develop more depth. RB Lynch is a priority to get back in the fold, “because it is about that action boss.”
Full back
#1 FB – Coleman; on IR, unknown if he is in the long term plans. Feel good story.
#2 FB – Will Takaufu; starting FB in SB, but was not on the roster to begin the season.
JS: A position group that could be reinforced with a late- round pick or a FA pickup.
Wide Reciever
#1 WR – Doug Baldwin; Slot WR, under long term contract
#2 WR – Jermain Kearse; #2 WR, 1 more year under contract, solid contributor in the clutch.
#3 WR – Paul Rishardson; another #2 WR, on IR with second knee injury in his career, long term is murky right now
#4 WR – Kevin Norwood; another #2/3 WR, has not gotten much of a chance in year #1, but is going to be active in the SB
#5 WR – Ricardo Lockette; Another #2/3 WR, special teams ace
#6 WR – Chris Mathews; CFL feel good story, long term may not stick.
#7 WR – Bryan Walters; Slot WR, KR/PR, likely to get the axe in the offseason.
JS: The team could use one speedy WR for fly sweeps and one more large WR for red zone situations. Priority in 2-5 th rounds of the draft.
Offensive Line
C – Max Unger; Has been injured parts of last three seasons, might need to bring in a guy to compete / fortify the position
RG – JR Sweezy; Converted DL, good run blocker, needs to still work on the pass protection
LG – James Carpenter; Great run blocker, questionable pass protection, often injured.
RT – Justin Britt; Overall has held up pretty well, however a rookie needing more polish and experience.
LT – Russell Okung; Average to above average LT, great run blocker, and acceptable pass protector
Backup OL – Lamuel JeanPierre; good backup, a little long in the tooth
Backup OL – Alvin Bailey; He is very large, but very athletic. Needs to drop 20 lbs still, but plenty of potential.
Backup OL – Patrick Lewis; Nice player with upside, but is a long shot to stick with the Seahawks in 2015
JS: The LG and C are the most critical positions to build depth or replace the players with upgrades. LT, RT and RG are adequate. A mix of early and late picks will create depth and also a long term solution to the turnstyle OL of 2013 / 2014 seasons.
Tight End
#1 TE – Zach Miller; on IR, has been injured most of last two years. Priority position to upgrade, unfortunately at Miller’s expense.
#2 TE – Luke Willson; Having a breakout season, is most efective as a move TE and in the passing game.
#3 TE – Cooper Helfet; Borderline roster player, has shown flashes, but is inconsistant. Possible roster casualty.
#4 TE – Tony Moeaki; Injury History, but is very similar to Willson with his abilities. Likely roster casualty going into 2015.
#5 TE – Anthony McCoy; on IR. Inconsitant, but has shown flashes.
JS: The TE position is thin with talent and has been injury decimated the last two seasons. This is a major priority to find a blocking TE / inline TE.
The offensive overview is complete (Part 1)
Stay tuned for the defensive overview (part 2) at a future date!!!!
