RENTON, Wash. -- The Seattle Seahawks produced plenty of unsightly numbers in their disaster of a 42-7 loss to the Rams on Sunday.
Jimmy Graham's stat line was among them.
Graham's one catch on three targets went for minus-1 yard. That followed a two-target, zero-catch performance against the Jaguars, making it two straight weeks in which he's disappeared from Seattle's offense.
“It’s really disappointing because we really expect to get him involved," coach Pete Carroll said Monday.
The Seahawks had been getting Graham involved, at least in the red zone. While his 53 receptions and especially his 472 yards are on pace to finish below his 2016 totals, Graham leads all NFL tight ends with nine touchdowns. Those scores had all come over an eight-game stretch that directly preceded his current two-game skid.
Graham has by no means been the only problem for the Seahawks' offense over the past two games, but he certainly hasn't been part of the solution. He's had a hand in more negative plays than positive ones.
Graham was the intended target on one of QB Russell Wilson's three interceptions against Jacksonville, a third-quarter scramble throw toward the sideline that cornerback A.J. Bouye picked off. Graham made matters worse when he shoved Bouye in the back several steps out of bounds, drawing a 15-yard penalty.
He later dropped an open pass on Seattle's final drive of that game.
Carroll, usually not one to publicly criticize players by name, made it clear the next day that Graham could have done more to prevent the interception.
"Jimmy’s got to make that play, hopefully, for us, where it’s either him or nobody," Carroll said. "That’s kind of what we're counting on right there."
Early in the Rams game, Seattle missed out what would have been a 23-yard gain had Graham hung on to a low throw from Wilson, losing control of the ball as he hit the ground. It wasn't an easy catch but arguably one a Pro Bowler should be expected to make.
These haven't been new issues for Graham. Carroll made a similar comment earlier in the season about Graham needing to compete harder for the ball on an interception against Indianapolis. And he's now dropped seven passes on the season, according to ESPN charting (which did not count the aforementioned play from the Rams game as a drop). That total is tied for the league lead and is tops among tight ends.
But for much of the season, Graham was offsetting those mistakes with touchdowns. He hasn't produced so much as a single receiving yard over the past two games.
"It’s frustrating because he’s a big part of us and he carries a lot of juice and energy for us when he makes his plays," Carroll said. "We need him active and we certainly would like to get him active earlier.”
Graham's disappearing act comes at a bad time not just for his team -- which is hanging on to slim playoff hopes with two games left -- but also for his own pending unrestricted free agency. His future is up in the air along with those of several other big-name Seahawks as the team heads toward what could be an offseason of significant changes.
Maybe the Seahawks divest from their expensive and aging defense with an eye toward building more around Wilson and the offense. In that case, it might make sense to re-sign Graham, even if he doesn't come at a discount from the $10 million that his current contract averages. Seattle bringing back Graham actually seemed likely until a few weeks ago.
Maybe the Seahawks determine that a more comprehensive roster overhaul is in order. If the idea is to get younger, then the 31-year-old Graham might not fit the plan.
But even if the Seahawks decide to give it another shot with their current corps of players, it's hard to imagine them going to any great lengths to re-sign Graham if his next two games are anything like his past two.