Late Wednesday it was reported that the Seattle Seahawks would

be flying free agent defensive end Ziggy Ansah Shaun Alexander Color Rush Jersey , formerly of the Detroit Lions, to Seattle on Thursday morning in order to sign a..." />Skip to main contentclockmenumore-arrownoyesHorizontal - WhiteField Gullsa Seattle Seahawks communityLog In or Sign UpLog InSign UpFanpostsFanshotsSectionsSeahawksOddsAboutMastheadCommunity GuidelinesStubHubMoreAll 322 blogs on Horizontal - WhiteFanposts Fanshots Sections VideosCoffee and CigarettesGame AnalysisThe Numbers GameCigar ThoughtsFiled under:The OffseasonInjuries2019 NFL Free Agency NewsReport: Ziggy Ansah could miss first month of 2019 seasonNew,54commentsPDTShareTweetShareShareReport: Ziggy Ansah could miss first month of 2019 seasonPhoto by Hannah Foslien/Getty ImagesLate Wednesday it was reported that the Seattle Seahawks would be flying free agent defensive end Ziggy Ansah, formerly of the Detroit Lions, to Seattle on Thursday morning in order to sign a one-year contract with the team. This came following conflicting reports Wednesday afternoon regarding whether the Seahawks or the Buffalo Bills were the frontrunners for Ansah’s services during the 2019 season.However, now that it has been publicly reported that the Seahawks are flying Ansah to Seattle on Thursday to sign with the team, further reports have now emerged that may shine some light on why other teams may have shied away.According to NFL Insider Adam Schefter, it is possible that Ansah could potentially miss as much as the first month of the season due to the ongoing recovery from shoulder surgery in December.If this is indeed the case, and Ansah does indeed miss training camp and the first month of the season, that obviously helps explain why the Seahawks were able to add his services for just $5.5M guaranteed. Recovery from shoulder surgery is no joke, as was seen in the case of Andrew Luck of the Indianapolis Colts missing the entire 2017 NFL season following the surgical repair of a torn labrum in his throwing shoulder. Obviously, Ansah doesn't have to worry about throwing the football, so his recovery should not be anywhere near as long as Luck's. However, recovery from shoulder surgery must proceed at a very conservative pace, or else reinjury or reaggravation can easily occur. Reinjury can easily result in the shoulder failing to heal properly, and leading to either a shoulder that is less than one hundred percent going forward, or even a follow up procedure. In addition, it's highly likely that Ansah himself will be very conservative in the timetable for his recovery and return to the playing field. He surely understands that any reinjury is likely to simply land him back in the exact same spot this time next year. and so looking at it from his perspective, it would seem prudent to take as much time as necessary to return to form with the shoulder as healthy as possible. Thus, I fully expect to see Ansah on the field for the Hawks in 2019, the question simply becomes exactly when. From Pittsburgh’s Steel Curtain in the 1970s to Chicago’s Monsters of the Midway in the ’80s to Seattle’s Legion of Boom more recently, dominant defenses have often been the story of the NFL postseason.High-powered offenses might generate the highlights, the fantasy points and victories in the regular season. But more often than not the top defenses have managed to hold those dynamic offenses in check when the weather turns colder and the games get more important in the postseason.Yet, after one of the most prolific offensive regular seasons in NFL history Jarran Reed Color Rush Jersey , the question is can defenses still lead the way to a championship?“I have no idea,” said San Francisco cornerback Richard Sherman, a key member of Seattle’s 2013 championship defense. “I don’t think the league really wants that or cares to have that thing again. They care more about offensive football, so that’s what they’ll get. To have a special defensive group to play that well for so long would be very difficult to do because of the style of defense and the rules. … I think it’s going to be harder and harder to make the Hall of Fame from defense.”Playing defense in the NFL perhaps has never been harder, with the intimidating hits on receivers and quarterbacks now outlawed, even the most minor downfield contact resulting in penalties, and quarterbacks more accurate and efficient than ever while running the new spread offenses.This year featured the highest passer rating (92.9), most yards per play (5.6) and second-most points per game (46.7) in NFL history. It seems like playing great defense is almost impossible.“You can’t use it as an excuse because they still let us hit, OK?” said Dallas defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli, an assistant on the 2002 Tampa Bay team that won a Super Bowl behind its defense.“I’ve always believed in the speed of the defense. And that’s the hitting. They’ve got holes. We’ve got to hit the holes. We’ve got to hit them. And we’ve got to make it a physical game. We’ve got be smart, helmet to helmet, got to be smart on the quarterback, some of those things. And you try to teach it, keep our speed and playing fast. Some of the things down the field, push-offs and all that stuff, it’s tough.”The story of this NFL season has been the offenses, with the highlight being a 54-51 win for the Los Angeles Rams over the Kansas City Chiefs back in November.That’s been part of a season that had first-year starter Patrick Mahomes throwing for 50 TD passes and more than 5,000 yards for Kansas City, Drew Brees set more records at age 39 in New Orleans, Tom Brady maintain his winning ways in his 40s for New England, and Sean McVay’s offense tormenting opposing teams all year long for the Rams.But those teams that feature four of the five most efficient offenses in the league, according to Football Outsiders, and defenses that have been far less consistent will get the opening weekend of the postseason off.That will provide a bit of a throwback look on wild-card weekend with many of the league’s top defenses taking center stage in hopes that they can get on a run like the one the Denver Broncos had three years ago to win a Super Bowl.“I think it’s still definitely possible,” said Broncos linebacker Todd Davis Nick Vannett Color Rush Jersey , a member of that title-winning team. “I don’t feel like it has to be 51-54. It really doesn’t. I feel like you can really stop teams if you play close defense, you play tight on receivers, play great in man coverage and you can really stop people.”Many of the teams playing this weekend have shown that ability this season, led by the NFL’s top-ranked scoring defense in Chicago. An already-strong unit only got better with the acquisition of elite pass rusher Khalil Mack before the season.With Mack and Akiem Hicks wreaking havoc up front and Eddie Jackson and Kyle Fuller providing big plays from the secondary, the Bears appear to have the defense best equipped for a long postseason run, starting with Sunday’s home game against defending champion Philadelphia.“Dominant, that’s it,” Hicks said. “We are aggressive. We like to hit. All the stuff that I was (saying) before the season started, we’re everything that we said we were. And hopefully we can get to another level for these playoffs.”The Bears aren’t alone. Six of those 10 most efficient defenses are playing this weekend: Baltimore, Houston, the Chargers, Dallas and Indianapolis.Ball-control offense and dominant defense have been a tried-and-true formula for teams like Baltimore and Seattle, who have combined for three Super Bowl championships and five appearances in the title game this century with that recipe.The Seahawks still have that capability despite the absence of most of the stalwarts from the Legion of Boom such as Sherman, Earl Thomas, Kam Chancellor, Michael Bennett and Cliff Avril.But Bobby Wagner remains at middle linebacker, Frank Clark has been an elite pass rusher, and coach Pete Carroll’s scheme is still effective after all these years.“You either believe in something or you don’t,” Carroll said. “I think just staying the course and knowing we’re on to something. Believing in the history. We know what we’re capable of doing. We’ve shown it over a lot of years. You’re always adapting, but it’s staying what you’re true to. I think that’s what is happening. We look like a team that we have seen before, and that’s powerful.”