Jake Heaps’ Chalk Talk: What Greg Olsen will add to Seahawks’ offense
Feb 21, 2020, 11:59 PM
Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson has a new weapon to employ in Seattle’s offense in 2020.
Three-time Pro Bowl tight end Greg Olsen agreed to terms with the Seahawks as a free agent earlier this week, giving Seattle some of the star power Wilson has been indicating he’d like to see added to the team this offseason.
Tom, Jake & Stacy’s free agent profiles: OT | WR, OG | TE, LB | RBs
But with his 35th birthday just weeks away and a history of foot problems, does Olsen still have what it takes to be a productive tight end in the NFL?
After looking over film from Olsen’s 2019 season with the Carolina Panthers, former Seahawks quarterback and current 710 ESPN Seattle host Jake Heaps is confident that Olsen will be a dynamic member of the Hawks in 2020.
“He’s a guy that, although having those injury concerns in his past, in 2019 he played 14 games, and the two games he missed were not due to a significant injury,” Heaps said in his latest episode of Chalk Talk, which he focused on four plays from Olsen’s 2019 season. “So he was pretty much healthy the entire season, and his production, he caught over 50 balls and had over 500 yards of receiving for a dysfunctional Carolina team that was led by Kyle Allen – not your franchise quarterback in Cam Newton.”
Last season, Olsen ended up hauling in 52 receptions for 597 yards, including two touchdowns. As for his two missed games, they came in Week 13 and Week 14 due to a concussion, but he cleared concussion protocol in time to make two catches for 33 yards in a Week 16 Panthers loss to the Colts. The really good news is that no time was missed last year due to a problematic foot that he both broke and re-aggravated in 2017, re-fractured in 2018 and later that same year suffered a ruptured plantar fascia late in the season.
“Greg Olsen still provides a lot when you watch the film on him,” Heaps said. “I see a lot of great things and not a diminished player in the least bit.”
In the four plays Heaps breaks down in the Chalk Talk video, he highlights Olsen’s route-running, stellar catch radius, football acumen, value on play-action pass plays, and perhaps most interesting to Seahawks fans, why he and fellow Seahawks tight end Will Dissly could be an interesting pair when on the field at the same time.
“You got a guy who can be smart in the run and the pass game,” Heaps said of Olsen. “He’s savvy in his route running. He understands coverages. He understands how to create separation for himself and create wider windows, and then he has the speed still to separate from defenders in one-on-one matchup situations.
“This is going to be very exciting to see what Greg Olsen can do for the Seattle Seahawks.”
You can watch the full Chalk Talk episode in the video embedded at the top of this post.
For more on Olsen and the Seahawks’ tight end situation, click any of the links below:
• O’Neil’s Week Sauce: Seahawks’ week was good, but a player’s was better
• Report: Seahawks expect TE Will Dissly to be ready for Week 1
• Bumpus: Seahawks get a ‘true tight end’ in Olsen who can ‘do everything’
• Gallant: Greg Olsen a strong addition with Seahawks in need of TE depth
• Clayton: Seahawks joining NFC West arms race with addition of Greg Olsen
