Despite losing a wild-card playoff game that many thought was winnable, there still is a lot of optimism for the Seahawks to come back strong next season. It's the topic of this week's conversation between KNKX sports commentator Art Thiel and Morning Edition host Kirsten Kendrick.
PLAY-CALLING AND INJURIES
A lot of people are criticizing the Seahawks' play-calling in the 24-22 loss to the Dallas Cowboys in the NFC wild-card playoff game.
Thiel agreed that the Seahawks should have utilized their passing offense earlier. But he also pointed out the injuries of two key offensive linemen, D.J. Fluker and J.R. Sweezy, that complicated things.
'BIG PROPS TO ALL INVOLVED'
Despite the playoff loss, Thiel called 2018 a "huge success" for the Seahawks in a rebuilding year.
"I think a 10-6 (regular season) record given the voids that were on the defense was a remarkable feat," he said. "This is, I think, Pete Carroll's best coaching job, despite what happened Saturday in Dallas.
"I think there was a tremendous uptick on the offense and then I think the defense was about an NFL average, which I didn't expect at all.
"I didn't think that they were going to be able to compensate for the abesences of Richard Sherman, Kam Chancellor, Michael Bennett, Cliff Avril. These guys were really vital parts of the team. And then they lost Earl Thomas four games into the season with a leg injury.
"So this was a tremendous effort on the Seahawks' players part. And I think adding new assistant coaches was a difference maker because they got a lot more production.
"In the second half of the season, they scored more points than any team in the NFL and the defense was respectable so, yeah, big props to all involved."
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