Field Gulls
The Seattle Seahawks rookies combined for 126 snaps in Week 4 against the Arizona Cardinals. The number could have been much higher if not for the injuries. Robbie Ouzts was placed on IR, and this should impact the total number of snaps, as he had been playing more than Elijah Arroyo and Eric Saubert until his injury.
All data used in this article was taken from PFF.
Let’s analyze some of the important plays from this game!
If you watch just snippets of the game, I think you’ll have very different feelings about Zabel. On some plays, you might think, “That was his worst game” and on others, you might feel confident in his potential. I believe this stems from a larger problem, which we’ve discussed a few times here: the fact that the offensive line is young and therefore still very inconsistent.
The Seahawks call an inside zone shotgun. I think in this short fourth-down situation, it’s important to have the QB under center to at least create a sneak threat. But we won’t analyze the call choice here. Zabel has a “Welcome to the NFL” moment, dominated by the excellent nose tackle Dalvin Tomlinson. He’s pushed back a few yards and closes the gap for Zach Charbonnet, who tries to make the cut, but there’s no room.
Another week and once again he displays excellent footwork and snap release. He comes out almost at the same time the center snaps the ball and manages to seal the lane and open the gap for the RB.
This play was Sam Darnold’s fantastic pass to Elijah Arroyo. Zabel shows excellent vision/process. The snap happens and he starts to slide to help Charles Cross, but upon noticing the blitzer (#2), he quickly moves inside and blocks him. The Cardinals also call a late stunt in the defensive line, and Zabel is also ready to make the block.
Injured.
In this game, the Miami rookie posted his best performance. He had the most snaps (36), targets (4), and receiving yards (44). On four targets, he had two receptions and 44 yards. Furthermore, Arroyo had his most consistent game blocking the run game.
Starting with the blocks, I believe they used Arroyo to their best advantage in this game. Here he is in-line, moving out with Charles Cross acting as lead blockers. Arroyo takes a good angle and shows physical imposition to keep the defensive back away.
In this other blocking play, Arroyo is crucial. The Seahawks call a pin-and-pull, and Arroyo has to perform the well-known crack block to allow Charles Cross to advance into the open field.
The Seahawks use Arroyo on a flat route. The pressure forces Sam Darnold out of the pocket, and the rookie helps the QB to improvise. He sees the open space and attacks the backfield. I think a pass ahead of him could...
