It’s time for change.
In the short term the Seahawks need to act. Ken Norton Jr should be replaced after three hapless years as defensive coordinator.
Then at the end of the season, Pete Carroll should stand aside.
I say that not as a knee-jerk reaction to an absolute hammering in Minnesota. I said it throughout the summer that my preference would be for change if 2021 proved to be more of the same.
You could argue things are actually worse.
The Seahawks look broken. This has the feel of a team ready to implode without action.
I’m happy to add the qualifier that I’ll eat this article if the Seahawks go on to challenge seriously for the Super Bowl. On this evidence though, that’s not very likely.
And while some fans or sections of the media might be willing to reference New England’s loss to Kansas City a few years ago (“We’re on to Cincinnati”) — the reality is there are thousands of other examples where teams that play this poorly don’t do what Brady and Belichick did in 2014.
The new fangled scheme that Carroll and Norton have cooked up is a shambles. They aren’t creating pressure. They’re leaving themselves wide open underneath. They give up easy completions time after time.
They completely failed to address the gaping need at cornerback.
They stuck by Jamal Adams after a first season where he was injured and largely only effective as a free-running blitzer with Bobby Wagner, an $18m linebacker, forced to blitz literally 100 times to set the table for him.
What a total and utter failure that trade is, with Adams a complete non-factor after three games. How many times did we hear how he just needed health and another year with the team? The Seahawks’ staff have no idea what to do with him to make him an effective playmaker.
The great pass rush depth? Ineffective.
First round defensive lineman? Inactive.
Look at some key stats for the Vikings today:
— 453 total yards
— 9/14 on third down
— 140 rushing yards
On top of that, one of the most predictable things about the game was Minnesota’s desire to use screen plays. Seattle had no answer, despite surely knowing this was coming?
It’s not just the defense though.
Once again, the staff completely lost the game of adjustments.
Minnesota’s yardage in the third quarter — 114 yards
Seattle yardage — 7 yards
All of the defensive issues in the first half continued. Nothing changed. Meanwhile, the offense regressed.
Wilson, in the second half of both games, has started to play like he did last season when the defense was so bad that he needed to do everything. This was LA and Buffalo on the road stuff — and Arizona on the road in the second half plus overtime.
And sure, he takes some responsibility for that too.
D.K. Metcalf had five catches for 88 yards and a touchdown in the first half. In the second half? How do you not find a way to get him the ball?
They were shut out in the second half.
This isn’t good enough.
Where are the counter-punches once opponents settle into the game?
In three games so far, the offense has completely stalled after half-time. It’s as if they start out nice and fast with the stuff they’ve worked on and then that’s it.
After an off-season of drama where Wilson questioned his future, get ready for even more of that on the horizon. It started to bubble last week.
It’s hard to know where this team goes from here. They play the Niners, Rams and Steelers next. Their only win is against 0-3 Indianapolis, while the rest of the NFC West excels.
It’s starting to feel like the writing is on the wall. That this could and should be the last dance for Carroll.
We can sit here and talk about culture and motivation or people you respect and like being in charge.
Pete Carroll will always be a Seahawks legend. Nothing changes that.
Yet the Seahawks are currently not well coached. They are a discombobulated mess at times. The fine-details are lacking. When a key change is needed to shift momentum, it’s never delivered.
That’s before we even get into the way they’ve used their resources and built this roster.
Carroll looks increasingly flustered. As if he isn’t having fun any more. I didn’t expect to ever write those words but here we are.
If this continues, I think he’ll call it a day at the end of the season.
Regardless, it’s time for a big shift. The same things are happening year after year and there’s no accountability from the top.
2022 feels like a time to start afresh. An offensive minded Head Coach working hand-in-hand with the big investment at quarterback. An experienced defensive coordinator who’s been there and done it — to finally sort this unit out.
I could wait until January to write this. But what’s the point in waiting?
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Could not agree more. 100% accurate and very well put.
That game was depressing. You’ve hit the nail on the head here.
Feels like the Carroll era is now over. We must have some change, or Russ is gone as well
It could be worse mate. I’m also a Spurs fan so I know what I’m talking about. What a Monday morning it’s been!
Nobody’s talking about the lack of playmaker depth for Wilson to throw to. A defense can shut down three guys without a problem if the other targets don’t merit any serious coverage.
It gets maddening to see these other teams in the division with swiss-army knife playmakers all the way down the depth chart – WR, TE, and RB – who could all nab a starting spot on any roster in the leagu, while we have Freddie Swain headlining our depth.
Same story for years now. At some point you have to blame the QB.
I am blaming the QB. He’s refusing to throw to wide-open Tyler Mabry. Do not mistake the limited scope of my post for an excusing of Wilson.
I turned it off at half time luckily, at least we go the Ryder Cup today!!!
This season is about to implode.
We just have to prey that RW stays and the entire management goes, JS too.
i turned it off after amadis stupid penalty. no pressure at the line of scrimmage. hell tre flowers us worthless. back up allow a 10 yard catch and tackle. and repeat..
Exactly,but with uninterested ownership (other than value) to force the issue, nothing changes.
Though pc did show some annoyance after last weeks debacle
That has to be one of the worst defensive performances of the Carroll era if not the worst. Punting was pointless, nearly every play gained yards with ease, any stop felt aided by either a Vikings mistake or a short field. Obviously the offense has gotta execute and adjust better in the 2nd half, but with the defense incapable of getting off the field their chances to do that are small. It’s gotta be demoralizing for Russell and the offense to watch the defense look that pathetic, knowing they have to overcompensate. I know Pete like his guys but there is no excuse for Norton to still be the DC.
Great write-up Rob. I hope things change so we can get this season headed in the right direction.
Sign me up. I can see 1-2 and not panic. But watching how they went 1-2, I see a top 10 pick going to the jets. I hope they find 9 wins. But I can’t see more than 1 vs our division. This era is done. Pete sees it in those looks. Rw saw it coming last year. It is over. Strip it down.
Yup, sure glad we traded away that number 1 for this year..
Pete is so long in the tooth that the league had time to hire his defense assistants and adopt his scheme, then fire all his assistants and move on to the next defensive scheme (Brandon Staley’s). Nothing takes away from what he has achieved, and he deserves to make the Hall of Fame, but he has run his course.
The only question left is if Jody Allen has the interest in the team to make any decisions, or if she’s content to sit on an unsupervised asset and do nothing.
Agree 1000%. And to be honest. This is not even a fun team to root for. Outside of DK and Tyler there aren’t many likable players. The press conferences are unwatchable. I’ve been a fan for a long time. Seen some really bad stretches of football. But even during those years I enjoyed watching the team. I don’t enjoy this team. Haven’t for a few years now. Time to clean house.
This is exactly how I feel. I never miss a game, and yet last year and this year I am having a hell of a time watching this garbage. We have some really good players and we should be more competitive than this, but we just aren’t… It’s just not fun watching a team like this, and I wrestle with not watching the rest of the season. Maybe I am too invested emotionally to this team like my wife says… I remember as a kid being made fun of because I was a Hawks fan and they weren’t very good. Then there was a 4 year stretch while I was in the Army I didnt watch many games, but I got out of the Army during the Holmgren era and I have watched every game since…. The last few years has been really tough as a fan. Maybe it’s because we finally got a taste of what it feels like to be a fan of a good team. Maybe our standards of play that we expect has been raised. Whatever it is, this is no fun. Bring on the change and let’s find a way to rise back up.
100% done with Pete. No excitement with the current regime, this team is about as stale as stale gets. Just hard to watch, not inspiring, it feels like a foregone conclusion before it even starts.
I’ll still watch and be a fan but I’m preparing myself to be very disappointed this year, meanwhile jets fans are ecstatic. Get our first, and Jamal looks like shit. Ugh
After watching the complet and utter meltdown of all aspects of football in the second halk last week, I knew this is what we would see today. I expected it and said it would happen in another thread.
It’s actually way worse than I thought. Hell, even if they lose out and get a high draft pick, they don’t have it because they traded it away for Louis Vuitton. Uncle Louie is a disater with legs. There’s NOTHING about him that is good or that I like. He fits nothing about this team, speaking of which was just as undiciplined as last week.
This team is ugly to watch. I found myself in a moment of zen in the 3rd quarter by DOING THE FUCKING DISHES !!!!!!
That’s as bad as it gets folks. We’re in for some long seasons ahead of way more losses than wins.
If there was hope that the 2nd half of last week was flukey …today’s game crapped all over it.
Incredibly soft defensive performance, Minnesota had easy conversions all day, and completions whenever they needed it.
The offense’s lack of performance is more baffling, and maybe even more frustrating. O-line seems to forget how to pass block once the heat gets turned up, and Russell isn’t making the pull-a-rabbit-out-of-his-hat magic that he used to.
Today was a really bad one.
Seems when Russ falls behind he only wants to throw bombs. It ends up being 3 and punt instead of actually having a drive. I used to think Russ would bring us back when we were behind by a td in the 4th but not anymore.
That is what really pisses me off when reading other site’s articles and comment sections. Wilson has played like shit for the second half of games all season. Yet, most seem to give him a pass, for the most part. He arm-punted two passes, when there was absolutely no need to. Surgical passes of 10-15 yards can yield occasional big gains with YAC. Everett proved that when he trucked his tacklers. Imagine hitting DK in stride on a 10 yard slant with Tyler dragging the CB and safety along for a ride deep? Do it multiple times with DK and Everett and the safety gets sucked in. Basic. Football. 101.
Unfortunately we are currently stuck with a future HoF QB who has a go big or go home mindset. And, it’s really too bad, since Russ showed how damn good he can be when he is precise in a medium range, up-tempo offense, like he was just before the half during the Colts game.
I knew this would be a tough day for the D, so as much as I agree Norton should go, I’m not surprised.
But how the Offense completely collapsed against a D they should (and did) dominate in the second half. Again. Is inexcusable.
This was an epic bad loss. This is a doughnut team now. We’re hollow at the center. The negatives are so numerous I have to collect myself to begin to enunciate them. I don’t know where to begin.
Bravo and spot on. I had much to say, but you pretty much covered it all. KNJ is in over his head (but hey, he’s competitive!), too much talent on D to have no sense of direction, no anticipation of an opponent’s habits and intentions, lack of discipline, few discernible adjustments, a head coach who looks completely bamboozled, etc. And maybe most importantly and concerning…it’s been this way for several years with no course of correction.
Good analysis Rob, don’t know how you can get a report like that in so quickly, a real pro at work.
The changes you suggest and hope for are bang on, this team is weak in so many areas. You can see the frustration in some of the players.
The CB situation is beyond farcical, Adams the biggest waste of money imaginable, the loss of KJ is obvious week on week.
The centre position, must infuriate Wilson, again poor low snaps.
No doubt there will be some massive changes this off season, but will it be driven by Jodi, Pete or Russ? If betting I think My money will be on Russ.
Hard to believe the season could be over after week 5 but if they drop the next two games, the season’s over. This team looks and feels like the one that got pushed around by the Rams at home in the playoffs. That felt like the end of the Carroll era at the time. And today, it does even more. The only thing left to watch is the Greek tragedy play out.
Grading my watch points
Contain Dalvin Cook
Grade: D
The way the Viking OL blocked, it didn’t matter that Cook didn’t play in the game. They dominated the Seahawks DL up front and gave Mattison and Abdullah room to run the whole game.
The couldn’t contain the edges or the middle.
The Vikings won the time of possession by almost 12 minutes. Nearly a whole quarter longer than the Seahawks. That’s largely due to their effective running game.
Pressure Kirk Cousins at least 10 times
Grade: D-
Cousins had all kinds of time in the pocket and delivered. A 128 QB rating and 3 touchdowns on 30 for 38 passing.
The Darrell Taylor strip was a fantastic play. That’s about it.
Use the tight ends
Grade: B-
6 catches between Dissly and Everett for 93 yards.
But they couldn’t use them in the second half when they needed them.
Attack the corners – both of them
Grade: D
298 yards of offense in the first half, 57 yards in the second half excluding that meaningless drive in garbage time.
The Seahawks came out dominant against the corners, abusing them easily.
The Vikings adjusted. The Seahawks didn’t.
Tre Flowers is a legitimate liability every play. The fact he starts in the NFL is completely baffling.
My favorite moment was when the commentator used the teleprompter to show each DB in tight man coverage, with Flowers, quite literally 10 yards behind his assignment, who was running laterally to the LOS.
It was hilarious.
What an absolute shit show. No pass rush and horrible coverage. Kirk Cousins looked like Joe Montana in his prime. Seattle’s secondary looked confused on nearly every play… An absolutely horrible showing.
The offense looked nearly as bad. Just like last week, they started fast, established a lead, and then disappeared. Did they pick up 2 first downs in the 2nd half?
There is a lot of season left, so I’m not ready to say the season is over. But, if they don’t fix this fast, it is going to be a long season and the Jets are going to get a good draft pick from us.
I’ll say it for you. The season is over!
Forget RW. He’ll be gone. Why would he stay even if there’s a new coaching staff? This roster sucks.
No lead RB who can stay healthy. No good TE who’s reliable catching 6-10 passes (maybe that’s on the scheme too), no C, not sure about the OGs, RT is not good, LT is old and no one drafted to play LT in 1-2-3 years from now. Sure DK is OK and Lockett is great. But no clear WR3.
And even if we say our offense is good do you want the pressure to put up 30+ points every time because your D# sucks?
RW will most likely go to a team where they do well only need a good vet QB. Rookie QBs are bad so there should be plenty teams willing to spend ton of picks for #3
And this team sucks from top to bottom. They need a massive rebuild and FO change.
It’ll likely take at least 3-4 years (if they can find a decent QB) to be somewhat of a playoff caliber team.
Need to strip it totally, build from the trenches. Probably 2 pretty good DT, 2 good DE, a good OC, an LT, likely an RT.
Then you need a good RB. Carson is good but he’s not Cook or Henry.
Probably 1-2 good TE too. Dissly is OK also Everett but you’ll need younger guys too.
You need solid WRs also. DK is good but not 22-22m APY good for me. And he’ll demand that.
We’ll also need ILB as Bobby might only have a couple of years in him. Barton sucks, Brooks might be OK but a bit rough. We need a totally new secondary too.
I hope FO gets fired, they trade RW (for something like 3 R1, 3 R2, 3 R3 and 1-2 players), trade Adams (I’m fine with an R2), trade DK (R1) and build a completely new team. Get some mediocre vet QB for 2-3 years. Draft for the lines first and next year or 2 years from now draft a QB.
For the first time in 38yrs as a Hawks fan I could not even be bothered to watch he game next week or for the rest of the year to be honest. Even during the lean years when the team flat out sucked I never felt so apathetic about the team. Tired of Pete trying to put lipstick on a Pig, Russ with his stream of cliches and Adams with his fake tough guy routine. They are a soft, poorly coached team with no spirit or spark. I pray you are right Rob and there are drastic changes soon.
Yeah I’ll be in Nevada next Sunday and likely to be at a blackjack table rather than watching this garbage.
Well said Trevor.
For those of you expecting “big changes” this offseason, I believe you will be greatly disappointed. I don’t think for one second Jody will force anyone out because that would cost money. And sadly Rob, I don’t believe Pete will step aside UNLESS Russ forces his way out (possible). There may be a symbolic termination of Norton, but that’s all it will be.
The collapse of the Seattle Seahawks is underway folks. Eventually someone will buy the team and clean house but until then I fear we’re going to be witness to the slow death of the Pete Carroll Seahawks.
My. Exact. Thoughts.
This all comes down to ownership. Pete has complete control of this team and zero accountability. Nothing happens until the ownership group changes.
Well said, I sadly concur. Us fans are screwed…
Hot garbage defense! How can you not see the screen coming? Did the Vikings change their offense? Going to be a long season. Time to make required changes that should have been done in off season!
Tre flowers should be cut, the line backs have to recognize screens and drop into coverage better, adams/diggs are mediocre safeties.
Also still blows my mind collier was a first round pick. The guy is a udfa athlete and soon to be cut.
Norton has to be sacked. Are our defensive players that good? No. Are they THAT bad? No. Does anyone feel at all confident that against quality offences there is any chance our defence holds steadfast? Apart from the bizarre ineffectiveness of the defence, a shake up is needed psychologically. A new coordinator might not be the answer but its the obvious thing to try.
If I’m an offensive coordinator facing the Seahawks “defence” at 3rd and 5…..my first thought would be Tre Flowers! In fairness he seems like a really good tackler but to also lack quickness (rather than speed). Even though we have players at that position, I wonder if he’d be a decent safety?
They are THAT bad in pass coverage though.
Flowers: terrible
Dj reed: terrible
Diggs: mediocre at best
Adams: terrible
Brooks: terrible
Bobby Wagner: mediocre at best
In all fairness to Diggs, which receiver is he expected to cover once the original DB in coverage blows his assignment? The receivers are so wide open that Diggs has to pick his poison and pray he made the right choice.
Also, it doesn’t help a FS like Diggs when there is ZERO penetration on the pass rush. Combine the blown assignments with the lack of any pass rush and he is left on an island in the middle of a hurricane.
I actually feel bad for the guy. He balled out in the takeaway department last year, only to be stuck with talentless turds surrounding him this year, his contract year.
And Bobby is nearly in the same situation. When Brooks is out, he has to deal with Burton’s idiocy, or the complete breakdown of the defensive lines containment.
Diggs was visibly upset after plays today–and that’s putting it mildly. He’s a fine player badly coached, surrounded by incompetent players and the absolute worst defensive coaching staff in the NFL.
Reid is a decent player, but watching his technique this year, you can see the Scheme isn’t giving him a chance. This Prevent D bullshit sets him up for failure. I guess it’s designed to mask Flowers and Amadi flaws, but all it does is delay the inevitable.
Seattle’s corner scheme looks like a Division III school trying to play Alabama: it’s hopeless. Why bother? Just forfeit if you can’t let your guys compete.
This is 100% on Carrol. He’s the boss of all, from Coaches to Scheme to Play all’s to Personnel….
there is no team chemistry on offense or defense. Cant wait till Pete says Jamal is behind from missing training camp etc, flowers had some nice plays and injuries played in the way they were going to call the game. I hope he steps down as head coach, it isn’t working and hasn’t for a few years.
Norton is a placard standing there. This defense is squarely PC’s and has been for a decade +. Speaking of a decade, this is the EXACT SAME defense as a decade ago, EXCEPT, we had the LOB and a good pass rush. We have neither of those 2 things and the results are easy to see.
Imaging scheming up a game vs. this defense. It’s a cakewalk, and has been for at least the last 5 years in spite of the 2nd half of last year…..Everyone knew for the past 2 weeks what Tenn. and Minn. do with their offense. They Tom Brady it, taking what the defense gives, and the Hawks are Santa Clause.
Except this D performs exactly like Norton’s D in Oakland. He does the same stupid shit, hoping for a different outcome. Now Carrol is following Norton’s lead…
This franchise is in deep shit.
Yes it is.
Pete has put this franchise in the dumpster. Russ will start the fire when he demands a trade
This is soo true and accurate that I just had to laugh…
the Hawks inability, like every other team with an expensive QB not named Brady, to do do it again is frustrating for sure but it is predictable. So lets get over it. If Russell is as elite as he wishes to be he needs to sbow it. He has had chances to deliver but hasnt. Like Rodgers and Brees and now Mahomes he wants to get paid his $40 +million a year and still be recognized as tbe best ever. Sorry dude. None of them have done it tfor obviouw reasons, beut mainly because it is a team sport with a salary cap.
We can put the blame on the coaches that got us here or we can recognize that Pete and Jon have been holding this team together with spit and duct tape ever since the LOB left the building. When you pick in the mid to high 20s at every pick in every draft it means we are always good and but our draft picks are not so much. People can complain about Ifedi and Penny and Malik all they want but that is what you get where we draft..I augh when I here fans say Bellichick sucks at drafting. History has shown its almost impossible to rebuild tbrough the draft for a consistently good team because we dont get to choose among the Joey Bosas, and whichever other stud that any moron can identify. Whe. You pixk at 25, there is a reason the guy you p8ck is avilable.
Anyone who thinks that doing a tank is the solution is deranged and can bugger off. If that was the solution the Jags and Jets and Falcons and Dolphins and whomever else should be good now because of years of getting to pick at the top of every round would be owning it. They dont.
LIke a lot of lifetime Hawks fans I have no desire to retreat into the seasom knowing we are going to suck as a really bad team hoping against the odds that we will get better. We did that for 30 frigging years and it never worked I would rather be always in the hunt like Pittsburg and have hope that we can close the deal game by game and have an interest in watchig it progress as opposed to watching games and knowing we stink and hoping we suck so we can cash it in at the draft and hoping that the future will be better. I had a marriage like that and have learned that blind faith lin the futre is like being Jets fan and those are the kind of guys that marry strippers. It usually does not end well to say the least.
The Cardinals are one of the oldest NFL teams and yet they have never won shit. Their few fans are.always hopeful but usually the season is not worth watching after week 7 or so for them so they do something else. That was the path the Hawks were on for most of my life..Get rid of Pete and John now and maybe or maybe not that would be our future. But I like watching the Hawks play every weekend and having a competitive team that is playing for something down the stretch means we get an entire seasons worth of football.
One thing is for sure wiith Pete and John: we will never flat out stink and the games are always worth watching which is not something you can say about the Hawks before Paul Allen bought the team. Anybody that does not remember the Behring and Nordtrom years needs some perspective.
In the end, Paul is gone now and I do not want to trust my football to Jody and chance. We all wish they could own it but if the process to get there means a heavy likelihood we will become the Browns for a.generation fuck that with a GI Joe doll.
You missed the game today, huh?
Or the two 7-9 seasons before Wilson arrived.
Dude, are you insane, or did the Seahawks pay you? Seriously, have you watched this team at all since 2014?!
Did you not watch the last game and a half. They flat out stink. Something needs to change or this season is going to continue it’s downward spiral.
I can’t stand watching Flowers standing 10 yards off the ball. I can’t stand watching us spend a time out with 8 seconds left on the clock, Amadi holding, playing soft coverage on an all out blitz, and having no idea what Diggs is doing in coverage etc.
Well written again Rob!
Is Duane Brown retired? What was that?
How long have we heard we’re going to get back to being the bully?
Russ? What’s up with the overthrows again?
4th and 12 to the end zone?
#PETE MUST GO!!
I’m in
Ken Norton should have been gone LONG ago. W T F is Trey Flowers still here??
Rescheming the defense will Net NADA! You cannot make Chicken Salad when all you have is chicken sh%t. Seattle does not have big, nasty, powerful personnel on defense! This is not a pessimistic outlook for the rest of this season, it is reality: This season is already over for the Seahawks. And they haven’t even gotten into the divisional games yet. To top that off, Wilson’s gone after the last game this year.
Tre Flowers has photos. That’s the only thing that can explain it.
I literally backed up the feed like 7-8 times and bored my partner with my exasperation of him being 5-6 yards away from the receiver.
The issue is the scheme has them be vanilla and 10 yards off the defender.
It’s so infuriating to watch the Vikings held on 1st and 2nd down, with it being 3rd and 4, only to have prevent coverage lead to an easy 1st down
Wow! That’s heavy…
I want an empty stadium, kind of protest as our media will not ask tough questions. They will rather talk about glory days and make peace.
Jet fans are starting to lick their chops thinking about our 1st round pick they own…
They simply didn’t have the corners to match up with Thielen and Jefferson. This is the biggest weakness on defense if they can just convert because your corners are playing like 10 yards off the receivers. Tip your hat to Cousins though, played a hell of a game, and made some real good passes. Thought they had him a few times only for him to hang in there and convert at the last second.
Two players they could’ve really used: KJ and Sherm. They have to make some changes, you can’t keep running Flowers out there and Adams has to stop freelancing and just help in coverage.
Offense is clearly a work in progress. It was encouraging to see Wilson execute some of those passes in the first half. I just think that what Waldron is asking of Wilson goes against his nature, so we’re watching the growing pains. Some of the concepts in Waldron’s offense, Wilson has never really been great at. I think that what Tom Brady feels is “open” and what Russell Wilson feels is “open” are two vastly different things. That has to change or we just end up with the old Seahawks offense again. You saw Metcalf and Dissly. Get it to them with good anticipation and they run downfield for a bunch of yards, just like when this team plays the Rams.
I don’t think KJ and Sherm even could fix this mess. KJ lucky to be in Vegas, and if you’re Sherm your definitely choosing a different team.
I have 0 idea what they’re going to do, but they need to do something
The two defining statements for this period of Seahawk football (for me) are:
1 – “He’s open-minded enough to do things we’ve done in the past,” regarding Shane Waldron.
2 – ‘Pete Carroll says Seahawks are still learning how to best utilize Jamal Adams unique skill set’ – per Corbin Smith.
I’m not sure whether Pete the GM has really screwed his coach with poor and wasted drafts, or Pete the Coach has really screwed his GM by stubbornly clinging to ideas that have failed repeatedly. I’m calling it a tie.
(Long rant repeating what Rob has already written for this post graciously omitted. You’re welcome.)
I don’t believe that current ownership will make a move. It will be on Pete to step aside.
I don’t think Pete will step aside.
I think RW will be a Saint next season.
I think Pete will be perfectly happy bringing in another Clipboard Jesus to hand the ball to whomever and re-confirm an open-mindedness to the way things were done in the past.
I think they will continue to try and figure out how to best utilize the $2200 coffee cup and make the trade seem like less of a disaster.
I think they’re staring down the barrel at 1-6.
It seems bleak.
Dark time ahead of us. I hope there are changes things should not drag one more year.
Hard to stomach. By Tuesday I’ll have myself being optimistic, so I appreciate Rob and the grounded viewpoint of SDB. Also, Jamal Adam’s gives me Percy Harvin vibes. I notice nobody on the field interacting with him. It’s odd. No it’s on the shoulder from Bobby, Diggs, etc. The dude just seems like an outsider scheme wise, and team wise.
Adams feels like a transplant in every way
Unfortunately it’s more of a boob job than some vital, life (team) saving surgery
Yeah, but at least a boob job can look good and be fun… this is more like a botched facial procedure…
True enough
That comment cheered me up no end…. V funny! thanks!
It’s time to act… but who’s gonna do it?
No one…
Let’s be clear about something here. We’re now fighting for the 6th or 7th seed in the playoffs AT BEST now. If you see it otherwise, I can’t believe you are watching the same games I was.
I think you’re being optimistic
Can we take a moment to reflect on which website anticipated most of the issues that are now facing the Seahawks? The site that also anticipated what happened with Wilson in the off-season? The site that is prepared to discuss subjects that many others simply won’t go near?
heard that! wish that website was wrong…
I do too
You absolutely nailed a lot of things, Rob. I probably give the team the benefit of the doubt longer than you, but I was uneasy about a lot of the central issues you mentioned that were prime ingredients of our present drama.
Right now, at this moment of his time with the team, JA is a bust relative to what we gave up to get him, and his almost faceless impact upon these three post-new-contract games. Where the eff was he today? So much of the Vikings productive offensive impact took place in areas of the field you’d think he’d be patrolling.
Ach!
There’s so much to be concerned about now watching the last three quarters it will take extraordinary leadership to get us back on track, that’s if we have the talent to do so.
But I don’t have a clue where this leadership is going to come from now. None.
Thanks Paul.
Hopefully, if nothing else, what’s happening gives the people who sent rampant abuse for a year some perspective.
This was only ever about opinions on the direction of this team. I’ve been as positive as anyone when it has been warranted. I voiced concerns on a number of topics because I thought it was warranted.
I was never negative for the sake of it. I don’t enjoy writing this way. I wish I was writing more articles like I used to.
But eventually you can’t bury your head in the sand any more. You have to say what you really think.
What we’re seeing now — and have seen for the last 18 months on and off the field — has been very predictable.
We’ve well documented RW’s need to evolve as a QB. But our OL was an absolute SIEVE today. I’ve been very frustrated and disappointed by our failure to beef up our OL the last few years. But even I was shocked at how bad they were today.
And the defense…WOW! We’re just plain bad. They did anything they wanted to us today. It was embarrassing. We were so bad I eventually said to myself it’s not worth getting upset about. Bad scheme. Bad execution. No prideful, unifying identity that can be discerned.
Right now, I have a playoff birth at 50/50 at best.
It’s too bad that we might have to watch the falling apart of this team in slow motion. You know what they say…it’s better to yank the band-aid off in one swift motion than remove it one hair at a time.
It doesn’t look good now.
He made a couple decent tackles, closed a gap to stop Cousins for keeping for more yards. Was utterly unable to pressure the QB. Spent a bunch of time sort of blitzing but not blitzing. waiting in no man’s land, Etc.
Nothing Ryan Neal couldn’t do, let’s put it that way.
Right now, at this moment, would you put Marquise Blair at SS and take back those draft picks and CAP space?
It’s not even a worthy of a debate at this point, sad to say.
Ab-so-freaking-lutely!!! Wouldn’t hesitate. The question is, do you think PC/JS would if they could do so without admitting their mistake?
They might not, and that’s a little scarey. It’s just a matter of getting the right scheme for him.
Thanks saw a fair number of tackles Adams missed or failed to bring the runner down that let them get YAC. That was most of Adam’s screen time today.
I guess im done speculating if its Pete, JS, KNJ, Russ, Jody Allen, Jamal, Flowers, or any other members fault. Im fairly certain the lot of them together just isn’t a good team. Something is wrong in enough areas, i cant just blame one as a scapegoat.
Absolutely this was the one. You were spot on and some of us agreed. I also wish you’d been wrong.
And in 2 or 3 years time I’ll remind everyone here (and my friends who don’t frequent this site) that I predicted that the trade for Jamal Adams would go down as the worst in franchise history based on price paid, lack of fit, attitude, etc. because by then it will be sadly apparent it’s true.
You might not have to wait that long
100% right there with you. Hated the trade the minute it was announced.
But I must admit even I didn’t think Adams would look this bad.
How PC & Norton put together this mess of a defensive scheme, I’ll never know.
We might not have a legit difference maker on defense, but still; come on Pete.
How the heck did you make this defense worse.
Absolutely Embarrassing.
Also thanks for keeping it real Rob. That’s what makes this blog great.
This is the only Seahawks site I bother visiting.
Thanks Matt
Norton must go. This is beyond horrible. Yet, no way PC makes a change mid season. He cares too much for his coaches as people to do that to them. Hard to fire your buddies.
Does John Schneider have the power to fire Pete Carroll?
No, the other way around
No Pete is Schneider’s boss and has ultimate say on football operations. I always thought that JS was “told” to trade for Adams and that he never wanted to give up what we did for him. Not sure that is right but it is certainly the vibe that I have.
That’s what I find hilarious when reading other sites. So many now complaining about JS making that bad trade, when in fact, it has Pete written all over it. John simply did his best to fulfill Pete’s wishes. It’s also hilarious that so many complaining now were praising that same trade when it was done.
This game hurt to watch. I believe our offense could be better if they weren’t going up against a defense that just got a full quarter of rest, and having the game put on their shoulders every drive. If they don’t score every drive, we lose, and they know it, and the opposing defense knows it. But good Lord this defense is terrible. Every time Cousins dropped back, it was almost guaranteed to be a completion. There is so much wrong I don’t even know where to begin to go about fixing it. Probably start with cutting Tre Flowers and firing Ken Norton.
I was a believer in Flowers early in his career, but those constant PI calls on him for doing anything killed his confidence. He won’t go anywhere near a reciever. Honestly replace him with anyone, because you literally can’t do much worse than a 100% completion rate allowed.
I don’t know if other problems are coming more from defensive scheme or execution, but at the end of the day the buck stops at Norton and Pete. Norton has got to go. Pete has shown the ability to adapt and improve as a coach over the years, but only if you push back. He can’t be surrounded by yes-men, and Norton just wants to run Pete’s old scheme — a scheme that maximizes the value of talented players, but is terrible when you don’t have the Legion of Boom utilizing it. We need a new scheme.
Importantly, we need to make changes now. If we don’t turn things around and wait until the offseason, there is no way Wilson sticks around. We will be wasting his career, and if we aren’t in win-now mode we are also wasting the end of Bobby’s effective career, Lockett’s prime, and the small window we have where DK is affordable. We are not in a strong enough spot to be focusing on a year or two down the road. We need to win now.
I totally agree that we were in win now mode this year. Unfortunately, however, winning the division seems all but a Hail Mary now, and without that, without at least one home playoff game, it’s hard to even envision this team getting both lucky and hot at just the right time to get to the NFC championship game.
We didn’t even do all the necessary and/or available things to us to show that we were in win now mode.
Anyway…just a bad time to be a Hawk fan now.
Practically speaking, I’m having a hard time seeing how this all plays out. It’s obvious something big needs to change, but what’s the order?
– There’s no accountability from ownership (at least that’s assumed), so how does Carroll just step down?
– Schneider is responsible for the picks and player development, trades, etc., but does he just leave?
– Does Russ demand a trade after turning in a bad season? Does DK blow a gasket and become trade bait? Losing can do strange things to these guys.
I think the focus is on the Defense. KNJ won’t survive the season this way and Pete will need to find another Waldron- an outsider.
If he retires, that’s that
The average winning score today [ before the Packer game} was about 28.5 points. If you can’t come even close to that you are not going to win many games.
At this point I’m fine with losses, because at this point wins just mean status quo. And I am really tired of the status quo.
If the rest of the season has to be sacrificed for the Carroll era in Seattle to end, so be it.
Cha’s comment has at best summed up everyone’s feelings by posting Brock Huard’s tweet in regards to the game.
Maybe this was what Alex was watching during his Ludovico session in A Clockwork Orange.
I can’t help but think about the toothless teams that were fielded during Mike Holmgren’s final season in 2008, and Mora’s team in 2009. No spine, no cohesiveness, and no fight. In the words of Bart Scott, this team couldn’t stop a nose bleed.
The Seahawks are now officially have now officially morphed into a “finesse” team. We aren’t a “bully”, and we aren’t building one. You can’t build a bully on back of Jamal Adams, Quandre Diggs, or Tre Flowers.
It seems the Seahawks have a plan until they get punched in the mouth. On both sides of the ball, they aren’t evolving and scheming up the opponent. They are predictable and at the end of the day, a paper tiger.
The organization is has now become a failed experiment, a frankenstein-esque approach to build a team and waste precious draft capital, which has set the team back years in regards to player and team development.
Rob has been hot on the trail of how this team has gone away from it’s team “formula” for a few years now, arguably starting with his concern of the running game when Marshawn Lynch departed. Rob, all you need to say now to everyone is “I told you so.”
Qandre Diggs is the poorest soul on the pitch. Has to play for two, while his ‘elite talent 17.5m’ SS is trying himself in lateral end-to-end-coverage; something, Mike Zimmer perfectly outschemed.
Just got back from the game. You know how sometimes you see things in person that you can’t see on tv? Well, through the first two games (and last year), I thought Jamal Adams sucked for what he cost in draft compensation and what he’s eating from the salary cap. Now, seeing him in person, all I see is a guy that struts around like he’s all that but actually doesn’t do much of anything at an elite level. Covering TEs? Can’t do that. Standing up blockers? Can’t do that. How is he good? What does he do? Nothing about him stood out today to the naked eye. So frustrating that the draft picks were burned on a non-difference maker who is paid like he’s a difference maker. He killed a pair of drafts and the salary cap ramifications are terrible, too.
I’m so sick and tired of band-aids being applied to wounds that require reconstructive surgery.
Sitting in the end zone today, I could not believe the gigantic gaps in running lanes in which out DL was getting dominated. I’m sure it had to be quite evident on tv as well. But, seriously, how does that happen? I remember whining last year that Reed and Ford are good starters but the depth was terrible. What did they do, they get ride of Reed and get friggin’ WORSE at a position they needed to get better at. There’s a reason they suck and mismanagement of this position was clear today with all those lanes I saw from behind and coming at me in person today. Having kept Reed/Ford and had Woods as quality depth would have made so much more sense (and Mone). That would have been a respectable unit. Not a great one, but good enough. Instead, we’re treated to bums like Nkemdiche. That guy is absolutely terrible.
And it’s always fun to watch them give money to a TE they won’t use much so they can make sure Flowers starts. That guy is even worse in person than he is on tv and that’s saying something!
This team has some really good players, but the overall talent is clearly lacking and the depth is an embarrassment.
Spot on Bob. You are so right in terms of their roster construction and team building.
And the Adams trade is a disaster.
If the numbers are right, the Seahawks defended 5 out of 116 passes in 2021. Five. Three of them by DL, one by Bwagz, Amadi for the rescue.
According to ESPN, Adams had 12 tackles yesterday. Most of them playing end to end lateral defense, in seek and destroy missions. It’s what I would call numbers dressing. He plays for PFF stats, which is also a good defensive scheme for the FO signing and paying him.
And while he is up and away, the secondary gets roasted.
And if Flowers really spoke about “confusion” and “getting all on the same page” (https://twitter.com/BradyHenderson/status/1442286637334081537), things will get worse.
Maybe they’ll have another accountability meeting where they all stand up and tell everyone what their job is? Worked last year… Yeeesh… This is pathetic…
They have no deception on defense. I don’t understand why Tre Flowers plays. Where was Jarran Reed today? Oh he lost a pissing match with Pete. Diggs is overrated, believed it a year ago and still do. Adams…. Just waiting to see something that justifies his attitude and contract. I pity Bobby, but he’s got 54 mil I’m sure he doesn’t care what I think, he’s just smart and plays hard. He’s been a great Seahawk and this must be a nightmare for him.
Russ is great, but things have to be perfect for him to be top notch. He’s too slow witted to adjust and adapt quickly on the fly…because he can no longer scramble his way out and run. I’m hoping DK has a 11 catch for 280 yds and 3 tds game soon so he can be traded for a bunch of picks for the next coach to have some draft capital. But it’d be cool to see him stay and succeed in Seattle too.
I was wondering today what behind the scenes gossip/drama we’ll hear when Pete is gone. Obviously there’s a ton of chaos going on behind the scene.
Diggs is the only competent member of the secondary in coverage right now, he is not even close to the issue
I just said he’s overrated. I didn’t say he was the issue. He’s representative of the problem with the construction of the team. He was a great pick up because he was damn cheap and replaced players the team drafted and couldn’t/didn’t develop. But Diggs isn’t a game changer, next year he’ll be Mcdougald 2.0 nearly 30 and on the decline, he’s a placeholder for the star we haven’t found or developed. It would’ve been absurd to extend him and raise his pay last month.
Not every player has to be a game changer. You need a solid core of dependable players, and Diggs falls into that category. Sadly I am struggling to think of many more on the D.
Funny that so many want KNJ gone, but why would Pete fire him, he’s running the defense exactly how Pete wants it run! As for changing the defensive scheme, according to Pete there’s nothing wrong with the scheme. Per Pete the Vikings offensive line just played well and our defensive line couldn’t get any pressure. Our linebackers were slow to recognize screen plays and the defense as a whole did not help out our corner backs. There you have it, the defense just needs to play better…
The reality is our defensive line lacks talent, we’re starting back ups at corner back, our SS is still chasing Tyler Conklin on a crossing route, Cody Barton should be playing in Canada and there are no talented back ups to step in for under performing players. Firing KNJ isn’t going to fix this defense, there are no free agents out there that are going to right this sinking ship and they have no draft capital to make any meaningful trades. Pete should stick to playing Madden NFL 22 where his ego and bone headed decisions can’t destroy an actual NFL franchise.
You deserve credit Rob for identifying all of the issues with this team well in advance of anyone else! To bad ownership doesn’t care as long as the stadium is full on game day.
Someone, please help me. I don’t expect much from the defense but it seems incomprehensible that the offense is so bad in the second half. At one point do we stop looking at the play calls and look at the execution. Were the play calls and presnap movement that much different from each half or is it the person executing the calls not doing what they should.
Taking the D out, the offense was so ridiculously bad. When does RW3 become accountable?
I know RW deserves some of the blame, but the OL sucked today, sucked tail pipes today.
Glad you said it. So much bad stuff today. We’ve covered all the defensive woes and how we are trying to use JAGs to run a fairly vanilla scheme that needs either great players or elite athletes to make it great, when we have neither. FWIW I think the team will be better when Tre Brown, Sidney Jones and Dee Eskridge are contributing. But….
Everybody also just seems to gloss over Russ’s failures and weaknesses. I hear stuff like “wasting Russ’s prime” and “trying to do everything,” and then I hear “just wait until he decides to leave this offseason” and I think, GOOD. Buh-bye. Don’t let the door hit you on your whiny ass on the way out.
Russ is a very good QB. But people act like he’s still a top 3 QB or something. A top 3 QB completes that ball to a wide-open Swain when we really needed it. A top 3 QB gets that ball to Hart without letting the DB recover and PBU. Russ, OTOH, can no longer escape pressure and create. He usually doesn’t throw in rhythm. He has difficulty throwing to the middle of the field and hitting guys in stride. For some reason his game management has gotten worse, like when we just need a first down and he’s chucking it 40 yards downfield.
It’s been a fun ride, but I don’t think it’s just Pete. Yes, I believe in Pete, and if we had 5 more years I think he could get there by cycling in another two pass rushers and another two CBs and a Wagner replacement. I don’t think he forgot how to evaluate. But we aren’t going to get that drafting where we are and paying Russ what we are. Deal Russ for a team that’s dumb enough to think he’s still the 2015 Russ, let Pete ride off in the sunset, and start all over.
Found Pete Carroll’s agent lol.
Nobody is glossing over that
Nonsense
Pete didn’t forget how to evaluate players?
This team stinks precisely because he doesn’t know how to evaluate players. Tre Flowers is a converted safety. There’s evaluation gone wrong #1. LJ Collier is a bust. There’s evaluation gone wrong #2. Rashaad Penny is a complete bust. There’s evaluation gone wrong #3. Jordan Brooks was a complete reach for the first round in a position group that wasn’t a primary need, and now he rides the bench for extended periods. There’s evaluation gone wrong #4.
I could go on and on about Adams, and many, many other abysmal trades, but why bore everyone. Bottom line is Pete, like his game day coaching, is just flat-out bad at evaluating players AND holding coaches accountable.
He is good at hiring his sons, though. I will give him that.
Shane, he is accountable too.
But Wilson is far from the biggest issue here.
Agreed that RW is by far the biggest issue, on the other hand, he also doesn’t seem like the 35 million dollar QB who is making the team better either.
Not sure about that.
He’s had rough second halves but look at his numbers. And look at the state of the rest of the team
I agree you might be right Call Me AL, and for sure Norton is implementing Carroll’s scheme. However, as you say, the defence needs to play better and currently has underperforming players. Rightly or wrongly Carroll isn’t going to sack himself. I struggle with the idea that Norton doesn’t have significant input (and responsibility) into what actually happens on the field each week. Sacking Norton would (again rightly or wrongly) at least offer the chance for a ‘reset’ and create some difference to what happens each week. While they certainly have limitations as a group, I don’t believe we are getting all we can out of the players we have. Of course that raises the obvious question of who you would replace Norton with.
It’s been a great run. The best decade in team history. Sadly, it feels like we are descending into another dark period. I hope this is just a kneejerk overreaction.
This was Tre Flowers quote after the game
“It’s a schematic thing, I feel like,” the cornerback said, according to ESPN’s Brady Henderson. “I’ve got my own questions to ask.”
But it’s all good because he also said, “it’s going to be an easy fix once we all get on the same page,” and “concerning? no, not all”.
I feel much better now.
Seattle’s media very good at rushing to a man who has no business starting for quotes to add to the pile on.
And yet so unwilling to ask PC literally anything challenging.
No shit
Sadly a spot on write up Rob.
Poor coaching/coaches and outdated philosophies. Front office dealings in draft, trades and player retention/salaries, plus free agency = poor team talent/distribution in many areas along with trash depth. Lacking accountability. Poor roster construction/areas of focus and neglect that seem to lack insight, foresight and even common sense at times. Ego, hubris, denial and lacking awareness seemingly lording over everything.
One can only hope this is finally the season that brings wholesale changes.
All the fire Norton talk.
When you know pete will just promote his kid to be the new DC.
I know he’s WR coach, but it’s not like they’ve been shy changing players positions on a whim.
According to Condotta, Carroll said ‘we threw everything’ at them defensively. Therein lies the problem. What about scheming, strategy, making adjustments instead of throwing everything at ’em and hoping for the best. The mojo is gone, the players aren’t there to step-up, and the finger-pointing, dissembling, and cliche answers to questions are all that are left.
Rob, don’t beat yourself up man. You’ve been in the business right? You’re just calling it how you see it. That’s the only way to go about it. Stick with it brotha! We’ll have some high draft picks and a future to look forward to shortly
Don’t you mean the Jets will have a nice first-rounder next year?
seahawks again, worst defense in the league stat wise
All summer I’ve been skeptical of this team. My brother and dad (the main people I talk hawks with) have been telling me how optimistic they were, and wondering why I was so negative. Today my dad finally admitted I was right, this team is not that good. Before the game, he’d said there was no way we let Mattison run on us, that we’d be smarting from letting Henry go off. They didn’t have to. We touched the ball once in the 3rd quarter. They gashed us all day and drained the clock. They did whatever they wanted. People watching this game know what they saw.
Rob, credit again to you for your ability to see the truth in a player and a situation. On days like this, its the draft that keeps me interested in the team, and your site is the best on the net for evaluations. We are incredibly lucky as hawks fans to have someone this talented and dedicated write about this team. Thanks for essentially taking on a second job, with all the abuse and frustration it comes with. I’ll read anything you write on football (the American kind, still can’t find interest in the European kind).
Robs been right. And it hurts
I think Jody Allen is still holding onto the team because she likes a seat at the big boy table. She cares more about politics than the football team. Unless she goes, we will be hot garbage. For all I know, we’re looking at a “Major League” situation where she wants to run the team into the ground so she can move to a bigger market.
Found the misogynist!
There’s nothing wrong with disagreeing with Brik’s post.
But when people casually throw around language such as ‘misogynist’ when someone criticises a woman it simply diminishes the meaning of the word. Much in the way people throw around ‘nazi’ or ‘racist’ too readily.
It’s one of the worst things about discourse on the internet.
Seconded
I don’t necessarily agree with Brik but I fail to see the ‘misogynist’ part of his comment. The part with the big boy table could be said about a man too.
Well said.
If Brik would also say like “Tom/Daniel/Peter/etc likes a seat at the big boy table” this is not misogynist at all. Jody Allen is waaay over her head and no clue what she does and doesn’t belong to her current position at all. Not because she’s a woman, just because she’s incapable of running a franchise
Yeah, trash take.
Jody is probably hanging on to team due to tax reason. She inherited the team not too long ago. I’m sure there is a holding period or else you get hit with major capital gains. Imagine selling something for 3 billion and having to give the IRS 1 billion. She ain’t stupid.
Been 3 years now and there’s no signs she’s gonna sell. Looks like she wants to sell the Blazers though.
So, Jody Allen, who was born and raised in Seattle, and was one of the driving forces to push for her wealthy brother to buy the Seahawks so they wouldn’t leave her beloved city, is, in fact, trying to move that team from her beloved city in order to gain a bigger market share?
OK…
That was pure speculation, which I thought people would understand. It’s good to know the stuff you’re saying, at least I know her ineptitude isn’t purposeful.
Bad beyond words. Spot on Rob, major change required and validated again today. Only consolation is there is no doubt
I doubt we’ll have a major change this season. KNJ might go but another coach from the staff will be promoted and we’ll run the same kind of D. The O will keep panicking each time the D loses control and stop functioning like it already did twice. I don’t even know where to put it, on the OC or on the players. Unfortunately the holes in the roster construction get revealed, and I don’t know if bringing a new DC (btw, who’s available and who do you want?) will suddenly make the pass rush or the DBs play better.
I fail to understand why you leave Flowers on the field 100% of the snaps.
Oh and one more thing about our “new” offense. I thought we were going to run some tempo, not let the defense get comfortable, keep them a little unsettled.
We ran the clock down almost every single snap of the offense. There was no tempo to speak of. Even at the end of the game down by more than a score, they acted like they had all day to get a play off.
Oh and one more thing about our “new” offense. I thought we were going to run some tempo, not let the defense get comfortable, keep them a little unsettled.
We ran the clock down almost every single snap of the offense. There was no tempo to speak of. Even at the end of the game down by more than a score, they acted like
….they had all day to get a play off.
Watching the influx of the we-are-f***ed-bandwagon from FG in 3, 2, 1…
And I couldn’t blame them. This is a blue collar city. And two things are giving those people their daily dose of hope: picking out the Mariners, uptalking the Seahawks.
Now, the roles will change for good. Go M’s!
Personally, I got low expectations of this season. I think, RW is a spent force, if he doesn’t put in the work. This is the single thing he won’t do, as long as he is not in entire command of the offense. It’s a struggle he cannot win, and the same is true for his opposite, our HC.
I don’t want to pick on PC. I’ve moved on since at least 2018. I simply enjoy the ride not enjoying the ride, watching them razing the thing down.
I enjoyed Justin Herbert killing the reigning AFC champs, using big balls coaching PC isn’t capable of anymore. This is how you defeat your penalty demons. Possibly, another SB-less franchise will make it this season.
Is Seattle really a blue collar city??
I have never had that sense.
It was blue collar in the 80s and earlier, not anymore. It’s pretty indistinguishable from most other cities. Don’t get me wrong there is a lot of construction going on but very little of the workers in the service industry or construction workers live in the city.
I only go to Seattle if I’m going to a game, have a listing for work etc.
I’d suggest if you’re catching a game in the near future, to stay across the I-90 in Bellevue. Lots of good shops, food, and hotels but much cleaner and safer.
“Killing” is a strong word. They won by 6 points while KC had 3 or 4 turnovers and played mediocre of their level. But LAC defense is no joke. That secondary play really limited Hill and Kelce which is not an easy task
It was tied at 24, and two minutes to go. First, they pressured Mahomes into the Gilman-INT. Then, they ride to the KC 30, 4th down and 4. Going for it. False start Slater, 4th an 9, still going for it. Pass to KC 20, DPI. Pass to KC4, TD on the next play.
Staley wanted to finish KC with a TD, and he did. He did it, to overcome the Bolts’ red zone demons, at the expense of keeping 32 seconds on the clock. Killer.
Defo time for change, we are dining out on past achievements, PC has had he’s own way and style for the past three seasons without seeing what needs to be done/change to keep pass. All the other contenders are either recruiting well or going with new young dynamic new coaches, JS needs to play a role now to push change
The thing that summed up the coaching for me. The team has scored 17 points fairly quickly but the defence does not look like stopping much, so the game is likely going to be a shootout if it is to be won. The team has 4th and 3 in the red zone, I think possible only one or two plays so far that had failed to get three yards, and they opt for the field goal attempt. It seemed like a bad decision not to go for it on fourth down.
It’s funny how Pete is so old, and generally perceived as employing old school philosophies for the field of play – yet the oldest school football saying of all : ‘football is won and lost in the trenches’ seems to have never passed into his ears.
Years of bad drafting(reaching, trading back, taking un-athletic and unproven players), poor free agency pickups (and losses), moving guys around having them learn new positions/play out of position, poor thought processes/forward thinking for good replacements and capable backups, and just the overall neglect for even average pass blocking players on the o-line and the seeming arrogance to think they don’t need top end talents/really good pass rushers on the d-line(ie – Frank Clark, Jarran Reed, passing guys like TJ Watt in the draft etc). But hey Pete will try to make sure we have the best linebackers and safeties (which is so funny because factoring starters and depth and prices paid in draft capitol and salaries both of those sacred cow positions seem to be pretty darn rough!).
Another little chapter in Pete and John need to go….
In the last 5 drafts, they’ve taken 5 D-Linemen in the earlier rounds, and 3 O-Linemen.
They’ve been an average pass blocking unit for years now and we’re one injury away from being forced to start Barton at LB. Your post might as well just be ranting about the Adams trade.
Coverage is still a thing and that’s ultimately their Achilles heel last game. Many teams are looking for decent starting corners at this point.
Frank Clark and Reed being here would’ve changed nothing. The name of the game is be able to move the sticks and the Vikings were able to all game because Jefferson and Thielen were given 10 yard cushions against Reed/Flowers.
I don’t follow your Adam’s analogy because it was a horrific trade and your confusing counterbalance to that seems to be an average o-line and Cody Barton?(and I would argue our o-line has been well below average over the years you brought up).
Coverage is always better with a good pash rushing d-line. I completely disagree that having Frank Clark and Jarran Reed would change nothing for our defense.
Football is won and lost in the trenches with the single caveat of needing a good enough QB as well. The last two teams we have lost to bore this out exponentially – both teams beat us up physically in the trenches and took total control of the game. Both teams had good enough veteran QB’s that were largely free to operate their offensive game plans with minimal disruption from the Seahawks d-line, those offenses were able to do whatever they wanted and exert their full will upon us. In both games our o-line play had good and bad play for a quarter, maybe quarter and a half and then the opposing d-lines began to take over regularly stuffing the run and getting penetration affecting Russ and the passing game – all of which played a big part in our offense stalling out so dramatically.
I’m saying you don’t have a good point besides that the Adams trade costed too much.
You can’t tell me that they spend too much at the LB position when we’re basically praying Brooks and Wagner don’t get hurt. They’ve spent just enough really.
You can’t tell me Jarran Reed and Clark should’ve been kept when they’re playing like shit for KC, while Alton Robinson, Woods, Taylor all graded out well against the Vikings like my eyes told me. They would’ve gotten home a number of times had the coverage not been god awful. It matters, that’s why the 49ers couldn’t stop Rodgers with their trench play because the corners are doodoo.
The O-Line has been average. Wilson’s athleticism and willingness to keep it for runs is basically gone at this point. He’s been able to win from the pocket more because the O-Line has been average. They’re not playing well right now, but barely anyone is on offense including a guy like Duane Brown who has been awesome usually. Likely not used to playing under Waldron yet. They graded out as average last season, Wilson just gaslights you into believing the O-Line is terrible with how he plays the position.
Wagner’s cap hit is $17.1m this year and $20m next year. Jordyn Brooks cost a first round pick. Cody Barton cost a third round pick. Darrell Taylor is considered a linebacker to some degree. Another second rounder.
It’s perfectly logical to accuse them of paying too much. Since when has that level of investment been ‘just enough’?
Jarran Reed had 17 sacks in the last two full seasons he had in Seattle.
Frank Clark had 13 sacks in his final season. They then traded him, only to draft LJ Collier with a first round pick in 2019. They then rented Clowney for a year at the cost of a third rounder, then traded up for Darrell Taylor who missed the entire 2020 season.
Your comment that they would’ve gotten home a number of times if the coverage wasn’t awful is just a massive assumption.
They had a foundation to build on at DL in 2018. They didn’t build on it. And now 34-year-old Al Woods is arguably their best defensive lineman.
Well I don’t agree, but I don’t think you’ll change your mind about that either way. Outside of Barton, there is not much excessive to me at the LB position. I want Bobby, Brooks and Taylor on this team. If you wanted a Center and another Corner this year, not trading for Jamal Adams was an easier way to go about it then to blame the LB group that they actually really need to stay healthy.
And this is what they got on top of cap space with Clark: Lewis, Collier and Robinson. Seems worth it to me. Would’ve been absolute landslide if Collier was even serviceable.
Sorry, the Frank Clark trade was one of the good moves by Schneider. I thought so then, I’m feeling very vindicated since.
Sacks aren’t everything anyways (see: Clowney in 2019) and most certainly not sacks from like 3-4 years ago. Like who cares what he did in his contract year? Hasn’t been close to the same player and not someone I look back and wish we paid him. Alton is playing well, Taylor is playing well, Al Woods is playing well. Poona has been excellent for them for years now.
You know who is not playing well? Flowers and Reed because nobody trusts those two to be able to stay on Jefferson and Thielen without yielding a bunch yards. A QB like Cousins will take those easy quick throws all day and he did. That was what really stopped them from getting off the field.
Coverage matters. Just ask the 49ers. Sure you have Nick Bosa, Armstead and whatever 1st rounders, but if your running Dontae and Norman, Brady or Rodgers will pick that apart in the playoffs just like Brady picked on Kevin King.
That isn’t the point though. It’s perfectly plausible to argue they’ve spent too much at this position. Picks and money.
You said: “You can’t tell me that they spend too much at the LB position”. Yes, people can tell you that. By all means argue that these players are worth this level of investment but it’s perfectly logical to argue they have spent too much at LB — or for that matter, that they should’ve used their resources in other areas.
Collier is so bad he’s been inactive 2/3 weeks and they preferred Nkemdiche yesterday. They could’ve drafted Lewis and Robinson anyway. Nothing about the Clark trade impacted their ability to draft Lewis and Robinson.
None of this sentence is a counter to what I said.
So you can’t assess the value of a trade based on the production of the player when you dealt him? How convenient for you…
Al Woods is playing very well. But the D-line isn’t good enough based on what we’ve seen so far.
Nobody is saying coverage doesn’t matter.
You made an assumption that the linemen you listed would collect sacks if the coverage wasn’t trash. I point out that your assumption was an assumption. That is all.
And based on the pressure rates, sack numbers and eye test — I didn’t see many shed blocks yesterday.
Seems to me like it’s just a weird nitpick about Barton or something. Like I have basically no issues with Wagner, Brooks or even Taylor being on this team right now. Brooks is not doing as well as the other two, but like I’m not troubled by why he’s on the team at all.
To after that group specifically and saying they’re eating too much resources and then screaming about Reed and Clark being let go, and the trenches (which they take D-Linemen early every year outside of this year when they had no picks). Really bizarre take after you just watched a game where the corners were the biggest liability on this team and got exposed despite guys like Taylor and Woods playing well otherwise. Felt that way watching the game, said as much after the game, PFF paints a similar picture the morning after.
If you wanted a Center or another CB, there’s plenty of more reasonable things to blame for that like Jamal Adams or drafting TEs Wilson usually doesn’t want to throw to outside of Jacob Hollister. Not seeing a strong argument over this.
Cousins has been very hard to “pressure” this year I believe. I’ve heard non stop about Chandler Jones and JJ Watt and yet they really didn’t fare much better than Seattle did. Jones’ night was pretty similar to Taylor really. Vikings make it hard on you to truly generate pressure and any logical person can do the math when Reed and Flowers are lined up like 10 yards off of Thielen and Jefferson. It’s basically free conversions with the ball coming out almost instantly at times and their screen game is a headache to defend. Cousins is among the fastest in the league at getting the ball out this season and it showed.
You continue to miss the point though.
Whether you agree or not, it’s not unreasonable to say $18m a year on one linebacker, a first rounder on another and a third rounder on another is too much investment at the position.
That’s it.
Nobody is ‘screaming’ about them being let go.
We’re having a discussion about how the team parted with them and then replaced them.
Resorting to suggesting someone is ‘screaming’ about something is just an attempt to undermine as a means of replacement for an argument.
It would be bizarre if I’d actually said anything remotely close to that.
You are assuming that the defensive linemen would’ve got home with better coverage. I pointed out it’s an assumption. I’ve had to do that three times.
I don’t know why you keep saying this. Who or what is it responding to? You seem to have created a strawman here.
Chandler Jones had five sacks on his own.
“Didn’t fare much better than Seattle did”
Honestly had we straight up swapped Adams for McDougald, forgetting all the picks, I would consider that a failed trade. Like you say Adams only has an impact when you manufacture plays for him. Without him I doubt we would be dropping DEs into coverage and the rest of that nonsense.
Speaking of first round picks, is anyone else unimpressed with Jordyn Brooks. He’s ok but he doesn’t make any big impact plays like KJ, Wagner, Kendricks, Malcolm Smith, Irvin and other LBs we’ve had down the years
Brooks simply doesn’t look that good
At least not first round good
To be fair, nobody looks good right now, and that almost certainly derives from scheme putting everyone in poor position to make impactful plays. Brooks has a lot more talent and ability than is on display currently in my opinion.
This isn’t a defense of the Seahawks in any way but the play across the league by D’s has been awful so far. Absolutely awful. I’m an old school fan of D from back in the day and hate the ease which teams can move up and down. Come back the 6-6 tie with Arizona all is forgiven.
I have to say I do miss the classic LSU vs Alabama slugfests in the SEC.
Used to be epic battles. And that physical, beat the crap out of each other style has a charm to it. It doesn’t all have to be about big pass plays and loads of points
100% agree
Thumbs up on your post! I’m still bummed out that my son missed watching that 6-6 Arizona game with me because he was at work. What. A. Game. One of the things I love so much about football is the ‘all over the place’ nature of how different games can play out – some shootouts, some very close games that hinge on a few plays, some low scoring defensive slug-outs(which I definitely enjoy) and everywhere in between.
Flowers said THIS after the game to Greg Bell.
Asked about what he and defense needs to do to come up with big plays in the secondary, Tre Flowers says: “More film. More film study. More…
“Sadly, y’all want me to be Sherman.”
The Hawks should now sign Sherman and cut this ass.
I feel sorry for Tre Flowers though.
He has no business starting and the Seahawks continue to hang him out to dry. Then, after the game, the media go and seek out Flowers to make things even worse. Why not ask Pete Carroll some difficult questions instead? Such as ‘why does Tre Flowers continue to start’? Such as ‘how on earth have you ended up HERE at cornerback?’
But oh no. They’re very willing to go and speak to Flowers, as if he is supposed to come up with a proper explanation for why he simply isn’t good enough. And yet Carroll gets the easiest of easy rides.
Any way, new week today. Let’s see if there’s less ‘OMG Quandre can you believe DK Metcalf just challenged me to a running race!?!?’ or ‘Hey I could beat Adam Jude in a race I should be the one running’ and more actual probing, serious questions of a franchise that is losing its way.
Maybe someone could actually try and find out what Chuck Arnold thinks? Or ownership? They don’t get to sit in the shadows.
Oh, they did ask. They asked, if Sidney Jones is ready.
Possibly, there is a skillfully crafted “Carroll code” for asking PC things that PC doesn’t want to answer?
Such as: “How good is Bobby Wagner?”
Which is “Carroll code” for: can we finally draft another capable LB?
Or: “What do you think about Jamal Adams?”
Which equates to: what a shameful trade that was?
I’m possibly dreaming…
It’s staggering really that they go seeking an explanation from Tre Flowers but nobody is willing to ask whether Carroll regrets not doing more at the cornerback position in the off-season.
I feel sorry for him too, but in a game when I screwed up so badly, I wouldn’t dare pointing fingers at the coaches. It is KNJ’s fault for how we looked, but it’s not the time that Flowers says that. But the Seahawks seem to have a hard time admitting they played bad.
@bradyhenderson:
Interesting comments from Tre Flowers on Seattle’s pass defense: “It’s a schematic thing, I feel like. I’ve got my own questions to ask.” Said there’s confusion among some guys on how to defend certain routes. “It’s going to be an easy fix once we all get on the same page.”
@greggbell:
Tre Flowers, asked if #Seahawks’ last two games on defense are concerning: “Concerning? No, not all. It’s a 17-game season. It’s a long way. We are going to fix whatever it is, and get back to work.”
Sure, I get that. It was clumsily handled by Flowers.
But then it wouldn’t of ever dawned on me to go and ask him for an explanation. At least not until I’d at least put some proper questions at the man at the top.
All this hand wringing over the performance of the team has left me high and dry for the important thing about yesterday: what was Jamal wearing/what designer item did he bring with him to his post game presser? Was it a new Gucci watch or maybe a Dior scarf or what? I mean seriously folks, where’s your priorities here? Alan works hard to put Jamal in the right designer light and you guys ignore that? Shameful
I saw his pre-game attire. It looked like a leather, sleeveless shirt and some pants that were made out of sequins (not joking).
And frankly, he might as well have kept that outfit on during the game.
😂
And here it is…
https://twitter.com/Seahawks/status/1442195145030389766/photo/1
Love the runway strut. Maybe I’ll start calling him Ru-mal.
That comment afforded me the best laugh I’ve had in a good bit Rob!!! 😂
If you boil it down, all of the explanations are just variations on “we will turn this around”.
That’s an argument I guess when we haven’t played any divisional games and we’re only 3 games into a 17-game season. But it also amounts to “trust us, we’re better than this.”
Are they? Doubtful. The greatest years of this franchise were never about creating confusion for the other side. It was always about “our guys are bigger, faster and stronger than your guys, and we will beat the crap out of you.” The talent we had afforded Pete the luxury of not really having to make in-game adjustments, or scheming to confuse the opposition. Now the depth is gone, the superior talent is concentrated in just a handful of individuals (mostly on offense), and Pete and his coaches seemingly aren’t capable of schemes or confusion that *might* make up for that talent gap.
I think the relevant question here is, how bad does this season have to be for Jody Allen to want to make a change? Or perhaps, how bad does it have to be for Pete to say, this isn’t fun anymore, I’d rather just retire?
I think Pete is already thinking about that. As I said in the stream, if this continues, I’m convinced he’ll retire. There’s no way he prefers to see Russell Wilson out of town and then be the leader of another reset with a new QB. If he leaves at the end of this year, it’ll be with his head held high. Nobody can blame him for one last hurrah from 2018 to 2021 and it just not working. He’ll remain a Seattle legend, much loved. Staying puts that at serious risk. And he’s 70. He’s giving off a ‘why the heck am I still doing this?’ vibe with his body language.
I doubt Jody Allen will ever fire Pete Carroll. I think there’s more chance of me regrowing a fantastic head of hair.
Those words were empty after the game. Just a bunch of people with no serious explanations. With no real insight into what’s not working. Which is the problem. The malaise within this team is real. It needs a complete reset again, with a new plan, vision and people working the controls.
I wish you were right, but my assessment is that Pete’s massive ego will keep him at the helm until he’s forcibly relieved of command. He will welcome the opportunity to prove that he, not RW, has always been the key to Seattle’s success. Pete’s rampant ego will overrule his capacity for rational analysis.
I don’t think he has that big of an ego. I think he knows how he wants to run a football team and he craves control in that regard. But I don’t sense he’s an ego maniac. And if he contemplated retirement before if anything that would suggest he’s fairly reasonably minded.
It is an interesting thing when we get talk about Jody and Pete being the problem with everyone seemingly giving the GM a pass. He has created this mess. Ever since they fired (albeit for cause) Scot McClaughan Schneider’s drafts have been horrible. Sure he kept this thing together with duct tape and free agents, but he has let players with value leave without compensation and signed cap killing contracts. He thrived off the work of someone else and now that that person’s work is down to Wilson and Wagner we see the results.
Now with respect to Jody. This year we saw Russ and Dame both doing what was previously unthinkable by talking about getting out. In a city full of Billionaires Ballmer, Bezos, Gates, Allen we end up with the one who sadly got sick young and didn’t have an heir in training or find a buyer. That being said, spouses who have inherited teams have been successful by hiring presidents to run the team. Hopefully Jody does this or sells the team, because the GM needs to be held accountable.
I’m not giving JS a pass. Far from it.
But it’s also unclear, considering Pete is John’s boss, what power he actually has in the decision process.
Panthers get CJ Henderson for PFF’s #31 TE and a 3. Seriously? For a team that has nothing BUT tight end depth? So disheartening.
Meanwhile CJ Henderson is heading to Carolina…. I wish he could end up in Seattle and take over the RCB job 🙁