As soon as the Seahawks lost in the playoffs to the Atlanta Falcons, the discussion quickly turned to how to the Seahawks could set themselves up to play at an even higher level next season. 

If they were 25 seconds away and one defensive stop from heading to the NFC Championship game, the reality was that the Seahawks were close to being a Super bowl team.

But they weren’t there. And there were holes that needed to be fixed.

The biggest problem for this team against Atlanta was generating any type of a pass rush.  Matt Ryan had all day to sit back and dissect the Seahawks defense. Combine their lack of pressure, with the fact that Chris Clemons had torn his ACL and the significant challenge that he faces to be ready for the start of next season, and it was easy to come to the conclusion that the defensive end spot was the number one area of need.

The lack of pressure wasn’t just a problem against Atlanta; it had been the biggest area of concern all season. The Seahawks totaled just 36 sacks in 2012, good for just 18th best in the NFL.  They were a much better team in coverage team than they were in pressure.

So when the Seahawks first move of the off-season was to send their 1st round pick to Minnesota, and give up a ton of their cap space to obtain a wide receiver, the move did not address their biggest need.

Yes, Percy Harvin is exciting.  It is a blockbuster, big time sexy move. The offense will have an explosive factor now that it hasn’t seen since Joey Galloway was drafted.
Percy Harvin is a game changer on offense.  One of the biggest weapons in football.
But I still had the nagging feeling in the back of my mind that with no first round pick and much tighter cap space, it would be more difficult to go out and grab a legitimate defensive end.

Well, the Seahawks went out and accomplished just that with the signing of former Lions defensive end, Cliff Avril.  He is exactly what the Hawks needed. 

Avril is 26 years old. He had 9.5 sacks last year, and 29 sacks over the last 3 seasons. He is a proven NFL pass rusher.

The Hawks have now addressed their biggest need, and also managed to acquire a luxury in Percy Harvin as well. Plus, they still have 8 draft picks to bolster their defensive line and cornerback depth in April.

My fears have been assuaged with the addition of Cliff Avril.  

Job well done by John Schneider and Pete Carroll.