Seahawks’ run game ‘has some stature to it’ again thanks to Lynch, Homer
Jan 3, 2020, 8:10 AM | Updated: 12:51 pm
Marshawn Lynch had a 15-yard run and a 1-yard TD in his Seahawks return. (AP)
(AP)
The Seahawks are entering a do-or-die playoff game matched up against a stout Philadelphia Eagles run defense on Sunday, and Seattle will play that contest without any of its top three running backs from the regular season.
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Not that Seahawks coach Pete Carroll is worried about the position. In fact, he’s quite encouraged after seeing what rookie Travis Homer and the man they call “Beast Mode,” Marshawn Lynch, did in last week’s regular season finale against the 49ers.
“I was observing (Thursday), as good as our guys looked on the practice field, that a week ago I couldn’t tell you what our running back situation was gonna be,” Carroll told KIRO Radio 97.3 FM’s Dori Monson on Friday. “We were trying to paste it together in a hurry and all that, but after the game and looking at our guys come back and bounce back again, we’ve got a running back position that’s got some stature to it that I’m excited about.”
Seattle lost No. 2 running back Rashaad Penny, who was in the midst of a breakout season, in a Week 15 loss to the Rams with a torn ACL. Then two weeks later, both starter Chris Carson, who had just reached 1,000 rushing yards for the second straight year, and backup C.J. Prosise suffered their own season-ending injuries.
Just like that, the 11-win Seahawks were down to Homer, a sixth-round draft pick, as the lone running back on their active roster. Of course, that opened the door for the surprising Seattle return of Lynch as well another RB familiar to the Seahawks, Robert Turbin.
While Turbin didn’t have any offensive snaps, Homer and Lynch each had their moments against San Francisco’s second-ranked defense. Homer led the team with 62 rushing yards on 10 carries, and he added 30 yards receiving on five catches. Lynch, meanwhile, had a 15-yard run and a 1-yard touchdown leap, finishing the game with 34 yards on 12 carries.
Carroll praised both during his weekly Pete Carroll Show on KIRO FM.
“I thought Travis did a wonderful job of hitting the line of scrimmage and throwing his body around and really playing with great speed that he has. (It’s) showed up, you can really see it and feel it. And then Marshawn had his shots. He had a couple really nice runs … and you know that he packs a punch and he’s got a whole style to himself.”
Suddenly that run game that has long been a trademark of Carroll’s Seahawks teams – the same one that was eroded away by injuries late in the regular season – looks to be back just in time for the playoffs.
“We’ve got style in the running back position – a week ago I couldn’t have really been able to state that,” Carroll said. “We do going into this game. I’m looking forward to it.”
You can hear The Pete Carroll Show at 12:30 p.m. every Friday on KIRO FM.
The Seahawks will face the Eagles in Philadelphia at 1:40 p.m. Sunday, with the broadcast airing on both 710 ESPN Seattle and KIRO FM. The pregame show will begin at 10:30 a.m.
Listen to Carroll’s conversation with Monson at this link or in the player below.
Follow 710Sports.com’s Brent Stecker on Twitter.
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