The Seahawks' 2024 Rushing Woes: A Statistical Breakdown and Coaching Fallout
Let us start with the harsh reality: Seattle’s rushing attack. The Seahawks finished 28th in rushing with 1,627 yards on 383 attempts, averaging 95.7 yards per game. For comparison, the league-leading Baltimore Ravens rushed for 3,189 yards on 554 attempts, averaging a staggering 187.6 yards per game. Of course, having Derrick Henry, one of the toughest running backs in the game, makes that possible.
Closer to home, the NFC West-leading Rams ranked 24th in rushing. They carried the ball just sixty-seven times more than Seattle and only outgained them by 138 yards, averaging a mere 8.1 yards more per game. The takeaway? You do not need a top ten rushing offense to make the playoffs, but there is a pattern: four of the top five rushing teams—Baltimore, Philadelphia, Washington, Tampa, and Green Bay—all made the playoffs. Only three top ten rushing teams missed out: Arizona, Indianapolis, and Atlanta.
The Run-Pass Ratio and Missed Opportunities
Seattle’s run-pass balance—or lack thereof—played a significant role in their 10-7 finish and ultimate failure to reach the playoffs. In nine of their ten wins, the Seahawks rushed at least twenty-three times. The one exception was a Week 2 victory against the New England Patriots, where Seattle rushed only nineteen times. Geno Smith threw forty-four passes in that game, completing thirty-three for 327 yards and one touchdown in a narrow 23-20 win.
Contrast this with the losses, where Seattle rushed more than twenty times in just one game—a Week 9 defeat to the Rams. Even in that loss, Geno Smith was forced into thirty-four pass attempts, resulting in three interceptions. The most glaring example came in Week 4 against Detroit. Despite rushing for 133 yards on just nineteen attempts—a highly effective seven yards per carry—offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb had Geno Smith throw fifty-six times. The result? A 42-29 bruising.
Grubb’s explanation was that the team fell behind and needed to pass to catch up. But the real issue lay in how they fell behind. In the first half, Seattle scored just seven points, with two punts, a fumble, and a missed field goal stalling their offense. Meanwhile, Detroit converted their opportunities, scoring twenty-one points behind Jared Goff’s perfect 18-for-18 performance, an NFL record. Sticking to the effective run game likely could have kept the ball away from Goff.
Lessons Not Learned
In the very next game, Grubb dialed up just eleven rushes against the New York Giants. Somehow, Seattle still managed 102 rushing yards, seventy-two of which came on two Geno Smith scrambles. Yet, Smith was forced into forty pass attempts, a predictable and ultimately ineffective approach.
It became a pattern too glaring to ignore. Seattle’s losses consistently featured an unbalanced offensive game plan, with Grubb abandoning effective rushing attacks in favor of a pass-heavy strategy.
Coaching Fallout
The offensive woes sealed Ryan Grubb’s fate. Head coach Mike McDonald, despite it being his first season, appeared to recognize early on that Grubb’s approach was not sustainable. While the Seahawks’ 10-7 record and near-playoff berth could be called a success, its clear changes were necessary.
Now McDonald has the chance to reset. With time to find the right offensive coordinator, the Seahawks can fully leverage their talent pool in 2025. The lesson from 2024? Balance matters, and when Seattle finds it, the wins will follow.
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