Did John Schneider fail his Seahawks this year?
That is what some fans think in the wake of a 3-2 start that has seen the top three draft picks go on IR, the backup running backs fail as Kenneth Walker III has led the league in rushing with Kansas City, and Rashid Shaheed underperform his new contract.
It’s all been pretty disappointing — and some of it even predictable. But it is early yet and we are not inclined to judge anything after five games, other than the obvious fact that turnovers have killed Seattle in its two losses and the offense is definitely askew.
Some are most irked about Schneider paying Shaheed over Walker — $17 million a year over $14.3 million. They were two separate decisions, made for different reasons, but some fans don’t care. They just see the money and the usage and declare it a Schneider failure.
While Walker leads the NFL in rushing yards per game (134), Shaheed has done very little for Seattle. His rushing touchdown vs. the Chargers is his only notable play so far. The ball has come his way 22 times and he has 133 scrimmage yards.
In the return game, he and the Hawks are tied for 10th on kickoffs, but Shaheed is 23rd in punt return average and leads the NFL by a long shot with 15 fair catches (because Seattle can’t keep opposing gunners away from him).
This is why some fans are irked about Schneider’s call to pay Shaheed but not Walker.
We’re just five games into the season though, so we are not going to judge the Shaheed re-signing yet. We still think he will help win more games. The coaches need to get him involved the way Schneider and Macdonald envisioned it.
We also doubt Walker will maintain his pace for over 2,200 yards. It’s a long season. So there be a so-called regression to the mean in both cases.
As for Walker’s replacements, there is no question the returns have been disappointing. Jadarian Price — the first-round pick we weren’t overly keen on — lost two fumbles before going on IR.
The Seahawks are 20th in yards per rush (3.8) and 17th in yards per game (106). Emanuel Wilson and George Holani rank low in efficiency, success rate, etc. The backs have lost four fumbles in , factoring huge in both losses.
In slight defense of the line and the runners, the Hawks have faced three of the top 11 rush defenses. And they have been without Anthony Bradford for the past couple of games, which may or may not have changed things.
Brian Fleury has some tells in his play calls, too. Against the 49ers, he kept running a tight end motion into the backfield to create the lead block. It was easy to recognize the run on those plays. The two games before that, he ran it right heavily, with almost no success.
Zach Charbonnet will make his debut soon, likely in Week 7 vs. the Chiefs. He may or may not offer immediate help.
Price should return from IR in a few weeks, too. Maybe against Chicago in Week 8. Ideally, he will stay healthy and offer some big plays, as he showed flashes of before he was injured.
Other than the drafting of Price over a pass rusher, we agreed with Schneider’s offseason moves.
No one would have projected Walker as the NFL’s leading rusher. Price’s rough start has been unlucky. And Shaheed’s lack of impact has been unexpected.
But it’s early. Too early to declare Schneider’s offseason a failure.
