After slow start, Seahawks rookie Alex Collins has come alive

The Seahawks rushed only 87 yards in their win over San Francisco on Sunday, a lousy output under any circumstances but especially so considering it was all Seattle could manage against a historically bad 49ers run defense that ranked last in the NFL and had its worst season in franchise history. It was a poor end to an uncharacteristically poor regular season for the Seahawks’ running game, which finished 25th in the league after ranking between first and fourth in each of the last four years.

But what Alex Collins did Sunday was at the very least a bright spot and maybe even something of a sign of hope for the postseason. The rookie fifth-round pick rushed for 55 yards on seven carries (7.9 average) in the latest indication that he’s ready to be a regular contributor in Seattle’s backfield. The way coach Pete Carroll described him Monday on “Brock and Salk” suggests he’s starting to view Collins as such.

“Alex really lit it up again yesterday. That’s great to see him coming to life like that,” Carroll said. “We need him desperately and we need the one-two punch. He was the beneficiary of a couple really good schemes up front that hit and he took full advantage of it. He seems to bring some juice. You can feel the fire in him. He’s really fired up to be part of it, and it’s a very big positive for him.”

Collins began Sunday’s game by mixing in behind Thomas Rawls but ended up playing 10 more offensive snaps (30 of 64 compared to 20) after the Seahawks pulled some of their starters in the fourth quarter. Rawls scored a touchdown but gained only 14 yards on eight carries (1.8 average).

Collins has been the more productive of the two running backs of late. Over his last three games – excluding Week 15 against the Rams, when he didn’t play – Collins has gained 106 yards on 21 attempts for an average of just over 5 yards per carry. In four games over the same span, Rawls has carried 49 times for 123 yards and 2.51 average. And Collins has added more as a receiver out of the backfield, catching eight passes for 56 yards compared to Rawls’ three catches for 12 yards.

Collins began the season buried on Seattle’s depth chart. He didn’t play in four of the team’s first 12 games and gained only 19 yards on 1o carries during that span.

One big difference between now and then, aside from the increase in his opportunities, is that Collins is running with a burst that was noticeably lacking earlier in the year. That was evident Sunday when he ripped off a 26-yard run, the longest of his season.

Several weeks ago, Carroll praised Collins for the work he’s done to shed weight and get his body into better shape since the start of the season. He pointed to that on Monday as one factor in Collins’ increased explosiveness.

“He came in bigger than he is now. He thought he needed to be 225 or something like that and we’ve trimmed him down,” Carroll said. “During the course of the season, he’s probably lost over 10 pounds, and he’s held that weight. So that, I think, made a difference for him. We could see that really weeks ago.

“But I think it was confidence. I think it was really just a question of getting right. He didn’t feel right about the way he was fitting into things and all that, and you could see it. His confidence is grown and he’s ready to go … It’s a classic (example of a rookie) that comes along and we play him enough and now he’s part of the team and we can really count on him.”