Pro Football Reference's Approximate Value rating

I was perusing through pro-football-reference.com and looking at many different Seahawks' stats, past and present. I noticed they have a stat called Approximate Value that they assign to each season of every player's career. I don't know how accurate it is (probably better than PFF's grades), but it seems like a fair way to compare values of players at different positions without relying too much on traditional stats, which are obviously team-dependent.

My goal was to make a Seahawks all-time roster based on a balance of single-season career-high AV and Seahawk-career AV total. What I found most interesting was the player with the highest single-season AV of any Seahawk.

So I pose this trivia question to you all: Which Seahawk (and which year) has the highest single-season approximate value based on PFR's ratings? Hint: he's not in the Ring of Honor.

After someone guesses it, I'll give you my all time roster based on approximate value.

2005 Shaun Alexander
2007 Lofa Tatupu

NFSeahawks628":23mhon8e said:

2005 Shaun Alexander
2007 Lofa Tatupu

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Those were great seasons, but incorrect answers. They gave Alexander a rating of 17 for 2005, which is the 3rd highest I could find for franchise history. Tatupu's rating was 15, which has been equaled about a dozen times.

NFSeahawks628":17ojujq4 said:

2005 Shaun Alexander
2007 Lofa Tatupu

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Marshawn Lynch.
Ricky Watters.

I found the answer, and that is surprising. I see that Kennedy's Defensive MVP year placed 2nd, so no surprise there. I have to wonder how the stat is calculated, though, because Watt only has an AV of 10, 15 and 12 in his first three years.

Patrick Kerney 2007

Seafan":3uirok4i said:

NFSeahawks628":3uirok4i said:

2005 Shaun Alexander
2007 Lofa Tatupu

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Marshawn Lynch.
Ricky Watters.

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Alexander's 2005 was better than any season those guys had.

themunn":3uz5zdq8 said:

Patrick Kerney 2007

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No, but that was on par with Russell Wilson's last two seasons.

Dave Kreigs 1984 season.

Steve Hutchinson 2005

I gotta go with Richard Sherman.

The more his statistics are analyzed, the more jaw dropping they are.

Kenny Easley 1984

From 1984-85, when he was a First Team All Pro, he had 169 tackles and 16 sacks from the NT position. He was playing beside the great Jacob Green. The game really changed over the course of his career, as players were getting bigger and stronger (especially interior linemen). Cortez Kennedy was the new prototype. After we drafted Kennedy, they moved to a 4-3 defense. It's sad that we never really got to see Nash, Green, and Kennedy all playing together in their prime.

Joe Nash

pehawk":3ixucxxm said:

Joe Nash

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Have to agree. The guy got 10 sacks one season as a 250 pound NT. Plus he blocked some kicks that season too IIRC.

Warren Moon

Josh Brown and I thank you for the Trophy!

hawknation2014":1hl8f76d said:

From 1984-85, when he was a First Team All Pro, he had 169 tackles and 16 sacks from the NT position. He was playing beside the great Jacob Green. The game really changed over the course of his career, as players were getting bigger and stronger (especially interior linemen). Cortez Kennedy was the new prototype. After we drafted Kennedy, they moved to a 4-3 defense. It's sad that we never really got to see Nash, Green, and Kennedy all playing together in their prime.

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We have a winner. It was Joe Nash's 1984 season. It's mind-boggling that he could have a higher value than Cortez Kennedy's 1992 season or any of Walter Jones' or Richard Sherman's years. I didn't follow the Seahawks in the 80s (and only casually in the 90s) so I don't remember much of him. Looking at his career, it surprises me that Nash isn't in the Ring of Honor. Is there a story of why he isn't in the ROH?

Now, for my all time roster based on AV. More weight is given to a single-season high AV than career total. In parentheses are their single-season high as a Seahawk and their Seahawk-career total. Numbers for 2014 aren't in yet, so that's going to hurt current players.

Quarterbacks
Jim Zorn (17, 85) - his 17 AV in both 1978 and 1979 are the two highest in franchise history amongst QBs.
Russell Wilson (16, 32) - his 16 in both 2012 and 2013 rank 3rd and 4th all time in Seahawks history for QBs.
Matt Hasselbeck (15, 93)

Dave Krieg doesn't make the cut, despite having a Seahawk-career total of 97, tops amongst all QBs. His single-season high was only 13.

Running backs
Shaun Alexander (17, 79)
Curt Warner (15, 66)
Marshawn Lynch (15, 41)

Fullback
John L. Williams (14, 71) - he blows away Mack Strong in AV, probably due to his receiving skills

Wide Receivers
Steve Largent (14, 140)
Brian Blades (11, 71)
Darrell Jackson (12, 61)
Joey Galloway (12, 48)
Bobby Engram (9, 46)
Koren Robinson (11, 32)

It's sad that K-Rob made this team. It's mostly due to his 2002 season, and a lack of quality WRs throughout our history.

Tight Ends
Jerramy Stevens (6, 14)
Itula Mili (5, 16)
Zach Miller (5, 11)

Zach Miller has probably been the best TE in franchise history. But the numbers don't really show it. What a sad position group.

Offensive Tackles
Walter Jones (14, 126)
Steve August (10, 53)
Russell Okung (11, 23)
Ron Essink (9, 37)

Guards
Steve Hutchinson (15, 51)
Chris Gray (9, 71)
Edwin Bailey (9, 62)
Brian Millard (9, 51)

Centers
Max Unger (12, 33)
Robbie Tobeck (10, 45)

Defensive Ends
Jacob Green (12, 106)
Michael Sinclair (13, 67)
Jeff Bryant (10, 90)
Patrick Kerney (16, 25)

Kerney's outstanding 2007 season with us gives him a spot on this roster despite a short tenure with the team.

Defensive Tackles
Cortez Kennedy (19, 120)
Joe Nash (20, 98) - 20 is the franchise record
Brandon Mebane (10, 53)
Sam Adams (7, 33)

Outside Linebackers
Chad Brown (15, 64)
Bruce Scholtz (11, 52)
Julian Peterson (11, 30)
Rufus Porter (10, 47)

Inside/Middle Linebackers
Lofa Tatupu (15, 52)
Fredd Young (14, 38)

Cornerbacks
Richard Sherman (15, 31)
Dave Brown (14, 75)
Marcus Trufant (12, 63)
Shawn Springs (12, 43)
Darryl Williams (12, 31)

Safeties
Kenny Easley (14, 68)
Earl Thomas (12, 41)
Eugene Robinson (12, 85)
Kam Chancellor (11, 29)
John Harris (10, 55)

Kicker
Norm Johnson (5, 28)

Punter
Rick Tuten (4, 18) - I didn't really bother looking up many punters. So there might be a better one.

Erebus":14pwukvm said:

hawknation2014":14pwukvm said:

From 1984-85, when he was a First Team All Pro, he had 169 tackles and 16 sacks from the NT position. He was playing beside the great Jacob Green. The game really changed over the course of his career, as players were getting bigger and stronger (especially interior linemen). Cortez Kennedy was the new prototype. After we drafted Kennedy, they moved to a 4-3 defense. It's sad that we never really got to see Nash, Green, and Kennedy all playing together in their prime.

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We have a winner. It was Joe Nash's 1984 season. It's mind-boggling that he could have a higher value than Cortez Kennedy's 1992 season or any of Walter Jones' or Richard Sherman's years. I didn't follow the Seahawks in the 80s (and only casually in the 90s) so I don't remember much of him. Looking at his career, it surprises me that Nash isn't in the Ring of Honor. Is there a story of why he isn't in the ROH?

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I think he has just been forgotten because his legacy was literally and figuratively sandwiched between Green and Kennedy. And Sam Adams was considered to be an upgrade.

But Joe Nash should absolutely be indicted into the Ring of Honor next year. He might be the toughest player to ever snap on a Seahawks' helmet. He was an All Pro. Blocked eight field goals. He played for 15 years . . . 218 games (which is a franchise record). If Cassius Marsh has 1/4 the career, we will be very lucky.

Here's a funny story of his first training camp:

“I was supposed to get cut, on the final cut,” said Nash, who arrived in 1982 as a rookie free agent from Boston College. “It was really weird because I was in this room with about 10 other guys who got cut.”

That’s when then-director of pro scouting Chuck Allen intervened, telling Nash that the club was trying to find a way to keep him.

“I stayed in the room, which was kind of awkward because the guy I was rooming with turned back and said, ‘What are you doing?’ ” Nash recalled. “They ended up putting someone else on IR (injured reserve) and I got to stay.”

http://www.seahawks.com/news/articles/a ... ee76a15f54

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Wow just read the story about Nash, well deserve to go in the Ring of Honor. Playing alongside Green and Kennedy I can see why he was forgotten, I don't know about the history of the Seahawks during that era, but Green and Kennedy's name are more prominent when they mention Seahawks. This reminds me of what Sherman said that some of our guys don't get the accolades cause they play on a very good team