RENTON, Wash. -- In Monday night's win over the Buffalo Bills, the Seattle Seahawks called 31 pass plays and 10 runs.
Pete Carroll's explanation was simple: The passing game was working, so they stuck with it.
On the season, the Seahawks have called pass plays 64.6 percent of the time, according to ESPN Stats & Information. That's 10th in the NFL.
To put that number into perspective, the Seahawks haven't ranked higher than 26th in terms of the percentage of pass plays on offense in a season since Russell Wilson took over as quarterback in 2012.
"Maybe it doesn't come around," Carroll said on the Brock and Salk show on 710 ESPN Seattle this week. "I don't know. We're going to shoot for it. I'm not leaving the thought of trying to balance this thing out, but we do know we don't have to run the football to win football games. But we want to."
It's a philosophical battle for Carroll. He knows how he wants to play, and he says he believes in balance on offense. The run game is especially handy late in games when the Seahawks are trying to put away their opponent.
It also would be useful in a game like this weekend's against the New England Patriots. Running the ball and stringing together drives is one way to keep Tom Brady off the field.
But there's a problem: The Seahawks are not very good at running the ball right now. They're averaging 3.21 yards per carry (30th) and rank 23rd in rushing efficiency. Of the 10 run plays the Seahawks had last week, assistant head coach/offensive line coach Tom Cable said they targeted or read seven of them incorrectly.
Until or unless Wilson becomes fully healthy from his knee injury, it's unlikely that the run game is going to take a significant step forward.
The upside in the passing game, though, is clear. Wilson has operated well from the pocket, and the Seahawks have excellent weapons in tight end Jimmy Graham, wide receiver Doug Baldwin and wide receiver Tyler Lockett. Offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell has said he views the quick passing game as an extension of the run game.
And the downfield passing game can be a real strength. According to ESPN Stats & Information, Wilson has completed 61 percent of his passes that have traveled at least 15 yards downfield. That's second only to Brady.
"Our ability to throw the ball down the field excites me more than anything because I feel like that's the thing that we need to do offensively is go attack people and get them off us," Cable said.
The decision to push the ball vertically was made on the plane ride back to Seattle after the Seahawks lost to the New Orleans Saints in Week 8. Carroll compared the change in approach to the one the team made last year during the bye week when the Seahawks incorporated more of a quick-hitting passing attack because Wilson was getting sacked too much.
"With the end of the season coming up, we've got to cut it loose if we're going to have a chance to have our guys at our best, and so we're making some strides, and that was a good step forward," Carroll said.
The Seahawks were hesitant to call deep drops for Wilson because of his injuries. And some of the downfield concepts require him to hold onto the ball, in addition to getting adequate pass protection from the offensive line.
If Wilson gets healthier, Thomas Rawls provides a boost when he returns or the offensive line makes progress, the Seahawks could find the formula they were hoping for going into the season: a strong run game, play-action shots downfield and a quick passing attack.
But there's no guarantee that the run game will get on track. And that could mean a pass-heavy attack that relies on Wilson's arm above all else.