Analysis: Are Seahawks better than last year? Here’s what numbers show
SEATTLE – The Seattle Seahawks are hoping they are building the start of something good under first-year coach Mike Macdonald.
But building doesn’t mean rebuilding.
Seahawks general manager and president of football operations John Schneider made that clear following the final day of the 2024 draft – the last major talent acquisition period of the offseason.
“We’re never going to be like this rebuilding or whatever term you want to use,” Schneider said then. “We’re not that. The standard is the standard. Nothing’s changed in that regard.”
The coaching change from Pete Carroll to Macdonald sent a clear message – 9-8, the record of the 2022 and 2023 seasons, was not the standard the team wanted to reach.
With three games left in 2024, the 8-6 Seahawks still have time to show improvement from 2023 if they win at least two of their last three games and get to double-digit victories for the first time since 2020.
It’ll be even better if that results in the first NFC West title since that 2020 season.
When the season is over, Macdonald, Schneider and everyone else in the building at the VMAC will pore over numbers to determine where the Seahawks took steps forward this season – or where it stayed pat or fell back.
With 14 games in the books, a statistical profile of the 2024 Seahawks has been established.
Which raises the question – how do the 2024 Seahawks of Macdonald stack up to the 2023 Seahawks of Carroll by the number?
Let’s review some of the key numbers and compare.
Points per game
2023: 21.4 scored, 23.6 allowed.
2024: 22.5 scored, 22.4 allowed.
Comment: As those numbers show, barring a huge spike one way or the other, the Seahawks are on pace to have a similar points scored and against. Still, in the NFL just a point or two a game can add up. Last year, the Seahawks were outscored 402-364. They enter Week 15 with a slight 315-313 point differential edge. One thing the Seahawks have done well this year is win the close games. They are 4-1 in games decided by six points or less and 4-5 in games decided by nine or more.
Yards per play
2023: 5.5 gained, 5.5 allowed.
2024: 5.4 gained, 5.4 allowed.
Comment: In the most basic stat there is, the Seahawks are basically the same this year. Yards per play can illustrate a team’s dominance. In the Super Bowl years of 2013 and 2014, they gained 5.6 and 5.9 yards, respectively, and allowed 4.4 and 4.6, a full 1.2 yards or more per play.
Yards per game
2023: 322.9 gained, 371.4 allowed.
2024: 334.6 gained, 341.1 allowed.
Comment: These numbers are quite a bit different from last season. And it raises the question why there is such a difference when the Seahawks have the same yard-per-play differential as last season. The reason is that the Seahawks have vastly decreased the disparity in the number of plays they have run compared to their foes. Last year, their opponents ran 1,147 plays to the Seahawks’ 995. This year, they have run 866 plays to 880 for opponents. And a big reason for that is the Seahawks are allowing far fewer third downs to be converted – 38% this year compared to 46% in 2024 (the offensive rate is roughly the same – 38 this year compared to 36 last year). Keeping opponents off the field is one definite step forward for this team.
Rushing yards gained
2023: 92.9 per game and 4.14 per attempt.
2024: 94.3 per game and 4.14 per attempt.
Comment: The Seahawks are gaining the same amount of yards per rush this year as last year to the second decimal point. Maybe that means this edition of the Seahawks just is what it is. Despite a change in head coaches and offensive coordinators, the Seahawks’ running game this year is virtually identical to last season’s. The attempts are basically the same – 22.8 per game this year compared to 22.5 last year.
Rushing yards allowed
2023: 138.3 per game and 4.57 per attempt.
2024: 127.5 per game and 4.66 per attempt.
Comment: The Seahawks have shown some significant improvement in this area over the second half of the season, and the addition of middle linebacker Ernest Jones IV and change in the inside linebacking corps. The Packers took control of Sunday’s game with 93 yards and 5.2 per carry in the first half showing there’s still work to be done. This stat could improve in the final three weeks as the Vikings (15th in rushing yards per game), Bears (21st) and Rams (22nd) aren’t especially strong running teams.
Passing yards gained
2023: 233.0 per game, 6.8 per attempt.
2024: 240.4 per game, 6.73 per attempt.
Comment: Just like the rushing numbers, the passing numbers are similar to last season. The attempts are about the same – 35.7 per game this year compared to 33.8 last season. A common denominator each season is the Seahawks falling behind big in some games and throwing to try to get back into it, throwing the run-pass numbers out of whack. To put it another way, the Seahawks are passing on 63.1% of plays this season compared to 61.6% in 2023.
Passing yards allowed
2023: 233.0 per game, 6.77 per attempt.
2024: 213.6 per game, 6.43 per attempt.
Comment: Here’s one spot of definite improvement, with the small caveat that in the first three games none of the opponents threw for more than 140 yards. Still, in general the Seahawks have been better this year, and especially of late, in limiting big plays in the passing game.
Penalties
2023: 111-954 (6.5 and 56.1 per game).
2024: 102-862 (7.2 penalties per game and 61.5 yards per game).
Comment: Maybe this is more proof that these Seahawks are who they are. Under a completely different coaching staff save for one (defensive passing game coordinator Karl Scott) the penalty situation is roughly the same.
Sacks
2023: 38 sacks allowed for 257 yards; 47 sacks made for 298 yards.
2024: 47 sacks allowed for 317 yards; 32 sacks made for 237 yards.
Comment: As you can see, there is quite a bit of disparity in this area from 2023, and not in a good way. Some of the more advanced numbers show the Seahawks have generally received decent pressure this year, and good QBs can avoid taking sacks, so any potential drop-off there may not indicate much. Still, it was telling Sunday when the Packers had seven sacks and the Seahawks zero. The Seahawks have hit a lull in this area, getting two or fewer sacks in six of their last seven games.
Turnovers
2023: 19 gained, 17 lost, plus-two differential.
2024: 16 gained, 21 lost, minus-five differential.
Comment: The Seahawks truly lived the “It’s All About the Ball” strategy under Carroll – they haven’t had a minus turnover differential since his first season in 2010. They have had some bad fumble luck this season recovering just five of their opponents’ 18 fumbles while losing seven of their own 18 fumbles. The other big difference is 14 interceptions compared to 12 all of last season.
In general, the stats paint the Seahawks as a slightly better team than a year ago. They have three games left to prove that.