Good question. I feel like I know the Patriots’ weaknesses pretty well so if I’m the Seahawks I’m really wanting to attack them with our running game, especially by getting the Pats into nickel defense. The Patriots don’t make a lot of plays behind the line of scrimmage, which means the Seahawks should try to just grind it out on the ground, even if it’s just with gains of 4 yards a pop.
The Pats won’t give up long runs, but I’d make them prove they can force third-and-longs. If the Pats don’t win against the run on early downs, they’ll see a lot of third-and-makeables, and that’s when Russell Wilson can have the most options at his disposal.
As for the other side of the ball, I’d attack the middle of the Patriots line with our pass rushers, and I’d also use Cover-3 and allow the underneath passes, then destroy the receivers after they make the catch. Gronk certainly has to be jammed at the line at every chance, but I’d be careful matching up with him when he splits out wide.
What would worry me most would be if Blount gets rolling up the middle of our defense, or if Brady is in sync with LaFell on Maxwell. Those are things that the Seahawks can’t afford.
