Like a kid who just unwrapped a brand new toy, Russell Wilson’s eyes light up and he breaks into a wide grin when the subject of Jimmy Graham is broached.
“We’re definitely glad to have him on our team, that’s for sure.”
And why not? For quarterback Wilson and the rest of the Seattle Seahawks offense, the addition of Graham to the fold is the football equivalent of Christmas morning.
Graham, Seattle’s new tight end, is the type of gamebreaking target the Seahawks’ offense has lacked in recent seasons, and he’s expected to revolutionize Seattle’s passing game.
“He’s going to be dynamic,” said Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman, who’s gotten a first-hand look at what Graham brings to Seattle’s offense throughout training camp. “He’s obviously a big-time touchdown catcher. He’s a great athlete, smooth. I think he’ll be big time on third downs and in the red zone obviously, as his history tells us. He’s a lot faster and a lot bigger than you think, and we’re going to use him.”
The Seahawks acquired Graham, a five-year veteran, from New Orleans in March on the first day of the free-agency period, sending Pro-Bowl center Max Unger to the Saints in what was arguably the biggest trade of the offseason.
Graham says he’s settled in well with his new team.
“Everything is great so far,” Graham said. “I’m looking forward to the first game, my first opportunity.
“I’ve been here five months now, I’m continuing to work with Russ, getting on the same page, and I’m ready to get this thing started the right way.”
Graham is the type of weapon in the receiving game Wilson never had in his previous three seasons as Seattle’s quarterback. The best receiving season by a Seahawk during Wilson’s tenure came when Golden Tate caught 64 passes for 898 yards and five touchdowns in 2013. Graham, a three-time Pro Bowler, regularly surpassed those numbers during his five seasons with the Saints, topping out with a 99-catch, 1,310-yard campaign in 2011.
What makes Graham such a dangerous receiver is his combination of size and speed. The former University of Miami basketball player measures in at a towering 6-foot-7 and 260 pounds, and he was clocked in the 40-yard dash at the 2009 NFL draft combine at a blistering 4.56 seconds.
“(Graham) is a dynamic playmaker, without question,” Seattle offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell said. “There’s going to be situations where he should be able to show up big, situational football, whether you’re talking about red zone, third down, those kind of things you hope you’re able to make that a factor.”
Wilson is relishing the addition of a big target to Seattle’s offensive arsenal.
“There’s a lot of times he may not look like he’s open, but he’s going to find a way to get open,” Wilson said. “Being 6-7, being 275 pounds, he can run like a deer, you find a lot of different ways to find him. He shows up, for sure. With all the guys we have it’s going to be tough for defenses to slow us down.”
Graham may not put up the same kind of gaudy numbers with Seattle that he did in New Orleans. The Seahawks’ offense is built on the foundation of a running game spearheaded by Marshawn Lynch, while the Saints were a high-flying aerial attack led by Drew Brees.
However, that ground game means Graham will be seeing something he never saw while with the Saints: single coverage.
“(Seattle’s offense) is very different, obviously,” Graham said. “We run the ball here, a lot. That’s the No. 1 priority. In New Orleans we were slinging the ball around quite a bit.
“You don’t get doubled as much,” Graham added. “There’s a lot of one-on-one coverage because (the defense) is stuffing so many guys in the box. The opportunities I will have will be man-to-man, which is something I haven’t had in a while.”
And Graham against single coverage presents a matchup nightmare for opposing defenses. Do they cover Graham with a linebacker, who can match Graham’s size but not necessarily his speed? Or do they cover Graham with a cornerback and risk Graham just catching the ball over the defender’s head?
“I think that’s a little bit of the cat and mouse game,” Bevell said. “(Opposing defenses) are going to have to decide how they want to play him. There may be times, depending on what we put out there, they may put their base defense out there, they may put out nickel. We just have to see how they’re going to play that and that’s a little cat and mouse and game. How do they want to match up, do they want to put a DB on him, do they want to put a linebacker on him, do they want to put a corner on him? Those are things we’ll be watching throughout the game.”
The Seahawks didn’t unleash Graham during the preseason — he had a modest six catches for 75 yards while appearing in three of Seattle’s exhibition contests.
But once the games begin for real, expect Graham to be heavily involved.
“I know when the ball comes my way I’ll be ready, I know on third down I’ll be ready and in the red zone,” Graham said. “I’m just looking forward to the opportunity. This offense has had a lot of explosive plays over the last years, I think they’ve led the league in explosive plays, so I’m just excited to be a part of that.”
And with Graham on board, the Seahawks should have that extra bit of TNT to power the offense.
Check out Nick Patterson’s Seattle Sidelines blog at http://www.heraldnet.com/seattlesidelines, and follow him on Twitter at @NickHPatterson.
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