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Defense leaking, Russell Wilson cooking: Five numbers on Seahawks' 5-0 start

The Seattle Seahawks are one of the NFL's four remaining unbeaten teams and the only one at 5-0.

Those are the two numbers that matter most. But as coach Pete Carroll, general manager John Schneider and their respective staffs self-scout over their bye week, let's take our own look at the Seahawks by examining five other numbers that help explain the best start in franchise history and the best start of Russell Wilson's career.

67.3% -- percentage of offensive plays on which Seattle has dropped back to pass

It's the sixth highest in the league and a sizable increase from the Seahawks' 54.9% dropback rate (31st) over Brian Schottenheimer's first two seasons as offensive coordinator, according to ESPN charting. The rate was 62.8% (ninth) over Darrell Bevell's final three seasons as OC.

The biggest difference has come early in games, where Seattle has long been hell-bent under Carroll to establish the run. Over the past two seasons, that desire was reflected in a 54% first-half dropback rate that was the lowest in the league. The Seahawks are currently second in first-half dropback rate at 69.8%.

Wilson -- and everyone who implored Carroll, Schottenheimer & Co. to "Let Russ Cook" -- no doubt approve of that shift. Wilson gave his public endorsement during the offseason that he should throw more early in games. He cited the Seahawks' record over his career when leading by four or more points at halftime (57-0 at the time, including playoffs) as evidence of why they should make it more of a priority to get ahead early.

But even with Wilson throwing more early, the Seahawks have still needed him to lead two game-winning drives in the fourth quarter, including an improbable one last week against Minnesota.

66.7% -- Seattle's pass block win rate

That's fifth best. You read that right: The Seahawks -- based on ESPN's metric that uses NFL Next Gen Stats to measure how frequently linemen sustain blocks for 2.5 seconds or longer -- have been one of the league's best pass-blocking teams through five weeks. They were 28th last year at 53.5%.

That improvement has meant more time for Wilson to connect on deep throws. Of his league-high 19 touchdown passes, he has had at least 2.5 seconds to throw on 14 of them, according to NFL Next Gen Stats. Five of the 19 have come on throws that traveled at least 25 yards beyond the line of scrimmage (he would have had a sixth had DK Metcalf not fumbled before crossing the goal line in Week 3). That also tops in the league, while Wilson's 10 completions on such throws are tied with Tom Brady for most.

So much for the concern that Seattle's offensive line might struggle out of the gates with three new starters and considerably fewer offseason reps than normal. Third-round pick Damien Lewis has been a quick study at right guard, save for his five penalties. Free-agent addition Brandon Shell has been an upgrade over Germain Ifedi at right tackle. Ethan Pocic has played well at center after surprisingly beating out another free-agent pickup, B.J. Finney.

Wilson has been sacked 15 times, sixth most of any quarterback. But Seattle's sack totals can be somewhat misleading because of Wilson's propensity to hold the ball in an attempt to extend plays.

2,356 -- number of total yards Seattle's defense has allowed

According to research from the Elias Sports Bureau, that's the most by any team through five games since the 1950 Colts. Most of the damage has come through the air. The 1,292 passing yards the Seahawks allowed over the first three games was easily the most to begin a season in NFL history. Their run defense had been fine until it was gashed for 201 yards against Minnesota.

The pass rush has again been part of the problem. The Seahawks are 28th in pressure rate (23.6%) and have only nine sacks despite facing a league-high 239 passing attempts. That pace would put them just above the 28 sacks they got last season, when they were 30th in pressure rate (22.9%).

Their secondary has also been hit hard by injuries to nickelback Marquise Blair (lost for the season in Week 2), All-Pro safety Jamal Adams (missed two games) and cornerback Quinton Dunbar (missed two games). Dunbar returned last week. Adams is expected to be ready after the bye.

10 -- number of turnovers Seattle has forced

That's tied for second most in the league and puts Seattle on pace to match last year's total of 32, which was third. Go figure that the Seahawks have continued to excel at takeaways despite continuing to struggle to get to the quarterback, which is typically a primary generator of turnovers.

They have a league-high 56 points off turnovers this season, turning eight of them into touchdowns. The other two allowed them to kneel out the clock.

The other thing Seattle's defense has done well? Making stops with the game on the line, like fourth-and-1 against Minnesota and the goal-line stand against the New England Patriots in Week 2.

4 -- Seattle's rank in Football Outsiders' DVOA ratings for special teams

At this rate, Larry Izzo might be in-demand for a full-time coordinator position with the job he has done under challenging circumstances. He took over on an interim basis when long-time coordinator Brian Schneider stepped away indefinitely right before the opener for undisclosed personal reasons.

The Seahawks have downed a league-high 15 of Michael Dickson's 22 punts inside the 20. They also have the most punts downed inside the 10 (eight) and 5 (three). Jason Myers has attempted only two field goals but has made both (including a 54-yarder) and has gone 21 of 21 on extra point attempts.

"One of the things that's been really rock solid has been special teams," Carroll said after Seattle's fourth game. "You just haven't seen a play there that hasn't been where it's supposed to be, how it's supposed to be played or handled, kicked deep ... It's been a fantastic start. Real steady part of our game right now."