Steelers Scouting Report: What to expect from the Seattle Seahawks
The Pittsburgh Steelers look to rebound this Sunday as they host the Seattle Seahawks in the home opener at Heinz Field for the 2019 season.
Last week the Steelers dropped a disappointing 33-3 loss to the New England Patriots in Foxboro. The Seahawks struggled early at home against the Cincinnati Bengals before rallying to win 21-20.
Each team is led by a Super Bowl winning head coach: Mike Tomlin of the Steelers and Pete Carroll of the Seahawks. Both franchises have been steady winners overall for the better part of a decade and should provide a great matchup for fans watching in the stands or at home.
Here’s a look at the Steelers upcoming opponent and how they fare as they travel to Pittsburgh with a 1-0 record.
Injury Report
Several Seahawks who showed upon Wednesday’s injury report returned to full practice, including G Mike Iupati, S Ugo Amadi, DE L.J. Collier, DE Ziggy Ansah, and DE Jadeveon Clowney (whose absence was not injury-related).
DE Quinton Jefferson, who sacked Bengals QB Andy Dalton twice last week as well as batted down two other passes, was added to the injury report with a hip ailment. Starting FS Tedric Thompson also shows up on the report. Thompson played the entire game last week and is a key component in the Seahawks secondary after recent departures of Kam Chancellor and Earl Thomas already left the defense in a rebuild mode.
Also appearing on the injury report as “Did Not Participate” are C Joey Hunt (Ankle), DT Poona Ford (Calf), and CB Neiko Thorpe (Hamstring). Wide receivers David Moore (Shoulder) and Tyler Lockett (Back) were both limited.
Russell Wilson leads a run-proficient Seahawks offense
While Russell Wilson is a great quarterback and can be a dangerous passer who extends plays, the 2018 Seahawks were content with running the football, leading the league in total yards while ending up 7th overall in scoring offense.
They are led by Chris Carson, who won the job when last year’s first round pick Rashaad Penny had trouble staying on the field. With both healthy, the Seahawks have a complimentary set of backs. Carson is also more than capable of catching passes out of the backfield, but it’s this year’s draft addition, D.K. Metcalf, who made a splash in Week 1 as well.
Metcalf adds another dimension to the Seahawks offense. A physical specimen, he caught 4 passes for 89 yards last week. Tyler Lockett, who primarily operates as a slot receiver, was contained to a single catch last Sunday, but barring any injury setbacks, could be a thorn in the Steelers side as well.
Tight ends Nick Vannett and Will Dissly won’t strike fear in any defenses, but are also capable chain movers who provide support in the Seahawks rushing attack.
Seattle will be hard-pressed to protect Russell Wilson, who was brought down four times by the Bengals last week. Their running game was also contained to the tune of a combined 72 yards. Look for Seattle to attempt to get that going in order to setup their passing attack.
Seahawks add Clowney but far from “Legion of Boom”
On the other side of the ball, the Seahawks front seven is a formidable bunch featuring newly acquired Jadeveon Clowney as their key pass rusher, along with Ziggy Ansah, Mychal Kendricks and Bobby Wagner as the headlining defensive players to watch.
The Seattle secondary was torched, however, last week by Bengals QB Andy Dalton, who had a career day. Dalton completed 35 of 51 passes (68.6%) while throwing for 416 yards and 2 touchdowns.
Dalton’s main target was Seahawks CB Tre Flowers, who couldn’t cover John Ross (7 receptions, 158 yards, 2 touchdowns). An injury to starting safety Tedric Thompson could also further weaken a declining Seahawks secondary that no longer resembles the old “Legion of Boom” which featured Richard Sherman and the aforementioned Thomas and Chancellor.
This could open up the passing game for the Steelers, who need to answer the question of “Who replaces Antonio Brown?” Last week, no one answered that call, while Ben Roethlisberger looked rusty with some passes off of the mark.
Look for the Steelers to be better balanced with their play calling this week, but also watch for Big Ben: if he’s “on” this Sunday, it could be a long day in the office for the Seahawks D.
Final Thoughts
On the Steel City Underground Podcast I quipped that this game could be a coinflip: both teams are usually slow starter in September, but they also feature a lot of the same parallels: great head coaches, quarterbacks who can extend plays, and a solid front seven on defense.
Seattle has to travel from the West Coast for a 1pm Eastern Time Zone game which typically doesn’t favor the visitors. If the Steelers make any improvements over their drubbing by the Patriots last week, they should be able to start off at home with a victory and climb to 1-1 this Sunday.
