Marshawn Lynch: How will future foes fare?

Marshawn Lynch vs AFC East, “Beast or Famine?” Rushing potency seems to be the theme when it comes to running backs so far this season. Will the running games around the league grow in the coming weeks? Will Marshawn Lynch also stay proportionately ahead of the pack in what appears to be strong shot to haul the NFL rushing title? Is there a chip on the former AFC East feature back’s shoulder? This could be a special year for Marshawn. How often does the NFC West get to face all of Marshawn’s former foes? This year, once for every team. New York Jets fly to Seattle Marshawn Lynch will run against the Jets this Sunday (Nov. 11th.) There’s a very good chance the Seahawks will churn away major yards on the ground. I’m watching the Week 8 Dolphins at Jets game, drinking a Salted Caramel Mocha latte at Starbucks. You know the game, where adversaries Antonio Cromartie and Reggie Bush met to settle some media chatter.           New York comes out of bye in recovery mode Will the Jets recover from their Miami-issued woes in time for their visit to Seattle? Important point: Miami took advantage of the Jets early in the 1st quarter. After a field goal, they successfully executed an onside kick. I also noticed on back-to-back plays, the Jets failed to account for a safety blitz. On 3rd and 7, with 4:16 remaining in the 1st quarter, Mark Sanchez was sacked by Jimmy Wilson and then on 4th and 15, the safety Wilson slipped through the middle of the line, untouched, to block a punt which was recovered by a teammate and returned for a touchdown. The Seahawks’ special team’s play may factor into Marshawn Lynch’s productivity. When special teams is successful, offensive play calling is affected. This could spell more “touches” for Marshawn Lynch.         Jets, Bye, Dolphins: Hello again, AFC East Last time Marshawn ran against the Dolphins, he was no longer the feature back in Buffalo. Seahawks players and followers couldn’t see Lynch as anything but a feature. His next game in Miami will be interesting for the Bills to watch. The Seahawks will complete their regular season competition against the entire AFC East with a trip to Buffalo in Week 15. The Seahawks will have a chance to restore some energy with a bye in Week 11. After that they’ll head to Miami (Nov. 25th) where I expect they’ll enjoy a chance to win on the road. Now that’s not to say the run game will be prolific, but then again, Miami hasn’t faced Marshawn Lynch this year. Given Marshawn’s AFC East (Buffalo Bills) history against the Dolphins, I’d say he’ll be playing with a chip on his shoulder. In his last couple of years with Buffalo, he was underused. It didn’t help that Trent Edwards occasionally had no idea which way was up in the passing game and Marshawn either didn’t get the check-down pass or got it too late to do anything with it. Marshawn’s a thick player who needs the extra half second to catch-and-run. When I watched Buffalo at Miami in Week 4 of 2009, I noticed Lynch was often brought in as a 3rd down back. In one instance, I saw him in on a 3rd and 7. The Bills have a split backfield with Marshawn Lynch (left) and Fred Jackson (right). Marshawn runs a (circle) route, heading left to draw the linebacker that way and as he makes his way upfield, he cuts right over the middle and catches a pass at the sticks. Due to over-pursuits, Lynch takes a hard cut back the the left half of the field and leads a (pod) of pursuing Dolphins for a 23 yard gain.       Following Miami, the Seahawks will play at Chicago (Dec. 2nd.) That’ll be interesting. Somehow Jay Cutler can face a lot of pressure, create turnovers and Chicago can still have a decent outing. Credit their top-5 defense for that. This game could play out similar to the Week 7 San Francisco game. The Bears have a stiff all around defense. This could inhibit Marshawn Lynch’s output. However, going into the divisional match against the 49ers in Week 7, in San Francisco, the Niners had just as stifling a defense and Marshawn ran for over 100 yards. On December 9th the Seahawks will host the Arizona Cardinals for a chance to even the season series. The Cardinals’ offensive line has been overworked in recent weeks. Should that be the case in December when they visit, the game could become a Seahawks’ running game. It’s crazy to predict this now. So here goes crazy. I expect 125 yards from Marshawn Lynch. Be they rushing or receiving yards, I expect a sizable contribution.   Beyond those four, Marshawn Lynch’s other future foes will be- Dec. 16th at Buffalo Dec. 23rd Niners Dec. 30th Rams Good luck Seahawks fans!!   FOR MORE S-L-U-G-G-O-!-!-!- POSTS, CLICK HERE.