It’s hard to imagine the Seattle Seahawks’ defense getting much better than it already is.
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The Seahawks allowed the fewest points in the league this season. They led the league in defensive DVOA, ranking 12th all-time in a single season in the popular metric. And anyone watching the group on a weekly basis (or just on Saturday when it shut down the high-octane 49ers offense) can vouch for just how dominate the unit is.
With that said, Seahawks Radio Network and former NFL wide receiver Michael Bumpus believes the defense will get even better before its first playoff game in the divisional round next weekend. The expected return of safety Coby Bryant is the reason.
Bryant has missed Seattle’s past two games with a knee injury, but general manager John Schneider expressed optimism he’d be back for the team’s first playoff game during a pregame interview on Saturday with Seahawks play-by-play voice Steve Raible on Seattle Sports 710 AM.
Bumpus credited backup Ty Okada for the job he did filling in for Bryant, as well when he filled in for Julian Love when the 2023 Pro Bowler missed nine games this year. But he believes having Bryant and Love on the field at the time, which happened just six times during the regular season, lets both play to their strengths.
“Ty Okada did a great job, but most of the time when Ty Okada is in the game, J-Love is the guy who is in the box,” Bumpus explained. “Ty Okada, they rotate him down too, but it’s mostly J-Love. I think J-Love is best on the back end. He’s the guy that keeps everything in front.
“When Coby Bryant walks down in that box, it just hits different,” he added. “… Once Coby Bryant gets back out there, this defense is going to get even better because you have another guy who plays with intensity who will go downhill and hit you.”
Hear all of Michael Bumpus’ Four Down Territory segment from Tuesday here. Listen to Bump and Stacy weekdays from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. or find the podcast on the Seattle Sports app.
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