The Seahawks used their third-round pick on Jalen Milroe. I don’t think he’ll be starting any games this year, but I can’t help but wonder if they’re mulling whether to use him as a short-yardage and goal-line runner.
As a runner, Milroe is up there with the likes of Lamar Jackson, Josh Allen and Jalen Hurts. He ran for 20 touchdowns last year at Alabama. Seattle was terrible last year in short-yardage and goal-line situations, and he could solve a lot of those problems.
It would also be a way to get him on the field, moving his development along. He may be replacing Darnold as their starter in 2026. If he can help the team score a few more touchdowns while waiting for his chance, that would be a plus.
In terms of running the ball near the goal line last year, the Seahawks were among the worst teams in the league last year. They ran the ball 28 times inside the 5, and they scored only 8 of those plays. They were the only team that scored on fewer than 30 percent of its running plays in that area.
| RUSHING INSIDE THE 5 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | Att | Yds | Avg | TD | 2Pt | EZ% |
| Arizona | 23 | 26 | 1.13 | 10 | 3 | 56.5% |
| Atlanta | 27 | 42 | 1.56 | 13 | 2 | 55.6% |
| Buffalo | 32 | 47 | 1.47 | 17 | 0 | 53.1% |
| Green Bay | 35 | 46 | 1.31 | 17 | 0 | 48.6% |
| Baltimore | 23 | 31 | 1.35 | 10 | 1 | 47.8% |
| Washington | 36 | 41 | 1.14 | 15 | 2 | 47.2% |
| LA Rams | 28 | 43 | 1.54 | 13 | 0 | 46.4% |
| NY Jets | 13 | 15 | 1.15 | 4 | 2 | 46.2% |
| Detroit | 39 | 50 | 1.28 | 18 | 0 | 46.2% |
| Tennessee | 11 | 12 | 1.09 | 4 | 1 | 45.5% |
| LA Chargers | 28 | 42 | 1.50 | 12 | 0 | 42.9% |
| Denver | 24 | 32 | 1.33 | 10 | 0 | 41.7% |
| Chicago | 24 | 17 | .71 | 10 | 0 | 41.7% |
| Carolina | 29 | 35 | 1.21 | 11 | 1 | 41.4% |
| Philadelphia | 46 | 49 | 1.07 | 16 | 3 | 41.3% |
| New Orleans | 17 | 20 | 1.18 | 7 | 0 | 41.2% |
| Jacksonville | 22 | 21 | .95 | 9 | 0 | 40.9% |
| NY Giants | 22 | 21 | .95 | 9 | 0 | 40.9% |
| Dallas | 15 | 1 | .07 | 6 | 0 | 40.0% |
| Las Vegas | 23 | 16 | .70 | 8 | 1 | 39.1% |
| Cleveland | 18 | 26 | 1.44 | 7 | 0 | 38.9% |
| Cincinnati | 26 | 17 | .65 | 9 | 1 | 38.5% |
| New England | 19 | 19 | 1.00 | 7 | 0 | 36.8% |
| San Francisco | 30 | 20 | .67 | 11 | 0 | 36.7% |
| Indianapolis | 39 | 48 | 1.23 | 13 | 1 | 35.9% |
| Kansas City | 28 | 35 | 1.25 | 10 | 0 | 35.7% |
| Pittsburgh | 28 | 32 | 1.14 | 10 | 0 | 35.7% |
| Tampa Bay | 26 | 19 | .73 | 9 | 0 | 34.6% |
| Houston | 19 | 14 | .74 | 6 | 0 | 31.6% |
| Minnesota | 20 | 4 | .20 | 6 | 0 | 30.0% |
| Miami | 20 | 1 | .05 | 6 | 0 | 30.0% |
| Seattle | 28 | 19 | .68 | 8 | 0 | 28.6% |
Seattle’s new coordinator is Klint Kubiak, who was with the Saints last year. They used Taysom Hill in a lot of short-yardage and goal-line situations. Milroe could be a much better version of the same kind of player.
If it goes down this way, of course, it will be a negative for the likes of Sam Darnold, Kenneth Walker and Zach Charbonnet. Any touchdown scored by Milroe will be one that isn’t scored by the more conventional options.
—Ian Allan