Seahawks News
Seattle Seahawks running back George Holani didn’t produce much with the ball in his hands during Week 1 against the New England Patriots. However, he was a thorn in the side of Jadarian Price’s fantasy managers because he earned nearly as many snaps and touches as the rookie.
Say what you want about the Seahawks running back depth, but Price looked like the better RB in week one. Holani played 23 snaps in Week 1, while Price played 24. Holani mustered eight touches for 29 yards, a 3.6 yards-per-carry average, but he didn’t score a touchdown or catch a pass.
That’s the biggest hold-up with Holani in fantasy football right now: PPR managers need him to catch more passes, and all of his managers would appreciate some touchdowns. The role itself, though, looked exactly as advertised. Reporting throughout camp had described Price stepping into the early-down, Kenneth Walker-style role while Holani handled the Zach Charbonnet-style third-down and two-minute-drill work, and that’s precisely what played out. Price took the clear majority of early-down snaps, Holani took every third-down and two-minute snap, and Emanuel Wilson worked in near the goal line.
Context matters in Week 1’s modest numbers. Sam Darnold left the game on Seattle’s opening possession with a right hip injury and didn’t return, forcing backup Drew Lock into extended action. Macdonald said afterward the team got “great news” and that Darnold appears to have avoided a fracture, but the shakeup clearly affected Seattle’s offensive rhythm, the Seahawks ran just 48 total offensive plays, their second-fewest snap count in any game over the past two seasons.
With Charbonnet still on the PUP list and expected to miss at least the first four games, this Price-Holani split figures to hold for the immediate future. Seattle now gets extra rest before its next game and then faces the Arizona Cardinals, giving both backs more practice time to build on Week 1’s usage patterns. If Darnold’s health allows Seattle’s offense to operate more normally and generate more plays overall, Holani’s snap share alone should be enough to keep him firmly in the mid-tier flex conversation, even without the box-score production to match yet.
Fantasy Impact
I can’t see any major changes in this backfield yet, but it’s hard not to want to give the Rookie more opportunities moving forward. While this is an obvious decision for fantasy managers, the Seahawks coaching staff is likely fine with easing him in slowly.
