National Football League

Offensive line continues to be Seattle's problem

Published Sep. 22, 2011 1:16 a.m. ET

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Zach Miller knows just how it's supposed to look.

He spent four seasons playing under Tom Cable in Oakland. He saw the Raiders become one of the best running teams in the NFL thanks to Cable's blocking schemes. And it was that ability to run that eventually helped make Miller into a Pro Bowl tight end.

So Miller understands the concern around Seattle after two lackluster weeks where the Seahawks offense has looked lifeless with a startling inability to get anything started on the ground.

''His zone scheme and all the things we run, new concepts, game plan concepts, the first time you run them you're not use to how they're supposed to work,'' Miller said. ''You're not sure how it's supposed to be run so that takes an adjustment.''

After two weeks, Seattle hasn't been able to run, hasn't been able to protect new quarterback Tarvaris Jackson with just five linemen and now will be without guard Robert Gallery for at least a month because of a groin injury that requires surgery.

It's become a yearly refrain for Seahawks fans asking what's going wrong with the offensive line.

Part of the problem is acclimation as the Seahawks fully embrace the zone blocking schemes of Cable, the Seahawks' offensive line guru. Part of it is youth with two rookies starting on the right side of the line.

But everyone expected better production through two weeks. Instead, it has looked like the same struggle as the preseason.

''I was hopeful that we would be able to be farther along than we are at this point,'' head coach Pete Carroll said. ''But in going through the process and seeing the development and kind of seeing the aging process here, we've had to make adjustments along the way.''

Miller is one of the few who know how Cable's system is supposed to work. He arrived in Oakland in 2007, the same year as Cable, and saw some of the same struggles early that season as the Seahawks are enduring right now.

The difference: the Raiders corrected their problems quickly and went on to become the sixth-best rushing team in the league that season. In Week 4 that season, the Raiders ran for 299 yards against Miami. By the end of the season, Oakland averaged more than 130 yards per game on the ground and had a 1,000-yard back in Justin Fargas.

''I think it's playing as a unit together. You develop a relationship with all the linemen; the tight ends with the tackles; the guards and the tackles together; center and guards working together,'' Miller said. ''It's those combinations working together and getting a feel for how you block things and communication that really develops your offensive line.''

There are no signs yet the Seahawks will be anywhere near that kind of first-year production. Seattle's run game has been completely absent in the first two weeks with just 95 total yards rushing. Twenty other teams have run for at least double the yards as the Seahawks through two weeks.

Rugged back Marshawn Lynch has carried just 19 times for 44 yards in two games and hasn't busted off a run of longer than 12 yards. Seattle's longest run belongs to wide receiver Ben Obomanu and his 13-yard rush on a reverse.

According to STATS LLC, the league average through two weeks is six runs of 10 or more yards. Cable said the problems in the run game are a mix of the line and the running back sometimes missing reads.

''We're close to it,'' Cable said. ''The breakthrough is just around the corner.''

There were undoubtedly going to be headaches when the Seahawks decided that draft picks James Carpenter and John Moffitt would be the future right side of their offensive line and be thrust immediately into the starting lineup.

Even those on the line are trying to figure out exactly what the problem is and what the solution may be.

''It's a lot of factors. It's a work in progress,'' Seattle center Max Unger said. ''Your guess is as good as mine. We can talk about it all we want, but we have to go out there and play games and produce.''

The trickle down goes beyond the run game. Miller's been held in to help give Jackson more time to throw, limiting his opportunities in the pass game. Miller's been targeted just six times and caught three passes thus far.

Everyone says getting Miller involved this week against the Arizona Cardinals is a priority.

''No question,'' Cable said. ''He's really a terrific player that way.''

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Follow Tim Booth on Twitter at: http://twitter.com/ByTimBooth

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