The Seattle Seahawks owe a lot of their success to quarterback Russell Wilson and running back Marshawn Lynch. But it is Wilson and Lynch themselves that owe their success to each other. Offensive line coach Tom Cable spoke about the unique dynamic the two players share and how they help one another on game day.
"Marshawn needs Russ like Russ needs Marshawn," Cable said. "It's like ham and eggs or peanut butter and jelly. They've got to have each other for this thing to work. Neither one of them is bigger or greater than the other. And they probably wouldn't be very good without the other one, to be quite honest with you."
Lynch has racked up 4,153 rushing yards and 36 touchdowns since Wilson earned the starting gig as a rookie in 2012, including Beast Mode's 1,306 yards and 13 touchdowns last season. Lynch is the only RB in the NFL to top 1,000 yards and double digit touchdowns in each of the last four years. But it's not as if Lynch was exactly hurting before Wilson showed up, running for 1,204 yards and 12 TDs the year before Seattle drafted their franchise passer.
Wilson set a franchise record for rushing yards by a QB with 849 last year, the fifth highest mark for a quarterback in NFL history. Combined, Lynch and Wilson helped set a Seahawks rushing record with 2,762 yards last year.
But Lynch has grown as a pass-catcher since Wilson's arrival as well, hauling in 93 passes for 879 yards and seven touchdowns over the last three years. He set career highs with 37 catches for 357 yards and four scores in 2014.
Lynch has helped Wilson reach several career milestones in his young career. Wilson's 36 regular season victories are the most by any QB in his first three NFL seasons and his 15 come-from-behind wins are the most of any signal-caller since he entered the league. Wilson also holds the fourth-best passer rating in the NFL (98.6) since 2012.
"I think our system allows them both to prosper," Cable said. "What we all understand as coaches is we really need that dynamic of how one plays off the other. One's the bruiser [Lynch]. He's the street brawler. The other guy [Wilson] looks like the artist and they're both very productive."
