What is the Seahawks’ weakest position group heading into 2018?
Jan 29, 2018, 10:34 AM | Updated: 1:01 pm
Seahawks LB K.J. Wright (knee) is ready to start again this Saturday. (AP)
(AP)
Most Seahawks fans will point to the offensive line as Seattle’s greatest weakness, or to running back as an area of need in 2018. But there’s another position group that’s also unsteady, according to 710 ESPN Seattle’s Brock Huard, and it’s not as immediately obvious.
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Pro Bowlers Bobby Wagner and K.J. Wright head the Seahawks’ linebacker crew, but Huard explained his concerns about the position group during his Blue 42 segment of Brock and Salk Monday morning.
“You’ve got Bobby and K.J. – and then what?” Huard said. “You nailed it in 2012 and 2013 with K.J. and Bobby, but you need to find (young players) and replenish. And they’re going to get injured; you saw it last year with Bobby playing at 50 percent with a hamstring that he just couldn’t even go and burst. That’s what you got because you didn’t like the veterans that you brought in last year, the Brock Coyles that you’ve cut along the way (and) the Korey Toomers that didn’t develop in your place. You just have not been able to replenish that linebacker crew. And there are some intriguing dudes in this draft class. I don’t know how they’re going to manipulate things … but find me another young, fast, explosive, dynamic, play-making linebacker.”
Wagner, 27, is under contract with Seattle through 2019 while Wright, 28, becomes an unrestricted free agent after the 2018 season.
The Seahawks have the 18th-overall pick in this year’s NFL Draft, though they’ve historically traded out of the first round under general manager John Schnieder (which is still more likely this year as the Seahawks are without another selection until the fourth round). There are plenty of talented linebackers who could fall into the late rounds, including Shaquem Griffin, who has earned plenty of local fans with his standout season, inspirational story, and connection to the Seahawks (his twin brother is Seattle cornerback Shaquill Griffin).
