Something is building here.
The commitment to the run. A new, developing core. The Seahawks, finally, establishing who they want to be.
Playing this way, nobody will enjoy facing the Seahawks. They’ll batter the bad teams and compete with the good ones. Today was a battering. Oakland were never in the game.
Firstly, Seattle’s preparation was a clear difference maker. Pete Carroll spoke glowingly about ‘The Grove’ — their Watford base providing the perfect base camp. The Seahawks arrived on Thursday, held a practise immediately and appeared focused and organised in the two media sessions.
Oakland arrived a day later and stayed in the hotel across the road from the stadium. Presumably their only physical preparation in England was a walkthrough on Saturday. Marshawn Lynch opened a pop-up Beast Mode store at 4:30pm on Saturday.
What a contrast between the two. And it showed.
The last five Wembley games have been blow-outs. Preparation is key. The Seahawks got it right this week.
It enabled them to fly around the field, hit on defense and run with authority on offense. I asked Pete Carroll after the game about their recent success vs the run. Ezekiel Elliott, David Johnson, Todd Gurley and now Marshawn Lynch — all kept in relative check.
You can hear his answer at the 5:50 mark in this video:
“That’s what makes us the Seahawks”
Carroll went on to declare he wants to be the most physical running team in the league. They’re already there. How could you argue otherwise? Three tough running backs, complimenting an offensive line that has become, officially, a team strength.
I interviewed D.J. Fluker after the game. We talked about Seattle’s offense, but also discussed his long term future. Having asked Carroll on Friday whether he wanted to extend Fluker and J.R. Sweezy’s contracts (“absolutely” being the response), I put a similar question to Seattle’s star off-season acquisition:
LISTEN: D.J. Fluker says he’d “love” to be a long term feature for the #Seahawks as Pete Carroll identifies new core. Interview here 🎤 pic.twitter.com/uFCwDy5TEG
— Rob Staton (@robstaton) October 14, 2018
Here are some quick notes:
— Frank Clark’s price tag is increasing every week. A contract extension might be a priority during this bye week. He’s always had the talent to develop into one of the NFL’s best pass rushers. Clark has arrived.
— I interviewed Justin Britt after the game. Both he and D.J. Fluker were great, by the way. Britt feels Seattle already has the most physical running game in the league, talked up the rest of the O-line and made a point of praising Brian Schottenheimer. It’s an important point. The Seahawks have found their rhythm. They look comfortable. Maybe it was always going to take a few weeks to get going? Now they’ve found their identity. And the play-caller deserves some praise.
— Wembley NFL games aren’t known for a great atmosphere. This was by far the best I’ve heard. The Seahawks fans — from Europe and the US — made this a home game for Seattle. The noise on the first Oakland drive was Century Link-esque. The noise levels only dipped when the win was pretty secure. Kudos to the Seahawks fans.
— Carroll noted he’d happily come back to London in the future. Bring it on.
— These last few days will live long in the memory. Having the opportunity to report on the Seahawks, ask questions of Pete Carroll, Russell Wilson and others. Meeting Dave Wyman was a highlight. Capped off with a win. What a week.
I’ll have more on the game and the London experience tomorrow. I’ll probably do a podcast or Google Hangout too.
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Love your work, Rob. I’m getting excited again. Oh yeah. Go spurs!
Thanks for the effort. Love your reports.
Loved every minute
A lot of fun. Go hawks!
Great game and awesome coverage this week Rob!
You can criticize Pete as a game manager, play caller or even motivator but one thing is crystal clear.
He is perhaps the best dB/ secondary coach in the history of the game.
Currently the Hawks secondary consists of
McDougald (ss) udfa
Thompson (Fs) 2nd yr 5th round pick
Coleman (slot) udfa
Griffin (lcb) 2nd yr 3rd round pick
Flowers (rcb) rookie 5th round pick and converted college Safety
All 5 combined make combined less than $10 mil per year. Yet they look like one of the best secondary units in the NFL despite not having an elite pass rush.
It is incredible what he has done with this group really.
Watching watch Richard is doing with that Dallas secondary makes it wonder why more teams don’t pick up Pete’s kick slide technique
I think we can say, definitely, there’s zero reason to question this coach being absolutely 100% the right man for this club.
*franchise* we don’t get to have independent clubs in American sports.
It ruins soccer.
Amen! Nothing but “egg on face” for Schneider & Carroll doubters!
This team is 3-3. Pete and John messed up a bunch of stuff. Does one win over a bad Raiders team mean that they didn’t totally botch the Earl thing? The Eddie Lacy or Sheldon Richardson thing? I mean, this was a nice win and it makes things seem a bit better. But this does not change the fact that this coaching staff/front office have made a bunch of poor choices that have put this team in a really bad place. I hope that they have pulled themselves out of the ditch that they crashed in to, but a .500 record doesn’t disprove the legit critiques of this regime.
In my experience, you can either do something, then you will ultimately do something wrong. Or you can do nothing, which is even worse. So, while you are right technically, that criticism is required, we should always ask what personnel would have fared better.
And if we criticize, we should try to identify patterns. I guess, PCJS with their rebuild mode replacing the dead horse of yesteryear actually did. And even if we end up 7-9, this has to be lauded.
Yeah they made some mistakes. Who doesn’t? Bill Belichick also traded away an elite pass rusher for a late second rounder a few years ago. He benched his only good CB to prove a point in the Super Bowl this year. They lost.
Nobody would argue they haven’t made mistakes. But signing Eddie Lacy and trading for Sheldon are a tiny blotch when you consider all the good work they’ve done. They built a Super Bowl team from nothing in three years. And they’ve got things back on track now.
Just enjoy the ride.
For how long?
There’s no need for your negativity today.
I was skeptical of this secondary when ET went down because I remember how they collapsed when he went down the last time. I’m glad I was wrong – at least through two weeks without him. I don’t know if we would have beaten the Cowboys without Earl and had he been traded to Dallas prior to the game – I’m almost certain that game would not have been a win.
It’s almost as if this team really turned a corner after losing ET – which is weird to say. It may be an unfair analysis because Fluker missed the first couple of weeks and he’s a road grader to put it mildly. Anybody who can whoop on Suh man on man in the run game is a stud.
Still, it seems the circus is over with the ET stuff and the team is finding its groove. Not just groove, but having that physical identity that served them well, too.
For the record, Thompson was picked early in the 4th round (not a 5th round pick).
This physical running game is such a breath of fresh air after two years of futility. Actually seeing a group of five guys who look and play with confidence up front is a pleasure to witness. They’ve found an identity and have committed to it. Can’t say they’re a playoff contender yet, but it’s fun watching them again. Haven’t said that for awhile. Can’t wait for the second half of the season. Go Hawks!
What a fun team to watch – tough and physically imposing – the Bully is Back!
Thanks for all the reporting Rob.
Really happy that you had such an amazing game day Rob. For all the work that you’ve done you deserved to have the 12th man experience brought to your doorstop.
From what it looked like on TV that was practically a home game for us. Looked like about 75% Seattle fans, 20% Oakland, and 5% Others. Was it like that live? I’m okay with London being our second hometown from now on. We already have the same weather!
That’s awesome Rob!
So cool you had such a great week.
Cheers mate!
Loved it. Will never forget it.
Yes it is cool! Congrats on a special week! Well deserved and hoping your blessed more in the future.
Thank you!
Awesome win. The offense showed how tough they are. We haven’t had an identity on offense like this in a long time. We are used to the defense being the bullies. Do you think the pass rush today is a result of Oakland being that bad or our d line improving?
Bit of both. Oakland’s line was terrible. Seattle still had to take advantage.
sounds like you had a blast and will be telling your grandkids about it some day.
Sure it helps that the Hawks had their best game of the year.
Game was not on in my area (Crap!) and I don’t want to get too excited about beating a bad team, but I like the direction of the team and look forward to seeing what happens the rest of the season.
I was just thinking about draft position after the first 4 games, now I am think playoffs are very possible.
Will certainly look forward to telling my boy about this tomorrow. And hopefully Seattle will come back one day and he can come with me. If not, he’ll come to Seattle with me in the future.
Sounds like you had a blast this past week Rob, appreciate the write-up as always.
Question, are you really ready to call the offensive line “officially, a team strength” after having just faced the worst team in the league in creating QB pressure?
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not complaining. I’ll take outstanding line play whenever it happens given the near total absence of any the last few years. I’m just overly wary of assuming it’s really a strength of the team when that almost sounds too good to be actually true.
I think it’s about more than just today. They’ve been a team strength since week three.
Funny how different this team/season feels from just a couple weeks ago. Even after the Arizona win, it felt like it would be a really long season. I don’t think I’ve ever been as happy with a loss as the Rams game and it was fun to see the Hawks not play down to an inferior team.
If I was betting on it, I’d bet RW was hurt at the beginning of the season! It’s the best explanation.
Yes. The Arizona game felt like a loss. It really seemed to be the start of a terrible season. After it feels you’ve hit rock bottom – there’s nowhere to go but up, yet I didn’t expect them to play so well the past two weeks. For example, I expected the Rams to win by 20+ and maybe to beat the Raiders in a close game (though after they played the Rams the way they did – I did expect a W today).
After seeing this “bully” come to life, this almost reminds me of 2012. In my opinion, the second half of 2012 team was the second best team in Seahawks history based on how they were playing. This team is coming into its own earlier than they did in ’12 and it’s exciting to think about the rest of this year. Frank Clark is playing at a level (maybe even exceeding) Chris Clemons did for that squad. Reed is playing like a man similar to Mebane (both at a high level, yet both their games are so different, but each effective). There are some similarities, yet some obvious differences, too. But it’s fun to watch them grow…
Its an interesting comparison to 2012. The team was relatively unknown then. This team is unknown, only Wilson, Baldwin and Wagner are long term components. So I like that analogy.
But lets not kid ourselves. Oakland is a moving train wreck. Seahawks did great against a weak team. It is the sort of performance we want to see for the rest of the year. I think there breakout performance was hanging with the Rams. Now the team looks good.
As for the rest of the year. The NFL seems very equal this year, at least among the top half of the divisions. I’m watching Patriots chew up a good 5-0 KC team. Nummy.
Physical Football Watching opposing teams players limp off the field thats how we win! Passing too much causes too many injuries on the OL & QB. Hit or be hit? I’d rather be the guy doing the hitting. That’s how we neutralize the over abundance of DL pass rush talent in the league, utilize our size and lean on them, pound on them.
And then the Rams win another one by a massive amount. By 3. Last week by 1 this week by 3. They will not want to meet us when it matters. Not want to play us, not at all. Not. At. All.
So, the Rams actually winning all close road games is bad for them? Winning in adverse as hell conditions is bad for them? They are 6-0, they won at CL because of better coaching.
No they didn’t. They won at Century Link because they’re a good team who will be really difficult to stop this year.
People really need to stop picking holes.
Plus they are a really good team, that doesn’t deserve to be punished after two road victories. Even if they are the Rams.
Someone needs a hug, and a binky.
A note on the Rams. Two weeks in a row the home team made a concerted effort to take something away from McVay’s offense and mostly succeeded (SEA- the run/Gurley, DEN- the pass/Goff). In each case the other part of the offense completely blew it up. Result the Rams won two tough road games.
McVay and that roster are really really impressive. Take away the fact they are the Rams, and it is a joy to watch as a football fan.
Great to hear your questions (and answers) in what was (for Seattle fans at least) a very entertaining game!
The pass rush was great albeit vs a banged-up Raiders front. Loved Clark’s effort but lots of interior pressure as well. When Jordan gets health and Green comes back after the bye (I hope) the Seahawks will have something going on.
It is hard to take away anything really meaningful from this game given that Oakland was unprepared and undermanned, BUT in the past, the Seahawks have played down to their competition and today they were dominant. Still, a game like this makes it hard not to be excited by this team–and to think they could go 8-2 to finish the season. But like Fluker says, “one game at a time.”
Loved asking Pete the questions this week. Think he liked them. Especially liked interviewing Fluker too.
Wasn’t gonna say, but yeah he was fired up to talk run game!!
Rob, you do exceptional work! Thanks for all the great content~
Thank you 🙂
What an introduction to seeing the Seahawks live for the first time. If that noise is what it’s like in CenturyLink, a trip there definitely needs to go on my bucket list. It’d be a harder sell to the wife than a 300 mile round trip to Wembley!
Great performance from start to finish. The players seemed to respond and appreciated the fan support.
To be 3-3 after the first six is a great effort. Enjoy the rest, and come back firing off the bye week and let’s see where we can go with this young team.
Sounds like you had a blast this week, Rob!
Loved every minute pal — was just a perfect few days.
Thanks Rob! So glad you could experience an awesome game in your home country. Starting to feel a lot more excited about this team. We still have some holes which is to be expected considering all the loss of personnel that we’ve had; however, it feels like this team could go toe to toe against any team in the NFL. They might not win but they’d give them a fight, considering the tough schedule for the rest of the year I’m excited that we have so many home games coming up. Go hawks!
I think you have to give ken norton some credit. His time with the hawks prior to leaving for Oakland was the best years for the defense. Particularly the linebackers. Ken has everyone so well prepared. Even Austin calitro has played really well. While shaquem Griffin has significantly improved since game one. I’m looking forward to seeing if the hawks can take that next step forward in the next half of the year.
Amazing atmosphere at the game tonight.The stadium was awash with Seattle fans, and the Raiders fans were drowned out. It was my first chance to see Seattle live after supporting/following them for 35 years: it will probably be my one and only chance. But definitely an abiding memory (thankyou Seahawks). I would guess it was about 65-70% Seahawks fans and about 5-10% Raiders, the rest (as is common over here) were NFL fans of other teams.
Seattle totally controlled the game and the only disappointment was that they didn’t get the shutout the defence deserved.
Very impressed by the overall performance. We get KJ, Dickson and Mckissic back after the bye. This team has what it takes to shoot for the playoffs. Its really irritating when I hear the Rebuilding chatter. A team with a strong defense and run game is not something you want to face come January.
Congrats Rob, you were a good talisman.
Lots of euphoria with an uncharacteristic dominant win. Too bad the rest of the schedule isn’t filled with the kind of disfunction that the Raiders exhibit. Which is not to take away from what the Hawks are rounding into. As bad as the coaching looked in the first couple weeks, they are now seeming to be hitting stride with using the players we have in the most effective manner. I don’t expect this team to be an effective playoff group, certainly not championship caliber, but damn, they’re entertaining and scrappy. The talking heads here in the US still aren’t ready to let go of their beloved meme about who isn’t here anymore, and how bad the O-line is, but in a few more weeks these warriors might finally get their due as a fiercely hard fighting gang of over achievers. All those that lamented the Penny pick might even begin to see that he’s working into a very respectable third option with a definite chance to move up to second in line. Should Carson end up injured as has happened before, he might be the most valuable backup since T2.
The penalties in this game were somewhat concerning, but the play calling by the refs was pretty uneven, so it might not be as bad as it looks.
The bye will give the guys a chance to recoup and, hopefully, come out strong in week 8. I suspect Doug overworked himself today………what a job he did. One last hope, Fluker, please stay healthy, he’s been transformational to the O-line, and certainly a most positive component of the overall performance of the other guys and Solari. A joy to watch.
If you can run the ball & play “stout” defense you will win in the play offs! Chiefs are a perfect example of a team that will lose in the play offs. Last year Chiefs got blown out against a running team that plays great D. Although the Seahawks are not the best team on paper this year they are at the moment a Super Bowl contender. Rams will not get better this year while the Seahawks add a Veteran TE, Veteran LB as they’re rookie CB, RB, FS get better every day. Also the OL is getting better every week. What matters is whose playing the best in Dec & January. I’m so happy things are working out and I can’t wait for the playoffs. I want this year to be the year that ends the Carroll criticism & lies and in the future exposé those folks as nothing but trouble makers.
OBTW – can’t tell you how awesome it’s been to read especially this week in knowing you’d have access to all of this stuff! You didn’t disappoint! Congrats! And Thank You.
Thanks Bobby!
How hard will Sweezy and Fluker be to sign to longer term contracts?
They look vital to our offense yet they’re basically run specialists in a passing league and probably wouldn’t be as valuable to anyone else as they are to us.
Disagree. If they continue to be as dominant even if only in the run, that will in turn help the pass pro. Funny it doesn’t really work the other way around.
Depends how far Seahawks go this year. I for one had serious doubts (and logically right to). Consistency will be a must for that O-line and this team. If that happens and make a deep playoff run, then I wouldn’t expect you can resign both. Clark, Wright, Coleman, MDavis, Fluker, Sweezy all need new deals in addition to a whole bunch more players needing new deals in 2019 including RW. Tough decisions
I wouldn’t think it would be too hard as long as they aren’t low ball offers. I imagine both men would like to lock in to a position and a home for the foreseeable future.
I’d agree they would. But.. everyone what to get paid. Would really like to know robs thoughts on who they can afford to keep? Earl coming off the books helps a lot, but remember frank is look at $13mil/yr and Russell wants to top what Rodgers is making. Sign those two and how much are you left with?
They have a lot of cap room in 2019 to be fair.
They both seem to want to be in Seattle so that should help — and both were looking for jobs a few months ago so it would make sense for everyone to find some common ground near the end of the season or just after.
It would be very nice to have some consistency and OL as a strength. People have said what do we do with Pocic now? We need depth. Both Sweezy and Fluker have both already been hurt this year. Keep him.
I agree, Fluker and Sweezy have both shown enough to deserve long term contracts. So has Frank Clark = I hope they can lock him up over the bye week.
The rest of the offensive line, I’m unsure = I’ll leave that up to the GM and Pete Carroll, but they do need quality backups to cover injuries. And my gut feeling is that next draft will be mostly to replenish the defense.
The line is doing great across the board.
The aim is to get five guys working as one. Not necessarily five amazing players with every position ticked off like we’re analysing a list of premium needs.
Just to clarify = when I was talking about resigning the offensive line = I favor signing all the starters. It was the backups that I’m unsure of and would rely on Coach Carroll to figure out. They can be kept or replenished from the draft.
(Tucks in napkin into shirt. Grabs fork and knife. Starts devouring crow).
I was wrong. Plain and simple. I thought PC had lost his way. Well…we officially have something brewing. This feels like 2012 all over again. Are there holes? Yes there are. Does anybody want to play this style of team? No, no they don’t. No name guys on defense are absolutely obliterating folks on the other side of the line.
Tre Flowers? My goodness – perhaps PC best work yet. Flowers has literally no experience at CB prior to this year…and he is not just competent. He looks like he could be a special player before we know it.
Frank Clark? Amazing player and even better, his post game interviews are beautiful. He gets it.
Jarran Reed? Alpha dog. Lock these 2 guys up long term, now.
OL? Holy smokes. When these guys move forward…godspeed to the opposing DL. This is a fun group that needs to stay together long term.
What I think for the 2019 offseason? Pay for a premiere pass rusher. Pay for a situational pass rusher. And target a cornerstone Front 7 player in Round 1 – I would love to see us be aggressive for someone like LB Devin White. KJ Wright is long in the tooth and Bobby Wagner isn’t getting younger. Be aggressive and get a guy like White who can eventually be THE GUY when Wagz loses a step.
The WR corp is set Baldwin-Lockett-Moore are very, very good. The RB corp is set. The OL is set (assuming reups). RW is set. Offense just needs to stay committed. That’s it for them.
Let’s build around this defense. A lot of good young pieces there. Just add more pass rush and a high end, young LB and I think we are looking at our next run.
Yes…this is a 180 from a few weeks ago. We are getting back to being the team nobody wants to play.
Love that. Nothing more fun that being the bully in this league. And the O-line sets the tone. As you say, nobody wants to face this type of team. Aggressive, physical, punishing. And very entertaining.
Rob, was driving on the highway listening to PC’s press conference and I got a huge grin when I heard your voice. So happy for you. Totally deserved.
Also, can we talk about how frickin’ awesome David Moore has looked? WR in next year’s draft looks like even less of a concern. Doug, Moore, Tyler, Jaron Brown…those are four guys you can win a SB with for sure.
It’s becoming more and more evident that positions we need to address in next year’s draft are:
DE
LB
DT
Maybe throw in TE and FS.
I like RT Prince Ohio State for next years draft if he’s there round 3.
That’s cool 🙂
Moore was excellent. What a draft pick he was. He and Carson in R7 — unbelievable. And I agree completely on the draft needs. Front seven all the way.
Scout Aaron Hineline. Found 3 guys from the state of Oklahoma in Flowers, Carson, and Moore.
That win was for you Rob! Your present for a lifetime of devotion to the Seahawks.
Thanks — but I have to say the Seahawks fans were great at Wembley. A win for all those guys, wherever they travelled from.
Great job this week, Rob. Really enjoyed it. No doubt you’re their best beat reporter this side of the Atlantic. Does it seem like Carroll looks younger and gets more energy as he goes to 3-3?
Any chat about Alam attending the game, I noticed him along the sideline and am curious.
Kam not Alam.. darn suggestive text
I just wish I have Pete’s energy when I’m 45 let alone in my 60’s 🙂
Pete’s positive attitude and love for player development will extend his career over normal head coaches. His body will give out before his heart & mind. He said he adjusted his diet and feels great, we could be looking at another 10 years of Pete Carroll. If that happens we’re possibly witnessing “Greatness” the career of one of the all time great coaches in professional sports.
I’ve been critical of Schott but he’s definitely improved. It seems pretty obvious that the switch from bevell and Cable to Schott and Solari has been huge. I’m exited again. Good stuff and glad you got to be a part of this you deserve it.
Superb Seahawks win today.
While most of the league wants to play a PAC 12 style of football, Old Pete Carroll done gone and doubled down on his DNA and would rather coach an SEC-esque brand of ball. Bravo. There’s been a lot of ageist vibes going around that the game has passed him. I think Pete has a gas pipe for those folks to suck on. Running the ball helps everything. It’s been that way about football since the beginning of the sport in the 1800s, and it will not change.
That said, I’m a geezer believer. As long as this team has Pete Carroll coaching it, I’m totally cool with it.
Pete also knows defense. He has a blueprint. No Kam, Earl, Cliff, Bennett, Sherm, no problem. Bring on Bobby, Jarran, Frank, Coleman, McDougald, Shaquill, etc.
Repeat. Pete knows defense. He has a blue print.
Russell Wilson knows passing efficiency. Hm, gee, he was always that way in CFB, and has pretty much always been that way in the NFL, especially when supported by a run game. Maybe hanging onto an expensive playmaking franchise QB isn’t such a terrible idea.
It’s really great hearing your voice in those press conferences, Rob. Really made this week extra special.
Again, terrific win. Seattle did exactly what a playoff contending team should do. They put an inferior opponent down early and kept them there.
Thanks man 🙂
Rob, I’m really happy for you. All the great Seahawk work you have done, the hours and hours you put in which make so many of us smarter fans; I am so glad the Seahawks came to your home turf and you got the opportunity to do these interviews and be a part of the practices and today’s game. You deserve it and much more.
An inspiring performance by the team has me really happy for Pete too. He is my favorite coach and the old guy may just know what he is doing!
He certainly does. And thank you — it was an amazing experience.
Ok so we are just leaving Wembley right now. About half a mile from the stadium and we are at a roundabout and what do I see…..? An estate agents called PETER CARROLL! I’m not even joking. If I could post a photo on here I would! You can’t make it up.
Haha 😂
The best thing to happen to this team was getting rid of Cable. His methods are outdated and complicated and he has a terrible eye for talent. Look across the line of scrimmage for the latest example. Shame on Pete for sticking with him for so long, but good for him for finally moving on.
Glad to see this team get its identity back.
Maybe so. It was time for a change.
But let’s also remember what Cable had to work with in Seattle when they needed to make a saving, how useful the OL was when they went to the two SB’s and that yesterday Oakland were missing their two best OL starters.
For me they needed to move on from Cable. But it’s never sat well with me how willing Seattle fans are sometimes to hammer people and ignore the value they brought.
Cables lack of talent was his own doing. Switching the starting positions of the entire offensive line a week before the start of the season was his own doing. Failing to adapt to new rules and league realities was his own doing. Look at his own choice of rookies who got destroyed and embarrassed out there. That’s cable’s own doing.
Cable had success here when and only when he had a prime Marshawn Lynch. That’s not a coach, that’s a benificuary.
Cable had his run and he may have been part of a mediocre line that helped win 1 SB but he absolutely was integral in the SB loss ( Seahawks that year were NFL historically bad in short yardage running) and in the two follow up years where the line was at or near league worst- during what remained of their SB window.
The game has passed cable by. It happened years ago.
I’m not interested in a re-hashing of the Cable debate. It’s in the past. But to say it’s his own doing isn’t accurate. Seattle scrimped on Breno, Carpenter, Sweezy and Okung. They traded Unger. They removed his entire starting SB line. He was challenged to make guys like Fant, Nowak, Odhiambo and others work as cheap replacements. Because Seattle had to make savings somewhere.
I also hate this trend where people write off coaches they don’t like by saying, ‘they only won because of the players’. OK. I guess that’s why Marshawn played so well in Buffalo and last year in Oakland, right?
I’d recommend asking Marshawn what he thinks of Cable. Major respect between the pair.
It didn’t work out. We move on.
First, I love that the identity of this team has returned. The physical, ram it down your throat and make you sorry you tried bully is back and I love it. Running matter, especially when you can do it with authority.
That being said, it is maddeningly frustrating at just how stark a difference the last 2 games have been from the first 4. It looks like a completely different team, and that drives me crazy. Yes much of it can be attributed to the Oline settling with Sweezy and Fluker, and I get it, it took them some time to get healthy. But that doesnt account for the play calling and overall game flow. Even Shotty looks like a completely different play caller with an entirely new philosophy and design over the last couple week.
As much as things are looking up right now, its frustrating to me that it took this long to get here and wondering if the start will come back to bite later on.
I understand the frustration, I think it’s equally plausible though. After all, this is the first time this team has changed OC in seven years. It’s the first time Wilson has changed OC’s in the NFL. And it’s not unusual for a team to start off a little sluggish. The Pats being a good example this year too. Seattle also started the season with two road games.
It would’ve been great to beat the Rams or split the first two games. But here we are. 3-3. If they can get to 5-5 with six to play, they’ll have a big opportunity to win out. Anything more than 5-5 and they are set up big time.
Totally fair, there is a certain amount of “break in” time for a new coach.
If Shottenheimer v.2018 sticks around I think it could a much better year than most expected. If Shottenheimer v. 1994 comes back out, we are going to hit some problems. If the play calling in the first 4 games had been similar to the last two, even had it not been successful, I would be a lot less frustrated. This is the type of play calling we have been asking for from the get go. Strong runs, PLay action and moving pockets, Pre snap motion.
Keep all that stuff coming!
Remaining schedule is brutal save for 2 9ers and 1 cards.
The last five games are all winnable.
Get to 5-6 and you have a shot.
And let’s be right, they play some good QB’s. But GB, Carolina, San Diego, Detroit etc isn’t brutal.
Chargers, Packers, Vikings, and Chiefs are all at home too…3 in prime time (currently). That should help immensely.
Admittedly I’m particularly sunny after this game, but I think 9-7 is the floor, 10-6 is definitely doable and 11-5 is within the realm of possibility.
Loved the Win!
A couple of takeaways:
1. I stated a couple weeks ago against Denver how Mingo looked out of place. This is not true anymore, he looks comfortable and maybe a better LB then rusher.
2. Schotty’s play-calling is fantastic and i don’t mean to hype that up. For all the crap that Bevell took over the years i thought he was a good play designer not a good play-caller. Maybe that issue is compounded a little but due to having so many people that chime in on every play. Just the feel that schotty has for some of his PA is refreshing. AND our redzone play calling is almost a given.
3. It was nice to see Naz out there for some plays today. The Defense just doesn’t seem overwhelmed and the hit that Mcdougal put on cooper yesterday brought back SB 48 memories of Kam.
It’s so funny to hear how many people can change their stance on the Seahawks! Lmao How many of you were ready ride Pete Carroll off outta town. What a joke!
Same with Schotty. Pretty sure I was about the only one to stick up for him two weeks ago and give him kudos last week. Not every game will be great; let’s remember there is an opposing defense of professionals doing all they can to stop our O. But these type of changes take a bit of time to gel. We’ve already seen a handful of plays and variations (pre-snap movement, screens) that haven’t been present the last few years. Give the guy a freakin’ chance.
Pete and Schotty deserved a TON of crap after their start to the year.
1) Trying to throw way too often, and slow developing routes
2) Playing a washed up B Marshall when D Moore clearly deserves playing time
3) Carson getting 6-8 carries/game
Did we as overly emotional football fans go a little over board? Absolutely!!
But the mistakes they made in the opening weeks were real, and were against their stated goals from the off season. Good on them for addressing the issues.
I disagree, we have a new team, we had injuries, and you can’t always project player performance accurately with preseason games and summer performance as well as game coaching etc…. I think we had to use the 1st few games to experiment and figure out what we have as a team combine that with injuries and it looked like a mess. I think Pete & John have built up enough credibility of the years, they deserve the benefit of doubt. RW should have led us to victory early this season brushing aside most of that negative press but Im speculating he was injured playing in pain.
I thought I recognized that voice during Pete’s post game press conference. Great work, Rob! I wish more reporters asked contextually relevant questions.
Also, great job by Pete Carroll. He is getting this group to play hard and fast, which mitigates our lack of upper echelon talent and inexperience. Still expect an 8-8 type of year but our identity has quickly become reestablished and a solid foundation is being developed.
Go Hawks!
8-8 sounds about right
Agreed, 8-8 seems the most likely trajectory.
A little push from either direction (Negative or Positive) could sway it up or down.
Negative factors: Depth in some spots is still really thin. The pass rush is pretty much Frank Clark with a little Reed mixed in. Any loss of playing time by those two eliminates any hope of pressure. The WR group is pretty thin behind the top 3, and I cant see the secondary overcoming any more losses.
Positive Factors: The trajectory of the offense is in the right direction; if Wilson continues to get more comfortable in the new system and Moore keeps growing, we could see some really big numbers put up. TE has been an empty roster spot for a couple of weeks and that will change. We can probably look forward to JD replacing CJ; if he can offer anything it is more that Prosise has. If Jordan or Green can contribute even a little pass rush and team could approach being average in terms of pass rush (11th after the Oakland boost, that wont last) the D will be quite formidable.
We’re gonna see what Tedric Thompson is made of this week. Flowers’ luck may run up too, but he’s been a revelation so far.
Detroit’s only beating good teams this year and we’ve already travelled stupid distances this season. I expect them to have a game plan that tests this young secondary against one of the livest arms on the planet. Matt Stafford is a Threat.
Flipside- Detroit hasn’t stopped the run this year. They’re giving up 138 yards at 5.3 ypc.
“we’ve already travelled stupid distances this season”
Got a bye in between. Hawks will be fine.
Flip side – Hawks finish with 4 of 5 at home.
You wanna know what travels well? An imposing running game. If Russ can keep improving on the screen pass and the stable of hungry running backs stay healthy…..this could get real interesting come December/January. Wilson is lethal with a running game~
I like how running teams with good defenses perform on the road in the NFL. I would not count out the new coach in Detroit to figure out how to stop Seattle’s run game but if he doesn’t stop the run Seattle will crush Detroit.
Let it go, let it go
Can’t hold it back anymore
Let it go, let it go
Turn my back and slam the door
It has been such an incredible feeling to sit with son and scream all game longwith so many 12s around us.
A fewweeks ago i wrote here that i see a plan and a direction with the way this team is looking but i did not expect a new couching stuff and so many new and young players to mold so quickly together. The similarities to 2012 are really amazing.
We have changed the expensive secondary and cheap OL to a young secondary that should be going for a few years and a veteran studed OL that can dominate in the run game. It makes so much sense considering what Carroll can do with young secondary players.
Talking about being the bully again – did anyone notice that in the past few weeks the WRs we face in the 4th quarter are not the ones we faced in the 1st quarter?….it wont be long before we start seeing “business descisions” as the seahawks build on thier hard hitting reputation. It starts with McDougald but T2 has been hitting hard and Flowers is tackling RBs like a safty…
It is funny how all the stats that support the views regarding the lesser roll of the smash mouth running game look so meaningless when you see how an offense can set the tone for the whole team playing that “outdated” foolball.Suddenly PC is not a dinsaur….he is a TREX.
Carroll’s football has always been more effective in the 2nd half of the season when players are hurting and the weather is harsh. By the time we return from the bye week with a few more players it will be the perfect time for it.
Winter is coming and nobody wants to play a Carroll team when the nights get longer.
T2 has 85.6 average grade by pff. He is 3rd best graded seahawk, behind Wagner and Mcdougald, and 6th best graded saftey in league. ET is first.
Wow, that is shocking for me. Obviously in a good way.
Carroll is a magician when it comes to coaching DB’s.
HOPE
the thing was was missing from the perspective of fans the first 4 weeks, as we watched them struggle and many were ready to give up on Russ, Pete and John. I was ready to blow it up, while knowing Russ is the best qb in Franchise history and Pete is hands down the best coach. I did not see where they were going. But the last 2 weeks have brought back memories of the glory years and lots of young players flashing and showing potential. Russ is showing what he can do by doing less, and Pete is showing how he can coach up a young, no name defense. This is still a roster that lacks the talent of the elite teams, but they can be a legitimate contender next year with a good draft, keeping some good pending FA’s and some key FA acquisitions, and some luck in the injury department.
with regards to facing a bunch of good teams in the next 5 or 6 games, bring it on and let’s see where the team stands. You can’t be a good team unless you can beat good teams.
HOPE is definitely the key difference
Along with COMMITMENT
Rob;
We all enjoyed that you enjoyed this past week so well. Perceptions of the 12th Nation do seem to be trending positive since after the Arizona game. How the Hawks played the Rams was an eye opener for some.
I do think that Carroll and the Schneid tried to bring in some high priced veterans in 2017 to make a final run or two for the (now) old guard. It became clear that no SB runs were going to happen. The scrimping on the o-line was the weak link in the chain. They still had a core group of high level players, but they had to jettison some of that (now) old guard.
I think you’re going to have some good stuff to write about for at least a few seasons into the future; until Pete Carroll decides to retire.
Great job this week Rob! It’s been fun following the week as it unfolded.
Pete Carroll became the winningest coach in Seahawk history with that win yesterday! Let’s remember that!
Thank you!
Oakland is really bad, but this still felt like a statement win.
Paul Allen has passed away