Rashaad Penny's breakout game gives Seahawks' backfield another hot hand
Pete Carroll called it a good problem to have, even if his running backs don't see it that way.
The Seattle Seahawks head coach is just fine with having more than one hot hand at the position -- and he does at that, after rookie Rashaad Penny delivered a long-awaited breakout performance Sunday during the loss at the Los Angeles Rams. Seattle's first-round pick out of San Diego State topped 100 yards and scored his first career touchdown while starter Chris Carson was sidelined.cheap nike nfl jerseys china
Carroll expects Carson's sore hip to be sufficiently rested by the time the Seahawks host the Green Bay Packers on Thursday night. He'll likely resume the starting role he has held all season. But if nothing else, Penny's performance provides confidence to all involved that he can be more of a factor down the stretch than he had been during a surprisingly quiet first half of his rookie season.
Penny spelled Mike Davis on Seattle's second possession and ripped off a 38-yard run on his first carry. Two plays later, he took a read-option handoff, made a slick cutback to the right and ran untouched to the end zone for an 18-yard score. He added a 24-yard gain in the third quarter en route to 108 yards on only 12 carries. That led the way for Seattle's season-high 273 rushing yards.
"He was explosive, read the line of scrimmage really well on four or five different runs, saw things really clearly, showed good speed on the edge, a good burst, scored easily, and we haven't seen many of those," Carroll said. "That was really nice. It was just great to see him play football and contribute. This is the guy we've been watching and we saw in camp and all of that, and just haven't had enough good looks up to this point, but he was ready for it. He's been working hard, and we've been pushing him, and it was great to see him come through."nike nfl jerseys cheap paypal
Penny entered Sunday with 146 yards on 42 carries (3.48 average). He hadn't received an offensive snap in two of the previous four games and no more than 16 during that span. That Penny couldn't wrestle away the starting job right off the bat wasn't the surprise, not with how firm of a grip Carson had on it with a strong offseason. But no one would have expected Penny to be third in the pecking order behind Carson and Davis when Seattle chose him 27th overall, making him the second tailback off the board, behind Saquon Barkley.
