Focus is on changed secondary. But this new Seahawks' defense has a bigger issue coming out of offseason

The Seahawks just completed their offseason.

And, man, are they glad that's over.

“Today we wrap it up," coach Pete Carroll said Thursday following the final practice of mandatory minicamp and, thus, the offseason.

"And," Carroll added, "really just more on the positive side."

Yes, page-turning is in vogue for these Seahawks, as they scatter for the next six weeks until the reporting day of training camp July 25.

They are leaving behind a particularly tumultuous offseason. The team's biggest issue coming out of it is a need that's seemingly getting overlooked by everyone--except the Seahawks themselves.

Since it last played a game Seattle lost/got rid of/is estranged from most of the defensive core that led the franchise to two straight Super Bowls, one NFL title and five consecutive playoff appearances. That run ended in January.

Then so did the Seahawks careers of Richard Sherman, Michael Bennett, Cliff Avril, Jeremy Lane, (likely) Kam Chancellor and (for now) Earl Thomas.

The focus this winter and spring has been on the Seahawks' former champion "Legion of Boom" secondary becoming the "Legion of Whom." All four first-teamers in this week's minicamp were different than the men who were in those four positions on 2017's starting defensive backfield.

“As you can tell, it’s a different era," said safety Bradley McDougald, who is in the middle of biggest differences.

"Things are changing around here."

The most ominous change remains on Thomas' holdout. The six-time Pro Bowl free safety missed all offseason workouts, voluntary and mandatory ones, while wanting a new contract beyond his that averages $10 million per year and expires after 2018.

I asked Carroll on Thursday if negotiations between the team and the 29-year-old Thomas' representatives remained stalled and tabled until training camp.

"No, our guys are working," Carroll said. "We are at work. We're busy."

Yes, Sherman is with the 49ers after Seattle waived him in March. The three-time All-Pro cornerback told Bay Area reporters this week that he hasn't paid attention to the Seahawks tumult this offseason because "once they cut ties, I cut ties."

Chancellor is awaiting more tests on the neck he injured in November in a win at Arizona, to determine if he'll play again.

And Thomas is away for who knows how long. He skipped the three-day minicamp at the risk of a team fine totaling $84,435.

All this focus on the secondary's overhaul and acrimony forgets what is more important to the Seahawks' DBs, the defense, heck, the entire season: Seattle needs a pass rush.

Sherman, Thomas, Chancellor and that Boom-ish secondary was at its Super Bowl-winning best when the Seahawks had their deepest and most relentless defensive line making games so much easier for them. Bennett, Avril, Chris Clemons, Brandon Mebane, Red Bryant, Clinton McDonald and Tony McDaniel for years gave the Seahawks seven D-linemen who rotated throughout games then wore down and steamrolled offensive lines later in games. Quarterback against those Seattle defenses either got sacked, smacked or rushed into harried throws.

The secondary did not have to employ its pressing style of tight coverage and running stride for stride with receivers for nearly as long as it has the last couple seasons.

And today's NFL is a passer-or-sack-the-passer league. The teams that are best at those two specialties win biggest.

Defensive end Frank Clark is Seattle's only returning pass rusher who has proven with this team he can get to quarterbacks consistently. He's entering the final year of his rookie contract. He missed offseason workouts, skipping OTAs then rehabilitating a hamstring issue this week in minicamp.

The Seahawks are counting on Dion Jordan to show why he was the Miami Dolphins' first-round draft choice in 2013, after five encouraging games late last season in his Seattle debut. But those are the only five games Jordan has played in the last three years. He recently had what Carroll termed a "minor" knee surgery, but it was Jordan's third knee operation in 13 months. He sat out watching offseason practices.

Carroll said Jordan is on track to be in practices at the start of training camp, though the team will be determining the level of his participation.

Drafting Malik McDowell with their first pick in 2017 continues to haunt the Seahawks. McDowell remains nowhere near practicing or anywhere in Seattle's present or future plans, if he ever plays for anyone again, following his ATV accident last summer that stopped his NFL career before it began. His head injuries are why the Seahawks drafted Rasheem Green in the second round this spring. The rookie defensive tackle from USC spent Thursday getting a hands-on tutorial from Clark on the side of a drill about using his hands to slap past blockers.

The Seahawks envision Green—need Green—to be the combination end outside on early downs and tackle inside on passing ones that Bennett became a Pro Bowl selection doing for them. That is, until the Seahawks traded the expensive, 32-year-old Bennett to Philadelphia in March. But it's going to take Green most of training camp and August to get even familiar with that role.

With Clark and Jordan not practicing this offseason, Marcus Smith and Branden Jackson were the first-team ends. They are not Bennett and Avril. Not even close.

The Seahawks signed Barkevious Mingo for possible help as an edge rusher, and the former first-round pick did some rushing off the outside in nickel and dime defenses in OTAs. But most of Mingo spent most of offseason practices dropping into pass coverage as the strongside linebacker.

The Seahawks the last three years have used that position in a base, 4-3 defense about one-third of the time. Nickel, without the strongside linebacker and with Bobby Wagner and K.J. Wright the only linebackers on the field, has been Seattle's scheme the majority of the time.

Nickel or base, Tom Johnson could prove to be the most important acquisition Carroll and general manager John Schneider made this offseason. The former Minnesota Vikings tackle signed for one year and up to $2.7 million. He is replacing Sheldon Richardson, who is six years younger signed with the Vikings after four months with Seattle in a failed Seahawks trade that cost them a second-round pick this spring.

Johnson is coming off a strong season for a Minnesota team that came one game short of the Super Bowl, when he played a career-high 70 percent of the Vikings' defensive snaps. He turns 34 before this season.

Carroll was raving Thursday about how good Johnson's already been and can be for the Seahawks inside on the defensive front this year.

"I wish we would have found him years ago," Carroll said. "He’s a great competitor. He’s got a tough mentality. He cares tremendously. He’s a great worker.

"He’s exactly the kind of guy we like having on the team."

But do they have enough of them on this team to produce a consistent pass rush?

Don't be surprised if the Seahawks' next addition between now and training camp, if not into August, is a free-agent sack man another team may make available.

As for the new guys who may have to cover a longer time until the Seahawks find a pass rush this year, 2017 fourth-round pick Tedric Thompson was the first-team free safety on Thursday. Thompson was in that spot for two of the three minicamp practices, with Bradley McDougald at strong safety while Chancellor's career remains in doubt because of his neck injury. On Wednesday, McDougald was the free safety and Delano Hill, another draft pick from last year, was the strong safety.

It was clear the Seahawks see McDougald capable of starting at either spot; that's why they signed him from Tampa Bay before last season, before he started at both spots in 2017 for Seattle. The coaches will use training camp to determine whether Hill or Thompson is more ready to start. Whichever is, McDougald seems set to play the position next to him.

Tellingly, McDougald said he expects to begin the season Sept. 9 at Denver as the strong safety, and that it's the position he likes better. That assumes Thomas returns to play free safety by then.

McDougald credits Thomas and Chancellor last year for teaching him intricacies of each safety position. McDougald said he likes to play the run more as a strong safety, instead of the more open-field, ranging free safety that plays further back off the line.

"I like to be in the box a little bit more," he said. "I just feel like there’s a little more action, it’s a little bit more my speed of the game.

"Last year the first opportunity I got to play was at free safety, so I took it and ran with it. If I had the choice I would probably play strong. But it’s whatever the team needs to win.”

He also spoke of Thomas' return in terms of when, not if.

"I think he deserves whatever he is asking for," McDougald said.

"I know when he does get back, he'll be ready to play."

This story was originally published June 14, 2018 at 7:10 PM with the headline "Focus is on changed secondary. But this new Seahawks' defense has a bigger issue coming out of offseason."