Rashaad Penny, Seattle Seahawks.
The Seattle Seahawks will have plenty of cap space this offseason. They also have plenty of holes they need to address. The NFL has moved away from teams being built around strong dominant running games. It’s all about throwing the ball. However, the Seattle Seahawks offense still heavily revolves around a very strong running game.
As all 12s saw, the Seattle Seahawks were much better to end the year when they had a strong running game to pair with Russell Wilson’s passing. Ok, sure, Wilson might have finally been healthy too. But as we all saw when Chris Carson and Rashaad Penny were out, and the running game floundered, the Seattle Seahawks offense consistently struggled to move the ball.
So, unlike other teams, the running back is a bit more important and vital to the Pete Carroll offense. Yes, it’s Carroll’s offense and not Shane Waldron’s, but I digress. As of now, the Seattle Seahawks have Carson on the roster along with Travis Homer and DeeJay Dallas. However, Homer and Dallas have shown to be complementary or change of pace type backs. They’re not the guys that can carry a full .workload throughout the season.
On the other hand, Carson can be an NFL team’s lead back. Unfortunately, he is currently recovering from a scary neck injury. He successfully had a neck disc fusion surgery in December, and as of the latest from Carroll, Carson should be ready to roll for the 2022 season. Subsequently, should the Seattle Seahawks bank on having a healthy Carson? Or should they go out and have a better contingency plan in place? That is where the resigning of Penny comes into play. It’s also where the biggest debate comes too. So, let’s examine this situation a little closer.
Penny is a former first-round pick, and there is an old adage about never giving up on talent. Penny has NFL talent. If you’re not sure, here are some fun facts. There are only two players in Seahawks history with three straight games of rushing for 130-yards, Shaun Alexander and Penny. Another example, 52 percent of Penny’s total rushing came on runs of 15 or more yards. No other running back is over 40 percent.
Finally, over the last five weeks of the season, he led the league in rushing with 671 yards. In that span, his 485 yards after contact alone would have led the league by 22 yards. The next best overall total was NFL rushing leader Jonathan Taylor’s 463.
Penny’s injury history is well known, which should keep his asking price low. Yes, The Seattle Seahawks already declined Penny’s fifth-year option, but so what. Penny showed at the end of the year that he can very much be a bell-cow back. Sometimes it just takes a player a little longer to get adjusted to the NFL. Hat’s off to his perseverance and work ethic.
As previously mentioned, a strong running game is vital for a Carroll offense. Only 25 years young, Penny can be the running back to lead a strong Seahawks rushing attack. It would be foolish to give up on such a talent like his considering Carson’s injury history. Another adage is playmakers beat schemes. There are times in games when players just need to make plays. Penny makes plays.
Now, for the other side. Penny gets hurt often. Out of a total of 65 games, he has played in 37 of them. That’s just a little over half. Sometimes, availability is the best ability a player can have. Consequently, Penny isn’t great in that department. NFL running backs suffer a lot of wear and tear. Also, most running backs are done, in the NFL, by the age of 30.
The Seattle Seahawks already have one back who consistently misses time each season. Do they really want two players at the same position (and no special teams) that miss time? There are only so many NFL roster spots. Guys who can contribute elsewhere have value.
2021 was the first time Penny started an NFL game, and he did it only six times. Also, with the NFL becoming more of a pass-first league, Penny hasn’t shown great receiving ability, getting roughly eight targets a SEASON. As a result, he shapes up to be mostly a first and second-down back.
Another drawback is that Penny never handled more than 119 carries in a season. That’s not much. Can he really be a bell-cow running back?
While Penny’s contract will most likely not break the bank (unless some team hasn’t been paying attention to his career), the Seahawks need to ask themselves how much money do they want to offer an oft-injured back that doesn’t play special teams either.
That means a guy like Dallas and Homer will be alright because of his special teams’ ability. That’s if Carroll keeps four backs and doesn’t draft another. Then that competition will heat up.
I hope you all are enjoying these money/penny puns and innuendos I’m casually dropping. So, we’ve heard both sides of the penny (get it?). Now, it’s time to decide on Penny’s future with the Seattle Seahawks. First, I’m going to give you my answer and then I’ll explain why. The answer is Yes to bringing Penny back.
He’s two years younger than Carson and has less NFL running back mileage. Subsequently, Penny has shown to be as good of a runner as Carson, maybe even better. There is also Carson’s neck injury. Yes, he should be fine for the start of the 2023 season, and knowing him to be a hard worker, I have no doubt.
However, his play may no longer be the same for the reason that his neck injury will be in the back of his head (no pun intended). I’ve seen players who have serious injuries return to play, and their game just isn’t the same. It’s good enough to be in the NFL but not what they once were.
It’s a roll of the dice keeping two oft-injured running backs on the roster. As previously mentioned, Homer might end up as a roster cut. This isn’t bad either, considering he’s set to be a free agent after the 2023 season and hasn’t shown himself to be a starting NFL running back. His cap hit will be minimal.
Finally, this draft class is deep at the running back position. Schneider can grab a high upside rookie running back. Plus, Carroll can ease Carson back in to start the season. And then rotate between Penny and Carson to help preserve them throughout the season.
What are your thoughts on the Seattle Seahawks re-signing Rashaad Penny? Let us know in the comments section below.