The Seattle Seahawks are coming off a 2018 campaign in which they won 10 games and captured a wild card berth in the NFC playoffs, only to lose to the Dallas Cowboys in the wild card round.
Now, the Seahawks are entering 2019 with a roster that is similar to last year's, but they may not be as good.
Seattle has lost some key players during the offseason, and it hasn't made any significant upgrades on the roster. Obviously, extending Russell Wilson was huge, but otherwise, the Seahawks don't resemble a Super Bowl contender at the moment.
Here are the three main areas of concern for Seattle heading into 2019:
3. Running Back Depth
The Seahawks lost Mike Davis to the Chicago Bears in free agency, leaving a bunch of unproven talent behind Chris Carson in the backfield.
Obviously, the main name to watch is second-year back Rashaad Penny, who was chosen by Seattle in the first round of the 2018 NFL Draft, but he wasn't used much in his rookie year, carrying the ball 85 times for 419 yards.
The Seahawks certainly like Penny quite a bit, which is why they used a first-round pick on him a year ago. Plus, when he did get touches this past season, he made the most of them, averaging 4.9 yards per carry.
So, it's entirely possible that Penny will make Davis a distant memory and come close to splitting carries with Carson, but the kid has to go out and prove it.
2. The Pass Rush
The Seahawks were a solid pass-rushing team in 2018, ranking 11th in the NFL with 43 sacks.
Here's the problem: Seattle traded its best pass rusher in Frank Clark to the Kansas City Chiefs, leaving it with a gaping hole along its defensive front.
The Seahawks did sign Ziggy Ansah to try to soften the blow, but he is coming off shoulder surgery and may not be ready for Week 1 as a result.
Clark racked up 13 sacks to lead the team this past season, and Jarran Reid came in second with 10.5. But no other Seahawks player totaled more than three, which makes you wonder where the sacks are going to come from in 2019.
That puts a whole lot of pressure on rookie defensive end L.J. Collier, whom the Seahawks drafted late in the first round.
1. The Receiver Corps
With Doug Baldwin gone, who is going to catch passes on this team outside of Tyler Lockett? Will it be David Moore? Jaron Brown? Rookie wideout D.K. Metcalf?
Seattle's passing game was limited in 2018 as it was, and now, with the loss of Baldwin, it is an even bigger question mark.
We know Lockett is a stud, but who will be the No. 2 receiver? It's not as though the Seahawks have a reliable tight end, either.
Metcalf may have to be the guy, since he is insanely talented. He put on a show at the Scouting Combine. He had a bad neck injury during his final collegiate season at Mississippi, however, and did not produce all that much at the NCAA level.
Clearly, Pete Carroll is going to have to find an answer here, or else the Seahawks' offense is going to suffer.
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