NFL team previews — AFC West
Aug. 22, 2000
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Seahawks RB
Ricky Watters
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After the first 10 games last season, the Seahawks were 8-2 and had a three-game lead
in the AFC West. Mike Holmgren was coaching like a combination of Bill Walsh and Vince
Lombardi, and Jon Kitna looked like an NFL quarterback. Then the Buccaneers totally shut
down Kitna, giving the rest of the league a blueprint on how to stop him.
Meanwhile, injuries took their toll on other parts of the team. The result was a
season-ending 1-5 meltdown and a home playoff loss to the struggling Dolphins, in which
Seattle made Dan Marino look like the Marino of old. That loss came after the Seahawks
backed into the playoffs when the Chiefs blew a lead to the Raiders in the season finale.
Still, Seattle made the playoffs for the first time since 1988 and had a winning record
for the first time since ’90. Now Holmgren must try to get the team back to where it
was for the first 10 games of the ’99 season, but that may be hard to do because
Kitna was exposed and may not be good enough.
Top of page
| Quarterbacks |
Grade C |
| Kitna looked like a world-beater for 10 games until Tampa Bay
exposed him. Now he will get a chance to show that he can adjust. If he can’t, he
will be no more than an NFL backup. Kitna has adequate measurable physical tools and is a
smart young man. But when the Buccaneers started to put the heat on him and played with
his mind, he looked indecisive and tentative and made poor decisions under pressure. The
Seahawks believe an offseason of reflection has allowed Kitna to grow into his role.
He’s down about 15 pounds to near 210 in an effort to improve his mobility and
stamina. Neither Glenn Foley nor Damon Huard was very productive in preseason action. Top of page |
| Running backs |
Grade B+ |
| By season’s end, Ricky Watters had started to fade and
looked to be an older back who could no longer carry the load alone. But he still finished
with 1,210 rushing yards, all five of the team’s TDs on the ground and 40 catches.
Watters, who has touched the ball more than 300 times in each of the past six seasons and
has rushed for more than 1,100 yards in each of the past five, may be starting to wear
down. That’s why Holmgren used his first first-round pick on Alabama’s Shaun
Alexander, who is not only a very gifted runner but also a fine pass receiver who can
catch the ball down the field going away from the line. Reggie Brown will probably share
time with Mack Strong at fullback. Top of page |
| Receivers |
Grade C |
| Christian Fauria is a supertough, two-fisted tight end who
gets the job done because he is so tenacious. But he is not going to scare a defense with
his receiving skills. At wide receiver, ex-Packer Derrick Mayes and former Colts
first-round pick Sean Dawkins put up respectable numbers, but both were helped a lot by
the system, and neither has big-play speed. Mayes has good size, tremendous body control
and outstanding hands. He can go up and over the defender to get passes put up for grabs.
Dawkins’ best assets are his size and long arms, which he uses well, but he is
neither quick nor fast. What the team still needs is a true No. 1 receiver with speed to
replace Joey Galloway. Top
of page |
| Offensive linemen |
Grade C |
| The star is OLT Walter Jones, who is one of the five or six
best tackles in football. Jones is the most athletic tackle in the game and, with a little
more strength and tenacity, could be the very best. He has great feet and movement skills
for a 300-pounder. OLG Pete Kendall is a really tough and smart blue-collar guy who is
downright nasty and scrappy and should be hungry because he is entering the last year of
his contract. Robbie Tobeck was signed away from the Falcons to start at center, but an
offseason knee injury could cause him to miss part, if not all, of the season. He will
still count against the salary cap, and the team may have to go back to journeyman Chris
Gray at center. Gray is best-suited to be a backup. Two of three players will start at
right guard and right tackle. Todd Weiner, who may not be strong enough, and Floyd
Wedderburn, who has the size, natural strength and athletic ability but needs work on pass
protection, are the holdovers. First-round pick Chris McIntosh, who remained unsigned as
of this writing, was a terrific left tackle in college despite having average feet but
might be an even better fit at right guard or right tackle if the change in footwork is
not a problem. Top of
page |
| Defensive linemen |
Grade B- |
| In new coordinator Steve Sidwell’s defense, Michael
Sinclair will always be the weak-side end and will almost always line up outside the
offensive tackle so that he has more room and freedom to rush. He had 41 1/2 sacks from
’96 to ’98, including 16 1/2 in ’98, when he lined up outside of the
tackle. Last season, when he often played right over the tackle, he had just six sacks.
Some blame the scheme, while others call Sinclair an undersized overachiever with a great
motor who found out he had diabetes last season and may be wearing down. The strong-side
end will be ’99 first-rounder Lamar King, a mobile, athletic 300-pounder. Cortez
Kennedy should be an effective nose tackle. He is still very quick, can be disruptive and
has very good lower-body explosion. Now that Sam Adams is in Baltimore, Riddick Parker,
who lacks Adams’ size and ability but has heart, or second-year prospect Antonio
Cochran will start at the other DT position. The Seahawks like Cochran’s quick hands
and quickness off the ball. Top of page |
| Linebackers |
Grade B |
| Chad Brown led the team in tackles for the second year in a
row, recording 117. He will be used as a strong-side ’backer, and the team will try
to give him more chances to rush the passer because that is his greatest strength. Anthony
Simmons, who is fast, explosive and mean but a little small to play the middle, will move
to the weak side, where he could develop into a special player. DeShone Myles, who was
lost for the season with a knee injury, will be replaced in the middle by George Koonce.
In Green Bay last season, Koonce really slipped on the strong side and was released. The
Seahawks hope he can coax another year out of his surgically repaired knee and improve
their porous run defense. Top
of page |
| Defensive backs |
Grade B |
| With better technique, consistency and concentration, Shawn
Springs can be a great cornerback. He is quite good as is but has too many lapses for a
player with his talent. Willie Williams is an undersized but feisty corner who may be
better when he plays off the receiver instead of bumping him at the line. He will be
challenged by Ike Charlton, who looks a little stiff in workouts but made a lot of big
plays at Virginia Tech. Fred Vinson was to have challenged as well, but a season-ending
knee injury put that to rest. Reggie Tongue was signed away from the Chiefs to replace
Darryl Williams at safety. Tongue has more range and tackles better, but Williams may have
been more of a ball-hawk. Unlike most safeties, Tongue can cover the inside slot, which is
a big plus. Sidwell considers Jay Bellamy one of the Seahawks’ best defenders. Top of page |
| Special teams |
Grade B+ |
| Todd Peterson has only average leg strength and range but is
very accurate inside 50 yards. P Jeff Feagles can be a little erratic but is very good at
placing kicks inside the 20. As a rookie, Charlie Rogers averaged an NFL-best 14.5 yards
per punt return and 25.8 per kickoff return, and he returned a kickoff 85 yards for a
score in the playoff loss to Miami. But Holmgren benched him at one point because he
fumbled so much. Top of
page |
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