Thanks @Seahawks for allowing me to take part. Now…. let's DO THIS!! pic.twitter.com/N8tqeRY0fD
— Jeffrey Dean Morgan (@JDMorgan) January 14, 2017
© 2024 Seahawks Draft Blog
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Thanks @Seahawks for allowing me to take part. Now…. let's DO THIS!! pic.twitter.com/N8tqeRY0fD
— Jeffrey Dean Morgan (@JDMorgan) January 14, 2017
© 2024 Seahawks Draft Blog
Theme by Anders Noren — Up ↑
That was dope!
We all we need, we all we got!
LOB (Love Our Brothers)!?
Let’s go Seahawks!
Damn! Hope Ifedi is alright.
I do too
Looks like his left ankle was rolled on by an ATL defender. But here comes Odhiambo
Hmm hope this was the only injury
Love the tempo and play selection so far.
This is exactly what we want out of Rawls today. Great sign! #GoHawks
Wonderful start. What a drive. And JG in the RZ.
That was impressive my man.
Odhiambo is a stud!
Ifedi had a couple of bulldozer grade blocks in that opening drive, but Odhiambo looked really good. Athletic and agile for a big body.
Yeah, I like both of them.
Great drive!
Best opening Drive of the year TD to Graham! Looking good Y’all!
Go Hawks!
Perfect start! What happens if Reese out-performs Ifedi today?
Love Seahawks start, Rawls , Baldwin and Graham all getting involved.. Where did McKissic come from and when did he join the team?
He came from Atlanta. Seattle attended his pro day at Arkansas St a team they’ve scouted a couple times this year too.
Great return by Hester. Odhiambo coming back out?
Beautiful return by Hester!
Hester may have just earned his contract on that one return. There will be no substitute for putting Atlanta on their heels or early. I get this feeling that our defense has a big play coming soon.
Whom! P-Rich coming on ?
*whoo
Wilson is throwing high. Needs to settle down.
He’s trusting his guys to make a play on the ball. Atlanta leads the league in PBU I beleive.
I do think he had Jimmy there, but looks like the play was designed to get the ball out quick.
Could be true. Fortunately balls are still being caught.
Well except that one to Baldwin. A better throw would’ve been a touchdown for sure.
Also look like the middle of the field was wide open on that play. What a been a perfect place to cross Jimmy Graham through the middle and allow Russ an easier throw.
That OL wiff that allowed the sack may have cost is that touchdown
What a BS call!
We’re getting the short end of the stick so far
Why even have punt returns anymore? There’s a flag on everyone. Just have a guy back there to fair catch it
Momentum swinging penalty.
That penalty should have been on Atlanta for holding him down to the ground.
Penalties on the road can lose you the game. We’re seeing lots of penalties on Sea
I like Odhiambo, but he’s not ready for this big of a stage yet. Probably cost us what, 6?
Especially since Cable said that he’s a left side guy. I wonder how many reps he gets at RG?
BS call… then a safety. What happened to ifedi!!!!!!
Injury?????
I’m sleep
Odhi showing why Fant starts ahead of him at LT.
Now we know why he’s a left side of the line guy. Notice his he moves that way off the snap?
Whether the calls are correct or not, special teams has been failing too often this year.
Steven Terrell needs to be making these tackles!
Nice hit by Shead.
Sad, the lack of discipline on this team is so discouraging. You have to feel for Devon Hester. How many times over the years have we seen big plays ruined by bone head mistakes. That is on Carroll. He never really has had control of this team. Not in the way Belichick does.
agreed, and it’s been that way for years.
Half yard line. Now let’s get our own safety
No defense. Need Thomas and another corner. Maybe next year.
Need a new coach. Carroll just allows too many mistakes and penalties. Doesn’t have his guys motivated every week. I respect Carroll but time to move on.
Wow.
Holy cow
Yikes
Been to the divisional round five years in a row…
We’re such a spoiled bunch of fans.
This. So damn much.
2 SB’s, 1 win in 4 years.
5 years in the divisional round. And three losses. Not good enough. Pete is good but can’t seal the deal.
outside of NE, which team has been better for that 5 years?
how many teams have more Super Bowl wins?
could be possible that is mostly attributed to talent, not coaching. Our coordinators are lacking IMO
What happened to this board?
What is the point of kick and punt returns? Is it even possible to return without getting flagged? Just take it out of the game.
They’re trying to take it out of the game. Might as well. Its pretty pointless.
Yep. If they don’t want it, just get rid of it.
The refs are throwing the game
How? Outside of the missed OPI, they’ve all been legit calls.
Our special teams is the legion of holding
No Shite Derron, I’m getting so sick of our penalties. If they don’t get caught it’s still cheating. That Hester return negated made me almost loose it. I’m done with these penalties!
Very disappointing first half for me. It’s pretty clear watching this game that seattle’s offense is way superior to the falcons defense. Its basically a situation where you’ve got 10 guys executing, etc and are better than their matchup but the 11th guy (odhi for a bunch of drives) hoses his assignment and blows up drives. Really want one more swing guy, a reliable swing guy, for that oline. McQuistan was that guy during the sb run.
Defensively, let’s see the adjustments. Obviously Julio Jones is the best player on the field. They have to figure that out. At this rate he’s going to end up with 20 catches in this game. Clearly you can’t let that happen because atlanta will take that if you let them. They’re going to have to junk the normal game plan a bit and be willing to leave a guy open to double Julio.
Offensively though, c’mon, execute better, ALL 11. Don’t get overwhelmed by the situation. That atlanta defense will get killed against dallas or green bay. Not very physical or powerful.
As far as KPL’s penalty goes – yeah that was the turning point. But damn he gets penalties on special teams at some big spots. The guy is a glue for officials eyes. He’s a wrong place at the wrong time kind of player. It was an iffy call, but damn, don’t hold onto the guy and pull him down in front of the official, esp if it has nothing to do with the return.
One penalty can change the game. That one did it. Without ET its tough to stop offenses like this.
I’m more angry at the offense than the defense. Atlanta’s defense is NOT good and I think it shows out there, it’s just that that ONE guy on a play doesn’t execute and BOOM, drive over. Or back you up. Very frustrating.
Atlanta can’t win a super bowl with this defense. It is not physical at all other than Neal. We should have put up over 20 in this half.
It seems like whenever Seahawks do zone coverage there are multiple receivers open, and when they go to man coverage they forget to cover someone. The defensive line is fading a bit in the pass rush. Need to step it up in second half.
Oh shoot Shead just hurt his knee.
Honestly though, no excuses for a drive that starts inside the 1 yard line even if Atlanta has scored 10 x’s on drives starting there.
Pash rush needs to hit home. Ryan’s not very accurate when he’s pressured.
But those quick hitters are tough to defend when JJ is the target.
No pass rush. Special teams mistakes.
KPL may cost us this game. What huge change of events.
Couldn’t agree more Randy, that oNE play could have cost us 12 points. 7 for the TD we could have scored a d the safety and field goal they did score.
That was a rough finish to the half man. I thought the call on KPL was pretty questionable too. When is sh** like that ever called on the defense at the LOS?
That said, I always believe in this team in the second half. The odds are stacked against us, but that’s when Seattle brings their A game.
Watch for the defense to stand on its head the rest of the game.
It’s questionable, but at the same time, KPL had no reason to grab his jersey with both hands and pull him down as he’s falling. It’s just making an assumption that they won’t call you while it has no bearing on the play. He needs to wise up.
They never give up or go away quietly that’s for sure.
Few self-inflicted injuries in that half. Thought it was gutless at the end. Three timeouts and you don’t even try to drive? Not even to get in to FG range? I hate that nonsense end-of-half draw shit, it’s stupid on pretty much every conceivable level.
Hester ruined that. Let Russ do his thing with 3 TO’s and about a minute left. Not back us up inside the 10. Didn’t need the return there.
Nah, that’s not on Hester. He’s pretty clearly been told to run everything out. Hawks are swinging for the fences in the dome, know they’re going to have to score points and flip the field. It wasn’t a great return, but I put that more on the coaches than the individual.
Need to find some way to get pressure on Ryan. Getting nothing up the middle, letting him step up and clear of any outside heat. Better execution at all three levels needed.
It was Hunter called for penalty.
Christ. That’s an ACL for Shead.
That is horrible! Non contact injury?
I’m guessing, but the way he went down… Was turning to cover and his leg just buckled.
Honestly, seattle should beat this team. I actually like the falcons but their defense really looks like a TIm Ruskell smallish defense that makes hay on another teams errors.
Seems like the game is being won by Atlanta offense. Getting a first down every two plays.
Jones is a monster, no corner in the league can deal with him when he gets moving like this.
He might be beating Sherman, but Sherman is doing as well as he possibly can. Stopped any serious YAC.
Man this is an incredible offence. The most impressive one I’ve seen in a long, long, time.
Damn, if Shead is done…I don’t know where this team goes if it gets thru this one. Ryan, Rodgers, Brady…
I really hope for a defensive heavy top of the draft and start stockpiling the depth again. Have to look at depth like they are starters. Can’t get thru a season without losing huge chunks of your lineup anymore.
So, for next season, what would seattle need to counter a fast passing attack like this?
Defensive linemen that can get to the quarterback, keep accumulating secondary players to train, and pray that the two safeties and Sherman are healthy all season.
A reversion to the 80s rulebook?
More interior pressure TBH. They’re getting absolutely zip done against Mack, giving Ryan all day in the pocket. This is one of the all time great offences though. A perfect convergence of talent and coaching.
I would argue that rather than selling the draft for a Fournette, if you’re going to do it for anybody, do it for an every down 3 tech.
Nooo not Michael Bennett
Converting a 3rd and 10 without Julio on the field is blasphemy. The defense has been very disappointing.
I think they are starting to tire. Too much time on the field .
And has there been a single penalty called on the atl. offense all game?
This is embarrassing.
It feels like we haven’t had the ball in forever…that no punt return/safety time of the game changed everything
Holy shit that was a pathetic tackle. Who was that? Terrell or Morgan?
I honestly didn’t expect us to win this one, but was hoping for a better game. This team definitely has some work to do. Interior pass rush is priority #1 in the offseason.
Defense definitely has some holes to fill. Other than LB all other levels need attention
The offense has to absolutely commit to better execution next year and if that requires a simpler offense to mitigate the youth of the oline, then so be it.
It seems like every year the oline is way behind to begin the year and they hope they gel around mid season. We can’t afford that anymore. They have to be clicking from game 1.
That’s one reason why outside of having a RT fall to us, I’m not for a heavy expenditure of draft capital there this offseason. If they can upgrade via free agency, I’m okay with that, as long as it’s someone who is already accustomed to the speed of the game, line calls, etc.
Really, everyone’s worry before the season, the oline, came true and never fixed itself but for a couple games here and there.
I’ve been a big critic of prich.
Eating my crow right now.
Same here. Crow never tasted so good however . . .
Both are offensive tackles are struggling to block. Nice catch by Richardson.
Seattle needs to relearn how to dominate its division. 3-2-1 this year with two wins against maybe the worst team in football. This game is showing why you want first round bye’s and home field.
When did Richardson become our best receiver? This is the sort of thing he used to do at Colorado.
Need to hit that pass Wilson. That’s two TD passes he’s missed today.
That’s a bad miss by Wilson. FG gets us nothing. That’s game I reckon, really needed a TD to have a chance.
Strangely, after the first drive this game has devolved to what we’ve been complaining about for much of the year.
Not wrong. Was probably silly to assume the offence might suddenly be able to switch on.
Oh man, Elliot just drops the easiest INT he’ll ever see. Been that sort of day.
The redzone offense is another major offseason need
Please can we stop making excuses. We just aren’t very good.
This… seattle need to assess who they want to be.
Dan Quinn’s defense won Seattle the super bowl. Atlanta out coached seattle.
Terrell isn’t up to it. The problem with the stars and scrubs approach to team building is that when stars go down, you really are in trouble.
It’s a simple, execution-based, defence that relies on the individual players being better and more talented than their opposites. When they aren’t, things are going to go to pieces.
Terrell may be better as a cornerback. He has speed, just needs to develop his ball hawking skills. I don’t view him as a hard tackler- the one tackle I remember he was too high.
So you’re going to blame Terrell for the fact that the pass rush can’t even get close enough to sniff Matt Ryan’s cologne? You’re going to blame him for The big gaping holes Devonta Freeman has to run through? Is he responsible for the fact that Matt Ryan is simply playing on an MVP level?
Steven Terrell is a back up safety. When you lose your all-pro free safety who’s the engine behind the success of the DEFENSE he’s likely to be replaced by someone who’s not nearly as good. If you are blaming the struggles of the DEFENSE on Terrell, you’re missing so much of the game. Is Terrell a great player? No, but he’s not in the top 4 of what’s wrong with the defense today.
Please name me a backup safety in the league that should actually be starting.
I’m not blaming him. I’m saying he’s indicative of the downside to this particular team building approach. Can see why it might have looked like I was scapegoating though.
Defense really misses ET.
they need to get turnovers
Well down 16 to start the 4th with your starting corner, RG and two TEs out of the game is not ideal.
That Falcons offense is just better than our D right now plain and simple.
The penalty wiping out long Hester return then subsequent Safety was a huge turning point in the game.
On a positive we found our WR3 in PRIch.
It’s not the same defense of 2012-2014. It has never looked “the same” all season to me. In two years it’s probably the Jarran Reed and Frank Clark show. We’ll see what they are surrounded with and if it can live up to what was a remarkable defensive run.
Prioritizing needs, I’m sure would agree BPA is the theme. But, OT should receive highest priority.
Also, DL & DB help in that order.
I hear much from our coaches about how much they like our O line group and they just need more time. But seeing good stuff and good progress from them. The coach speak does get old after a while, especially when you have the #1 lowest paid O line and the #1 (or close) worst performing O line in the league. I do fault management and coaching when you are ok with that and don’t remedy the situation even after the O line have become the league joke and it kills the team week in and week out.
Not sure we need to sell out to get upper high powered O line replacements, but is it too much to ask to get at least an average o line? What would this team be like if we at least had that?
Blockers for the running game . . . Pass pro for our passing game . . . We would be going much deeper in the playyoffs. What’s the saying, penny wise (cheap OL) and pound poor (non performing offense).
Just seems to be a rediculous situation that with the appropriate amount of attention could have been fixed. Again a big miss from the FO that killed this season.
Another quick thought on the defence, are we finally starting to see the impact of the coaching drain?
Assistants and coordinators have been being poached for years now. No way of knowing without being in the building, but I’d take Dan Quinn over Richard as a DC every day of the week. How has someone like Terrell never been taught how to tackle properly?
When is the last time the defense has intercepted someone?
The game Earl was broken in
I guess dez did catch it
Hope this game will make clear that S and CB are big needs and this draft fits them really well.
That is fine but have you not been watching this OL all year.
There are too many needs to fill in one draft to be honest. They are going to need some free agent pickups as well.
Indeed. I am praying for a big FA OL signing. I just don’t believe in first round picks solving our line problems.
Does anyone have any thoughts on the pass rush? Clark and Avril have both put up double-digit sack seasons, Bennett is one of the most disruptive players in the league, Wagner is a DPOY candidate, but it hasn’t got going at all today.
Is it as simple as being unable to get enough interior push?
The 42 sacks they got this year are the kind of statistics that don’t tell the story. For the most part, not much pressure for the year.
And yes, absolutely no inside push.
That is definitely a big part of it. Plus we are not getting tight coverage so Ryan is getting the ball out quick and on rhythm. .
Which I don’t understand. The LOB was known for big time chucks and roughing up the receivers. Now the just let receivers run free, it’s maddening.
I’d like to think that having the first round bye would have made a difference. But would it? This team played jekyll and hyde all season. What kind of team is it? Statistically the defense was #2 in the NFL, but was it really that good? Is the idea that you’ll never have a defense like 2013 an acceptable argument so you should stop trying to attain that level of depth and intensity?
The offense, everyone discusses the oline and running game. We have a franchise qb. But RW is a unique franchise qb. I don’t see him like a Rodgers, Brady, or Roethlesberger. He’s more of a dude who thrives in chaos. He wins games and wows you, but at times, you wonder. Is it injuries why he missed 3 td’s today with inaccuracy? I don’t know. We may never know. Is he always going to be a better qb where he is perceived as a game manager because the running game carries him rather than the Rodgers/Brady type whose teams ride on their arms?
Do we need a Sidney Rice in that second receiver role or does that person already exist on the roster to fix the red zone issues, or is it just a matter of execution?
There’s not one aspect of this team that doesn’t need help
Punter doesn’t need help?
True!
Ouch, Wilson holding on too long then floating one for an interception. That is the nail in the coffin.
The nail was driven a long time before that. At least he was trying to make something happen while running around once again like a chicken with its head cut off because he had no pass pro. We sure can’t hang that on him. Again I would hang that on the offense of line well before I would stick the blame on Russell. I get there not qualified to have their positions, but their pro athletes and some of their embarrassing performance is inexcusable.
Was under immediate pressure. Better to throw it up and take a chance on third and very long.
Atlanta is Seattle pre SB.
Atlanta knows they have to get rid of the ball, so 3 step drops and get the ball out.
Seattle knows they have to get rid of the ball, so 5-7 step drops and get sacked.
Bevel had a good first series, that’s it.
Richard had no good series. Just layed back and like they have for two years under him, don’t create TO.
careful, i read bevell in there. but you’re absolutely right. we get out-coahed on both sides of the ball. sometimes our talent wins. more frequently, we’re seeing the result when it doesnt
Funny but true. Sorry Rob, I didn’t mean it.
Well that is game over. So where do we pick?
Russ 34 drop backs pressured on 17 that is 50%. Cant win like that.
That loss to Arizona really killed this season say what you like. That bye week and a game a C-Link would have been a very different game.
Don’t disagree, but Atlanta probably would have come in and beat them at home. Atlanta is Seattle in the SB year.
They are a different type of team with that offense but definitely have the youth and speed.
This core group of Seahawks have a lot of miles on them. We definitely need a big infusion of youth and speed on defense. That is for sure.
Whiffing on the 2013 and 2014 drafts really hurt this team.
Although it’s always better to play at home, no telling what would’ve happened. Playing at home doesn’t magically give you a better offensive line.
Also Atlanta is nothing like Seattle during their SB run. I doubt they make it another round. Even a bad Seattle offense exposed them.
Don’t mean their D is like Hawks D. They are a complete team and the D compliments O. Offensive juggernaut that can get to the QB on D and doesn’t give up big plays. The Dallas game will be good (I think Dallas beast GB by 10).
atlanta’s defense is not even in the same building as 2012-2014 seattle.
I think the team needed to grow before this round. I’m glad they played Detroit. It was one of the few good games that they played this year.
50% pressure rate pretty sums up the problems all year. Give Russell time and the offense would take off.
Perfect storm. Défense has looked mortal all season at both ends and certainly less dominating. It’s had some injuries, been stretched by a bad offense and a very long season. Finally it’s met today probably the most well balanced, perfect antidote to their scheme they have ever seen.
Tip the hat & reload. The Falcons have reloaded since 4 years ago in the form of Freeman, Coleman, Sanu, Gabriel, Mack, Levitre, Matthews and that’s just the offense! Last time the playoff game against the Falcons proved to be a catalyst. Hopefully it happens again.
penalties
o line mistakes
Russell missing more throws than Ryan
and defense can’t stop Atl
time for the front office to take a serious look at where the problems are and how to fix them
Because a lot of other teams will improve next year.
I think the team is probably well aware of the issues with the team. I don’t think anyone there is lying to themselves about how good/bad any player or unit may be. It’s not like Seattle has so clearly and obviously neglected any area of the team. JS/PC have an approach and a philosophy on the kind of players they want. They’re not going to bring in a player who they don’t believe fits their scheme or their culture.
i would say that having too much youth and spending money on Sowell and Webb to fix the o line was more wishful thinking than really good planning.
Even though the game sucks – it clearly shows where the Seahawks need work. Just in case you hadn’t noticed in the regular season. My take: two offensive tackles, defensive line, and cornerback/safety. All would be helpful.
Ran into a buzzsaw today. That’s an incredible offence they’ve got over there.
A good, if frustrating year. Disappointing not to be able to go further, but there are plenty of fans who would kill to make it this far year after year. There is a slightly jaded, ineffectual, feeling around the team at the moment. Do they need some new voices? Maybe that’s just me projecting though. Wilson’s injuries were always going to make this a tough year, and dropping games to the Rams and Cards really came back to bite.
Lots to talk about in the off-season at least!
Jeremy Lane should take a knee while forfeiting his pay check, let’s just let mistakes be mistakes. The great view is our draft range is above the best teams in the League now so that’s a good thing, happy thoughts. We just were way too inconsistent this year and I believe wholeheartedly we will definitely be better next year!
And let’s hope the solution for the o line is not more youth.
You can see a bad Atl defense able to confuse and out scheme the o line because of their inexperience.
Even a decent vet as a back up will help.
They need more pass rush and more speed at cb
I know everyone really wants Cailias Campbell but this game has solidified my option that we should focus on young defenders this draft and use free agency to add OL (Zeitler) and an RB like Blount or Stewart.
A good offensive tackle would be too expensive in free agency. They should be able to find better tackles I. The draft. Even in mid rounds. And Gilliam may improve next year. Fant will be replaced by next year.
Respectfully disagree. Someone like Campbell, who can create push and inside pressure, is how you beat a team like ATL. And that push (combined with our DEs) makes our suddenly suspect DBs look a whole better
Having your defender in the offenses backfield when they’re trying to run or disrupting the quarterback’s ability to throw the ball cannot be undervalued. A tremendous amount of stress on the defense of secondary and linebackers is relieved when you disrupt the play. We would all be less critical of guys like Lane and Shead and it would hurt a lot less missing a guy like Earl if the other guys weren’t doing everything they wanted to do.
I also go back to one of my previous posts about the OL. We don’t need a super OL or a top OL, we just need to get out of the basement and get an average or serviceable OL. Say what you want, but Seattle would be a completely different team if they had one.
If the offense can’t move the chains better with a dependable running game, the defense will be on the field too much. Improve the running game and the defense will follow. Improving the running game should be the top off-season priority along with improving quality and depth at key positions on defense. It will be an interesting off-season. I think that we may see a few new faces in unexpected positions.
OL
110% agree. Just give me an average OL.
The easiest way to improve the team. Russell Wilson only gets conjugal visits after he wins a game! Let’s get focused on football.
That motivator would probably work better on Michael Bennett.
ha! this ^
Sooooo glad we locked up Baldwin this past off season. He has been so good all year.
Oh well, third loss in divisional round in last 5 years. The Hawks really have no body to blame but themselves. They didn’t take care of business in the Arizona game, or this would have been played I n Seattle.I thought during the season RW looked kind of out of shape and he really seemed out of gas near the end of the game. Hopefully things will change next season.
Considering all the free agents after next season, next year is a big big season and could be the last chance to win an sb with the current core group.
I’ve thought the same thing.
They gonna go big for one last shot?
hate to be that guy, but i (and a few others) were given a hard time after the week 2 loss to StL (LA) for suggesting you can’t drop entirely winable games to entirely beatable, putrid opponents when there are long-term seeding implications. Yes, those blemishes do in fact matter
Those 3 plays in the 1Q turned this whole game around.
-Ifedi gets hurt
-Penalty on long Hester Return
-Rees steps on Russ foot for Safety
Next Drive Atl TD and then game over after that
Even with all that happening, the D had Atlanta at the 1 and gave up a 99 yd drive. Just terrible job by the KR and the entire D.
When Atlanta was on the one, I would’ve bet money Seattle was going to be aggressive and try to stick them in the end zone just like we got stuck. However, it felt more like they went passive and conservative and let Atlanta off the hook. Which seemed to some degree like one of the differences in the game, Atlanta was aggressive and Seattle was not .
We lost this season with the lossame to the Cardinals. Enjoyed the season and look forward to the off season.
Offensively addressing the running game has be to the top priority for the team. Without a quality running game, Seattle cannot:
Limit possessions
Allow their defense to rest
Impose their will
Tire the opposing defenders
And most importantly without a quality running game Seattle cannot effectively run play action which is a staple of Darrell Bevel’s play sheet. Play action produces those explosive plays Pete Carroll loves so much. Play action is everything. Seattle as a shotgun/spread/single back offense isn’t very effective IMO.
It’s going to be important Seattle continues to create competition along the offensive line. They also need to bring in another running back capable of 10-15 carries. Personally I like the idea of drafting a Joe Mixon or Elijah Hood. Having a Leonard Fournette would be incredible but to me that’ll never happen. We can talk all the trade scenarios we want but what we all know is that JS loves his draft picks.
Fix the running game and a lot of the warts get masked.
agreed
I think fixing the o line fixes the running game, but need at least one more rb in the mix to cover for injuries.
Maybe the o line improves with one more years experience, but I doubt they can improve enough with that alone.
like you, I doubt they make any major trade to fix things. Probably going for lower level FA and the draft.
on defense, I think they need 1 or 2 playmakers. DB, LB, DT, anywhere. Lack of turnovers hurts the D and the O
and they need some luck with health. Hard to win if your best players get hurt, just ask Oak.
Agreed, but I think they need more than competition on the OL. I think we had some competition this year. But I think the problem was the competitors are all too weak across the board and even the best of the worst were still bad. Yes, I know that sounds extreme, but if you look at the OL how bad they are and how bad they are rated, and acknowledge they had a lot of people vying for those positions, rotating in and out and released some as well they thought would not do the job, The lack of overall quality among the group is a natural and logical conclusion .
And so this team goes into its offseason still not knowing who they are.
Such a weird, disappointing year.
We are who we thought we are. A good team, but not a great team. A lot of talent but couldn’t put it together. At times outplayed, out hustled, and out coached.
Makes you wonder if the championship window is closing.
young enough to re-boot with the right moves.
But all teams face this and only NE has been able to be strong for 15 years.
Defense is good but no longer elite. Good enough if the offence steps up
Let the wailing begin!
Long live the off-season @ Seahawksdraftblog!
.
Yup, should be crazy, and fun!
This teams current roster is mediocre. If not for a down tear in the NFC west Seattle is not in the playoffs.
Agreed
Agree and maybe it would have been a blessing in disguise not to be in the playoffs. Have a down year, get a decent draft position and restock w/ some play makers instead of a hand full of mediocre players.
If they hadn’t had a few goal line stands….one play in each of these games….they don’t make the playoffs, no?
Very little dominance this year. THe rest of the NFL caught up, and then several teams surpassed them.
THey say repeating as super bowl champs is harder than winning the first one.
Russ seems to have lost that magic since the SB interception as well.
Hard to feel magical when you’re running for your life every game
But weren’t those Tarkenton-like scrambles of his first two years what we meant when we talked about Wilson’s “magic”?
How exactly would we use Reddick?
Bring on free agency and the draft!
I’m going to get ripped for this… cut jimmy and use his money on a tackle. We don’t use the guy anyway.
If I’m Jimmy Graham I think I ask for a trade. What a waste of talent.
Never get rid of elite talent if they are not over paid or injury prone.
I doubt they would cut him and spend his salary on a tackle anyways, and any tackle they get in FA with that money will be less talented than JG.
but hard to see how they could not use him more against a team that does not cover TE’s well
He is definitely going to be had to re-sign for that reason.
Seriously?
Go have a beer and calm down.
What if beer just makes him aggressive and angry? LOL
Can you imagine how frustrated he must be. How many teams would love to have talent like him. What a waste of an elite talent.
Why do you think he should be so frustrated? He’s on a team he really enjoys in a community he’s fallen in love with and was a top-3 TE this season.
OK I’m going to take this opportunity to beat the dead horse once again. Do whatever is required to get a serviceable OL. Life becomes better for everyone in Seattle can do what they want to do. They traded for Jimmy because they want to use him. If Russ has time to throw, he will have time to throw to Jimmy. See Jimmy catch, see Jimmy run. But got to have a working OL first.
LOL if it were Twitter you’d probably get ripped.
The argument of using Graham’s money on a tackle kind of rings hallow for me. Just throwing money at a player doesn’t fix the problem. Example: if the Browns throw money at Kirk Cousins ($21M/year) to be their cornerstone QB, does that really turn around the fortunes for that franchise? In order to throw money at a player, it needs to be the right guy. I’m not certain there are any tackles worthy of getting rid of Graham in order to bring in. I know Rob has actually written about this in the past but I’m not convinced a guy like Kevin Zeitler turns around the fortunes for Seattle’s offensive line. Often times it really does just take time for lineman to grow and become a good group.
He is definitely not used as much as he should. Had said last year, he goes or Bevel goes. They don’t compliment each other.
My initial thoughts after watching that game.
Young, Fast and Hungry team Beats the snot out of Old, Wore Down and Well Paid team.
lol, you do realize that seattle was the seventh YOUNGEST team this season. and Atlanta was the OLDEST?
Come on man.
I think Trevor’s point is that Atlanta’s young talent is hungry and they are the driving force behind their success whereas Seattle’s veterans are the driving force and they have a LOT of mileage on those tires.
maybe 7th youngest overall
but how old are the 22 starters compared to others
how old are the best 10-12?
I don’t think age is a problem, except the extreme youth on the o line
but they need more impact players at 1 to 3 years exp to help keep things going
Ouch. Post game bitterness I get it
Did Jermaine Kearse even play today?
Lane and Kearse are my two biggest disappointments this season.
Actually all our FA signings were bust. (Sowell, Webb, Lane, Kearse)
I know Rob was a HUGE fan of bringing back Jermaine Kearse but I definitely was not. For me, Kearse is really a JAG and his spot on the roster could be improved. He hasn’t done much of anything all year long. I’d like to see Seattle go in a different direction personally.
I’d agree that Lane has been a big disappointment. Nickelback could definitely use an injection of competition this offseason.
Sucks for Shead. Coming off a pretty good year going into Free Agency then tears ACL. Feel really bad for him.
Can we finally agree that the personnel decisions regarding the offensive line in the off season was an absolute disaster. Lot of people including Rob were condescending to people that had this opinion. Letting your two best offensive line walk, and then depending on rookies was a bad plan then and it certainly is now. I know this blog does a great job promoting positive discussion, and I really appreciate that. However, it should be fair to have critical analysis over the front office decisions without being told (indirectly) that this type of discussion is not okay. There is a difference between “fire Bevell” and a critical discussion.
I don’t believe I was ever ‘condescending’ — but that’s by the by.
Okung signed a contract that he simply wasn’t going to sign in Seattle. He wanted $10-12m a year and Seattle couldn’t go that far. Nobody else could either. His deal with Denver was, frankly, ridiculous on his behalf. His bed was seemingly made the day he chose to go solo with negotiations.
Sweezy signed a $6.5m contract a year in Tampa Bay, nearly as much as Bennet and Avril earned in 2016. Did he play a single snap this year with a back injury? How was that going to help Seattle?
They had little choice with these two guys. They responded by spending a first round pick on the OL plus a third round pick. With their minimal available cap room they added some competition too.
Was it an ideal plan? No. Did the O-line play hurt the team this year? Yes. Is it completely understandable why they had to do what they did? It should be.
I agree with Rob. Okung & Sweezy were wise non-resignees. This OL group will have success in the future. The OL FA signees did not pan out. That was their down fall.
That’s the type of decisions that need to be made to keep an influx of youth in a roster. The same decisions are going to be made for the entire “D”. There are hard choices ahead.
Rob, you are going to have to let us get rid of all of our vitriol and frustration before you do your “Instant Reaction”.
Check out this quote from NFL.com: “Atlanta’s last three draft classes have produced 13 regulars… Seattle’s last four classes, on the other hand, have been mostly barren as the organization continues to lean on the stars that arrived before 2013.” That’s a fair statement.
Kind of — but Atlanta will not get as many regulars in the next few years because they have established young starters now. Eventually, if you do it right, you’re drafting for depth mostly.
What this game confirms for me is that the NFL has changed. The old adage of “defense wins championships” is no longer true. Look at the remaining teams in the playoffs with a legit chance of winning the superbowl
Defense DVOA 2016 Rank
ATL – 27
NEP – 16
DAL – 17
GB – 20
PIT – 11
KC – 14
Offensive DVOA 2016 Rank
ATL – 1
NEP – 2
DAL – 3
GB – 4
PIT – 8
KC – 13
Doesn’t take a rocket scientist to see a trend there. To win in today’s NFL you need an elite offense and an OK defense. Seattle has been built to have a high DVOA on defense and a below average DVOA on offense. If this team is going to compete going forward, they either need a defense that is so elite that it can stop the top-4 offenses in the league or they need to seriously improve the offense.
I would argue that no Seattle defense over the last 5-years would have stopped that Atlanta attack today. So rather than talking about silly stuff like trading Jimmy Graham, perhaps we should discuss how we could possibly get the Seattle offense into the top 5 in offensive DVOA next season.
That just doesn’t sound completely correct to me, but I could be wrong.
Can you run those same stats for the teams over the last two or three years to verify your point about the new NFL? I would challenge it until I see those numbers. Also, I don’t think Seattle built their offense to be bad. I think they mis-managed building the offensive line terribly, and I think we would have you to Seattle in a completely different way as I believe they would have kept winning with a better offense of line.
FA pickups add to the quality of a roster. The right draft picks infuses youth to an aging core. The OL needs a quality FA pickup. Defense needs an infusion of youth to an aging core.
Zeitler would be a good OL FA target. Adding a potential LT/RT in the draft could push or replace those presently at those positions. The OL rookies should grow from this year, as well as those that had their first year at their new positions.
Adding Zeitler would mean a move for Ifedi perhaps to RT, which would be a mistake for his development. The announcer made a good point of the movement of the DL was a problem for them blocking in space. Ifedi would struggle more so than Fant and Gilliam in overreacting in space. For that reason he probably won’t be signed. There new additions should be @ RT/LT, vet or a talented rookie.
As far as the aging core is concerned, inside push @ DT (nose & 3T) is a priority. Bennett & Avril need less snaps to stay fresh, since they make up part of that aging core. BWag & KJ also need help, as well as the decimated DBs. In essence, there is work to do. But they’re still close for another championship.
good analysis
I agree about Zeitler. I think to price will be too high for the Hawks.
A couple vets better than Webb and Sowell for competition and some experienced back up might be the best we get. The current line has the athletic profile they want, hopefully they can improve to be average.
Can Fant improve with an offseason to learn? Walt Jones thinks he can, hope he helps him.
pass rushing DT, SAM and an athletic safety/nickel are on my wish list for 3 of the 4 top picks, with an o lineman also in the top 2.
and if we can somehow add an All Pro free safety, an explosive 3rd down back and a good wr/kick returner to the team that played today that might help also.
I saw enough from P Rich lately to think they won’t take a WR high in the draft, and I think they hope Vannett can play next year, so I think the draft is mainly defense and at least 1 o line
I think “Glass Cannon” will be the name of my fantasy team next year…
I hate this part! 7 months to speculate and second guess. I guess it’ll keep us from going insane. So here is my complaint. I love Pete Carrol and JS but man I’m tired of making excuses for Bevel and Richard. It’s bad when I can sit back and call the next play. If I can do it what do you think they’re D.C can do. Same goes for the defense. It seems we’re so bad at making adjustments during the game. We are so predictable and stubborn about it. By far the best game we had was against the patriots. Bevel actually had Russell Wilson rolling out to throw the ball. I haven’t seen that since.
Obviously we need to upgrade in players (O line and defense depth). However, how come some offense and defense Cordinator’s can do such a great job with less talent?