The Seattle Seahawks had a fairly good campaign in 2018. They went 10-6 in the regular season and finished second overall in the NFC West. Even though they ended up losing in the Wild Card round to the Dallas Cowboys, the Seahawks proved once again that their stretch of success isn't up just yet.
On the season, the team averaged 26.8 points per game, which ranked sixth overall in the entire league. Russell Wilson had another huge season. He threw for 3,448 yards with 35 touchdowns and only seven interceptions. He had a completion percentage of 65.6 as well as a quarterback rating that sat at 65.1. Wilson played extremely well, however, he didn't always have the talent around him to succeed.
Wilson did have an excellent running back corps at his disposal. Chris Carson proved himself to be a weapon in the backfield. He ran for 1,151 yards on the season with nine rushing touchdowns. However, Wilson really only had two wideouts he could go to. Neither of them put up the production a top quarterback needs to be truly successful.
Tyler Locket is an excellent vertical and speed guy. He had 57 receptions for 965 yards with 10 receiving touchdowns. Doug Baldwin is a serviceable possession receiver, but nothing special. Through 13 games, he had 50 receptions for 619 yards. No one otherwise had more than 30 receptions or 400 yards.
Sure, Wilson had enough weapons to win games, but the Seahawks are one weapon away from really having an elite offensive attack. Their quarterback deserves another dynamic threat who they can go to on every possession.
Jared Cook, formerly of the Oakland Raiders, fit this role to a T. The tight end last season led the team in receptions with 69. He also totaled 896 receiving yards and six receiving touchdowns. He was Derek Carr's number one option all season long.
Even though the team around him performed poorly, Cook was able to step up. The Raiders went 3-13 on the season. Coach Jon Gruden didn't put them in a position to succeed, trading away their top assets in Amari Cooper and Khalil Mack. Cook playing well during the team's struggles says a lot about his character. He also made the Pro Bowl.
During his two past years in Oakland, he's amassed over 122 catches for 1,584 touchdowns. He hasn't been hurt or suspended, playing in all 32 of the regular season games.
Overall for his career, these have been his best seasons. He's been the most productive in a situation that didn't put him in the best position to succeed.
Adding Cook to the Seahawks would give Wilson a much-needed pass-catching tight end. It would put less pressure on Lockett and Baldwin to receive the volume of targets, and it would allow Wilson to throw the ball more often. It's a win-win situation all around.
The Seahawks have a lot of work to do this offseason. They need to bolster their defense and acquire a few more pieces on offense. Adding Cook to their core would improve their team as a whole moving forward.
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