Tag: impact player

One impact player for each Seahawks opponent in 2020 – Part 2

In part two of this two-part series, we select one player to watch out for from each of the Seahawks’ last seven opponents of 2020.

In Part One of this two-part series, I put together a list of one player from each of the Seahawks’ first six opponents of 2020 that should make a difference in Seattle’s approach to each game. Now, in part two, I detail one player from the remaining seven opponents that should have a similar impact.

Note, I chose not to select any quarterbacks, running backs, or wide receivers for this list, as the success of those positions is obviously paramount to a team’s chances of winning.

Week 8 (Nov. 1) and Week 17 (Jan. 3, 2021): San Francisco 49ers

Impact player: TE George Kittle

Look no further than last year’s season series between the Seahawks and the 49ers to feel Kittle’s impact – the Seahawks won without Kittle on the field, and lost when he was there. Kittle, an All-Pro First Team member, was PFF’s top-ranked player at any position in 2019 after posting his second straight 1,000-yard season and leading all tight ends AND receivers in broken tackles. He is an absolute game-breaker in both run-blocking and pass-blocking, and should easily be the Seahawks’ number-one concern on defense.

Pages: Page 1, Page 2, Page 3, Page 4, Page 5, Page 6, Page 7

ESPN’s Todd McShay highlights WR Antonio Gandy-Golden as ‘instant-impact’ player

McShay was sidelined for the NFL Draft, but he highlighted Antonio Gandy-Golden as one of his favorite picks now that he’s back.

We were unable to hear from ESPN draft analyst Todd McShay last month during the action, as he was, unfortunately, recovering from the coronavirus. But now that he’s healthy, we’re hearing from him now, and boy does he have some good things to say about the Washington Redskins.

In a piece that was recently published to ESPN.com, McShay laid out his five instant impact players who were found in the middle-to-late rounds of the draft. On that list was WR Antonio Gandy-Golden, who the Redskins found with the No. 142 pick. To McShay, this was an absolute steal.

Terry McLaurin looks like the real deal, but Washington doesn’t have much at receiver for Dwayne Haskins or Kyle Allen beyond the sophomore speedster. But landing Gandy-Golden in the fourth round at 142nd overall gives the Redskins a big, physical possession target. A lot of teams had third-round grades on the Liberty receiver, and for good reason. He is a natural hands catcher, and while he doesn’t have a ton of speed, he can find pockets in zone coverage and break some tackles with his strength.

While McLaurin or Gandy-Golden may not have been able to carry an offense on their own, pairing them together will undoubtedly give the Redskins’ receiving corps some juice this season. With an improved ability to test the secondary, Haskins will start to look better and better, as well.

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