Author: Rob Staton (Page 323 of 423)

Earl Thomas remember this moment

I remember speaking to a coach in another sport about a year ago and we ended up talking about injuries. I asked which was the more serious ‘common’ injury an athlete can get. I thought it was an ACL. He said it used to be. Times have changed though. Now it was the dreaded achilles.

It’s pretty much an injury that never really goes away. It can go again with relative ease. And it hurts like hell. It’s not impossible to make a full recovery — Demaryius Thomas has shown it can be done. But it’s a tricky one.

San Francisco are the definitive division rival, but I don’t want to see the Seahawks win the NFC West because of an injury advantage. That’s how close the teams are these days. An extra injury here or there could be the difference in 2013. And losing Crabtree is a big one.

Back in 2009 I was desperate for Seattle to draft Crabtree with the fourth overall pick. He wasn’t the fastest or the biggest receiver, but he had everything else. Amazing hands, the ability to catch away from his body, incredible control, the tendency to make difficult grabs in coverage and he was the key component in college football’s most exciting finish to a game in 2008 (Texas vs Texas Tech — not RS freshman Earl Thomas’ finest hour). Crabtree was a star in the making. I felt positive about that.

I remember shouting loudly and angrily at the screen when the Seahawks snubbed the best player in the draft for Aaron Curry. It’s easy to sit here and say that now, I guess. Yet it still hurts to this day. I remember getting excited that the reliable Mike Mayock had included Crabtree at #4 in his last gasp mock draft. I remember the split screen of Curry and Crabtree in the green room. I remember the blood curdling shout I made that probably woke the neighbours up when Curry’s name was called. It wasn’t a good day.

(I also just remembered that was a time before Twitter. Remember those days?)

Instead the Seahawks went safe — overpaying for an old veteran (T.J. Houshmandzadeh) at receiver. Crabtree was too risky for Tim Ruskell. He hadn’t worked out due to a metatarsal injury and there were some lingering character issues — although nothing too specific. Forget the fact Seattle was desperate for a dynamic receiver to help the ageing Matt Hasselbeck. Let’s spend over $100m on three linebackers instead.

*Stops rant because we’ve done this a million times already*

I think Crabtree should be a Seahawk right now. I think he’d fit very well as the bigger target in this offense. And I think a coach like Pete Carroll would’ve got the best out of him, much in the way Jim Harbaugh has in San Francisco. It’s no surprise either that when the 49ers had a settled offense and quarterback, Crabtree has played like the top receiver many expected he would be. Crabtree — just like Alex Smith — suffered with the bad leadership and constant change that franchise endured pre-Harbaugh.

Last year he struck up an instant connection with Colin Kaepernick and they threatened to become one of the best — if not the best — QB/WR combo’s in the league. So while it’s obviously good news for the NFC West and NFC in general that Crabtree may miss the season, nobody should take any satisfaction from that. You should want to beat the best to be the best. And that means facing San Francisco with the Kaepernick-to-Crabtree connection.

You build emotional attachment’s to players you respect in the draft process. Crabtree, even as a 49er, has my respect. And hopefully he’ll be back quickly for future battle’s with Richard Sherman and co.

Oh, and by the way, Jesse Williams can jump.

Bruce Irvin is the fifth Seattle player to serve a suspension for PED's in two years

Pete Carroll finally addressed the PED issues today in light of Bruce Irvin’s four-game suspension. He claimed the Seahawks go beyond what the league insists to keep the players on track, to understand their responsibilities. Carroll voiced disappointment and admitted it was serious, but there was no anger in his words. He was philosophical. More like a let-down father than a boss reaching tipping point.

It was typical Carroll-fare. Not that this is a bad thing 99% of the time. Usually the boyish enthusiasm, positive mental attitude and slogans get me as pumped up as a player waiting to run out at Century Link and beat the 49ers 42-13.

However, I just kind of wanted to see a stronger stance today. I wanted to see actions condemned, warnings made. This is five suspensions in two years. Five. The NFL Network is already talking about ‘asterisks’. There’s been so much good work during the Carroll/Schneider era to turn this team into a contender. Too much good work to let it go to waste. Nobody wants to see those efforts undermined. And I guarantee they will be undermined if any more players are suspended for taking PED’s.

You also better believe the league is taking notice, as evidenced by this Tweet:

.@wyche89 reports #Seahawks could face fines by @nfl for multiple players being suspended in a season for violating PED policy after Irvin

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) May 20, 2013

And just when you want to move on and concentrate on football, the news breaks that Josh Portis has been arrested for a DUI offense.

C’mon man!?

Look, regulars know this isn’t a negative blog. We don’t search out reasons to criticise for the sake of it. I like to think we’re honest and ‘call a spade a spade’. In the last three years there’s not been a great deal to complain about.

However, this isn’t good enough. Too many players are jeopardising their own careers, the success of the collective roster and they are not representing the franchise, the fans and the community in the correct way. Nobody expects to see choir boys. When you put 50-60 guys together on a roster there’s going to be a few issues here and there. Seattle isn’t the only team to experience problems like this. But PED’s and DUI’s are unacceptable and there have simply been too many. When there’s an issue — and there clearly is one here — I want to know there’s a consequence. Stuff like this cannot be taken lightly.

Of course Carroll isn’t totally to blame for a fairly tepid response today. The media didn’t ask one challenging question in the entire press conference. It was an easy ride. I wanted to see a few tough questions thrown in there. Not because I wanted to see Carroll squirm, but because I felt that is what needed to happen. It’s that serious.

– Why do you think so many players on this particular roster been caught taking PED’s?

– Have you upped the stakes in terms of the consequences for the next person who gets caught?

– Have you been disciplined enough with this group? Is that a fair criticism?

– Does there need to be a culture change within certain pockets of the locker room?

In certain situations coaches and GM’s have to be held accountable. We didn’t see that today and it’s disappointing, especially given the wall of silence in the immediate aftermath of the Irvin charge (well summed up by John McGrath at the TNT).

Rest assured there’ll be a lot of tough questions asked from the national guys if the Seahawks win a title and it’s tainted by numerous PED suspensions. As I said a few days ago, zero has to be the maximum number of additional charges going forward — or credibility will begin to be challenged. This has to stop now.

And just when you think it can’t get any worse, there’s talk today they’re going to drag the draft out until May. Meaning longer to wait, longer to dilute the process and more time having to listen to people banging on about whichever quarterback they love/hate on Twitter.

I need to see some Christine Michael and Jordan Hill highlights…

I’ve got a piece coming on a couple of 2014 tight ends, but in the meantime here’s what the Seahawks are getting from their third round pick this year…

Seattle’s former 1st-round pick Bruce Irvin has suspended without pay for violating NFL policy on performance-enhancing drugs.

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) May 17, 2013

Bruce Irvin. Brandon Browner. Winston Guy. John Moffitt. Allen Barbre.

That’s the list of Seahawks players suspended in the last couple of years for taking performance enhancing drugs. Richard Sherman was also charged, but won an appeal against his suspension.

Seattle needs to get a grip on this — and fast.

Everyone needs to take responsibility here. The players need to wise up. Learn what you can and can’t put into your bodies. Engage your brains. The vast majority of NFL players manage to avoid suspension. Why? Because they don’t allow substances like Adderall into their blood stream. It’s not that difficult.

The coaching staff needs to do a better job disciplining the players and making sure they realise the consequences of being suspended. These four-game absences are costly. The Seahawks can’t afford to lose Bruce Irvin with Chris Clemons and Greg Scruggs suffering ACL injuries. Irvin will miss a crucial divisional game against the 49ers. His absence won’t define the contest but you’d rather have him out there on the field instead of sat at home watching on TV. What a waste.

The Seahawks are getting a reputation here that undermines all the positive hype as they grow into a contender in the NFC. The Tweet below is in jest, but it’s the kind of thing you’ll hear more of:

@espn_nfcwest #SeAdderallSeahawks

— Os Cruz (@NJBeerNerd) May 17, 2013

Do you want future success to come with a question mark? People talking about asterisks? People wondering if that guy who won that game was cheating? “Oh yeah, the Seahawks won that game… but they’re all on PED’s.”

And yeah, I know that Adderall doesn’t exactly turn you into the Incredible Hulk on the football field. I’m led to believe it helps you concentrate, keeps you alert. Big deal. It’s banned. Therefore you don’t take it. Simple, really.

It’s time to act like professionals. You’re not the only ones getting caught, but is there another team in the league that’s had five players suspended for PED abuse?

It’s all well and good apologising, but it won’t change anything. Irvin posted an apology on his Twitter account. Bruce, seriously, you can’t play the “haters” card today. True, loyal fans aren’t just the blind faith brigade. Sometimes the truth hurts. You made a mistake. Deal with it, move on and please learn from this.

This is a problem. It has to stop NOW. No more suspensions has to be the maximum going forward. Zero. And everyone is responsible for making sure that happens.

You can see the press conference by clicking here.

Earlier in the week Carroll praised tight end Luke Willson (why the extra ‘L’ Luke… why?) for his display. He’s an intriguing guy. There’s not a great deal of tape out there, but any time the team brings an athletic ‘catcher first’ tight end into camp you can’t help but want to see more. Those types of players are changing the NFL as much as anything. Seattle’s offense has lacked a difference making athlete at the tight end position (that’s no slur on Miller or McCoy, I’m a big fan of both). We’ll see if Will.son can be the next out of nowhere field stretching big man.

Perhaps even more interesting, however, were Carroll’s comments about the defensive tackle position. He talked about not putting players into a discomfort zone (yes, I am making up an opposite to ‘comfort zone’). That meant Jordan Hill mostly featuring at the nose or one technique. Yet Jesse Williams featured at the three in mini camp, a position he isn’t that familiar with. He played the five and then the nose at Alabama. So what gives?

Clearly the Seahawks believe in Williams and his ability to start. The fact they’re already trying to get a good look at him at the three might give him an edge in terms of who eventually wins the starting job to replace Alan Branch (even if there’s still a long way to go). Unlike Hill, they’re trying to mould Williams early. They’ve done this in the past with their rookies (see: Russell Wilson taking ALL the snaps in mini-camp last year). Carroll even stated he feels Williams could start on first and second down. They appear to want size early. They want to play tough against the run. They started with Colin Cole at the three, switched to Branch and Williams could be the next man up.

Of course, he still has to prove capable and stay healthy. He’ll need to impress. But it looks like he has a great shot at winning a starting gig. Yet I can’t help but wonder how they see Hill fitting into the equation. Rotational cog for Mebane? Pass rush specialist? After all, he was the third round pick. Not Williams. I figured they might push Hill into the three early to test him there. It may still happen. But this week they kept him at the one and Carroll didn’t tout any eventual change of position in his interview today.

We’ll see how this process plays out. While this won’t be anything like last years quarterback saga going into camp, the ‘who starts at defensive tackle’ debate will at least keep things interesting. Can Williams win the job at the three? And if so, how does the higher draft pick fit in the rotation?

Williams wears #54 in the videos below. Big thanks to JMPasq who put these together especially for SDB. The guy is a legend.

Seahawks have signed third-rounder Jordan Hill to a $2.76 million deal that includes a $544,140 bonus

— Aaron Wilson (@RavensInsider) May 10, 2013

Seahawks signed seventh-round defensive end Ty Powell to $2.209 million deal that includes $49,432 bonus

— Aaron Wilson (@RavensInsider) May 10, 2013

Aside from the two noted above, Chris Harper (WR), Jesse Williams (DT), Luke Willson (TE), Ryan Seymour (G) and Jared Smith (G) also agreed terms today. The players who remain unsigned are Christine Michael (RB), Tharold Simon (CB), Spencer Ware (RB) and Michael Bowie (T).

Change? Why? This offensive line is growing into a formidable group

The Seahawks have an accomplished offensive line.

Yes, that is true, despite arguments to the contrary. Only San Francisco and the New York Giants ranked higher in the run game last year according to Football Outsiders. They were ranked #2 in second level blocking, had more success in a ‘power’ formation than any other team barring New Orleans and had the least number of stuffed runs in the NFL.

For a team that wants to run the ball as much as the Seahawks (nobody ran more often in 2012) that’s some impressive work.

Against the pass they were average, giving up 33 sacks (middle of the road). The official ranking according to FO is #20 in the league. I’m not trying to pick and choose my stats here, but considering the Raiders were ranked #4 for pass protection, Detroit 1st and San Francisco 29th (!!!) I’m not too concerned to see Seattle at #20. This is a run first team, just like the 49ers. And they run block as well as any O-line in the league.

I take some comfort seeing the Giants ranked #2 for the run and #3 in pass protection — giving up the least amount of sacks. This isn’t a team that has pushed a ton of stock (money and picks) into their line. They’ve relied on consistency and familiarity. True, they just spent a first round pick on Justin Pugh. A lot of teams ranked him near the top of their boards. If it wasn’t New York, it was probably Chicago. And many feel the time is right for the Giants to recharge their O-line. But the point stands. They built a rapport, and used it as the foundation for two title runs.

And so it will be for the Seahawks.

For the first time since Seattle’s only Super Bowl run, there’s a level of consistency up front. Do not underestimate that. It is, for me, the most important part of any offensive line. You can pump as many high draft picks into a line as you want. Eventually, you have to stick with five guys. And those five have to work as one. Sure, talent matters. Of course it does. But the Seahawks aren’t lacking talent. They have Pro-Bowlers at left tackle and center — the two premium positions. The numbers above prove as a group they’re a productive bunch, especially in the run game. A lot of that is down to familiarity.

“We’re able to just kind of plug in where we left off. Then the newness and the new things we want to add to it, we’ll put some focus to that. But it’s really been pretty good how they’ve competed just to bring it back with them. It’s made it a lot easier for us.”

The quote above is from Tom Cable, speaking to Seahawks.com after the players reported for a recent off-season workout. No learning curve. No time consuming lessons and basics. Just get out there and play. Perfect. Just what you want to see at this time of year.

The starting line during those workouts was Okung-McQuistan-Unger-Sweezy-Giacomini. John Moffitt, James Carpenter, Lemuel Jeanpierre, Rishaw Johnson and Mike Person were named as the backups.

We’ve had many debates about the offensive line this off-season. Some wanted to invest even more draft stock into this area of the team. Others had a different take. The simple fact is the Seahawks didn’t spend high on the offensive line in this draft. They drafted three guys in round seven. One of those guys played defensive tackle in college. These were three guys they weren’t sure they could sign in UDFA. Here’s what that tells me:

1 – The Seahawks are content with their starting lineman.

2 – The Seahawks are comfortable with their scouting/coaching and probably don’t feel they need to ‘go big’ on this unit going forward.

3 – The Seahawks are happy to draft players who fit a certain physical criteria, then let Cable get to work.

I’m not trying to argue we won’t see another first or second round pick spent on the offensive line any time soon. Why would you rule anything out? You never know what’ll happen. But if the offensive continues on it’s current trajectory, I think they’ll be more than happy to put their faith in Cable’s vision.

And that’s essentially what we’re seeing here. Players hand picked by Tom Cable. Guys he knows will fit his scheme. Fit his attitude. Fit the identity of this squad. They don’t need high picks. They just need to be Cable’s guys.

That’s why you pay someone like Cable to run your offensive line and running game. You trust him. Other teams don’t have a Cable. Seattle is fortunate in that regard. It’s already paid dividends.

Ryan Seymour, Jared Smith and Michael Bowie are the latest trio to pass the Cable eye test. And they might stick on the team and eventually start like Sweezy. They may provide solid depth. Or maybe they’ll end up on the practise squad or worse. Either way, I suspect that is how this team is going to move forward. Looking for the rough diamond to compliment and compete with a consistent group of starters.

A lot of people have talked about Breno Giacomini being out of contract next year or the possibility of cutting the relatively expensive Paul McQuistan. You could make a saving by replacing both with second or even first round salaries. If those guys are going to be replaced, I’d put money on it not being another high pick unless it’s a guy you just have to get. No, I’d throw my cash behind it being another problem Cable can solve. That seems to be the degree of faith they have in his judgement and coaching. Clearly.

And hey, I wouldn’t rule out Giacomini and McQuistan receiving extensions. Yes, this is about cost effective football. Saving money where you can, playing the rookie market well. But this front office also rewards players who deserve it. They could’ve let Kam Chancellor walk in a year, receive a decent compensatory pick and tried to replace him with another cheap rookie. They didn’t. They paid the man. Same for Chris Clemons, who was rightly rewarded despite the first round pick spent on Bruce Irvin last year. Max Unger, Red Bryant and Brandon Mebane were paid. If Giacomini and McQuistan deliver, they’ll probably stick around. Why not? You find a way to make it work.

Are there improvements to be made? Sure. Russell Wilson will learn to turn a blitz into a major positive instead of a reason to worry. Teams rarely blitz the greats because a guy like Peyton Manning knows how to exploit it. Wilson will get there eventually. So the heart attack protection witnessed against teams like Arizona (week 1), St. Louis (week 17) and Washington (Wild Card) should become a thing of the past. For the most part it’s just little tweaks and further experience. And anyone seriously worried about the pass protection should go back and watch the tape from last year. A who’s-who of elite NFL pass rushers were shut out. Don’t forget that.

An effective offensive line is all about knowing how to act as a cohesive unit. So don’t expect any major changes or high investment over the next few years. That’s already taken place. Alex Gibbs, Cable, Okung, extending Unger, Carpenter. Now they’re putting their trust in Cable to keep this line at the top of the game.

Seahawks cut tight end Darren Fells

— Aaron Wilson (@RavensInsider) May 8, 2013

Been busy with work for the last few days, while also taking some time after the draft to do ‘life’ things. Expect a couple of pieces later this week. For now, here’s the newest Seahawks receiver versus Oregon in the Fiesta Bowl.