Seahawks’ woeful special teams under Jay Harbaugh can no longer be ignored

The Seattle Seahawks special teams under Pete Carroll were a bright spot in recent years, with Larry Izzo leading them to top 10 in DVOA for three seasons. After Carroll’s departure, Izzo moved to the Washington Commanders, who are currently just outside the top 10, and Jay Harbaugh took over.

With five weeks into the season, Harbaugh’s unit is on the brink of becoming a disaster unless performance levels improve as the season progresses.

Currently, the Seahawks special teams rank 27th in DVOA and are expected to drop further after their loss to the New York Giants. Despite controversy over a potential penalty on a game-losing blocked field goal for a touchdown, the play stands and contributed to the team’s struggles. Mike Macdonald deemed it a legal play.

Michael Dickson’s punt that should have been downed inside the 10 went into the end zone for a touchback, highlighting his struggles this season. Dickson’s performance in terms of “punts inside the 20” and net punting has been below his career standards.

Despite a 95-yard touchdown drive by Geno Smith and the offense, poor decisions on punt returns by Dee Williams have negatively impacted the team’s field position. Williams’ mistakes have contributed to Seattle’s below-average starting field position in the league.

Dee Williams’ errors on punt returns nearly cost the Seahawks a crucial drive, as he has already muffed a punt into a turnover. His performance has not proven to be an improvement over DeeJay Dallas as a returning threat.

Jason Myers has struggled with failed field goal attempts in recent games, raising concerns about Seattle’s kicking situation. With field goals becoming an adventure, the team faces challenges in scoring points reliably.

Seattle’s special teams performance remains below-average in all DVOA metrics, showing no signs of improvement. The team continues to suffer in terms of field position and points, as evidenced in their recent loss to the Giants.