The Stat Pack: Seattle Seahawks

Edition #298

Good morning.

I was hoping that I’d be feeling better about the Jets season this morning, 48 hours removed from the debacle in Seattle, but unfortunately, I’m just not there yet.

As I mentioned yesterday, I’m sure the time will come when we can look back at the 2022 season with a sense of positivity, but for me at least, today is too soon.

I still don’t understand how the team can come out so flat in a game with huge playoff implications. When you read through the detailed stats, you’ll see that flatness in numbers.

Following the end of the season, Joe Douglas and Robert Saleh will meet with the media, and while I’m sure they’ll talk about achieving their goal of meaningful December football, they’ll have a lot of questions to answer on the ultimate failure, our 12th season in a row without playoff football.

Mike White is dealing with some rib soreness as you would expect, Coach Saleh did confirm that all being well he should be able to play on Sunday. I think it’s important to give White the opportunity to bounce back after a rough game.

When asked about the offensive struggles and Mike LaFleur, Saleh said it was unfair to blame one person. He reiterated his confidence in his offensive coordinator and said he’s been in his shoes. Saleh came under pressure in 2018 when San Francisco finished the season allowing 27.2 points per game on average, one of the worst marks. He said it would have been easy for Kyle Shanahan to fire him and make him the scapegoat, but he stuck with it. I’m always wary in believing anything that comes out of these press conferences, but I do believe Saleh will fight to keep LaFleur around.

Lamarcus Joyner will be out for the game in Miami and I’d say there’s a high chance he’s played his last game for the Jets. Joyner is a free agent in the off-season and the Jets will be looking for a longer-term solution at the free safety position.

Saleh did confirm that he is hoping to get Nate Herbig back for the game on Sunday. When you see the pressure stats, you’ll see why that’s a big deal. With Herbig about to hit free agency, it will also be good to get some more tape on him.

He was of course asked about the Quarterback and here’s his response: "The easy answer is, well, just get rid of him, get somebody new. The hard part is to stay true to your conviction and continue to develop a young man who you know can be capable of doing anything." - Again, he’s not going to give anything away in this presser.

The NFL released the week 18 schedule today and with no surprises, the Jets will play at Miami on Sunday, Jan 8th at 1 pm.

Quarterback

In his press conference yesterday, Coach Saleh said that the Jets needed more out of their quarterback, which is like saying Adam Gase needed a little more charisma.

I don’t know how badly White’s ribs were bothering him, but he was off from the start. One of his strengths is his ball placement, and I can probably count on one hand how many balls were placed perfectly on Sunday.

White failed to complete a pass over 20 yards and was just 6/16 on passes that traveled over 10 yards. It’s hard to find a single stat that stands out for White. Apparently, after the game, while every other player was getting showered and dressed, White just sat staring into his locker, not moving a muscle until he ripped up the game plan for Seattle.

White will know it was a big opportunity for him, one that was wasted. The good news is he’ll have the opportunity to bounce back against Miami, the bad news is that he still has to play behind that lousy offensive line. Here are some advanced stats that show how as bad as he was, he wasn’t getting any help: