http://www.seattlepi.com/sports/football/article/Seahawks-Sherman-Smith-Marshawn-Lynch-10941371.php
Former RB coach Sherman Smith: Seahawks not as hungry in 2016
Updated 5:58 pm, Friday, February 17, 2017
Former Seahawks assistant coach Sherman Smith said the team wasn't as hungry in 2016 as it was before winning its first Super Bowl in a radio interview on Friday.
To see the salary cap numbers for the 2017 team, check out the following gallery.
lessFormer Seahawks assistant coach Sherman Smith said the team wasn't as hungry in 2016 as it was before winning its first Super Bowl in a radio interview on Friday.
To see the salary cap numbers for the 2017
... more2016 seventh-round draft choice Kenny Lawler is one of 14 players with a cap hit of $465,000 in 2017.
2016 seventh-round draft choice Kenny Lawler is one of 14 players with a cap hit of $465,000 in 2017.
DT Garrison Smith: $540,000
DT Garrison Smith: $540,000
OL Will Pericak: $540,000
OL Will Pericak: $540,000
OG Robert Myers: $540,000
OG Robert Myers: $540,000
RB J.D. McKissic: $540,000
RB J.D. McKissic: $540,000
WR Tanner McEvoy: $540,000
WR Tanner McEvoy: $540,000
FB Malcolm Johnson: $540,000
FB Malcolm Johnson: $540,000
OT George Fant: $540,000
OT George Fant: $540,000
CB DeAndre Elliott: $540,000
CB DeAndre Elliott: $540,000
QB Trevone Boykin: $545,000
QB Trevone Boykin: $545,000
C Joey Hunt: $565,089
C Joey Hunt: $565,089
RB Alex Collins: $586,096
RB Alex Collins: $586,096
DL Quinton Jefferson: $5603,455
DL Quinton Jefferson: $5603,455
WR Rodney Smith: $615,000
WR Rodney Smith: $615,000
DB Pierre Desir: $615,000
DB Pierre Desir: $615,000
RB Thomas Rawls: $620,000
RB Thomas Rawls: $620,000
CB Demetrius McCray: $690,000
CB Demetrius McCray: $690,000
OG Mark Glowinski: $701,423
OG Mark Glowinski: $701,423
OL Rees Odhiambo: $714,355
OL Rees Odhiambo: $714,355
TE Nick Vannett: $726,220
TE Nick Vannett: $726,220
RB C.J. Prosise: $738,116
RB C.J. Prosise: $738,116
LB Kevin Pierre-Louis: $786,413
LB Kevin Pierre-Louis: $786,413
DE Cassius Marsh: $807,563Â
DE Cassius Marsh: $807,563Â
CB Perrish Cox: $855,000
CB Perrish Cox: $855,000
WR Tyler Lockett: $891,687
WR Tyler Lockett: $891,687
DE Frank Clark: $1,017,880
DE Frank Clark: $1,017,880
C Justin Britt: $1,099,933
C Justin Britt: $1,099,933
K Blair Walsh: $1,100,000
K Blair Walsh: $1,100,000
DT Jarran Reed: $1,111,280
DT Jarran Reed: $1,111,280
WR Paul Richardson: $1,499,538
WR Paul Richardson: $1,499,538
P Jon Ryan: $1,600,000
P Jon Ryan: $1,600,000
OL Germain Ifedi: $1,878,433
OL Germain Ifedi: $1,878,433
DT Ahtyba Rubin: $3,700,000
DT Ahtyba Rubin: $3,700,000
WR Jermaine Kearse: $4,033,333
WR Jermaine Kearse: $4,033,333
CB Jeremy Lane: $5,250,000
CB Jeremy Lane: $5,250,000
DE Cliff Avril: $5,500,000
DE Cliff Avril: $5,500,000
LB K.J. Wright: $6,800,000
LB K.J. Wright: $6,800,000
LB Bobby Wagner: $7,600,000
LB Bobby Wagner: $7,600,000
SS Kam Chancellor: $8,043,744
SS Kam Chancellor: $8,043,744
WR Doug Baldwin: $9,650,000
WR Doug Baldwin: $9,650,000
TE Jimmy Graham: $10,000,000
TE Jimmy Graham: $10,000,000
FS Earl Thomas: $10,400,000
FS Earl Thomas: $10,400,000
DL Michael Bennett: $11,268,750
DL Michael Bennett: $11,268,750
CB Richard Sherman: $13,631,000
CB Richard Sherman: $13,631,000
QB Russell Wilson: $18,800,000
QB Russell Wilson: $18,800,000
Just days after it was learned he would not return to the Seahawks in 2017, former Seattle running backs coach Sherman Smith said the team wasn't as hungry in 2016 as it was before winning the Super Bowl.
In a radio appearance on 710 ESPN Seattle's "Brock and Salk" show Friday, Smith said last year the Seahawks struggled to find the edge that propelled them to two consecutive Super Bowl appearances following the 2013 and 2014 seasons, including a win in Super Bowl XLVIII and a last-second defeat in Super Bowl XLIX.
The 62-year-old told hosts Brock Huard and Mike Salk he discussed the issue with head coach Pete Carroll in a series of meetings following Seattle's NFC divisional-round loss to the Atlanta Falcons.
"The team was not as hungry as we were four years ago," Smith said on Friday. "When you have the type of success that we've had -- you win a Super Bowl, you have a heartbreaking loss in the Super Bowl, you've been to the playoffs, what, five years in a row, you have this reputation -- guys aren't as hungry."
Smith, an original Seahawk after joining the team as a second-round pick in 1976, traced the team's championship motivation to a loss to the Falcons in the divisional round following the 2012 season when, after staging a furious comeback, Seattle fell to Atlanta on a last-second field goal.
"I knew that there was an anger on that bus and on that plane that we didn't win, and we knew that we were better -- we were the best team," he said. "And so going into 2013, there was just no doubt in my mind that we were going to have a great year."
Seattle tied a franchise record with 13 wins in 2013, then rolled over the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XLVIII. The following year the Seahawks made it back to the Super Bowl, only to fall a yard short in a loss to the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLIX on one of the most controversial play calls in NFL history.
Instead of handing the ball off to running back Marshawn Lynch from the 1-yard line, Russell Wilson threw a pass that was intercepted by the Patriots on the goal line for a game-sealing turnover.
Though Seattle qualified for the playoffs in the two seasons since then, Smith said the ghost of that defeat haunted the team well afterward.
"Losing the Super Bowl, let me tell you, that was hard," he said. "That was hard. Because even as a coach it took me a while to get over that thing. The 2015 season was really hard for me because my mind would always go back to the Super Bowl. When we'd go into the indoor practice facility, man we should have two of those banners hanging up in here. And it was hard to overcome that for coaches as well as for players."
After the franchise's first championship and the painful loss, plus big-money contract extensions for several of its key players -- including Wilson, cornerback Richard Sherman and free safety Earl Thomas, among many others -- Smith hinted the team became slightly complacent in 2016.
"They're hungry for a lot of stuff, but we've got to get that hunger that we had when we weren't winning," Smith continued. "How do you get that back when you've won and you've got the big contracts and endorsements and everybody loves you? How do you get that back? I think there's only so much Pete can do, but the players themselves, they've got to do some things themselves."
After this year's 36-20 loss to the Falcons on Jan. 14, Smith said Carroll informed him that he wanted assistant running backs coach Chad Morton to take a bigger role with the position group. After contemplating his future with the team, Smith, who had been contemplating retirement, decided he'd rather walk away than serve in a reduced role.
After playing for Seattle from 1976 to 1982, Smith rejoined the Seahawks as running backs coach under Carroll in 2010, helping the team rank no lower than fourth in the league in rushing from 2012 to 2015 before finishing a disappointing 25th in 2016.
He said this year's struggles can largely be placed on injuries to the backfield and along a young offensive line, which hurt the unit's cohesiveness and stunted its growth. But he also emphasized the departure of Lynch after he retired following an injury-riddled 2015 season.
"Marshawn defined our running game by his run style: Beast Mode," Smith said. "Teams knew when they played us what they had to deal with in the backfield ... they knew the main guy was Marshawn. So Marshawn brought that intimidation factor, brought that awareness factor that this is a guy that you have to contend with.
"He's one of the best in the league," Smith continued. "He can beat you with speed. He can beat you with power. He can beat you with elusiveness. So I think Marshawn brought definition, he defined our run game just by his run style and who he was. And we didn't have that this year. Teams came in this year saying, 'I'm glad we don't have to deal with Marshawn.'"
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