Things slowed down for Seahawks RB Rashaad Penny in breakout game
Nov 13, 2018, 4:26 PM | Updated: 4:26 pm
Last Sunday was the first time Seahawks rookie running back Rashaad Penny’s performance was what you might expect from a first-round draft pick.
Penny was given a career-high 12 carries in Los Angeles against the Rams, and he turned it into his first 100-yard game, which included his first NFL touchdown.
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The 5-foot-11, 234-pound Penny had yet to eclipse even 50 rushing yards in a game before Sunday, and he attributed the slow start of his NFL career to a bad break during the preseason – literally. Penny suffered a broken finger that kept him off the field for several weeks leading into the regular season opener.
“Unfortunately I got hurt in preseason, so that kinda limited what I (could) do,” Penny told 710 ESPN Seattle’s The Huddle on Tuesday.
As a result, Penny struggled getting up to speed, and he even had a pair of games – Week 5 against the Rams and Week 8 at Detroit – where he didn’t get a single carry.
Something clicked last Sunday, however, according to Penny.
“Everything just seemed so much slower. After that first run, I was like, ‘OK, these guys are the same speed as me. I’m probably even faster,'” he said. “I was honestly starting to feel confident as the game went on, I started getting more shots, more carries. Started getting more comfortable with the offense and everything just started flowing well.”
Penny was sure to give credit where credit is due, as well. That included the Seahawks’ offensive linemen, his fellow running backs and Seattle’s coaches.
“I got a good group of running back guys that encourage me every day and stay on me. Running back coach always telling me to finish, Coach (Pete) Carroll always giving me advice,” he said.
In the interview on The Huddle, California native Penny also discussed getting the chance to play at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum for the first time and growing up as a fan of Carroll’s USC teams that played at that same venue. You can listen to the entire segment embedded in this post or download it in podcast form at this link.
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