Three things from the Seahawks’ first two preseason games

There’s no concern about whether Seattle passed Friday’s test in Kansas City. After all, passing wasn’t the problem. The Seahawks never really found their footing in the ground game.

Midway through all the preseason preparations, let’s stop to take stock of what we’ve learned about this team and what we’re still trying to understand:

Three things we learned:

1. The Seahawks’ defense is ready for the regular season.

The Seahawks were missing seven cornerbacks in Friday’s game, including five of the top seven players on the depth chart at that position. Neither of their two starting safeties were in uniform, either, and yet Seattle didn’t give up a point in the first quarter and allowed only 14 points all game. The depth of the defensive line is already evident, and the versatility that the Seahawks have with both Michael Bennett and Frank Clark capable of playing defensive end and sliding inside to tackle gives Seattle a world of pass-rushing possibilities. This Seahawks defense looks poised to be better than it was a year ago.

2. Seattle’s offense, however, is not.

The Seahawks struggled to run the ball effectively for the second consecutive game, and while it’s silly to cite Seattle’s rank in preseason rushing average (No. 25, by the way) as a cause for concern, it’s impossible to just brush all concerns away. After all, Marshawn Lynch has sat out most of the preseason each of the previous three years, too, and Seattle failed to rush for 100 yards as a team only twice in the 12 exhibition games during that time. The Seahawks have yet to break the century mark this year. At least the Seahawks didn’t fumble the ball Friday in Kansas City, but when you’re finding silver linings in a lack of mistakes, it’s a sign that there’s not much going right in the ground game.

3. Jimmy Graham guy is good to go.

One second-quarter series was all it took to ease any fears about how Graham will be worked into the offense. Russell Wilson hadn’t thrown Graham’s way in the first quarter, but in the span of 4 minutes in that second quarter, he found Graham matched up against Kansas City’s Ron Parker. He targeted Graham three times, completing all three passes for two first downs in the span of nine plays. The first completion to Graham covered 6 yards, the second 12 and the final was for 21 as Graham jumped up and caught the ball over Parker on a throw down the middle. Consider it a preview of Seattle’s coming attraction, said coach Pete Carroll. “He didn’t play a bunch of plays,” Carroll said, “but we wanted to see if we could use him a little bit and get he and Russ working. A couple of really nice plays, and you can just see he’s going to fit really nicely with us.”

Three things we’re still trying to figure out:

1. Does Seattle have the best group of linebackers in the league?

Everyone predicted that would be the case back in 2009 when the Seahawks drafted Aaron Curry with the No. 4 overall pick to play alongside Lofa Tatupu and Leroy Hill. Except Curry was a player who got worse with each passing week, Hill had trouble staying healthy and found it impossible to stay out of trouble while Tatupu’s body began to break down. Six years later, the Seahawks’ linebackers are as fast as they are fierce. K.J. Wright was a singularly destructive menace on Friday night in Kansas City while Bobby Wagner scored Seattle’s only touchdown on an interception return. Throw in Bruce Irvin – who is 20 pounds heavier and hungry for a big-budget contract – as well as promising second-year player Kevin Pierre-Louis and you just might have the best group of linebackers in the league.

2. Is there enough time to fix the offensive line?

The pass protection was better this week. Then again, tough to be much worse than it was against Denver when Seattle gave up three sacks in the first quarter and allowed all three quarterbacks to take significant hits. In addition to having two new starters on the offensive line, the Seahawks spent last week moving Justin Britt from tackle to guard, a position he hasn’t played since his freshman year at Missouri. For the past three years, the Seahawks have not only stayed out of the free-agent market for acquiring offensive linemen, but they’ve let veterans like Breno Giacomini, Paul McQuistan and James Carpenter leave while also trading Max Unger. Can offensive line coach Tom Cable fashion a functioning group out of the players he has on hand? Right now this line looks like it’s in the worst shape it has been in since 2011 when the Seahawks came out of the lockout trying to get Carpenter and John Moffitt – then both rookies – ready to start on opening day. That season began with quarterback Tarvaris Jackson absorbing an absolutely merciless beating over the first month.

3. Is B.J. Daniels going to make this team?

This will be one of the most interesting subplots over the next three weeks. Doug Baldwin, Jermaine Kearse and Tyler Lockett are locks to make the team. Ricardo Lockette is on solid footing, especially when you consider his performance on special teams, and Chris Matthews did a great job of rising to the challenge of making a bigger impact before he suffered a shoulder injury in the preseason opener. That leaves Daniels battling with Kevin Smith, Kevin Norwood and Kasen Williams to make the roster. Daniels dropped a pass on Friday in Kansas City. It was a tough catch, but it was a drop, and he has to continue to be a demon on the special-teams coverage units. But for a guy who was playing quarterback until this offseason, he’s got a real chance to earning a full-time job catching passes instead of throwing them, which would be remarkable.

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