The beleaguered offensive line and backfield took the brunt of the blame for last year's offensive woes in Seattle.
A disappointing season from wide receiver Tyler Lockett certainly didn't help matters.
Returning from a devastating Christmas Eve injury that included two broken bones in his lower right leg, Lockett managed to suit up for all 16 games but posted career lows in yards (555) and yards per reception (12.3) in 2017.
The rehabilitation from that injury would extend into the regular season, limiting his availability for practices. It's easier to reconcile Lockett's relative lack of playmaking ability when factoring in the aftereffects of a compound fracture.
"Last year was a struggle for him," coach Pete Carroll said early this month. "Throughout the season itself he was not able to do things in the same manner that he had done it in years past, and that's really just workload. He just couldn't do as much, had to take care of his legs more."
Speaking to reporters late last week, Lockett estimated that he was "about 75, 80 percent" healthy throughout last season.
"The thing is, it doesn't matter how you feel when you go out there," Lockett added, via the Seattle Times. "If you go out there, it's time to go. You can't make excuses if you don't get open. You can't make excuses if you don't catch the pass. If you're out there, everybody expects you to do the same thing if you weren't hurt."
By all accounts, Lockett won't need to make any excuses for the upcoming season. Coaches and beat writers alike have noted how spry the 2015 third-round pick has looked in offseason practices.
"It's real positive, really positive," Carroll offered. "You guys have watched him, and he's just such a wonderful kid on your team, and there's just been a spirit about him about wanting to compete and extra stuff and always at it, and then last year he couldn't do that, he wasn't able to.
"And now he's back freed up and ready to go again, so you see all that great spirit and the energy that he generates."
It's easy to forget just how dynamic Lockett was as a kick-return ace and downfield receiving threat in his first NFL season. There years later, he's entering the final season of that rookie contract as one of the key cogs in an offense that will have to do more heavy lifting in 2018.
