Bump: The new wrinkle Seahawks’ offense has found

Nov 27, 2024, 9:24 AM

Jaxon Smith-Njigba of the Seattle Seahawks takes a screen pass up the field during a 2024 game. (Steph Chambers/Getty Images)

(Steph Chambers/Getty Images)

BY ZAC HERETH

Seattle Sports

The Seattle Seahawks have had some struggles on offense recently, but they’ve shown an effective way to attack defenses that was absent in prior seasons.

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The Seahawks have started to find success running screen passes, specifically over the middle of the field, picking up at least one pass play of 17 yards or more on a middle screen in each of their past three matchups.

The most common receiver featured in this concept has been Jaxon Smith-Njigba, but the team has also shown other variations with the running backs being targeted out of the backfield.

During the Four-Down Territory segment Monday on Seattle Sports’ Bump and Stacy, Stacy Rost asked former NFL wide receiver Michael Bumpus why the team has been able to unlock the screen game as an effective part of its offense.

“They figured out that they have a guy who can run the screen, and now they’re designing them in different ways,” Bumpus said.

Bumpus broke down one version of the play the Seahawks ran during their Week 11 win over the 49ers. They lined up in the shotgun with a bunched trips formation tight to the right side of the offensive line, and Smith-Njgiba lined up as the outside receiver of the bunch. Running back Kenneth Walker III motioned to the right to draw the defense out wide, Smith-Njigba faked a block for a swing pass, then broke back into the middle of the field for the pass where guards Anthony Bradford and Laken Tomlinson were set up to lead block. The result was a 17-yard play down to the 49ers’ 4-yard line.

The screen pass is the second play shown in the clip you can watch at this link from former college quarterback and current analyst Nate Tice, and there’s another thrown to tight end AJ Barner on the following play of the clip.

The Seahawks ran the concept the next week but in a different formation during their win over the Cardinals. This time, quarterback Geno Smith lined up in an empty backfield in the shotgun with a single receiver to his left, four to his right with three in a bunch formation tight to the offensive line. Smith-Njigba showed a flat route coming off the inside of the bunch, then cut back to the middle, caught the ball near the line of scrimmage with center Olu Oluwatimi as a lead blocker and raced 46 yards down to the Cardinals’ 4-yard line.

JSN breaks through for 46 yards! pic.twitter.com/3MAsXnXcp5

— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) November 24, 2024

“JSN is comfortable going across the middle and using his hands and weaving his way through,” Bumpus said. “It’s the understanding that I have a wide receiver who can do it (and) I gotta set him up.”

Seattle featured another variation of the middle screen concept during their Week 9 loss to the Rams, but this time it went to running back Zach Charbonnet. The Seahawks lined up in the shotgun with Charbonnet to Smith’s right. Charbonnet started out to the flat, then cut back to the middle on a shallow angle route and Bradford and Tomlinson were there to lead block and help spring a 24-yard gain.

Charbonnet on the move. 💨 pic.twitter.com/Rrsm0pbW75

— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) November 3, 2024

“Part of that is understanding that this is where my big boys operate the best,” Bumpus explained. “If I can get them in the middle of the field, and not east and west and asking these big boys to run 20 yards to the right or 20 yards to the left (like on an outside screen), they’re gonna get bodies on bodies a lot quicker.”

Now it’s up to offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb to keep finding ways to make the concept the work.

“The challenge now is that teams are gonna be ready for that,” Bumpus said. “How are we gonna mix it up? But I’m excited that we finally got a screen game.”

Listen to Four-Down Territory with former NFL wide receiver Michael Bumpus weekdays at 11:15 a.m. and 1:15 p.m. during Bump and Stacy, which airs from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Find the full conversation at this link or in the audio player near the top of this story.