2015 NFL Predictions: NFC West in-depth preview

Seattle Seahawks: 

Key Additions: TE Jimmy Graham, DT Ahtyba Rubin, CB Will Blackmon, CB Cary Williams 

Obviously Jimmy Graham clearly stands out among this group. When healthy, Graham is the second best tight end in the NFL and this brilliant trade finally gives Wilson a legit No.1 target, which will make this offense even harder to stop. Adding Rubin helps the depth at DT and basically replaces Kevin Williams in the rotational role.

After losing the Maxwell, the legion of boom needs a new member and all indications are pointing towards Williams being the CB who will start opposite of Sherman. Blackmon will battle for the slot corner position with Jeremy Lane. Both players are not coming off all to great of seasons, but the rest of the legion of boom will likely make up  for it.

Key Losses: C Max Unger, G James Carpenter, DE O’Brien Schofield, DT Kevin Williams OLB  Malcolm Smith, CB Byron Maxwell

The downside of getting Graham was losing their very good center Max Unger. He will be missed in both the running and the passing game of Seattle. The Seahawks also lost their starting guard Carpenter which will be another hit to their line,though not very big, and possibly their dominant running game. Schofield was nothing more than a role player in Seattle and him leaving  won’t hurt anything except their depth.

Williams was a nice role player last year and really filled in nicely once Mebane got hurt. Form Super Bowl MVP Smith was not a big part of the Seattle’s defense last year, so again this loss will only hurt their defense. Maxwell is a talented corner who played very well as a No.2 CB, but he was paid as a big time No.1 CB, and it will be interesting to see how he does without Sherman, Thomas and Chancellor.

May 26, 2015; Renton, WA, USA; Seattle Seahawks free safety

(29) and running back

(33) walk back to the locker room following an OTA practice at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports

Verdict: 

Wilson is a very good quarterback who has performed well even without great targets, but the addition of Graham gives him a great target which adds another dimension to this  great team. With Graham, Baldwin, Kearse and whoever else will win the No.3 and No.4 WR spot his receiving corps already looks a lot better simply through Graham.

Of course he still has Lynch in the backfield which will continue to take the focus of the defense off Wilson. The line could see some struggles this year, which could hurt the running game and might force Wilson to show off his great outside of the pocket skills more often, but the addition of Graham definitely makes up for it.

The Seahawks defense is still an absolute beast. The starting four defensive lineman Bennett, Hill,Mebane and Avril are about as good as it gets. If you watched last years Super Bowl you know how good this front is, especially Bennett. The linebackers are very strong too. The trio of Wright, Wagner and Irvin are extremely good.

Wagner is the head of this defense and was compensated for that and Irvin will be playing for big money. In the secondary Sherman, Thomas III and Chancellor are as good as it gets, but Williams will be a liability if he plays like last year. Thomas will be able to make up for a lot of those deficits, but they won’t be as good as they were with Maxwell last year.

Jul 31, 2015; Renton, WA, USA; Seattle Seahawks cornerback

(25) walks to a drill during training camp practice at Virginia Mason Athletic Center. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports

 Prediction: 

Best Case Record: 15-1

Worst Case Record:11-5

Prediction: 14-2

Team’s Offensive MVP: RB Marshawn Lynch

Team’s Defensive MVP: CB Richard Sherman

Rookie Standout: WR Tyler Lockett 

With the big contracts the Seahawks are giving out, this year could be the best the Seahawks are going to be in a while. There isn’t a part of the game in which the Seahawks aren’t good in. Best case scenario is that the Seahawks have become even better and will just destroy their opponents and only drop one game at some point against the slew of very good teams on their schedule. This team is talented enough to make that happen.

Worst case is that they struggle to put up points against some very good defense and drop five games against a very tough schedule. This team is so good that I find that quite unlikely. This team is going to be great and extremely hard to stop.

Next: Final standings and conclusions