Perhaps we got a little carried away with our enthusiasm for Seattle Seahawks rookie head coach Mike Macdonald and his team's 3-0 start to the season. The new defense looked undeniably awesome during that run and according to most advanced stats it was the best unit in the league early in the season. Life comes at you fast in the NFL though, and now just three weeks later Seattle's defense looks like one of the worst.
Injuries to all three levels have played their role, especially those up front. However, the unit's performance has declined dramatically in three straight games, coinciding with the team's three-game losing streak. First, they allowed 389 yards and 42 points to Detroit, then they gave up 420 yards and 29 points to the Giants, followed by 483 yards and 36 points for the 49ers. Worst of all their rushing yards allowed total has also grown significantly in each game, rising from 116 to 175 and then to 228 last night.
Here's what Macdonald had to say about his team's third-straight loss and their ongoing defensive issues, according to Kevin Patra at NFL.com.
Mike Macdonald on Seahawks' third-straight loss
"Yeah, of course you're going to be upset and worried about losing three straight, of course. But we are 3-3. We are six weeks in. So, we started fast. Obviously (have) not played good football in the last three games, and onward we go. The mentality always has to be 'Hey let's move forward, attack this thing, and let's fight like hell to make it right.' That's the message to the guys. There is no novel idea, but that's just got to be the mentality."
Getting some key players back in the lineup like Uchenna Nwosu and Byron Murphy II would certainly help, but the injury situation seems to be spreading like a contagion. After the defensive front-seven was ravaged over the last few weeks, the cornerback room is now getting hit hard, as well. Riq Woolen had already been ruled out for last night's game and on top of that both Tre Brown and Artie Burns were injured against the Niners.
Macdonald has that as an excuse as well as his inexperience as a head coach at this level. All that being said, this team has not looked particularly well-coached these last three weeks, especially on defense, which is supposed to be Macdonald's specialty.
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