The simple change that could greatly impact the Seahawks’ offense

With a new offensive coordinator in the fold in Shane Waldron, all eyes are on the Seahawks’ offense and what that unit will look like during the 2021 season.

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Seattle returns many key skill players on that side of the ball, namely quarterback Russell Wilson and 1,000-yard receivers DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett, but the team was able to re-sign one of the more underrated offensive players in football this offseason in running back Chris Carson.

Carson is back on a two-year deal, and while he didn’t rush for 1,000 yards last season like he did in both 2018 and 2019, he did set career-highs in yards per carry (4.8) and receiving touchdowns (four) and tied his career-high in total touchdowns (nine) despite missing four games and not being as featured as in previous seasons due to a more pass-heavy offense early in the year.

In training camp, however, the Seahawks have apparently been doing something in the running game that has a few former NFL players very excited.

“I like that they’re running the ball from under the center,” former Seahawks offensive lineman Ray Roberts told 710 ESPN Seattle’s Danny and Gallant earlier this week (listen to that segment here). “Chris Carson can get really downhill a lot faster, a lot harder, coming from downhill to get the ball versus standing beside Russell and handing it to him.”

Former NFL quarterback Jake Heaps of 710 ESPN Seattle’s Jake and Stacy agreed with Roberts’ observations and added some thoughts of his own on the topic.

“I do think that will make a difference for this offense and for this running game,” Heaps said. “I do think Chris Carson and Rashaad Penny, for that matter, and Alex Collins are better running backs who are more comfortable playing a more traditional role in their zone running schemes and in their downhill running schemes.”

But what makes the Seahawks running more from under center even more exciting, Heaps said, is how it opens up the rest of the offense.

“It makes everything else better. It adds to the illusion of what is going on and the misdirection of what Shane Waldron is trying to present with this offense whether it’s the fly sweep game, the running game, the screen game, the play-action game,” he said. “It all opens up based on the fact that you’re being more heavy under center in this offense. I believe that’s going to have a very positive effect on this offense as a whole and it will make it that much tougher on defenses to get a true beat on what they’re trying to accomplish from an offensive perspective on every given play.”

Listen to the second hour of Tuesday’s Jake and Stacy at this link or in the player below.

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