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Does Jamal Adams fit in Seattle’s defense?
The Jamal Adams trade is already concerning
The Seahawks are basically using him as a pass rushing linebacker, blitzing to try and manufacture pressure they otherwise can’t create.
He’s never been a particularly good zone coverage defender. He’s always been better playing downhill and aggressive.
We’re seeing when he does sit in zone, there are issues. When he blitzes they’re often leaving Quandre Diggs isolated (and we can all see the results) or they’re forcing themselves to play nickel with a ‘designated rusher’ rather than an extra coverage man.
The Seahawks scheme has always worked best when they can rush with four and let everyone in the second level do their jobs.
Kam Chancellor had only two career sacks. He rarely blitzed.
Suddenly, in part because they did a bad job addressing the pass rush this year and in part because of who Adams is, they’re having to switch everything up to facilitate him and prop up the D-line.
When he played in a 3-4 in New York it worked a treat. You have four linebackers on the field in base to cover the second level and you just have more flexibility if you want to rush an aggressive safety. The Todd Bowles and Gregg Williams schemes are designed to take risks, to blitz creatively and bring a lot of pressure. It wasn’t just Adams — it was exactly the same with Deone Buchanan in Arizona.
Seattle’s defense simply isn’t built that way.
When you trade two first round picks, a third and a good veteran for a player — you expect clarity on role, you expect a good fit and you expect a high level of performance immediately.
It’s difficult to watch the way Minkah Fitzpatrick is playing in Pittsburgh. He’s acting as their eraser. He has six interceptions in just over a season with the Steelers and two defensive touchdowns.
The Seahawks couldn’t compete with Pittsburgh in trade talks. The Steelers, at the time, were dangling what looked like a top-10 pick a year ago. Yet the cost was cheaper and the results far better.
With the price tag Seattle paid for Adams, expectations are very high. I’m not convinced he suits their scheme and I’m not sure they know how to best use him. I’m struggling to see how the Seahawks are noticeably better with him in the lineup versus Bradley McDougald. It’s starting to feel a bit like Percy Harvin all over again. They acquire a player who is clearly very talented but doesn’t necessarily fit and they can’t work out the best way to utilize him.
I can’t be the only person wondering if the Seahawks can justify paying him a massive contract in the off-season. As we saw with Laremy Tunsil and Jalen Ramsey — when you trade the house for players without an oven-ready contract extension ready to go, you end up getting fleeced. Tunsil and Ramsey smashed records for annual salary and guarantees at their respective positions. They were given a blank cheque the moment the trades were ratified.
Adams is in the exact same boat. Budda Baker is the highest paid safety on $15m a year. It’s not unrealistic that the Seahawks are facing a $17-18m commitment per year — on top of the same amount they’re already paying Bobby Wagner.
I don’t think you can justify that.
The next eight games are huge for both the Seahawks and Adams. They need to determine whether this is a long term arrangement or not. Either that or Carroll needs to cede control of the defense in the off-season and turn things over to an experienced schemer who can build the unit around Adams.
New coaches are needed from the outside
Seattle’s defense is getting worse year after year.
It’s always been a unit that relies on talent. Nobody could look at their scheme even in the LOB days and admire its complexity or the way it challenges opponents. It’s always been fairly straight forward. In the 2011-2014 period, Seattle had an obscene number of world class players with BAMF attitudes to make it virtually unstoppable.
Now there isn’t a cornerback on the roster you can hang your hat on (including Shaquill Griffin). The safeties are not living up to expectations. The D-line can’t generate pressure with four and Bobby Wagner has turned into a shadow of his former self.
At a time like this — when your backs are against the wall and you’re getting hammered by opponents and critics alike — you need your coaches to step forward. They need to come up with solutions.
We’re eight weeks into the season now and all Pete Carroll keeps saying is he believes things will get better. These are just shallow, meaningless words at this stage.
It seems clearer by the week the Seahawks aren’t capable of turning a historically bad unit into something passable.
Yet as flawed as the defensive roster is — this is still a team with some big name, expensive players. To not come up with any solutions half way through a season isn’t acceptable.
The Bills giving up on the running game should be the final straw. Have you ever witnessed a team so blatantly jab a finger at a defensive weakness like that?
It had to be humiliating for Carroll. One of his big mantras is that first and foremost you have to stop the run. Now opponents aren’t even bothering running. He’s helped create a defense that takes away the running game for all the wrong reasons.
This will be a very painful experience for Seattle’s Head Coach. Fresh off the news that he’s been given a contract extension until 2025, he also needs to be honest about this situation.
The Seahawks coaching staff is littered with old friends from USC and family members and it’s not working for the defense.
Carroll needs to bite the bullet. He is a fine Head Coach with a superb track record. He needs to become the figurehead, the leader, the culture setter. And he needs to employ someone with experience to run the defense.
That doesn’t mean going back to Dan Quinn or Gus Bradley. The defenses in Atlanta and Los Angeles are also terrible. It means employing an outsider to come in and sort things out.
It needs to be someone with ambitions of being a Head Coach in the future. Someone who can come in, rescue Seattle’s defense and deliver a fresh vision and new ideas.
It needs to be someone who can test opponents with clever scheming, week-to-week game-planning and can get the best out of Seattle’s supposed stars.
The Seahawks have one of the worst defenses in the NFL and it’s going to squander the best years of Russell Wilson without making some difficult decisions.
Plenty of coaches lead from the top and employ specialist coordinators to run the offense, defense and special teams. John Harbaugh is a good example. That has to be a path Carroll considers in the off-season.
Ken Norton Jr still needs to go, this week (but he won’t)
I think Carroll has too much respect for the man. Clearly the players think the world of him.
It’s just not working though.
A change is required to shake things up. They need someone with a fresh perspective making the calls and being the key decision maker in the meeting room.
Carroll is protecting Norton and taking a portion of the blame — and rightly so. It’s his defense too. Yet he’s not going anywhere and things simply aren’t improving.
Forget Dan Quinn. He needs to repair his reputation and coming to Seattle to try and fix this mess in-season isn’t the way to do it.
It’ll probably need to be someone from within the staff already — but really, what have you got to lose?
Somebody needs to be held to account for this defensive shambles. Ownership clearly isn’t going to do it. The media aren’t going to do it. Therefore Carroll has to.
The Ravens fired offensive coordinator Cam Cameron in 2010. They were 9-4 but the offense was struggling. Baltimore won the Super Bowl that year.
Sometimes change is just necessary.
A record-setting example
The Seahawks’ defense is set to smash the record for passing yards conceded per game:
2020 Seahawks 362.1
2020 Falcons 310.3
2011 Packers 299.8
2015 Giants 298.9
2012 Buccaneers 297.4
Look at the difference between Seattle this year and the rest — then note who’s second (for the Dan Quinn truthers).
They’re also going to shatter the record for the all-time worst passing defense in terms of yards conceded — by a thousand yards. The record is 4796 and the Seahawks are on a pace for 5794.
The Seahawks wasted money on tight ends
Greg Olsen is earning $7m this season. He currently has 171 yards and one touchdown. He’s on pace for 342 yards and a couple of scores. Meanwhile Jacob Hollister, on a $3.2m second round tender contract, has 11 catches for 98 yards and one touchdown.
Given the flaws elsewhere on the roster, the use of over $10m on these two players warrants a serious challenge.
It’s time to get real
Let’s have a close look at the reality of Seattle’s 6-2 record.
Only one of those victories — against Miami — was against a reasonable opponent. The other wins were against Atlanta, New England, Dallas, Minnesota and a banged up 49ers outfit.
The New England, Dallas and Minnesota games could’ve easily be losses.
In the toughest stretch of the season, they’re currently 1-2. Next up are the Rams, who the Seahawks are 1-4 against in the last five outings.
They’ve failed to get any angle on the Sean McVay offense. In the last five games between the teams, LA has scored 42, 33, 36, 29 and 28 points.
Here’s the total offensive yardage conceded in each game:
2017 (H) — 352
2018 (A) — 468
2018 (H) — 456
2019 (H) — 477
2019 (A) — 455
Falling to 6-3 overall and 1-3 in this grown-up portion of the schedule is a very real threat.
This feels like a make or break game next weekend. The Seahawks need to prove they aren’t pretenders.
If you missed our ‘pulling no punches’ instant reaction podcast discussing the Buffalo game, check it out here:
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Does Tampa’s performance yesterday change your option on the Seahawks at all? It seems all the “contenders” in the NFC have major flaws, hawks included, but with the nature of the NFC it seems like the Seahawks have as good a shot as anyone to rep for the super bowl
No, it doesn’t change my opinion in the slightest. I literally said in the podcast that there are no big beasts in the NFC.
Seattle’s issue isn’t a flaw though, or an off day. They have an entire failing unit.
Folks, if you aren’t in agreement with every single freaking thing Rob said in this article I implore you to remember this one thing……..the Seahawks are currently on pace to statistically be the worst defense IN THE 100+ YEAR HISTORY OF THE NFL!
(and he’s right about the expenditure on TEs too)
And not just BREAK the record, but smash it to pieces! We’re on pace to allow ~1000 more yards than the worst defense in HISTORY. It’s just shameful, and PC is still coaching like his defense can EVER get a stop. At this point, I wish they didn’t give him an extension, because how he responds to this problem of his own making, should dictate whether or not he needs to go too. . .
As for Adams, hell at least they found ways to make Percy productive when he did feel like playing. Adams looks utterly hopeless anytime he’s required to cover. The trade so far is a nearly complete and total bust especially taking into account what they paid for him. Fitzpatrick, a traditional FS would’ve fit the Hawks’ scheme much better. It looked like Diggs could be that guy too, but his play has fallen so far off the cliff this year you couldn’t hear him hit the water at the bottom.
Lets be honest, the scheme isnt doing any better than adam’s play. Not an excuse. We sold our future for him on his last year.
When Rob said they are using Adams as a linebacker, I exclaimed in agreement. I was telling my wife yesterday that Seattle replaced Mychal Kendricks with Jamal Adams. Mychal Kendricks was a symptom of a badly planned defense last year. They shouldn’t be doubling down on that awful experiment by playing 4-3 with a safety instead of a linebacker.
I think Quandre Diggs would be doing better if he wasn’t all by himself so much of the time and if the corners weren’t all playing like hot garbage.
I’m not ready to give up on Jamal or Quandre, but Rob is right that we need someone who thinks differently from Pete to come in to fix this. Pete’s way doesn’t fit the talent that he has. I feel bad for Jamal Adams, it’s pretty hard to look good in coverage if you are blitzing what seems like every play. I’d like to see him in some man coverage, not just blitzing and zone.
At least they have taken away the run!! LMAO
Wish Pete would tell the truth on Mondays. Saying “we didn’t see that coming” or that it was “uncharacteristic play”. C’mon man. Everyone watching knew before the game our run defense was irrelevant to the gameplan and theyd be throwing against our secondary.
These poorly constructed excuses help nothing.
100% agree. Well said
Here’s a stat for you all: they’ve given up 15% more passing ypg than any team IN NFL HISTORY. Not like it’s 3 ypg more or something. It’s more by a large margin.
This is after 8 games, not one or two so it is statistically relevant.
agree w the premise that we need coaching on the defensive side that throws some wrinkles at teams, that maximizes – the first half yesterday was unacceptably passive, and embarrassing.
i’m not ready to throw in the towel on Adams – though I do think the fit concern is a fair one to raise.
What are the thoughts around here re Kris Richard? Always thought we bailed on him too early. A quick internet check indicates (I believe) he’s not working anywhere right now.
Though there’s been no specific article/information, the appearances of the departure indicates it was not a friendly separation (some firings, though rare, can be). There was a recent article on Richard where he claimed that he’s holding out for a higher position than recent offers of position coaching, so likely he’d wants a DC position or better. That might be a tall wish since he was in one organization (Pete’s) for all his career until the “failure” in his short run as an assistant with extra juice in Dallas. The league probably has doubts about his abilities right now. He needs an image/performance rehab but doesn’t appear, based on his remarks, that he knows how best to do that. Coming into this dumpster fire for half a season probably wouldn’t do him much good either. He might eventually get a shot somewhere, but doubt it will be in Seattle.
Anyone has potential DC candidates?
If from outside end of the year, I’d either like a great DL assistant or secondary/CB coach to get the job. Too bad we extended Carroll, I’d be interested in Saleh but he wouldn’t take DC I guess
Rob, do you think there is any chance Pete fires Norton if they have another awful performance against the Rams?
I personally don’t think he would make a change until the off season.
I don’t think so — but I think the time has come to make a change.
As “Invested fans”, we all know what PCJS should do to make this team great again (Sorry for pull a Trump here). But nepotism, stubbornness beyond imagination and blind confidence simply block the way. Seriously, what is Pete Carroll thinking now? Some kind of miracle or Oracle? Was he like, Masochism?
https://twitter.com/MoveTheSticks/status/1325827803313446918
Does Daniel Jeremiah not understand you have to play these coverages when you blitz as much as Seattle did?
Yeah that’s the hand they are forced to run with. What a mess
I think Ill take the aggressive approach over the soft zone sit back approach, assuming they can figure out the darn screens.
This D is damned if they do, damned if they dont.
Pete saying they had a great plan if Buffalo planned to run is like a boxer saying he had a great plan to avoid jabs after getting pummeled and knocked out by nothing but haymakers.
Nice analogy
He is saying, without being specifically critical,that they didn’t execute the plan. Ya think?
In my opinion this game really wasn’t any different then most of our other defensive performances aside from 1 thing we didn’t get any turnovers. Really when you look at it most other games we get a few turnovers and most of the time score off them and when we don’t the game ends with this type of score line
also – we turned it over 4 times. D actually held 3 of them to FG’s, so it was 16 pts.
Subtract those and they’re at 28, which is more or less our norm.
As terrible as we played in the 1st half, the 2nd half defense was markedly better. And it wasn’t b/c Buffalo took their foot off the gas, they never stopped passing the ball. We were just able to generate decent pressure most of the 2nd half. Maybe we can build on that.
This is reminiscent of a Seinfeld episode…
looking at what Sean McVay did in LA. His defense was decent, yet he still let Wade Phillips go this offseason. Wad was his biggest hire when he got the job, and likely instrumental in helping him learn all the processes of coaching. Yet McVay felt he needed something more and changed course. Pete needs to do the same, go outside his circle and bring in something new. Options, maybe Vic Fangio, or Matt Patricia if they are let go this off-season.
Those names would be interesting. I have to say that this current group of Bellichick guys that are new coaches are interesting to watch. Joe Judge and Brian Flores have defensive units that are organized, prepared and put in a position to succeed. It doesn’t always happen but i think that is a talent thing particularly with the Giants. Maybe steal their Defensive Coordinator, Patrick Graham. Coached under Bellichick and Spagnoulo so good versatility.
Yes to Fangio and a resounding “hell no” to Patricia.
They had to know what Adams is. I think the marriage between the 2 is obvious. PC can better cultivate his lagging coverage skills long term. That doesn’t help us now though. You are right about the 3-4 as a template. For the rest of the season I think they have to go to dime with Neal or DJ Reed as a third safety and have Adams play that hybrid ss/lb role. Let him blitz off the edge or cover routes he can come up on, not dropping into. Seattle needs to take better advantage of the threat of him as well. Brock pointed out during the broadcast that they were sliding pressure to Jamal. If that case you should probably overload the other side and bring the heat from there. And yet Jamal rushed every time. Deception and timing are the intricacies of blitzing and a team like Seattle that doesn’t have blitzing as a core value lacks a deft hand.
Very well put. Adams has great talent – they need to figure out how to put him, and the D, in positions to succeed.
Gohawks this exactly the strategy they need to implore. It would allow them to disguise coverage better on halves of the field and give them more M2M chances. Watching KJ out there when it’s 4-wide and they empty the backfield I just shake my head every time. You either have to zone that side or KJ is 1on1 with Singletary. It’s giving the QB the answers to the test.
Monster game next week. I remember last year the 49ers had back to back games at Baltimore and New Orleans. They lost to the Ravens but bounced back to beat the Saints. Losing to an AFC team isnt that big of deal but this game looms large next week.
Nail meet Hammer! That article was right on the money. We are really at a cross roads here; do we look at the talent we have, and find a new scheme to emphasize those strengths OR do we have a fire sale in the offseason, and trade veteran assets for picks, and resemble in FA & Draft?
If the answer is the later, how could one rationalize even thinking Adams could be a fit. As you mentioned previously Rob, the only explanation was desperation…something I didn’t concede then, but have to now.
Real question one has to ask; what could we get for Adams on the Tag in the offseason?
I think you might be able to recoup a R1 and another pick
Based on what other players are going for, I think we might be lucky to get a single R1 and I would gladly take it and cut our losses.
The key is the other pick. How much of a loss is Seattle willing to take. Minnesota dropped from a 2nd and a conditional 5th to a low 3rd and a conditional 5th.
If Seahawks could get a 1st and a 2nd they should take it ASAP.
I try to look at it as we just gave up the two 1sts.
I’m guessing best case now feels like a 1st & a 5th. Seattle needs to hope he plays out of his mind for the rest of the season.
I would consider a 2021 first and a 2022 second or third.
I would take either if Carroll doesn’t plan on a scheme change next year.
I believe a 2021 1st and 2022 2nd would be best case scenario.
Especially since we might only have 3 picks next year depending what happens with our conditional 7th to Jets.
I would do it if they could get 3rd round pick in 2021 and recoup a 1st round pick in 2022. With it being 2020 and not having a 1st round pick until 2023… well, that really sucks.
Besides, that 1st round pick in ’23 could turn into a good pick. You never know, whereas if they got a 1st round pick in ’21 – there’s no probable way any team would do it unless they were drafting in the 20s-30s.
It appears that you’re spot on Rob, and others, in continuing to point out the alarming deficiencies of the Hawks defense. I for one am done hoping for a turn around this year, there’s just to much evidence otherwise now that the season is half over.
Like you, I don’t think Pete will replace KN in season. This isn’t Pete’s style, as he’s very loyal, even to a fault. But something has to be done, or this is a wasted opportunity. Many have been saying that improve the defense to even middle of the pack and this team is a SB contender. The only way this happens now though is with some serious changes and shake ups.
I just don’t understand the defensive game plan yesterday at all?? They either sit back in zone and get picked apart (first half), or blitz nearly every play and leave themselves completely susceptible to screens and quick hitters (second half). Why can’t someone figure out how to mix things up and be unpredictable??
As for Adams, he’s clearly talented but he really needs to be an LB in a 3-4 scheme. Put him at LB and bring another SS in for coverage, at least try something. Playing near the line of scrimmage is where he’s best, figure this out!!
Others have also pointed out how much this team needs Carson and an effective run game! This is always where Russ has been at his best, with a good running game, and in play action. He’s just being asked to do to much now, and we all know he has to be nearly perfect for the team to win. I sure hope they figure out how to bring Carson back on a fair deal, even if he does have a troubling injury history.
Don’t sit on your thumbs Pete and blow smoke up everyone’s ass, time to acknowledge that the defense needs serious help. Both talent and coaching changes are desperately needed!
We may go 1-3 over this next stretch before beating up on NYG, NYJ and WA. Then if we get embarrassed by LAR, just think how much fun it’s going to be to add Marshawn Lynch to defeat the decimated 49ers before Davonte Adams scores 3TDs and records 160+yards in an early exit to the Packers. It’s just part of the rebuild and we’ll have $60 million to spend beefing up the pash rush as our top offseason priority. Even if Jamal Adams holds out into the late summer before signing elsewhere, we could easily add some aging and overpriced veterans to fill out backup spots the roster.
Nailed it
I hated the Jamal Adams trade due to the short term nature of his contract and the three draft picks given up.
However – he will NOT be expensive to retain. At the rate he is going he will be lucky to get a contract for 10-12 million a year. The reason as pointed out is that he has poor coverage skills, which is a vital skill for a safety.
He values himself as a #1 in the league safety. All the 3-4 scheme teams in the league will as well.
Just cause we cant use him effectively doesn’t mean other teams aren’t salivating at the idea.
@AlaskaHawk
Do you really believe his value has fallen so far over the course of half a season?
I wonder.
I think the perception is that he’s still the same guy he was with the Jets.
If he stays healthy, he’ll likely match, or improve on, his statistics from last year.
Rob’s point is that he doesn’t fit our scheme/defense, and I think that is becoming evident. But it seems like there would be teams that would still value him highly.
We had better hope he keeps putting up sacks and making tackles for loss, because the best course of action for us is that he has a great year and we can trade him to try and recoup some high picks.
If he plays poorly the rest of this year, the Seahawks are really stuck between a rock and a hard place.
I’m afraid you are very wrong there Alaska.
He is going to cost an absolute fortune.
If he is expensive the Seahawks won’t keep him. The Seahawks have bigger needs in other areas such as defensive ends.
I’m going to politely disagree with his worth. But I never watched him on the Jets. I am only basing this on his role with the Seahawks. He can’t just be a rusher but doesn’t seem skilled enough to cover deep. His biggest skill is he is athletic and a good tackler.
Alaska — they didn’t trade two first round picks plus extras for a player who they were going to expect to get on the cheap.
The decisions is as simple as this. Jamal Adams is going to get PAID. They need to work out if it’s right for them to be the team doing the paying.
This comment in the article intrigued me…
“Either that or Carroll needs to cede complete control on the defense in the off-season and turn things over to an experienced 3-4 schemer who can build the unit around Adams.”
Normally, I’d suggest that changing an entire defensive scheme to suit one player is foolhardy. However, in this case, it may actually suit our personel better in multiple ways… and at the very least, it would likely be a quicker path to building a decent defense with the players we currently have, than trying to find a dominant edge rusher this off season.
Rob, how do you think Wagner would fit in a 3-4?
It seems like it might benefit him by covering up his declining speed. But really, if we are blowing up the defense, does it even make sense to keep him, considering his huge salary?
The Wagner situation is a huge issue going forward, I think. Made moreso by the fact that he’s a great teammate and leader.
With past great players, it’s been obvious that it was “time to go” (either because of injury or attitude). Cutting ties with Wagner over $ is a move that Pete would have a difficult time doing.
Good post. I can’t see Pete letting Bobby walk either.
I don’t see Wagner being cut or traded – – a salary re-structure feels the most likely.
Bobby has been hot and cold over the last two seasons, beign the highest paid for his position he sure isn’t playing liek the best MLB in the NFL. He is great and a future HOF but I think he is directly in the spotlight. This defense has not been elite with him as the leader. When Kam was the leader we were elite. I can see us movign on from Bobby soon as much as it will hurt, LB’s are replaceable.
I don’t think they will move on from Bobby.
I agree that his play hasn’t been particularly amazing this year but the team views him alongside Russell as ultimate core players. And as bad as the defense is, I suspect it’d be even worse if you suddenly plonked Jordyn Brooks at MLB.
It’s also worth noting that despite everything, he’s still by far the defenses highest graded player according to PFF.
Is he playing up to an $18m contract? He isn’t. Are they likely to get rid of him? They aren’t.
We may well have seen the best of Bobby but I think there are still advantages to be had with him on the roster. The team has a duty to fix what they promised to fix 8-9 months ago which is the D-line. If they do that I think Bobby can have a renaissance.
One more time….those of you counting on an easy win vs. the Giants be very wary of feeling that way imo. They are in no way a great team but they play hard and could pull a shocker. Keep in mind the Hawks will be off a very short week having played AT Philly the Monday night previous. The good news is they do have to travel clear across the country to play in Seattle.
I’m not predicting a Seattle loss, but I do not think it’ll be an easy win. Love to be wrong of course.
Isn’t Norton gone after this season any ways? Had a 3 year deal that started in 2018 if a remember right? Also I know this article just talked about how we need to get some people out of the PC boys club but i think I’d bring back Kris Richard as a DB coach. These DB’s lack basic skills and he was always good at that.
Well said Rob.
What I have kept coming back to in recent weeks is the fact that the FO asked the team to run a defense they’re not adequately staffed to.
How do you run a defense dependent on pressuring the 5 OL with 4 DL with this roster?
This defense reminds me of a car that has been so endlessly modified it can barely run at all. The engine, clutch, transmission and suspension are all custom-market brands and even an expert mechanic can’t get them all to fit and work together seamlessly without constant fiddling.
On the flip side, even once in a while all those parts work together and give you hope the car can run like you want it to – even if it is false hope. KNJ still has Reed, Wright, Wagner, Adams and Diggs to work with. A skilled top draft pick in Brooks to work with. Complementary good but not great players to work with. He just doesn’t seem to have the skill to cobble together even a half-middling defense from those pieces.
Good analogy for sure. Maybe Norton isn’t the real problem with this defense, but he’s also not the solution. When you’re historically the worst defense ever (at least in terms of yards allowed) through half a season, don’t you have to do something drastic in an attempt to shake things up??
Unfortunately Pete’s style is to stay the course and hope for improvement. It’s just hard to believe that without major changes, this unit can improve enough to salvage the season, let alone be a legit SB contender!
GB: 14-2
NO: 13-3
SEA: 12-4
TB: 10-6
ARI: 10-6
NFCE: ?
Hawks 11-5. I have zero faith they beat the Rams either game and they’ll lose to either AZ, Philly or a huge shocker to one of Jets, Giants or WFT.
I could easily see this team going 9-7
L at LA
L VS AZ
L at PHI
L vs LA
L vs SF
710 and their twitter seem hell-bent on reinforcing the positive and psh-shawing any serious concerns.
Just a reminder: PC said “I don’t recognize this game” after the Buffalo game. He said nearly the same thing after the Arizona game two weeks ago.
If your HC says he’s going to throw the tape out and just move forward 2 out of the last 3 weeks, you’d think they were a team gunning for a top 3 draft pick.
But instead we’re getting a facefull of “quit complaining, this happens sometimes to teams in the NFL.”
Along these lines, TB getting destroyed last night is probably the worst thing we could’ve had happen if we wanted to see any attempt at getting Pete to be in any way accountable for that debacle yesterday. Now the “this happens sometimes to teams in the NFL” crowd can just blow it off as an anomaly.
However, what will they use next week after Jared “I suck against any modicum of pressure” Goff goes for 450 against this absolute shithole of a pass D?
Anyone else think McVay already has football wood after watching the tape of yesterday’s “performance” by the Hawks D?
Anyone else catch the moment when the Seahawks were showing blitz, Chris Meyers said as much and then asked if they really were going to bring heat, and Brock almost laughed “they are coming” it was one of the few times he almost wasnt objective, to me it was like “pfft are you kidding me? of course they are blitzing, this team cant disguise a blitz”.
We werent sure if it was good defense last week or a terrible Jimmy G? We got our answer this week.
Monday AM PC Show
[q] “uncharacteristic?” I agree that’s a great term. Tough afternoon? “Really poor FB game. I don’t have a place in my brain for a game like that. TO the ball 4x. Teams that TO the ball 4x 2-129. Don’t have a shot. Just didn’t get started at all on D, struggled on O, they rolled it up, played from behind all the time. Get more vulnerable, RW got banged up a bunch, turns into a real crappy day. Start of 4Q, 27-20 in range where we hoped to be at halftime. Couldn’t finish.”
[q] Almost 9 sacks this game, 2 called back, positive take out or look in mirror? “Been grousing about for some time is pass rush and getting after QB. Last two weeks 10 sacks. Didn’t translate into us winning the game. Go into game rush for 30, 7 sacks, thought we’d win. Decided not to run, kept chucking it. Played to QB strengths. Kept finding guys. We made some real fundamental coverage mistakes early in the game. Didn’t read things properly. Things we clearly didn’t practice right. Know we can fix it. I’m looking at it differently than you guys are. We can do it. One really bad pressure on screen play. Worked out quite well for the most part. Make progress, coming off that game, won’t be hard to get better.”
[q] Dunbar injury? Who’s up next? “Fell prey to that try to take him out, Stephens and Stanley hadn’t played much. Had to keep with him. Wish we’d done something else to help him not carry the burden early.”
[q] Catch off guard not running? “Yeah I’ll tell you I was surprised. Continue to look for them to come back to their ways and they didn’t. They just completed so many passes. Were we not prepared? Not prepared for them to not run it, highly unlikely. Changed coverage principles, changed pressure principles, sometimes works, sometimes doesn’t.”
[q] Key for teams facing Seahawks? “I don’t know. We have to get sacks and turn the tide on them.”
[q] RW turnovers last 3 games? Pressing? “pick on 4th down, knows he’s got to take a shot, may fall under that category. I put him in the situation by going for it instead of FG. other, 3rd and 27 just hoping to draw a penalty. Pushed it, he’ll tell you he shouldn’t have thrown those. Other two sacks, protection issue, playing catch up, playing behind, have to get better. FF have to do a way better job.”
[q] Things learn how Buff applied pressure? “Sure, liked to run FB better more balanced. Things not so slanted. Easier to call when game evened up. More unlikely to take chances. Number of things we could have done better, communicated better, more clearly. We were there, 27-20 in 4th, let’s go win the FB game. We couldn’t do it.”
[q] Injuries to RBs factor? “Yeah it’s a factor, fun to play with Carson. Love having those guys. Not having Griffin been a fantastic Pro Bowl player. Tre played one of his best games. Sign he’s coming around. Confidence and technique. We need him. Just struggled on other side of field. Injuries have to make choices guys haven’t played much. Expecting them to play well is taxing. In midst of it.”
[q] Dunlap? “Good solid FB. Power rush on sack, just hoping what you’d get. A REAL sack! Couple TFL’s couple pressures. First time out, nice outing.”
[q] Reed 2.5 sacks, Adams sack, building block? “Yeah, it will be. Commitment to utilizing talent guys have a knack for pass rush. Jamal showed up there.”
[q] What do you say to your D after a game like this? “Clean up our stuff. Mistakes early. One TD big one. Made it easy for them. Gave them opps. Cleanings up. Get as fired up as you want, but you have to do things right. Things we did in practice fine, didn’t do fine in game. Halfway point, 8 games in. First place in division. So much room to get better. Keep saying it, because it’s true. Room to grow, improve. Guys will tell you ‘I’ll get it right, I’ll get better.’ And they will. We are first in division, let’s do something about it.”
[q] In game adjustments do better? “Just what we do, see what’s going on, take in good info, learn from players as games go on, make right choices. Have in back pocket things to go to. Adjust to man and make things shift. How do we do it? Hundreds of years of coaching experience.”
[q] Mentality of team moving past loss? “No not that fast. Get together 1pm today. Marker of where we begin the turnaround to get ready for next week. Have a way we deal with stuff. Call on the way we work, the philosophy just like SF bounced back after Arizona loss. Put all things in motion. 2 games in 11 days so have to get cranking. Every day has to be profitable positive.”
[q] Halfway through like? “Resolve and belief of this team. 2nd half confidence we’d win. Makeup, collective positive belief. Leadership, have a second half good season. Sometimes you have to keep waiting for it come, we can do that.”
[q] Brown went out, Iupati hurt? “Mike back this week I think, see how that goes. Couple miscues. Big strong guys that can play well. Simmons good job first year really get work. Always a couple plays do better.”
[q] CB and RB health? “Don’t know yet. Not updated on anybody making obvious turn yet. RBs as well as CB.
[q] Contract extension? How much longer do you want to coach? I think you’re awesome and really cool? “Appreciate it. Not sure how it got out. Doing business we do. So grateful. Love living and working here. Figure out something else to do??? Love coaching and this setting here. I don’t see any reason why not. 5 year plan gives me comfort and direction. Love working with Johnny and Allen family all these years. Blessing rep this place that loves team. 12s awesome.”
[q] Seattle coaching changed the way you view NFL sustained run? “I came in, not new to NFL. Familiar, but concerned about fun at USC, wanted to see if we could do it in the NFL. Not sure if it would work, 3 year experiment, see how it works. Sustained success, in running for championship great experience. Former players live in area, love it, like experience, feel part of that. Cliff Avril reunion, shows guys love this experience and place.”
“Didn’t have to announce extension when we give up 44 points.”
[q] How RW feel? “Feels OK. He’s a stud. Checked w him last night, he’s fine. Battling to get us back in this thing, didn’t quite come up with it yesterday.”
[q] Gush about DK Metcalf? “Exciting, whole mentality demonstrated goes beyond what WRs project. Physical and tough. Delivers blows. Great slant route TD. Continues to find ways to express talent, character competitive. Really humble. Easy to cheer for him.”
[q] Bounce back for Rams? “Halfway point leading this thing. Like to be unbeaten but we’re in control of this thing. Long difficult challenging 2nd half. Who better than us? Get it going today.”
[q] You’re awesome….found a calling…you really inspire us and thank you so much for talking to us after such an awful loss, that’s not easy you poor thing.
The only member of the media I trust to answer questions somewhat properly is Joe Fann. They act like they will be fired if they ask anything potentially negative. We could’ve asked why they blitzed so much, why they kept Dunbar in when he was clearly hurt, and so many other valuable questions. Instead, they compliment him and ask gimme questions to get gimme answers
This is ridiculous.
“I’m looking at it differently than you guys are. We can do it.”
From the song by Aerosmith:
Same old story, same old song and dance….my friend
I asked my high school football coach tougher questions after our loss to Kentridge than this.
“ [q] You’re awesome….found a calling…you really inspire us and thank you so much for talking to us after such an awful loss, that’s not easy you poor thing.”
Uh, I say old bean, what. Is. This?!?
That is virtually exactly what was said by Danny O’Neil.
Thank you for doing these Cha. It’s great.
I usually read all the ones you post. After this loss, I don’t think I can stand any more platitudes from Carroll or soft ball questions from the local media. Feeling finished with that, for now.
“They played to their QB’s strengths”. No Pete, they played to YOUR weakness…
Bingo
I long ago quit listening to the same old tired rinse-and-repeat drivel that comes from Always Com-Pete. I think because it makes me feel embarrassed for him.
I’m not sure you can blame Pete for not having a great answer to a question that goes on for 30 seconds and ends with…
“I think it’s really cool and inspiring that you’ve found your calling”
Forgot the NFC. Other than KC in the AFC, there’s zero elite teams. Since we’re doing this SOS thing, they have 2 double digit wins. Winning close ain’t good.
Pittsburgh keeps winning. The cowboys game might cause people to hesitate on them but they still won and were always going to. Never a doubt in my mind they’d come back and get it done. KC barely beat a ho-hum Carolina team. They’re the best in the league right now, but perhaps a notch away from elite.
The Seahawks will never win another Super Bowl with Pete Carroll as its coach. The media is so pathetic. Rob can we get you a media pass so we can here some real questions.
“The Seahawks will never win another Super Bowl with Pete Carroll as its coach”
I go back and forth on this. Sometimes I think it’s true, other times I think they could. Considering the team is in the prime of a HOF QB’s career, that’s actually sad to even consider as true.
Rob did an interview with the Sheffield Wednesday FC Owner (Second tier football club with a good history)
No holding punches, would be a good lesson for Settle media in how to interview.
Don’t know if it can be accessed in States, perhaps Rob would be willing to put up a link?
“The Seahawks will never win another Super Bowl with Pete Carroll as its coach.”
– the smoking hot lock of the week!
I won’t say that when they have Russell Wilson at QB. But if they had someone like Teddy Bridgewater or Daniel Jones – I’d definitely agree.
Thinking Jamal Adams can be “taught” to be better in pass coverage is sorta like thinking you could teach Jimmie Graham to be a better blocker. Hmmmm
There are a lot of similarities in running an effective football team and in orchestrating organizations of people in other endeavors. Let’s go with that orchestra thing. You could hire the finest, most skilled musicians available but if the conductor can’t do his part of the operation properly you’ll get a disharmonious outcome. That’s where we are right now with the Seahawks. The players we have didn’t ascend to the NFL level without skills………..and compared to the thousands of other football players who never made it, they are highly skilled. But they also operate in a world of relativity, not all position players have equal skill levels no matter how high the floor. What that means is, we have players that can play the game, but do our coaches know how to properly manage what they have? The consensus is finally coming around to understand that the current group of coaches (some, but probably not all) aren’t getting the job done of maximizing success for those in their charge. The conductor of this orchestra, of his own making, is Pete, and he’s backed himself in a corner with little room to maneuver. As many have noted here it’s not in his nature to see things from the dark side, he’s got that sunshine pump plugged into his navel and has it turning all the way up to supercharged. But he’s also shown he knows how to win, and probably likes that better than the alternative. The challenge may be that he can do the winning things necessary when he has time to think it through and search for the elements of success needed; e.g the off season. Unfortunately, he’s now in that tight, mid season corner referenced above. I don’t know if he has it in his nature take the bold and risky steps needed to right the ship. Right now it doesn’t look like it. And, any good replacement coaches are very likely employed until next off season. Quinn is the one that many might clamor for, and he is available. But as Rob mentioned, he probably wouldn’t be interested. I agree, he’s getting a paycheck, and he’s probably going through that period of self evaluation coming to grips with being labeled a failure and how to cope and plan for rebirth in the game. Brought in as a consultant might be a gentle way of giving him control without the title that would give him an out if he couldn’t turn this around. Of course, some doubt he could even do it because he was supposedly gifted a group of stars when he was DC here. Perhaps, but he may have had a hand in managing that group effectively that isn’t appreciated. Either way, it’s a low probability option, both from his desires, and Pete’s version of reality. Some are looking at Richard. I commented above, but will repeat in part, he was recently interviewed and claims he turned several position coaching offers because he’s aiming higher. Given how he left here that’s not likely to happen for similar reasons to Quinn. He’s working on his self image as well. And that’s where Pete is at this point in time. If he were even able/willing to see the need, he’s only got wounded ducks available. Having built my own organizations that eventually became successful, I can appreciate the pickle he’s put himself in. There may be some good talent down stream in the current crop of position coaches, and that may be his best option for the rest of this season. Probably the worst thing he could do is try to “demote” himself to fill the DC roll and abandon/diminish the rest of his necessary head man duties. It’s a classic mistake some higher level managers make, and it almost never works. You made your bed Pete…………………………………..
“Thinking Jamal Adams can be “taught” to be better in pass coverage is sorta like thinking you could teach Jimmie Graham to be a better blocker.”
BINGO!
We have a BINGO!
Yep
Very well said Rob. The Jamal adams trade is starting to look like a fiasco. If he is going to rush every play then we should really consider moving him to off-ball linebacker or something like that.
Personally, I think we need to keep him since we gave up so much for him and doubt we’d even get a 1st in return. After this year, the starting unit at LB may be Jamal, Bobby & Jordyn. Move Ryan Neal back into safety with QDiggs.
Disagree about Adams. I’m starting to wonder what people are seeing. Or maybe not seeing.
Pete needs to get over this notion that rushing more than 4 is a solution. It’s not. Busted coverages, after busted coverages. That & the O-line starting to unravel a bit are on him.
It’s interesting. Personally, I am not even sure what is the solution for the defense. It appears that rushing only 4 leads to QBs picking us apart and that sending the house leads to huge gambles/big-plays occurring.
I think the defense does not work anymore, also evidenced by Dan Quinn’s ATL defense also breaking NFL record this season. Maybe the only way Pete’s defense works is a Khalil Mack / Aaron Donald type of DL. In that case, I have no idea why we didn’t invest and sign anyone huge on the DLine this year…
Also, I don’t think Jamal should be a LB but the way we are using him makes it a plausible move. Film breakdowns on him before indicated that he was somewhat good / better than average in coverage- especially for covering TEs. Agree 100% with Rob’s assessment that the Hawks don’t know what to do with him on defense
Probably isn’t a solution right now. Of course they need more in the pass rush department. The coverage isn’t good enough. They don’t have the corners, especially on the outside.
The solution is to install a new defense.
The fundamental problem is that Pete’s defense assumes he has all-time great talent. When you have Sherm, Kam, and Earl in the secondary and a bunch of studs on the DL (not to mention Bobby and KJ at LB) you can play a very simple scheme and just challenge the other team to beat you. Your guys are better, so they probably won’t.
Our guys aren’t better any more, but that’s still how we play. And the result is a historically bad defense.
There are other teams with less defensive talent who are getting better results because they’re building a defense around their talent. They use deception and misdirection to confuse the QB. Two examples:
* Teams have had success against Josh Allen by rotating into different coverages post-snap. This forces Allen to re-process the defense and because he’s a young QB he struggles with that. The Seahawks did not do this at all.
* Arizona and now Buffalo have had success rushing by lining a bunch of dudes up on the LOS and making the offense guess who’s going to rush. These aren’t blitzes (I think Arizona had a sack only rushing three); the whole point is that you put seven dudes on the LOS and drop three or four into coverage. Could you imagine Pete ever trying shenanigans like this? Of course not.
That’s why I paraphrased that last point by Danny.
He actually had to guts to thank PC for taking an interview after such an awful game. Right after it broke he signed a huge new extension?
This is some Marie Antoinette “let them eat cake” level baloney going on here.
Welcome to the media in America 2020. Fake BS in every media outlet. Sickening.
Does Jody Allen ever address the media regarding the Seahawks? I don’t have a read on how involved she is or how ownership (I know there are more than Jody) are holding the FO accountable.
I can’t imagine Bezos tolerating this and he probably doesn’t care about football.
I like the idea of building the D around Adams. I like what little we’ve seen from Blair and Brooks this year. All in a sort of hybrid mold.
She stays out of it and lets the football people handle things. Normally that’s a good policy. But it does seem as though some of our people are having a hard time seeing the forest through the trees. I’m still stuck back in 2018 during the mini rebuild, and the first pack is it running back. My understanding has always been that running back was one of the final pieces. Not a foundational one.
Pete’s press conference as are as useful as eating soup with a fork. The Rams are going to put 50 on us aren’t they.
I want to believe that Seahawks d is somewhat built for our division opponents. That’s pretty wishful thinking huh? I hope there is some validity to that.
Naw won’t be 50, only 45.
I predict it’ll be like 49 – 45 (Hawks win). The media / fanbase will be focused on the win and the concerns for the defense will linger on until the next inevitable loss due to the defense lol
If PC will agree/adapt to get a new DC who isn’t part of the cover 3 system, they should look at the following teams: BAL, MIN, NO, PIT, DEN, CHI, ARI, and LAR. These teams have been the most consistent in terms of defense in the past 5 years. Probably the biggest name who can be available is Mike Zimmer if MIN decides to go in another direction, but the rest is going to be positions coaches.
First article I see on Field Gulls. “The Seahawks fixed their pass rush”
I’m so grateful for this site, Field Gulls has really made a turn for the worse
Embarrassing click bait.
If they wanted to keep that headline they should have said something like, “The Seahawks fixed their pass rush at the expense of their pass defense” lol
It reminded me of when I had a fledgling business and was so grateful for my revenue sources. I was terrified of pissing them off or else lose my skin. Once I diversified I had no problem telling them how it is, less risk. The irony is I earned more respect that way and still kept those customers and had better relationships.
I would bet Carroll would prefer to be asked real questions.
100% Carroll would prefer tougher questions.
It’s a terrible error many journalists make. Most coaches, CEO’s, owners etc prefer you to be straight with them. They will predominantly have more respect for people who ask direct, challenging questions instead of tiptoeing around issues and just offering gushing praise.
Believe it or not when your team plays like an absolute shitshow — sometimes having the opportunity to have a bit of a spar in an interview is exactly what a coach wants.
Agreed, these interviews are worthless, but there’s also no reason to think things will change, especially when the team is 6-2 and in first place in the division. These reporters will overlook the team’s flaws (potentially fatal) and continue to toss Pete softball questions. Maybe some tough, probing questions get asked if the team drops 2-3 games in a row, but perhaps not.
I agree with you that good, tough questions should be asked, although I suspect Pete will deflect any that challenge to much. Perhaps Pete’s optimistic nature has blinded him to the reality of the situation? His defense is dysfunctional, the pieces just don’t fit together smoothly enough to form a complete, cohesive group.
I also fear that Pete will be very apprehensive to make any substantive changes, until its to late. Granted there’s not very many options mid season, but I think you have to be bold while you still have a chance for success! A scapegoat might be needed right now, and Ken Norton needs to go, if only to send the message that the current performance just isn’t going to cut it, and changes are being made. Also, figure out how to change up the scheme so you aren’t so predictable. Give someone else a chance to play if Dunbar can’t show better than he did yesterday!
Don’t really think much will change though!!
It’s not just about tough questions.
It’s about the gushing, sycophantic, fawning praise that is offered. What the hell is that all about?
Fawning is unbecoming and it’s fake. I feel sure that you are right that Pete would prefer objective journalists over toadies. You don’t have to be harshly critical, but do your job!
I have an honest question. And this may seem basic to some of you but I was hoping you could help me out with this. Rob you touched on it on your current piece. Wonderful work by the way.
Pete Carroll‘s defense as I’ve heard it described is intentionally basic so the players can play fast and instinctively and make plays. It requires the four down lineman to stop the Run but apply pressure to the passer when necessary. This intern, forces the office to make mistakes and fall into the hands of playmakers in the backfield. What I keep hearing is that they don’t currently have the talent to run this defense properly. The LOB era did apparently. But that defense had Hall of Famer’s and pro bowlers at every level.
I can’t help but think that when I played Madden and put a team out there with players all 90 and above- my team seems tended to do pretty well even though I don’t really know what I’m doing to make it work well. It’s just that talented.
Is this similar to what we had here? Maybe the defensive scheme wasn’t even that good? Maybe it was just that talented? To the point that it outplayed the coaching? So maybe it would’ve been that effective in just about any scheme?
I guess the heart of my question is, how can it even be considered a defensive “scheme” if you need elite players at every level to make it work?
That’s just it. They don’t have the pieces to run that underneath zone. You have a safety in Jamal who is tailor made for it. LBs that are too. There’s nothing on the outside & not enough to get consistent pressure w/ 4 down lineman. They have the means & personnel to run a 3-4. They should but they won’t. And I’m not even sure implementing that mid season would be overly beneficial.
Jamal watching Polamalu tape. Atta boy.
Jamal also tweeted ‘we all we got we all we need’.
When it came from a bellowing fifth round 330lbs defensive tackle playing with a rag tag cast of characters, scratching and clawing to be relevant, kicking the crap out of anyone who dared to take the field and launching the LOB era brilliance — I loved that phrase.
When a player who cost two first round picks, a third round pick and a player — who happens to be a former top-10 pick, highly recruited, multi-millionaire — says it having been injured most of the year playing on a historically bad defense — I just feel like saying F-off.
Jamal or Pete can say they got this all they want, but it doesn’t mean $hit unless they show it!!
100% with you on those feelings Rob.
Spare us Adams. Learn to cover someone closer than 5 yds away and then we’ll talk.
There is an attitude problem here.. he thinks he achieved something big and a league apart from players on the roster. Be a student of the game and stop tweeting unnecessary!
I get the same vibe. Only thing he’s achieved here is helping Josh Allen break Buffalo Bills passing records.
That phrase belongs to Sherm and the LOB, no one else. Next group up needs to earn it and this ain’t that group, not today. We have a lot of potential on this team and I haven’t given up on them, but they need to get their collective act together, along with a real leader on the coaching staff, that will get them to where they need to be.
Red Bryant started it in 2010. It predates the LOB.
Thanks Rob, didn’t realize that. I felt it when I heard Sherm say it because the had it down to a T.
F-off indeed Amen Rob!!
Spot on Rob. We’ve talked about this at nauseam. These guys must be afraid they won’t be invited to future press meetings and continue to ask fluff questions. Completely ignoring key things that should be asked.
I went back and watched part of the game again. I honestly think we have enough players on both side of the ball to be more competitive on the defensive side and less mistake prone on the offense. This was the second game I saw teams showing Russell 7 men fronts looking like they were going to bring pressure and then dropped 3 back to flood the zone underneath to confuse him into making mistakes. Why aren’t we scheming against that? On defense, after adding Dunlap and Snacks we have enough play makers to be better than this (Dunlap had a good day). I put that completely on the scheme and being out of position (and some due to injuries). Q-Diggs was a great addition last year. But this year he looks ineffective. Is it because he paired better with McD than Jamal? Should we try someone else with Jamal like O’Neal? Yeah, we went blitz crazy and got home for 7 sacks. But 7 sacks for 27 yards loss tells me they weren’t high impact sacks. Also our D is not hiding these blitzes very well and we leave the DBs vulnerable. I don’t think KN has the answers but I also agree with Rob that Pete will not make a change during the season,
Problem is that Snacks does not affect the passing game. At all. He is a pure run stuffer. And Buffalo just showed that you can make your offense intentionally one dimensional and have an absolute field day.
He could indirectly. If he occupies blockers or even require double teams it would open up others around him to get in the back field. He would also keep Wags clean and keep the rest of the interior guys fresh. Seahawks do best when they rotate their DL to keep them fresh. Reed already has had 3 games with 80% of the snaps and the ideal is 50-60% of the snaps.
After that loss yesterday, pissed me off, I just wanna say this. And I apologize if someone else has said it or Rob has touched on it. IMO we’ve seen the best of every team except for Seattle. The 9ers game was close. 3 quarters close. If they can right the ship to just average defensively & start running the ball to help that defense, they could start peaking exactly where you want to peak at.
I’m hopeful. Carson being hurt is a big blow to this team. I’ve been saying for a bit now that I think the hottest team at the end of the year is going to win it all this year. Our schedule gives us a chance to close out the season hot. And though you want the bye for health reasons, there is no homefield advantage.
I know this argument doesn’t carry much weight b/c 44 pts is 44 pts – but I do think after that miserable 1st half, the defense played pretty effectively in the 2nd. Yes we gave up a big chunk on that screen against the blitz, but more often than not, we got pressure on Allen, and played pretty well.
Dunlap is going to be a big help. And I think not having Griffen and 50% of Dunbar was a bigger issue than we are allowing here.
totally agree on Carson too. he’s a core guy for us to get where we all want to be. that early drive down 14-0, where we had to hand off to Homer on 3rd and 1 (and then go for it on 4th and 1) – I kept thinking that Carson gets a yard there.
Not going to happen this year, but ideally we get a new DC and change to a 3-4 defense. Diggs and Blair at FS/SS, and adams as the hybrid 4lb role (where he excelled at in LSU and NY). This allows adams to play forward and still gives the corners safety help over the top.
Not sure how this would effect the DL?
It would affect in a way that we would need to start only 3 of them instead of 4, so that’s a good start I guess:)
I don’t see why Adams just can’t be labeled a LB and play that role. Hes more forceful at the point of impact than a cody barton is anyways. As a “lb” he’s a plus coverage guy. And he blitzes well too. You can still have the Blair/diggs/ugo/griffin/Dunbar? Back there as well.
with 7 sacks by the defense yesterday, it shows the importance of qb pressures as well. If you ask anyone before a game, team A gets 7 sacks on team B, who wins it would be lopsided for a team A win.
For whatever its worth, our secondary is trash
Fantastic article, Rob.
Totally agree about Jamal and Percy. The only difference is that Jamal is clearly a great teammate and really cares about football. However, as much as I love the intangible qualities he has – it’s not impacting the defense as a whole. Jamal was one of my favorite players before the trade and will continue to be so after, but it’s quite clear that this is just a poor scheme fit and we need seriously explore recouping a 1st rounder for him this offseason.
The defense is an utter disaster and the scary part is that I don’t think it’s due to some massive talent deficiency. From a talent perspective – I’d say the defense is probably in the 18-22 range. A lot of holes but still some really good talent. Yet, we are performing at historically bad levels which means this almost exclusively comes down to coaching/scheme.
They need to blow it up. They are going to waste 2 incredible years of QB play and this year in particular – we are seeing it start to affect Russell. He has to carry too much. The margin of error is miniscule.
Speaking of “margin of error,” that has been my single biggest issue with PC/JS over the last few years. I’m firmly of the mindset that the singular goal of building a team is creating the largest margin of error you possibly can in order to win games. They have created a margin of error that is the width of a splinter. Everything needs to go right. That’s a recipe for disaster.
Agreed
Matt, that limited margin for error is a great observation. I’ve made the same point in my circle of fans for the last few years too. A team can look great when eveything is working as it should, but a championship team needs to have different ways to win and the capacity to win when things don’t go perfectly, even against good teams. Seahawks just have not had that for years – hence the division runner-up and first/second round playoff exits.
Takk mckinley got waived
I feel I’m going to spend the whole season chasing that first high that was Adams against the Falcons. One of the best defensive performances I’ve ever seen, been pedestrian since, I hope he’s really pissed off at what people are saying and he Pete and Ken can figure out how to maximize him.
You’re point about the talent is so true, we all knew they were lacking in many areas, but it shouldn’t be this bad.
“The defense is an utter disaster and the scary part is that I don’t think it’s due to some massive talent deficiency. From a talent perspective – I’d say the defense is probably in the 18-22 range. A lot of holes but still some really good talent. Yet, we are performing at historically bad levels which means this almost exclusively comes down to coaching/scheme.”
Well put.
Takk Mckinley has just been waived by the Falcons.
How pathetic are the Falcons? They could have gotten a draft pick for him a week ago.
That being said, he’ll be claimed before the Seahawks can get/claim him.
Agreed
+1
Sorry, meant to make a new comment and not to respond
https://twitter.com/TomPelissero/status/1325909932013723648?s=19
This is hilarious to me.
For people hoping he lands in Seattle — he’d have to get to them on waivers presumably.
I feel like I only half understand how this works. so if a guy is waived, then teams can claim him, and the order of preference is based on record (worst record gets first dibs), right?
But he’s not obliged to close a deal w say the Jets, if they claim him, is he? And if he doesn’t, then he can still clear waivers, even if multiple teams claim him?
I understand that once he clears waivers, he can go anywhere, but not sure re the above part.
If a team claims him, then they keep him on the same deal he was on with his previous team.
anyone can claim, there is no preference. If someone claims, they inherit the contract. if he clears waivers a team can offer a new contract.
Not correct. There is absolutely a priority system. Otherwise, what happens when 6 teams claim the same guy?
After week 3 the waivers get reset based on record, if memory serves. I know that WFT and NYG have claimed guys, putting them at the back of the list, but we’re still likely late 20’s for waiver priority.
I think am mistaken, Takk did not finish 4 years and subject to waivers
let’s be proactive and grab him. Dunlap popped yesterday; and helped Jarran get those 2.5 sacks. Let’s add another pass rusher.
No chance he makes it to us.
We have to wait our turn. As others have said, it will be unlikely he’ll make it to us.
Didn’t they apparently just turn down a 5th round pick for him? That is super duper smart.
Lol. Talk about a fail. They should have traded this guy.
He won’t clear waivers, no way! The Falcons are a mess of a organization right now. Could have at least traded him for something. Here’s to hoping he falls to us but I’m not counting on it.
Extremely funny. They wont take a 5th or 6th round pick. But they’ll just waive him. Brilliant
Remember Earl, Sherm… Hawks is no better when it comes to Business.
This is a fair assessment, though we did get a 3rd round comp for Earl.
How bad did the Seahawks get screwed with Earl Thomas?
The Seahawks traded a 2nd round pick AND the Earl Thomas comp. pick to move up to draft D. Taylor.
So even though we got a 3rd round pick for Thomas… it turned out to be worthless and no good.
This is one of the dumbest ideas I have ever proposed… but this pass defense sucks so bad and Diggs has sucked so bad that I can’t help but wonder if Earl Thomas could do anything back there. He’s still a good/great CF based on his rating last year… but, yeah, I know the bridges have been burned. It’s just that when you suck so bad at something (teams passing on you) that you’ll start coming up with unrealistic ideas because the reality is so sad.
Too soon. They’ve got to wait until about Week 16 or so. Then we can have a feel good hearts and flowers reunion and that way the press won’t ask any tough questions when they get blown off the field. It’ll all be about PC’s culture and an Earl homecoming.
I imagine Earl is holed up somewhere crossing swords with his brother while only wearing a kevlar vest in case his wife shows up.
His coverage skills these days are pretty much limited to covering his own ass after his wife has been perusing his snapchat account.
“crossing swords with his brother”
🙂
Spit take!
inappropriate icb12, but hilarious.
Yes! Inappropriately funny! Hahaha
Why don’t we play in dime package as long as they abandon the run? Would allow us to disguise who the extra rusher might be (Adams, Neal, or even DJ Reed) and not be down a man in coverage. Isn’t that the logical counter-move if a team abandons the run completely? Do we even try to counter what the opponent is doing these days or do we just stick with what we’re doing and “hope for the best”…
Agree. Wrote the same thing above. Jamal is good at rushing the passer but may be just as valuable as a decoy. He shouldn’t cover any zone that he can’t come up and make a play. Back pedalling and trailing not his strong suit.
You know it’s all about that base, bout that base, no nickel.
We’re bringing Bobby baaaackkk!!! Go ‘head and tell them skinny DB’s that.
Underrated comment. Props to you!
Pete is a bad business man exact opposite of Belchick. His positive thinking prevents him cutting loose sooner.
Falcons interim GM (whoever that is) is never going to get a real GM job in the NFL after how moronically he handled Takk McKinley.
Team A: Hey, we’ll give you a draft pick for Takk. It can help in your future rebuilding effort.
Falcons: No way, we’re going to bench him and then release him!
It’s probably Rich McKay making the decisions and he’s probably less concerned with a minor piece like McKinley.
Still hilarious.
If he clears, I’m not sure Takk improves this team. Or Vic Beasley. After the Buffalo game the defense appears so fundamentally broken that throwing random first round busts at it doesn’t seem like the solution.
Correct. This goes beyond the need to just keep adding rushers now. The unit is shattered and broken. It doesn’t function properly. Nobody is playing consistently well, issues are cropping up week after week. Takk McKinley isn’t changing that.
Agree with both of you guys.
“this unit is shattered and broken” is the sadly perfect description.
What happened to the narrative that Pete Carroll is a DB whisperer?
Shaquill Griffin has regressed from last year. Flowers had a tall order switching from college safety to pro corner and he’s struggled mightily. They bring Dunbar in and he’s having his worst season of his career. Not to mention the other flops at corner and safety in recent years. Tedric Thompson, Lano Hill and Marquis Blair come to mind.
Go back a little farther and you’ll remember Tharold Simon, Cary Williams Dion Bailey and Steven Terrell. Justin Coleman was a bright spot and they let him walk. I suppose Amadi preforms admirably for a fifth round pick? But I don’t think anyone here is content with him as a starting nickel. DJ Reed was rubbish against Buffalo.
Basically it was never true? Pete drafted some all-time great DB talent in the first few years of his tenure, but that’s arguably owing to him having a lot of inside information as a former college coach. Since then it’s mostly been a mess.
Tellingly: we traded for three out of four starting defensive backs. The only one we drafted was Shaquill.
We don’t need to undermine the greatness of the way they built the LOB to assess what hasn’t worked over the last few years.
They built an all-world secondary/defense between 2010-13 and now they are struggling to build anything on defense.
Both are true.
How I feel after week 9:Looks like the pass rush is fixed magically, hahaha. The cornerback situation was so unfortunate against the bills. Dunbar and flowers got their asses handed to them. The offense turned the ball over 4 times. They couldn’t run the ball because they spotted the bills 21 points right away. They got beat by a team that was ready for them. Not having Carson and Hyde was a big deal this week. It wasn’t last week. They are in week nine and have only lost 2 games. Haven’t lost to any crappy teams like they usually do. They have a good team and there is room for improvement. Excited to see Dunlap show out. Excited for the team to get healthy. Excited about a really good Seahawks team! Brady got his ass handed to him last night and didn’t even score a touchdown. The Rams didn’t play and the cards got beat by a team the hawks beat. Number one in the division after the halfway Mark with room to improve! Go Hawks!
Obviously we can’t post PFFFFFFT grades any more.
So let’s just say… Jamal Adams’ grade against Buffalo….
Was shite. Really, really shite.
And for the season his grade is sandwiched between Alton Robinson and Ugo Amadi.
Two 1sts, a 3rd and a decent player for THAT. It simply boggles my mind.
But hey “we all we got, we all we need” right Jamal?
My eyes said it would be dreadful….. don’t need to post anything.
I’ve only watched the games live and often with a healthy share of distractions, but his coverage grades have to be awful. He got left in the dust a few times ‘guarding’ Diggs that led to big gains.
There was also a play that they showed the endzone view (from the angle of the Hawks Defense) and Allen was rolling right. Adams was about 15 yards deep playing what looked to be zone. All of a sudden he bolted back towards the middle of the field and the throw went to where he just vacated. That play blew my mind. No way that Allen is going to turn and chuck it back across his body into the middle of the field, late, while rolling right.
I love a lot about Adams, but man… his coverage skills leave a lot to be desired.
I got hung up on a work call. I’ll post the interview when it’s posted a bit later.
But I just signed on and I’m listening to more COVID questions.
First question to Pete was, literally, ‘did the election impact the players before this game’.
FFS.
FF…..S.
OK community, you tell me – do you want to read the transcript today?
It might be useful as a laxative if you’re feeling a little backed up.
Oh why not? I mea
Oh why not? I mean we watched the team shit all over itself yesterday so what’s another day of excessive deification gonna hurt?
I don’t need it, I’ll watch it later and puke when its over
It’s a better press conference than usual to be fair.
ESPN today: Pete Carroll has to fix Seahawks’ leaky defense before it sabotages season
It’s good to see the media catching up, a few months late but never mind.
Not to steal the thunder of cha’s excellent press conference transcripts, but Gregg Bell asked a question of the CBs playing with sizeable cushion, and whether or not that is by design or due to lack of execution. Pete responded that they want to figure out how to put their players in ideal position, but that the play depth not always what they would like. Some of the questions are at least a step in the right direction this time around.
That was a much better press conference today.
Some good questions on the scheme, Jamal Adams’ fit, what’s not working, if they even know what the defense is.
There were others that needed asking that weren’t but that was a breath of fresh air compared to the farcical radio show this morning.
Someone should’ve have plucked up the courage to ask about Ken Norton Jr. It’s a relevant question. ‘A lot of fans want to know have you considered a change? Will you consider a change?’
That’s not unfair.
Is it possible that PC is already a figurehead for the Defense? Yes it is still PC’s framework but is he letting KN try figure out the game planning and intricacies out on his own? I thought this was KN’s last contracted year anyways so maybe PC said it is sink or swim time. Some of the answers PC gives seem do disassociated with what’s happening but its hard to tell from his usual aloofness.
I’d rather be in ‘shit we can’t waste another prime year of RW’ time than sink or swim.
As usual Rob you have a firm grasp of the current and future concerns of our Hawks. Sadly I just think between John and Pete they have already shown us thier modus operandi and given there seems to be no accountability then I’m coming to the conclusion that there won’t be any meaningful change to right things until both John and Pete are let go. Buuuut Pete just got extended and John is tied to his hip.
I get he’s good with creating culture and has a philosophy and knows how to employ it but as time goes by it just seems to be outdated and misguided in today’s nfl. Reaching (and trading back) in the draft for players for myriad of off center reasons instead of going with proven production, desperation moves, overpaying player$ and or in draft capitol for trades etc etc all with his old and simple premises of run first offense and very basic defensive measures. Yes they inherited some guys and had a few good early drafts before the rest of the league caught on and with the LOB and especially Wilson (even then!) carrying this team, they had some great successes. But for me Pete and his schemes(and John’s drafting and moves) would have never made it this long without Wilson and there has been nothing but a slow but steady regression in talent and more and more questionable moves being made/drafted.
So we are left to question and hope they will do something anything to shake things up yet all the same poor choices and non-accountability continue on. Jamal Adams is quickly turning into a huge mess – much like you said Harvin or even Jimmy G but made worse due to the kings ransom we gave up and the monster contract we’ll be paying him – all borne of desperation no less.
And now we have let Russ cook just to be competitive in any way and like you’ve pointed out Rob the mismanagement of this team (see historically bad defense) and even miscasting of Adams puts way more pressure on Russ. With how much he got hit last week I fear instead of let Russ cook it will be ‘got Russ cooked’ as he sits injured.
I think the best we can hope for is would you said Rob – Pete needs to come to a reckoning in the off-season and bring in some new thinking coaches and let them do their thing and we need to do a thourogh cleaning out of the defense because how much worse could it be to bring in some other guys?
Takk waived…
https://twitter.com/AtlantaFalcons/status/1325909812325068806
Sorry…should have read back further before posting.
Do me a favor and stop comparing Jamal to Percy. Percy had issues, Jamal does not. He wants to win and is a team first person from what I’ve seen. Much different from Percy. Jamal is playing the position that our coaching staff has asked him to do. He doesn’t have excuses and goes out and does what he is asked, whether he is able to or not. Don’t blame Jamal for being a good team player, unlike Percy. Let’s hope our coaching staff can figure out how best to use him.
No, I won’t stop making that comparison.
I didn’t say anything about personality or character. You’re completely taking the comparison out of context.
it’s also REALLY early — he’s played in 3 games basically. PFF rated him the #32 player in all of football last year, and he’s 25. I think the article makes some fair points about his early fit on the team, but I don’t think he suddenly forgot how to play the game.
Most of the coverages where I’ve seen him beat were when he was on WR’s not TE/RB;s, and I don’t remember that being Kam’s forte either. It’s too soon, in my view, to declare the trade a ‘mess’ or a ‘fiasco’, etc. – I think we’ve seen tools that can also reasonably tell us he’s going to be an impact player.
Who’s called it a mess or a fiasco?
commenters on here. above wasn’t directed at you – but at the reactions to the article.
2 firsts a 3rd and a decent player. An argument for “fiasco” at this point can be made. Half a season to turn it around obviously.
I did say it was becoming a mess. If you pay 2 firsts and a third round pick along with a solid vet for a guy – then our defense is as bad or worse when he’s on the field than when he’s not that’s pretty brutal(and we are talking about a historically! bad defense). In my book if you pay that much for any player he better have an immediate significant effect on your defense (not to mention there should be a very solid and specific plan to use said player). Add in we are going to have to pay him more than anyone ever at his position soon? Looking messy in my book.
If the Hawks could trade Adams for a 1st and Bobby for a 2nd this off season would you make those trades with the approximately $33-35 mil in additional cap space?
I doubt we could get a 2nd for Bobby but yes, I think you absolutely have to make those moves if that was an option. Jordyn Brooks takes over at MLB…massive downgrade but this defense needs a massive shake up.
And I’m not blaming Bobby, but if somebody wants to give that type of compensation for a 30 year old MLB – you have to take it.
No, I wouldn’t. Im not convinced that getting rid of these guys will make the defense better. Look at Hawks history with free agents and recent history with the draft. No way in heck would getting rid of Bobby and Adams make the defense better. Also no way would plugging in rookies in there and overpaid free agents would maximize Russ’s prime.
Im confident the problem lies in the coaching/scheme. Hawks have talent on their defense especially much more than other teams ranked better. Ken Norton Jr is the biggest problem imo. Its like when Pete wouldn’t fire Bevell but even worse for Ken Norton
DLEW!! What a stud
https://www.pff.com/news/nfl-week-9-recap-pff-team-of-the-week-key-takeaways-player-awards
Brandon Shell high grade as well. Right side was ballin. Iupati should help on the left side.
Simmons does a fine job, and is to be commended. But Iupati is so good, especially in the run game, that hopefully once he and the RBs are back they can get their running game back on track.
GO GET EM
Atlanta Falcons waive former first-round pick Takk McKinley
Great call ATL. Reject trades for the guy and then cut him a week later. Well played..
If the Cowboys don’t take him, the Chargers will do it in a second.
They announced the waiver was coming but it won’t be posted with NFL until today I’ve read, so he’d be off waivers Wednesday if nobody claims him (unlikely). Still no official waiver on NFL transactions page, probably later today.
Monday Press Conf w PC
“Been through film extensively to see what happened and what took place. Came out just didn’t execute. Really basic stuff we needed to do. Things we practice we didn’t execute in game. Really disappointing, they took advantage. Bills 14-0 before offense had 3 plays. We found our way back into this game 27-20, keep winning. Got beat on a couple situations, couldn’t hold onto the FB. Plenty of lousy play. Uncharacteristic, felt terrible. This is a good team. Gonna be a good club down the stretch. Josh Allen really good FB player. Really effective no matter how much we hit him. Lousy trip. Back to business. Dealt w issues mtg today, cranked up for LA.”
[brady] Emotional convo’s after Tennessee game same Buffalo game? “I don’t think so.”
[brady] RB injuries/ankles? “Hyde this week working to get back. See Thursday. Chris in same boat. Got a chance. See how he tolerates the work. Already out working on cutting. Good statement. Friday last week just didn’t work out. Encouraging though. Mone high ankle sprain problem for him. Couple days, most serious injury we had. KJ bounced back today. DJ Reed not a severe ankle.”
[corbin] Defense identity challenging this year? “Has been a challenge, adapting, waiting for guys to get back out there. Like to be aggressive, started season being aggressive, last couple weeks turned focus back to that. Have, sacks last couple weeks. Gotta make sure complementing on the back end. Continue to give up stuff we don’t have to. Couple errors yesterday, big play. Challenge, been frustrating. Running game not an issue, throwing game take care of business. Pass rushing has been a strength, play off that”
[john boyle] Traveling in COVID? [cha ed- nope]
[tim booth] Assess Dunbar first half? Knee? Ugo & Griffin? “Hard game yesterday for Dunbar. Ball kept coming his way, had trouble getting to where he needed to. Week of process to get work he needs to, prep for each week and rehab knee as he goes. Chronic thing. Hard on him. Ugo Wed practice, not sure w Shaq and hamstring. We’ll see.”
[Jackie] Overall impression 8 gmaes in? “Ask me halfway I’d say want to be 8-0. Next thing in lead in division, @home in playoffs, best way to control it. Arizona result, eveyrbody’s battling. Fighting our way through it. First place halfway is where we need to be. But what now? Focus on next step we take. All of these games championship run time. Respond preparation, mentality to play FB game.”
[joe fann] RW pressing due to defense? “Can’t avoid the thought 3 plays it’s 14-0. We know we’re gonna score 30 just takes time to do it. Stay in focus so you don’t press. First 4th down call, he did the right thing – took a shot. Looks like he forced that ball, but as the game goes on he’s got to battle through it. Great focus, belief, famous for that. Nobody wants to play down 17-3, keep score more equal. RW can handle it. I don’t think he’s pressing. But he is challenged by it. Got smacked a couple times and that’s a protection issue.”
[Curtis crab] Know what your defense is / could be? “I would’ve told you last week we were really coming, run game stopped SF. Clear to come into the game. Wasn’t way Buffalo wanted to play, didn’t adapt to keep them from scoring. Clear on what we’re doing up front, clean up going on back end and make sure we’re not giving up plays. Pressure now, heated up, guys are playing to it, that’s a real positive.”
[bob] Penny/Taylor? Adams’ game? “Taylor working with S&C people, moving cutting, multiple direction changes, see how he responds. Good day today, see how he responds tomorrow. Penny working out, cutting, strong as he’s ever been, good weight for him. Feel the confidence to bang those cuts. Speedster stop and starts, get movement before we get him out there. Jamal had a couple plays got away from him, like to play better. Factor though. Aggressive, tough. 4 Q challenge for him, stud. Really a factor, right spots, cut him loose.”
[Gregg] Adams, blizting exposes secondary? “Play as aggressive a style as we did, 2nd half, get exposed. Have to stay ahead of it. Not Jamal specifically. Couple weeks more how to answer that.”
[Gregg] DBs 10 yards off the ball 3rd and 5 ?? “Course of game dictated a bit of the play for guys. Sometimes guys looking at the situation, backed off more than should have. Technique principles. Guy trying to figure out situation. Dunbar plays on feel rather than straight LOS guy. Comes up with stuff farther off than we see fit. Couple backside situations, playing half field stuff looks like he’s well off than we expected, looks bad but design. Background different than guys we play with.”
[art] Secondary hurt by not practicing together? “Level of confidence comes from communication that is regular. Verbal and non. Feel for one another. Fit and feel one another. Not had that continuity. Hoping in the stretch keep guys together. Tre Flowers played best game in long time technique and consistency. Confidence all time high. Best he’s ever looked. Diggs controlling things, communicating gametime only third time with Jamal, work together in game situations. Where patience comes from? Necessity right now, work our guys through it. Get those 4 guys together we’ll see. We can get better. DJ Reed only practiced for one week before he played – there’s more stuff to be gained. Lack of offseason hindered. Hopefuly markedly different from first half. Hopefully won’t give you numbers to keep asking questions and feel bad.”
[Michael shawn] Vets like situational FB? “Not very good in 2 min situations when we’re ahead. Constantly on the topic, sharing ideas in game prep. Communicate very well, guys listen on sidelines and have input. Nothing changed about that.”
[Michael] Guy up in box for D? “Oh yeah, 4 guys up there. Reminders about personnel. Very fluent conversation to make the call.”
[AJ] Plan in Buffalo not expected? How communicate plan? “Plan for run and pass. Rarely do they change that drastically where they don’t even try and run. Realize what mode are they in? Took 8-10 plays to gather stats and data. Done that a couple times earlier in the year. Sounds like we weren’t prepared, but just an unusual circumstance, just had to turn to it.”
[maz veda] Messaging regarding pressing vs confidence? “ongoing conversation, starts way back. How you prioritize the focus and your efforts, manage the mentality. Ongoing concern of mine. Individual, team, offense/defense. Don’t want be dependent on situations to fuel us, matchups, hype, rivals, it’s a trap to think game or player is bigger than another. Controlling your response. Do things you know how to do. Best you can do regardless of circumstances. Important discipline deal w constantly.”
[brady] Mone hurt, Snacks time? “Available ready to go. More info on Mone but this is what Snacks preparing for. Jump up.”
[Jackie] Dunlap play? “One missed assignment in pressure, really well though. Only knows half the guys out there. Showed power that he has, overwhelmed tackle and had a sack. Couple other tackles in backfield. Doesn’t always translate to rest of D but really fun to play with. Good dude.”
Thanks again Cha.
So, is Pete saying that Dunbar isn’t doing what he’s supposed to? Just freelancing to play 10 yards deep on a 3rd and 5? That’s how I’m reading it, but didn’t listen.
If so, that’s surprising on a few different levels.
I noticed that too, and I’m really going to have to think on what that means.
When Dunbar came to camp after all the legal stuff, PC said he was pleased to find that Dunbar had worked with a former Seahawk (Marquand Manuel if I recall) and had already become conversant in the concepts and terminology.
So…it would appear that it’s not that kind of issue. It would seem Dunbar is doing what he is used to. Which was Carey Williams’ problem. When stressed he’d revert back to his former ingrained technique and make it even worse.
I think Dunbar was playing hurt, trying to gut it out, since the team “needed” him to play CB with at least 1 other front line guy out. And frankly, you can;t play Diggs straight-up in his face.. or you could get toasted over the top. I noticed Dunbar playing unusually off and couldn’t make breaks with WRs too well.. and I’m sure if I noticed it from the TV… the coaches paid big money on the Bills noticed it as well. They specifically went after him. Carroll, the DC or anyone should have seen this as well… and pulled him.
I honestly think it might also be Adams… and when he blitzes/rushes…. leaving huge holes in the 2nd/3rd level…. other guys don’t know what to do with the zone voided… causing confusion. When Neal was in during his absence and Reed came in at CB…. everything started to calm down vs the 49ers. The absolute first time they had all season. Team was playing sound defense and playing assignment. Doing their job and no more. The DC (HC and others) haven’t figured out how he fits…. yet.
Now they have some sparks at DE, just need to get the 2ndary playing together and cohesive defense. Wagner appears to be a more effective blitzer. Maybe they should keep Adams in a more SS spot and less blitzing…. letting Wagner blitz more and Adams less.
I forgot, they are trying to play single high safety…. more than I thought they would. Perhaps ET really is that special of a player, to make the defense run properly (as envisioned).
Bell asked the questions we wanted asked for the most part. Good questions from others too. And no Dannty O’Neill specials. Refreshing.
I hate that “just didn’t execute” cliche from coaches. Translation: our (coaching staff) plan was brilliant and flawless, these no good players just didn’t do it well enough.
Me too, and it sadly indicates changes aren’t likely to be made.
It doesn’t explain why the same thing’s been happening all season (and most of last year too).
Pete at this stage is typical of a successful coach who can’t accept that his strategy just doesn’t work like it used to because the game has moved past it and other teams have figured out how to exploit it.
The appointment of Ken Norton reminded me at the time of Rory McIlroy making his best mate his caddy – a move made for comfort rather than to really challenge or improve. They really need someone fresh coming in to bring something new to that defence.
I don’t think it was comfort. More it was Pete re-establishing control which was needed in 2018.
But it’s not needed any more. Now they need a new approach.
I’m not optimistic unfortunately. His stubbornness is costing the team at present, reminds me of Arsene Wenger at the end of his time at Arsenal in some ways. As you say there’s no Paul Allen to hold him accountable any more.
How is historically bad Jets allowed to have a decent defense while a good Hawks team can have historically bad defense.
This ^
Ken Norton has to go. There’s no debate that we have more talent on defense than the Jets. The scheme is the problem.
I like the guys breakdowns.
https://youtu.be/3Sjpi7qoJfg
thanks!
Does anyone have the snap counts for 4-3-4 vs 4-2-5 for the defense during the game??
Did they try to match-up against 3 and 4 WR with 4-3 personnel? Sometimes it felt like they did.
I loved the Pete Carroll show when it was on Brock and Salk. But I can’t listen to it any more. It’s almost devoid of content.
It is devoid of content but I think it’s worse than that. The questions are an exercise in skirting the issues and then you have Danny gushing over Carroll, telling him he’s inspiring and cool, and it’s uncomfortable to listen to.
Good point. Danny’s praise of Carroll wouldn’t be embarrassing if he were a fan talking to Carroll alone, but Danny is a journalist. It’s awkward.
It would be fine if it was a starstruck fan who bumped into Carroll while waiting in line for an ice tea during the summer months.
“Pete you are really cool and inspiring, I’m so happy that you found your calling”
It is not becoming of a journalist and radio host, the day after a humbling loss.
It’s cringeworthy, embarrassing, awkward and needs to stop.
I used to set up my Monday schedule so that I could listen to the PC show with Brock & Salk every Monday. I used to watch all the interviews on YouTube during the week. Now? I’ll pass. We had some former players take some shots at PC out the door. Maybe there was more to that than we will ever know. Carroll is 10 years in. His act is stale but very few coaches can maintain for 10 + years in this league. The league isn’t set up that way. I know he just signed an extension, but quite frankly, that was a mistake by the absentee ownership.
Comments like this worry me.
Right up there with “well the manager wasn’t out there on the pitch, he didn’t miss those goal opportunities, didn’t make that reckless challenge, etc.” that I’ve been hearing from my “other football” team, FC Barcelona, the past couple years.
When as a unit nobody is executing, they are not the only problem. If PC can’t see or won’t admit this, especially after receiving the job security of a lucrative extension, I’m worried.
The defense is just completely and utterly broken.
That’s the reality.
Hmmm…not coaching but players not executing. But it’s the coaches job to “coach” the players on how to execute and put them in a position to succeed.
Granted, they have some talent deficiencies that doesn’t help, but still, this is on the FO and coaches mostly for putting these players in this position.
Who called the all out blitz on 3rd and 16 when they threw a simple screen for about 50 yards. Pretty sure Pete said it was him. At this point listening to anything Pete says is pointless as it doesn’t mean a thing.
100% agreed. This is primarily the coaching. The defensive unit in general is all looking like crap. Spurious relationship with the players appearing to regress this year. The real cause imo is the outdated defensive scheme
Well Pete maybe you should have aquired quality players who fit and could have executed your defense, rather than not addressing your own stated needs.
Nice job shoving players under the bus…that’s a perfect way to lose the locker room
I think one of the huge problems with the defense is the amount of capital the Hawks have spent at the LB postion which I would argue is the least important position in a 4-3 defense to have elite talent. When was the last time a NFL team had an awful D because they were weak at LB.
Looking at the Free Agent Market the last 5-7 years the three positions that seem to be valued least by teams are RB, LB and Strong Safety.
So the Hawks do the exact opposite. The two highest paid players on defense are over 30 yr old linebackers and then to top it off they spend their 1st round pick on another one. Then to make matters worse they trade the farm for Safety. Do they just think they are smarter than all the other teams? What am I missing here.
There needs to be a drastic reallocation of capital this offseason away from LB and Safety to DL and CB if any improvement can be expected.
Hard to disagree with you about needing a drastic reallocation of defensive capital in the offseason, clearly this current version isn’t working at all!
Problem is with the same guys running the show, why would you expect things to change? Pete is pretty set in his ways of how to build a team, and John seems to be on the exact same page. The DL has been a big problem for a few years now, and remains the biggest problem on the team today, even though it was supposedly a top priority in the off season.
Also, remember how we all thought they completely fleeced Detroit and WFT respectively in the Diggs and Dunbar trades? Well, neither look as good now.
Any NFL trade where you think you have fleeced another team needs to be looked back at in a year or two.
Clowney trade seemed like a steal. Now he is in Tennessee.
Diggs was a problem in Detroit and they were happy to be rid of him. Looked like a great trade last yeat but given his play this year I think his job is far from safe.
Dunbar looked good in Washington but was never healthy and they did not want to offer him a long term deal. We know why now.
That is why the Clark trade made no sense. The Hawks drafted and developed him. They knew what they had in a dynamic pass rusher and emotional leader.
The only trade I can remember the Hawks truly getting a steal was when they got Justin Coleman from the Patriots. Brown was also a good trade but far from a steal given what they had to give up.
The Jimmy Graham trade can seriously be questioned too because of Seattle’s insistence on trying to make him a guy who would block when he was clearly a pass receiver only. Their approach was all wrong. Percy, well, we know……..
The Brown trade and the Coleman trade are the only 2 off the top of my head that were good traxces. Duane was worth everything paid.
Marshawn Lynch was the steal of the century.
Oops. Forgot about that one. YES it was!
Indeed!! But that occurred 10 years ago, so what have you done for me lately JS??
Can we include trading up in the draft?
Trading up for DK and Lockett were pretty good.
Chris Clemons too.
Duane Brown plus a 5th for a 3rd and future 2nd. Not too shabby.
Danny O’Neil now patronising fans on twitter who dare to criticise Pete Carroll, 24 hours after declaring how inspiring and cool PC was for finding his calling.
Give me a break.
Fishing for that elusive invite to Pete’s house for Thanksgiving.
Talk about a “Yes Man!”
PNW media too soft 😔
Can you say “syncophant”?
I knew that you could.
Great analysis here on Seahawks defense. The players should really be making the scheme. Not the scheme over the players especially when the scheme is failing.
https://youtu.be/3Sjpi7qoJfg
I know quite a few of you don’t value Field Gulls analysis very much, but this is a surprisingly accurate take on the Seahawks pass defense and pass rush against the Bills.
https://www.fieldgulls.com/2020/11/10/21557591/seattle-seahawks-defense-beaten-buffalo-bills-nfl-film-analysis
John Morgan is a good writer
Mookie has written some very good articles too recently
It’s not all bad.
Rams Game Watch Points
For too long the Seahawks have let the Rams dictate the flow of their contests, and have adjusted their game to try and handle the Rams’ offensive wizardry and defensive toughness. What has that gotten them? A 2-4 record the last 3 years, and prevented them from winning the division.
No more. The Seahawks need to play their game on Sunday. Thankfully, this year they’ve excelled in displaying most of the traits they need to dictate the flow of this game and beat the Rams. What are they? These 4 musts:
Russ must play like an MVP.
Take command of the game. 2 of the last 3 games he’s been rattled. But among his many talents, RW has a gift for bouncing back. He’s 32-8 lifetime after a loss.
If he wants to get back into the MVP discussion, this is the game. Take it to them. The Seahawks defense can’t be regularly relied upon to win the game. This year, your singular talent will determine how far this team goes. You’ve got to ascend Sunday if you don’t want to be fighting for your playoff life in a few weeks. It’s not enough to rack up gaudy stats. It comes down to execution, plain and simple.
How do you do it? Get DK going early. In the first series, find him matched with Jalen Ramsey and run a quick throw at the LOS and let DK stiff arm him to the ground to give Ramsey a taste of what’s coming. Then send him deep. Find Tyler running across the field. Roll out and away from Aaron Donald. If you’re in the pocket, your head clock should be a tick faster than it currently is. If there’s a lane to run that is open, don’t hesitate. Take the 6 yards. Attack. This. Defense. From the drop. Be active, not reactive.
Feeling a little vulnerable about being blitzed? This will make you feel better:
Find the holes and pockets that other offenses have. Don’t worry too much about what the defense is doing. Play your game. The game you came to play. Dictate. You showed the NFL what you could do with that explosion vs Arizona in the first half. Do it again. We don’t want Russ the Happy Warrior. We want Killer Instinct Russ activated from the very first play.
Taking the lead early is absolutely critical. Why? The signs all point to a dramatic rise in win probably if you can coming out firing on offense:
The Seahawks must start quickly. Score early, score often.
Since 2018 the Rams have had a regular season record of 27-13. Can we extrapolate a pattern about their play from the halftime score of those games?
Ah, but what of their wins? How many of those 27 wins came from 2nd half comebacks, you ask?
The Rams rely on starting quickly, and letting their defense go to work with a lead. Their game pattern really sputters when they have to catch up. Conversely, the Seahawks’ record when up by 4+ points at halftime is perfect.
Look at the numbers the Rams defense has yielded so far this season by half:
This game is like a horse race. If you don’t get out of the gate quickly, get out of the jostling herd, and build up a head of steam, you’re going to get stuck in the crowd. Breaking free late to win is doable but it is going to be far more difficult, because the Rams don’t easily relinquish a lead. You have both the incentive and the ability to start quickly. If you don’t, the path to winning gets far, far narrower:
The Rams haven’t seen the Let Russ Cook Seahawks yet. In years past, the Hawks would start the game slowly, try to establish their running game, and sputter their way to halftime. Then try to claw their way back against this extremely talented defense that smells blood. No more. Make the Rams chase you for a change. It’s not just a good idea, it’s a must. A key to victory.
They must find a way to defend the fly sweep – particularly early.
The Rams love to use the fly sweep early in the game, and early in the series. It gets Goff comfortable and in rhythm, gets different guys involved with some touches, and allows them to establish their offensive pattern. They can run multiple looks and misdirections out of it: The fly sweep with a WR, the screen pass, a run that attacks the edges, etc. It’s designed to get the entire defense misdirected and out of position.
Miami showed the Seahawks how you defend it in their win over LA last week. Take some of their concepts and disrupt this bread and butter scheme early to get the Rams off their game and not allow McVay his full arsenal. You do have to operate against your instincts and develop implicit trust in your prep rather than what your eyes tell you, though. So it’s no simple task.
How can you defend it? Chris Simms broke it down better than I could here: https://youtu.be/MhCqgFn17Eo
In short, when the Rams have 2 WRs loaded on the same side of the formation, overload the opposite side. Opposite the WRs? Yes. When they fly sweep to that side you’ve got men there to affect the play (Jamal Adams is perfect for this role). DO NOT overload the same side. It’s a waste of resources.
On the DL, the instinct is to employ more mobile, speedy Defensive Lineman to match their speed. Go against that. Get big, immovable bodies who won’t be manipulated into thinking they have to chase the fly action player. They’re never going to catch him. He’ll already be across the formation before they can even get out of their stance.
The fly sweep is designed to get the entire DL moving the way THEY want you to, and get the LBs following suit, so they can attack the gaps and edges you vacate. Don’t concede them. When they run the ball to the right side in the fly sweep, the RB is instructed to run right at the 5T, because the TE comes flying across the formation and blocks him out of the play and they get an easy 6 yards. When people manage to stay disciplined and not be moved, the runner will run smack into blue and green jerseys. This feels like a game an experienced warhorse like KJ Wright should be very present in.
If the Rams are stopped early, they won’t have the chance to line up in the formation, run the motion, and run a tricky new wrinkle because the defense is overcompensating for not stopping the original wrinkle the first 2 or 3 times.
It puts more of the offense on Goff. And that’s a good thing. Because if the Seahawks have provided scoreboard pressure and forced the Rams to limit their fly sweep scheme, the key to beating the Rams is readily available to them:
They must pressure Goff 10 times.
The Rams’ record since 2019 is 14-10.
That’s right. The Rams are winless when Goff is pressured 10 times in a game. It’s obvious right? The key to beating the Rams is to get after the QB? Apparently it’s not:
That speaks to their OL, their concepts and the fact that defenders at times get hypnotized by the scheme and spend too much energy chasing ghosts.
The Seahawks simply must blitz and get pressure. None of us like this lack of identity on defense. Are they blitzers? Or are they zone flooders? For this game, at this time, I say to heck with it. The choice between sitting back and allowing a chess master to dice you up and bringing pressure to make the QB less effective is clear: Blitz like your life depends on it. And then blitz again. And again.
Sometimes we can get too caught up in nuance. Here’s a dose of straightforward reality to consider. In that 24 game sample:
Why? Is it really as simple as “blitz to win”? No, of course you can’t reduce winning or losing to achieving just one stat. But Goff’s effectiveness markedly drops when he is stressed:
And when the defense achieves 10 pressures on Goff in that sample:
Jared Goff – 5 years into a pretty impressive career, one in which he went to the Super Bowl – is still not good at reading pre-snap formations and reacting properly. His weakness is protected by McVay’s scheme. Also notable: As good as the RB’s have been post-Gurley, it’s clear he was a major security blanket for Goff. The Green Bay game in 2018 when Goff was pressured 10x and they won? Gurley got 4 rushing first downs and 4 receiving first downs. (And LA was spared another patented AR late game miracle by Ty Montogomery fumbling the kickoff to give LA the win).
Oddly enough, there is one stat that doesn’t change with how many pressures he faces: % of bad throws. An average of 18% of his throws are bad whether he’s in heavy pressure or no pressure at all.
How does his bad throw % not rise when pressured? That’s the key. When McVay sees his QB is getting excessive pressure, he knows Goff can’t adjust, so he is forced to limit his creativity in play calls and get more conservative. LA will keep another man or two in to protect Goff, and it reins in the offensive plan. McVay has to stop working with trigonometry because Goff can’t master the multiplication tables. So they cannot stretch the defense to cover every inch of the field and open up easily exploited pockets if they’re protecting the QB with 6 or 7. With QB pressure, the defense subjects itself to less mind games, and can play more aggressive and straightforward.
Send pressure on Goff. Take the ball out of McVay’s brain and put it in Goff’s hands.
****
PS: What fascinates me, is these 4 musts are achievable within the bounds of the Seahawks’ schemes and the personnel available to them. PC said this week they made mistakes in the Buffalo game that they executed just fine in practice. That sounds like a bad sign. We’ll have to see if they can correct those errors come Sunday. It will all come down to execution and desire.
Excellent write up Cha. Hopefully the report card looks better than it did last week.
I’m a little concerned about our passing game. The Rams have shut down opposing WR’s all season. Buffalo is really the only team that had much success via the WR’s. They’ve also been stout against RB’s. In fact their defense is pretty amazing all around.
Rams Defense Rankings:
Pass Yards – 2nd
Passing TD’s – 1st (9 in 8 games)
Rush Yards – 5th
Rush TD – 6th tie
Defensive Penalties – 4th tie
Total Yards – 2nd
Expected points contributed – 1st (28.01 vs -96.02 for Seattle)
We’re going to have our hands full for sure.
That’s fair. Just keep in mind why I said they need to start quickly. The number difference is staggering if they get ahead of the Rams.
Also keep in mind who the Rams have played. 4 of their 8 opponents are in the bottom 10 in the NFL passing yards/game, and 2 are dead in the middle. Tua not even cracking 100 yards in his debut sure helped the Rams’ numbers.
They have faced 2 Top 10’s in Dallas and Buffalo, and they did pretty well against the Rams.
Dak got 266 and 1 TD, and Josh Allen cooked them for 311 yards and 4 TD passes.
Good points as well.
I think you’ve hit the nail on the head. If we can get up or keep even early on, we’re probably in decent shape. If we get behind or give Goof enough time to feel comfortable, it will be a long afternoon.
Remember when Jamal Adams said a defense with him and Bobby Wagner wasn’t fair?
Wasn’t fair for who?
The Seahawks’ salary cap manager.
For anyone that wants to see a decent NFL defense?
🤣
Rob,
I was just thinking Adams seems like a great rusher, but average safety.
I have yet to see them use the old bandit formation like we did when Lawyer Malloy was in town. Granted at that time their linebackers were the weak spot in the defense, but still with three down linemen, we could maximize our three LB’s on the field with additional defensive back. With two safeties- Neal or Amadi as the SS, Adams could play more of the big nickel role and have less coverage responsibilities.
Yes, people will run on us- but I don’t want to see Goff have an Allen performance
Hi Rob,
I’ve been thinking about coordinators who might get more out of our personnel. 1. Wade Phillips. He runs a hybrid, attacking 3-4 base, 4-2-5 nickel that I think might be better suited to utilizing Adams and Wagner as blitzers. They both seem better playing downhill at this point of their careers. We also have been showing 3-4 looks and our line fits that scheme with Snacks and Mone at Nose, and a bunch of tweener ends and small tackles. The other two coordinators are still hired elsewhere, but might be on the way out.
2. Mike Zimmer. I’ve always loved his double A-Gap looks. He runs a 4-3 but its more aggressive than ours, and he always has safeties flying into the backfield. If they fire him, I’d love it if we brought him in as a coordinator. It’s unlikely though.
3. Greg Williams. His defenses are a mixed bag, but he is creative and seemed to get a lot out of Adams. He also used a bunch of dime packages and creates confusion with his pressure scheme. I just don’t see our defense fooling anyone, and making QBs hesitate can lead to sacks and turnovers. This would be ironic given the mini-beef Williams and Carrol had, but if the Jets clean house he would definitely bring new idea.
Thoughts?
Big no to Williams. I think Wade is just a bit too long in the tooth these days. Let’s see who gets fired this off season.
I want someone from the Steelers. They rebuild their D a couple years ago, and now they are so agressive, everyone fly around, mix well blitzes and covers. I don`t see Pete hiring a big defensive name to replace him on D (altough, i wouldn`t complain), but if he is serious about shaking things up, and bring in new ideias, i can see a LB coach, DB coach from the steelers come in as a defensive assistant in some capacty or even DC.
Had a thought: is the 5 seed better than the 2 seed this year? You’ll be playing the NFC East champ in a likely empty or limited capacity stadium vs playing the 7 seed, which could be an NFC west team or the South runner up.
I still want to win the division, because of pride mostly, and I suppose you’d get a slightly easier divisional round game. But that’s something I was thinking about.
I don’t think so.
There’s no point beating a bad NFC East team only to get trounced in Lambeau the week after.
Might as well go for the home games and avoid travel.
WOW! Pete Carroll shifting all blame from the coaching to the players “not executing what they were taught” is freaking embarrassing! Come on mate, just yesterday you said you “didn’t anticipated Buffalo abandoning the run”. it was YOU Pete Carroll and YOUR coaching staff that didn’t think the Bills just MIGHT try to take advantage of the WORST secondary of all time. That you put together and coached. Wow. That right there is how you lose your team, folks
Well said and imo, spot on.
You can’t attack a head coach with a new golden five year contract. It has to be someone else’s fault.
Jamal Adams is a wild beast playing in a humane society defense…i.e oshitzone. Time to get the old players off the field…bobby, if you can be kj in a foot race you’re in. If not put kj in the middle…Brooks at Sam and your jingling baby Jamal at the weakside…let him hunt and have everyone else play man. Flowers is the number one corner until Griffin returns. Put Neal and diggs out back and let them hit…forget about covering. Snacks at the nose with Reed playing over on the strong side guard and Dunlop and with a helping of Collier Green at the other end. Bobby and quem lead the highest paid special teams. Problem solved….now about that quarterback Dave Krieg…I mean Russ and all those turnovers…
Adams as a WILL linebacker is a super interesting idea honestly
Thank god we just drafted the Will of the future with our R1 pick.
Only if you want them to have spent THREE first round picks on the WILL linebacker position in 2020.
Brooks is more a MIKE honestly
Well they drafted him to replace the soon-to-be out of contract WILL, not the $18m captain of the defense.
I like Jamal Adams at edge opposite Dunlap. If they can continue getting pressure on the QB then maybe they will have some success if the cornerbacks play more press coverage.
Rob,
Outside of the morning show, it seems like most 710 hosts are starting to come around to calling into question the coaching. Yesterday Bob Stelton had an excellent rant at the end of hour 1 about always compete not pertaining to the coaching staff. Then he started off John Clayton’s segment with “Well John, since we know you won’t call out Ken Norton or any of the coaching staff, what went wrong with the defense?” Brock said he rewatched the tape and spoke to defensive guys he knows across the league and he said it is dumfounding how this defense is playing. He said that with all the coaches around the team there is no coaching of the coaches and that has been a big problem. Brock said during the production meeting Pete scoffed at his question about generating pass rush outside of blitzing every down. It will be interesting what he and Salk talk about on the podcast.
My next question is when we find out if Takk McKinley clears waivers? I would think that being a former first round pick will ultimately allow him to get claimed before Seattle is in the order. But what if Pete is looking at this defense and thinks that the pass rush is not a problem like it once was? Sounds like the cap hit will not be a big issue for Takk with how the Dunlap contract was structured.
Brock was fantastic this morning.
He’s an absolute treasure.
Is that segment available online (podcast or stream)??
https://sports.mynorthwest.com/category/podcast_player/?a=34be3df3-80bd-4ee8-8a9e-ac6f012cd4ad&sid=1182&n=Danny+and+Gallant
Thank you
“….with all the coaches around the team there is no coaching of the coaches and that has been a big problem.”
Nepotism and the good ol buddy system it would seem.
I see the state of the defense and I can’t help but point out that this is Aaron Curry’s first year as full time coaching staff…. 😉
Relax! Everyone this is a schedule was sent from heaven for us. I had us at 6-2 this year so I’m still on track to make my 12-4 prediction. Once a year I believe every team has one of these games. Arizona showed how you beat the Seahawks. Buffalo just happen to do it better than the Cardinals. The 2 pcs missing right now for this Secondary is Griffin and Amagi. Dunbar is not healthy and he should be benched. I’m alright with Flowers. The Offense well they are going to have to beat the blitzes we will see. It seem when season started Chris Carson was playing more like a Roger Craig style from the 49ers. I’m reaching and hoping when Rashaad Penny comes back he will be that guy.
This year Seattle is getting their young guys the experience they need to grow. The Free Agency Market is going to be full class of player and I believe JS will kill it for Seattle to continue to run 3 more years.
They are going to lose more games. I still believe Russel Wilson’s backyard football is going to win out. This last game was a complete team loss. It started with Coaches, players, and the whole scheme. They just missed completely on this game. I have us losing the next game to the Rams thats right and i would be 6-3. I still have a chance that the Seahawks win this and iI go up 1 game. It going to be a close one. I will be very in Damien Lewis against Aaron Donald. The rookie we got in the 3rd round.
The non divisional games we go 9-1, and the divisional games goes 3-6 that is a 12-4 Season I believe I’m good. This is the mid way point of the season and I think we are sitting pretty, not Radiant. Can we fix the defense over the next 8 games going into the playoffs YES.
Tell me Rob is this a 2012 giving us hope for the next 3 years?
“Tell me Rob is this a 2012 giving us hope for the next 3 years?”
Nope.
Seriously?
This is absolutely insane.
So does it count against you if you fire a minority DC.
This rule is definitely giving off weird patronizing vibes.
I bet the Patriots are going to use multiple head coaches next year!!! All of them coordinating with Bill Belichick, wink.
But it’s the team the new HC/GM comes from that gets the picks, not the team that hires them.
So like Brian Flores going to Miami would have given NE two extra R3 comps.
(Maybe that would have actually discouraged them from hiring him, so as not to help NE…?)
I mean, we’re so desperate for draft picks this year, we might have to find some way to game this system.
Nobody’s going to hire Ken Norton as HC.
Or Clint Hurtt for that matter.
So they are comp picks added in at the end of the 3rd right? The team the coach is coming from is not giving up picks to sign a them?
Correct, they are added after the end of the ordinary comp picks, and in the original draft order by record if there were to be multiple teams receiving these new comp picks.
Danny O’Neil is a contrarian, often says obviously stupid things, can be a jerk without provocation, and has “an Irish temper” as he puts it. But for as much as I can’t stand him, he’s very well sourced, and for that reason I always begrudgingly listen to what he has to say.
Nothing against Pete Carroll, he’s the best coach in Seattle pro-sports history. But Danny remaining in softball mode makes all the sense in the world to me. Danny’s ONLY validating quality are his connections. He has to keep them happy. Which is a shame for the rest of us.
There are ways and means to go about it though Kip.
A 30-second question going round the houses just to tell Carroll you find him so inspiring and cool is unnecessary, especially a day after a horrendous defeat.
So is shouting at fans on the radio and online for daring to criticise the team.
I know what it’s like to keep a source on side. I’ve been in this industry for well over a decade. I’ve never felt like I need to be a sycophant.
Would you see any of the below in bottom 3.
Sean Payton’s O
Belchik’s D
McVay’s O
Fangio’s D
Zimmer’s D
Wade’s D
Shanahan’s O
Reid’s O
How come Pete graded out a bottom 3 defense last season and on pace to being the worst D in history.
Pete is not competing any more, took it easy and put all his egg’s in Russ’s basket for a ride to retirement.
This is all on Pete not players executing.
Also, I knew the reports, but hadn’t seen this from the man himself. Wow.
What time should we know if he cleared waivers or not?
My understanding was about an hour ago the window closed but no word yet.
Man. Take the higher ground. Twitter does so many athletes no favors.
All a statement like this does is make organizations question claiming you even more.
“I want to thank everyone within the Atlanta organization, in particular my teammates. I love you guys. Everything happens for a reason and I am excited for my next opportunity, wherever that may be.”
Done and done.
For the most part, this site has been consistently and analytically on it as concerns the central dramas of the Seahawks since the advent of the FAcy period early last spring. In this way, it’s been ahead of the curve of almost all the Seattle sports outlets and sports pundits. Good work to Rob and the many quality posters who contribute here.
The central question remains: How much can this defense improve over the second half of the season? Every team in the NFC has their own set of problems, so it’s *still* not completely unreasonable that we could compete for the NFC title. But the defense HAS to begin to gain some consistency, efficiency, and a more ferocious identity, and soon.
Anyway…good stuff.