| | By John Clayton
ESPN.com
SEATTLE -- Out of the blue, Seahawks coach Mike Holmgren made a prediction. He forecast that outside linebacker Anthony Simmons will go to the Pro Bowl this year.
|  | | Linebacker Chad Brown will be going after the quarterback more. |
The amazing part about that statement is that the Seahawks already have a Pro Bowl linebacker. Chad Brown has gone to the Pro Bowl the past two years with the Seahawks and two other years in Pittsburgh.
Brown doesn't disagree.
"Anthony took one for the team and played middle linebacker last year," Brown said. "He is as talented a linebacker as I have been around and I've been around some great linebackers."
Many feel that Brown is a Junior Seau-type linebacker who can do everything. Simmons possesses great speed and pass-rush ability. While Holmgren has great plans for Simmons, Brown is trying to grow comfortable with the role of being more of a pass-rusher.
"The coaches are still trying to feel me out," Brown said. "My rush is rusty. It hasn't been used in a couple of years. If I can go out and make some plays, maybe they will rush me a little bit. But if not me, it will be somebody else."
Brown had 13 sacks with the Steelers in 1996, but he was allowed to blitz from the linebacker position or rush from a defensive end spot. New defensive coordinator Steve Sidwell brings to the team an aggressive scheme that provides pass-rushing opportunities for all three linebackers and virtually everybody in the secondary.
For the past few years, the Seahawks have felt they have had one of the most talented defenses in the AFC. That talent, however, has not allowed the Seahawks to rise from the bottom of the league's defensive statistics.
Last year, for example, the Seahawks finished 23rd in yardage allowed and were 25th against the run. They allowed four yards a carry.
"The last eight games, we collapsed on defense," Brown said. "Teams ran the ball on us at will. It was something that we had to fix. It's not what coach Holmgren or the Seahawks or anyone was shooting for."
The Simmons-Brown outside linebacking tandem is one of the fastest in the NFL. But they need a middle linebacker to set all the plays right. Former Packers veteran George Koonce, signed for the NFL minimum of $440,000, was given that job after projected starter DeShone Myles blew out his knee and was lost for the season.
"Simmons on the outside next to George Koonce makes us better than a year ago," Holmgren said. "Reggie Tongue gives us speed in the secondary and makes us better. And Steve Sidwell feels pretty good about our defensive line. If there is one position where we have depth, it's the defensive line."
Most of the players believe the team will go as far as the defensive line takes them. The key is how well veterans Cortez Kennedy and Michael Sinclair hold up and whether a new mix of youngsters emerges. The Seahawks are high on backup defensive tackle Antonio Cochran, who is fighting Riddick Parker for a starting job. Lamar King, a first-round choice from last year, is showing signs of maturity at defensive end.
"You put all of that together on the defense plus we have the best special teams coach in the league (Pete Rodriquez)," Holmgren said. "Why shouldn't we make the playoffs?"
John Clayton is the senior NFL writer for ESPN.com.
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