What’s the Seahawks’ biggest problem right now? Bump weighs in

The first three weeks of the Mike Macdonald era couldn’t have gone much better for the Seattle Seahawks.

The past 11 days couldn’t have gone much worse.

Observations from Seahawks’ loss to 49ers on TNF

After a 3-0 start, the Seahawks have fallen all the way back to .500 with three straight losses – a 42-29 shootout loss to Detroit, an ugly 29-20 defeat to the struggling New York Giants this past Sunday and a 36-24 loss to the defending NFC champion 49ers on Thursday night.

There have been a wide array of issues: porous run defense, bad tackling, turnovers, a nonexistent rushing attack, leaky pass protection, costly turnovers, injuries to key players and more.

What’s been the biggest problem? During Friday’s edition of Bump and Stacy on Seattle Sports, former NFL wide receiver Michael Bumpus said it’s a combination of all those factors.

“The offensive line has struggled a bit,” Bumpus said. “Geno (Smith) played his worst game (last night). DK (Metcalf) played his worst game. Defensively, the linebackers aren’t playing consistently enough and you’re not turning the football over.

“It’s always a combination of things, and I think that’s what it is here, just like any other team that’s going through struggles. You can’t point to a team and say, ‘That one reason is why they are struggling.’ Everything is compounded.”

Bumpus said ultimately there’s still a talent gap between the Seahawks and teams like the Lions and 49ers. And he said it’ll take longer than just one season for Seattle to assemble the type of roster that fits what Macdonald is trying to build.

“Six games, one draft, one offseason isn’t enough to build the house that you want – the organization that you want,” Bumpus said. “You need more time. You need a full season. You need probably a couple of offseasons. You need more acquisitions. You need development. There’s a lot of things that go into play when you’re trying to build something. It doesn’t just happen overnight.”

As Baltimore’s defensive coordinator the past two seasons, Macdonald quickly developed a reputation as one of the league’s brightest defensive minds. Last year, Macdonald’s top-ranked Ravens defense became the first in NFL history to lead the league in points allowed, sacks and takeaways.

But even in Baltimore, it took time for Macdonald’s scheme to make an impact. Over the first half of 2022, the Ravens allowed 23.1 points per game. After that, they allowed just 15.9 points per game over the next one and a half seasons.

“He was crowned a defensive guru and people thought, ‘All right, he’s gonna fix it. He’s gonna make that player better than what anyone else is able to make him’ – when that same player has his limitations. There’s a reason why most careers only last three and a half years in this league, because there are the elite and there is everybody else.

“If you think you can recreate the Baltimore Ravens’ roster in one offseason, one draft, one season, then you’re not living in reality,” he added. “… That’s just what it is. I understand people’s need for instant satisfaction, and you thought you had that with a 3-0 start – at least a lot of people did. But I think everyone’s learning now that it is a process. It’s gonna take longer than you think.”

Listen to the full conversation on Bump and Stacy at this link or in the audio player near the top of this story. Tune in to Bump and Stacy weekdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. or find the podcast on the Seattle Sports app.

More on the Seattle Seahawks

• How Seahawks will approach mini-bye after 3 games in 11 days
• Turnovers, lack of takeaways a glaring issue for Seahawks
• Déjà vu: 49ers dominate Seahawks on the ground once again
• Rost: What another Seattle Seahawks loss to 49ers reveals about them
• Seahawks Instant Reaction: 49ers hand Seattle a third straight loss

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