Holmgren leaning more toward the run

Holmgren leaning more toward the run
Coach alters his air-first attitude
By GREG JOHNS
P-I REPORTER

RENTON -- There was a point, midway through last season, when Mike Holmgren realized his Seahawks needed to quit trying to run the ball so much and just wing it through the air if they were going to get anywhere.

That shift in emphasis didn't stun many folks, given Holmgren's penchant for the pass and Shaun Alexander's ongoing struggles. But it ought to raise a few more eyebrows that the head coach noted Monday -- in the wake of a disappointing 1-3 start -- that this year's team needs to scale back its air attack and lean more on the ground game in order to turn things around.

The one-sided nature of Sunday's 44-6 loss to the New York Giants forced Holmgren to abandon his run plans early, but he indicated the Seahawks personnel has him thinking more and more of fashioning a more conservative offensive approach.

"We got out of the game plan relatively early because we were behind rather quickly," Holmgren said. "That's a bad formula for us right now. We don't have the weapons necessarily to kind of go toe-to-toe and have a big, big scoring game."

The Seahawks rank sixth in NFL rushing, a figure skewed somewhat by the 245-yard output in their lone victory, 37-13 over the Rams. But with his injury-riddled receiving corps still being cobbled together, the pass offense ranks 28th among the league's 32 teams.

Holmgren sees little reason to keep forcing the issue for an offense that ranks an uncharacteristic 22nd in total yards at 299.3 per game. The Seahawks averaged 348.9 yards last season and hadn't been below 300 yards per game since 2001.

"The huge emphasis has to be on getting better running the football," Holmgren said. "It appears as though that is going to have to be a big part of success for us this year."

That's music to the ears of the offensive linemen, who love nothing more than being told they can fire off the ball and attack instead of constantly dropping back in pass protection.

"When I hear 'run,' that's like lunch time for me," center Chris Spencer said.

With wide receiver Deion Branch sidelined again, this time by a heel injury, and newcomers Billy McMullen, Keary Colbert and Koren Robinson still feeling their way, Holmgren figures it's time to lean on the big men up front along with his new stable of running backs.

McMullen and Colbert struggled in their timing with quarterback Matt Hasselbeck on Sunday. Robinson hasn't played, but might return to practice this week after battling a sore knee.

Bobby Engram caught eight passes for 61 yards in his first game back from a preseason shoulder injury, but the receiving situation remains in flux. Holmgren tried catering his play calling to the receivers on hand, but said that becomes difficult.

"Pretty soon you get handcuffed almost because you've got a brand-new guy out there at X and you've got this guy over here, and maybe you don't have enough speed right there or whatever it is," he said. "Because they're new and learning, or you're not confident because they're new, it becomes hard. And sometimes you just have to go and let the quarterback make good decisions.

"But I suspect," Holmgren said, "our thrust will be in trying to run the ball better."

Former Dallas tailback Julius Jones has been impressive when given the chance, averaging 4.8 yards per carry and 93.3 yards per game. He didn't find a lot of room or opportunities against the Giants, but still totaled 61 yards on 17 attempts.

The Seahawks ran the ball just 22 times, however, finishing with a season-low 74 yards on the ground. They also ran just 21 times for 85 yards in the opening loss at Buffalo, but rushed 34 times for 169 yards against San Francisco and 46 times for 245 against St. Louis.

"We didn't have a lot of opportunities this weekend," Spencer said, "but if we don't get in a situation like we did there, we can run with the best of 'em. We can run with Dallas or San Francisco with Frank Gore and all those guys. We can pound the rock."

Jones ranks fourth in the NFL with his 93.3 yards per game, behind only Atlanta's Michael Turner, Washington's Clinton Portis and the Giants' Brandon Jacobs.

Holmgren said running back Maurice Morris, who began the season as the starter, would likely be back in the mix this week as well, which could mean the backfield chores will be divided more like the Seahawks intended coming into the season.

But if the coach is true to his word, it appears there'll be plenty of rushing attempts to go around.




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