Three weeks into the 2019 NFL season, and the Seattle Seahawks have yet to see their run game take off the way it did during 2018. Starting running back Chris Carson has battled a fumble issue all season, while backup Rashaad Penny missed the Week 3 game against the New Orleans Saints due to a hamstring injury. With back to back division games against the Arizona Cardinals and the Los Angeles Rams scheduled for a five day span this week, we have a chance to learn quite a bit about the Seahawks and what their 2019 prospects may look like.
So far, at least, the games have provided more questions than answers, with the team struggling all three weeks. However in spite of their struggles, they have been able to come away victorious in each of the first two games of the season.
That said, after being the first Seahawks running back to run for more than a thousand yards since 2014 during the 2018 campaign, Carson has found the sledding far tougher this season. So far he’s averaging a career worst 3.5 yards per carry, with a 38% success rate that ranks 35th out of 39 qualifying backs. Add in that 28.9% of his carries so far this season have gone for no gain or a loss, and his 2019 campaign is tracking worse than his 2017 season to this point. Getting to the film, here’s a look at his fifteen carries against the Saints.
If there was a time for Carson to get things going, it’s heading into a stretch of games where this weekend’s opponent in the Cardinals currently have the lowest rated run defense of any opponent the Seahawks will face between now and the Week 11 bye.