RENTON — In their last game, despite a horrible first half, the Seahawks were down just 14 points when they started the second half with the ball.
The Seahawks opened the third quarter against Arizona with a chance to gain some momentum and put themselves right back into a home game against a division rival.
But on the first play of that possession running back Julius Jones was tackled for a 3-yard loss. On second down, Jones was hit in the backfield again, this time for a 1-yard loss. That led to another Seahawks’ three-and-out, and Seattle was on its way to a lopsided 27-3 defeat that featured the lowest single-game team rushing total in franchise history — 14 yards.
The Seahawks’ bad day running the ball against the Cardinals underscores an ongoing problem plaguing the team. Seattle has lacked a consistent rushing attack all season.
Seattle’s 90.3 rushing yards per game and 3.5 yards per carry each rank 28th in the NFL. Jones, the team’s leading rusher, averages 3.9 yards per carry, but that number is buoyed by a 62-yard run he had in the season opener.
Jones, however, isn’t the main problem, Seahawks offensive coordinator Greg Knapp said.
“A lot of it is up front because of the interchangeable parts,” Knapp said. “It’s made it hard for the backs to get a consistent read.”
Knapp is referring, of course, to the ever-changing offensive line. The Seahawks have started three left guards, two centers and three left tackles this season — and that doesn’t include injured starter Walter Jones, who has been out all season. Damion McIntosh could very well end up as starting left tackle No. 4 when the Seahawks play Dallas on Sunday, in which case the Seahawks would start their fifth different line combination in seven games.
Before the season started, Knapp admitted that the zone blocking scheme he was installing would take time to click. In previous stops as an offensive coordinator, Knapp said it took between six to eight weeks to get the running game to where it should be, but that was with a healthy line.
“That was with the same five starting linemen,” he said of the time estimate. “There’s no way it’s going to be like that now. It’s going to take longer. We’ve had two starting centers, three left guards, four left tackles, maybe our fifth in seven games. You can’t develop the running game and our protection game consistently if you’re changing the parts.”
An inability to run the ball is new to Knapp. In his eight seasons as an NFL offensive coordinator, his teams have ranked in the top-10 in rushing every season and in the top-five five times. In all three of his years working under Jim Mora in Atlanta, Knapp’s offenses led the league in rushing.
“I’m not used to being in this situation running the football,” Mora said following his team’s loss to the Cardinals. “I’ve always been a part of a team that was capable of running the football, and right now that is part of our struggles.”
Despite what the numbers say, the players are confident that the running game eventually will succeed this season. They feel the numbers against Arizona were not a sign of things to come.
“It’s building, we’re building,” center Chris Spencer said. “We’re just going to keep working at it and keep at it, then all of a sudden, pound, pound and we’ll pop it. So, we’ve just got to keep working and try to eliminate games like that one.”
But if the pounding doesn’t result in a few runs that pop soon, the Seahawks may have to eventually become more one-dimensional than they already are. In 2007, Mike Holmgren decided mid-season that his team’s strength wasn’t the running game and decided to throw balance out the window. But even that team averaged more yards per game (101.2) and per carry (3.8) than are the 2009 Seahawks.
So might Mora take a similar approach if things don’t turn around soon with the run game?
“Sure, absolutely,” Mora said. “Like I’ve said all along, we would like to be balanced, but we’re not going to beat our heads against a wall if something’s not working, because our ultimate objective is to win and score points, so yes.”
Herald Writer John Boyle: jboyle@heraldnet.com. For more Seahawks coverage, check out the Seahawks blog at heraldnet.com/seahawksblog
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