When the Seattle Seahawks hired Pete Carroll in 2010, the running game was the focal point of the offense. However, in recent memory, Russell Wilson and the passing game have become the new identity of the Seahawks. In the offseason, the Seahawks focused on adding talent and depth on offense. They traded for guard Gabe Jackson and signed offensive tackle Brandon Shell. The Seahawks also added former Los Angeles Rams tight end Gerald Everett. Then, despite holding only three draft picks, the Seahawks used their first selection on wide receiver D’Wayne Eskridge. After the changes in the offseason, let’s look at what fantasy players can expect from the Seahawks this season.
Make sure to check out all of our other 2021 Fantasy Football Previews.
Quarterbacks – Russell Wilson
For the first time in his career, Wilson threw more than 35 passing touchdowns, throwing 40 last season. Furthermore, Wilson had a career-high 558 pass attempts. By comparison, Wilson averaged 472 pass attempts per season over the first eight years of his career. In the offseason, Wilson signed off on the Seahawks hiring Shane Waldron as their offensive coordinator. Waldron spent the last three seasons with the Los Angeles Rams as their passing game coordinator. His hiring suggests the Seahawks are ready to let Russ cook even more in 2021. Most impressive of all, Watson has finished as a top-12 quarterback every year of his career. After all the drama surrounding Wilson this offseason, expect him to come on fire this season and finish as a top-three quarterback.
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Running Backs – Chris Carson, Rashaad Penny, DeeJay Dallas
In the offseason, Carlos Hyde signed with the Jacksonville Jaguars. With Hyde out of the picture, the Seahawks put a priority on re-signing Carson. After coming to terms on a two-year, $10.4 million deal, Carson is the featured back in this backfield. Despite missing four games with injuries, Carson finished as the RB19, averaging 15.6 fantasy points per game. Furthermore, on a point per game basis, Carson finished as the RB11 last season among running backs with at least seven games played. Over the past three seasons, Carson has averaged 14.4 or more fantasy points each year. Furthermore, Carson has scored at least nine total touchdowns every year since his rookie season. While Carson isn’t an elite running back with top-five upside, he is the ideal consistent safe floor RB2.
Behind Hyde, the Seahawks used several running backs last season, including Penny, Dallas, Alex Collins, and Travis Homer. Penny has the pedigree as a former first-round pick. However, he has averaged only 4.5 fantasy points per game in his career. Furthermore, Seattle declined his fifth-year option in the offseason. More importantly, Penny has struggled with injuries, missing 21 of 48 career games, including 16 of the last 19. Meanwhile, Dallas had a solid rookie season in limited work. While he averaged 4.7 fantasy points per game, in the two games with seven or more rushing attempts, Dallas averaged 17.4 fantasy points per game. If Carson misses time with an injury, the Seahawks will use an unpredictable running back by committee situation, making all their reserve running backs undraftable.
Wide Receivers – D.K. Metcalf, Tyler Lockett, D’Wayne Eskridge
Last season, Metcalf and Lockett both finished as top-10 wide receivers. Metcalf finished as the WR7 while Lockett finished as the WR8. However, they got to their finishes in different fashions. Metcalf scored 18 or more fantasy points in half of his games. Meanwhile, Lockett scored 18 or more in only five games. Furthermore, Lockett scored 123 of his 265.4 fantasy points (46.5 percent) from last season in three games. By comparison, Lockett scored under 12 fantasy points in over half his games last season. Meanwhile, Metcalf scored no more than 14.8 percent of his fantasy points for the season in any single week. This season, Metcalf will likely finish as a top-10 receiver. On the other hand, Lockett’s fantasy value might be hurt by the addition of Eskridge.
Despite having only three picks in the 2021 NFL Draft, the Seahawks used their first selection on Eskridge. During his final year at Western Michigan, Eskridge had a career-high eight touchdowns on only 33 catches. Furthermore, he averaged over 20 yards per catch for the third straight year in 2020. Eskridge will replace David Moore as Seattle’s third wide receiver. In his final year in Seattle, Moore had a career-high six touchdowns and 7.4 fantasy points per game. Fantasy players should expect Eskridge to have a similar rookie season. Furthermore, Eskridge should have a couple of big games this season at Lockett’s expense.
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Tight Ends – Gerald Everett
During his time with the Rams, Everett never turned into a consistent fantasy player, averaging 5.3 fantasy points per game for his career. However, Everett has produced for fantasy owners in the past when given a chance. For his career, Everett has 19 games with 10 or more fantasy points. In Seattle, Everett will take over as the clear starting tight end. Last year, the Seahawks targeted their tight ends 108 times. Other than Metcalf and Lockett, the Seahawks lack proven receiving threats. Expect Everett to be used as a mismatch move tight end, and have several massive performances as defenses focus on stopping Metcalf and Lockett. Therefore, Everett should have no trouble finishing as a top-12 tight end this year.
Defense/Special Teams
The Seahawks D/ST finished just outside the top-12 finish last season, averaging 6.4 fantasy points per game. In the offseason, the Seahawks lost defensive tackle Jarran Reed. He finished second on the team with seven sacks. The Seahawks also lost their top cornerback Shaquill Griffin. He finished last season second on the team with three interceptions. To replace Griffin, the Seahawks signed Ahkello Witherspoon and spent a fourth-round pick on Tre Brown. However, playing in the NFC West, the Seahawks have to deal with three dangerous offenses six times a year. The Seahawks play the Indianapolis Colts in Week 1. With Carson Wentz questionable to start the season, fantasy players should target the Seahawks D/ST as their Week 1 streaming defense.
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