Jump to content
[[Template core/front/custom/_customHeader is throwing an error. This theme may be out of date. Run the support tool in the AdminCP to restore the default theme.]]

Seahawks to use more 4 WR sets


Randall
 Share

Recommended Posts

EATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/football/285234_hawk15.html

 

Seahawks look to increase use of four-receiver sets

Friday, September 15, 2006

 

By CLARE FARNSWORTH

P-I REPORTER

 

KIRKLAND -- Long before the bold move to acquire Deion Branch, coach Mike Holmgren had allowed himself to envision the explosive wide receiver being a great fit in the Seahawks' passing game.

 

Tampering? No, daydreaming.

 

Yes, Branch played his first four NFL seasons in New England and was under contract to the Patriots, but that didn't stop Holmgren from letting his imaginative mind wander.

 

"You picture plays that look similar and say, 'Yeah, we do that,' and look at him do that,' " Holmgren said. "I think he's going to be a great fit. That was my feeling in playing against him and watching him play."

 

The question is, of course: Where does Branch fit on a team that already has Darrell Jackson and Nate Burleson, as well as Bobby Engram and D.J. Hackett?

 

When there is only one ball, are 10 hands really better than eight?

 

"I think Branch is going to help them a lot," one scout from an NFC team said. "He's a solid, productive player and he does a lot of things. He'd help any offense, so he should really help the Seahawks because his skills fit so well with what they do."

 

Even the Arizona Cardinals, the Seahawks' opponent in their home opener Sunday at Qwest Field, are chiming in on this one.

 

"I can probably say I wasn't the happiest guy to see Deion Branch go to Seattle. I was hoping he would stay out there in the AFC," Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald said in an interview on Fox Sports radio.

 

"We get all this talk about Arizona might have the best receiving corps in the league, and then you got four 1,000-yard receivers on (Seattle)," he added. "They are really potent."

 

But is everyone in that potent group happy? A show of hands, please:

 

Burleson? He not only embraced the acquisition, he has been lending a helping hand by going over plays with Branch in practice while the other receivers were running the routes.

 

Engram? He will let his actions speak for him, just as he has since the Seahawks signed Burleson in free agency to fill the starting spot that belonged to Engram last season. Rather than sulk, Engram has been the team's most consistent -- and productive -- receiver since training camp opened.

 

Hackett? He will lose some snaps with Branch now in the mix, but at 6-feet-2 he's still the biggest target and has that big-play potential.

 

Jackson? His body language says, "What else is new?" The Seahawks have been bringing in receivers to challenge his status as the No. 1 option in the passing game since he led all NFL rookies in receptions, receiving yards and touchdown catches in 2000. First, it was Koren Robinson, a first-round draft choice in 2001. Then it was the trade for Jerry Rice in 2004.

 

Now, it's the additions of Burleson, who signed as a free agent, and Branch.

 

But the dynamic will change because a fifth spoke has been added to the mix.

 

"Anytime you bring in another real quality receiver, I think their thought is, 'He's going to catch some balls that I caught before, that were mine,' " Holmgren said. "That's the nature of the beast."

 

It doesn't help that wide receivers are unlike any other animals on the NFL planet.

 

"I ask them to be unselfish," Holmgren said. "But the receivers, more than any other position, their catches mean everything. That's how they get noticed. That's how they get paid a lot of times. That's how they get on 'SportsCenter.'

 

"So they're everything."

 

What to do?

 

To this point, the three-receiver sets have been the staple of Holmgren's passing game with the Seahawks -- in part because they have lacked a proven fourth option.

 

"We have not been a big four-wide receiver team. We've sprinkled it in there," Holmgren said. "But as I look at it, it is intriguing to get all those guys on the field at the same time."

 

What that would mean is less snaps for veteran fullback Mack Strong and the tight ends, especially with incumbent starter Jerramy Stevens sidelined after undergoing knee surgery last month.

 

"Even if we had our full complement of tight ends," Holmgren said, "I think we should still explore this four-wide receiver stuff."

 

Especially since that expedition began long before the Seahawks even acquired Branch.

 

"To add a player of his stature, who is a good guy and a very team-oriented guy," Holmgren said, "that's good."

 

SUPER PRODUCTION

 

A look at the pass-catching distribution for the Seahawks' Super Bowl team last season and how it compared to the Patriots' Super Bowl-winning team in 2003 that Deion Branch played on and Mike Holmgren's Super Bowl-winning team in Green Bay in 1996:

 

Seattle '05 Patriots '03 Packers '96

Leading receiver 67 (Engram) 57 (Branch) 56 (Freeman)

No. 2 receiver 55 40 39

No. 3 receiver 38 34 23

Other receivers 46 34 50

Tight ends 58 67 71

Running backs 43 88 89

Total catches 307 320 328

Link to comment
Share on other sites

""Even if we had our full complement of tight ends," Holmgren said, "I think we should still explore this four-wide receiver stuff." We have not been a big four-wide receiver team. We've sprinkled it in there," Holmgren said. "But as I look at it, it is intriguing to get all those guys on the field at the same time."

 

Good news for Hasselbeck owners.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Mike Holmgren obviously knows how crappy Shaun Alexander is from the first game, so now he wants to go all pass!

 

 

 

The O-line did have some problems last week, it will be interesting to see if the Lions D is any good this year. It's only one game. SA ran for 73 yards and no TD's in week one last year and ended up having a half decent season.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

 Share

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information