Before getting into the college football notes, check out our Seahawks season preview live stream below…

This weekend was my first opportunity to sit down and watch live college football (along with some YouTube streaming). Here are some notes and thoughts:

1. The top quarterbacks are massively overrated

It’s only one game but based on what I saw this week combined with my previous study from last year, I’m not buying into the consensus grading for Oklahoma’s Spencer Rattler or North Carolina’s Sam Howell.

Neither player gives me the same feeling Zach Wilson did a year ago. They have their moments, of course. I’m not suggesting they’re totally hopeless. But if I was a fan of a team in the franchise quarterback market, I wouldn’t be looking at the 2022 draft for answers.

At least unless someone new emerges.

Rattler was the second best quarterback on the field on Saturday and was completely outshone by Tulane freshman Michael Pratt.

He finished with two interceptions but it should’ve been three. Rattler’s first pick was a terrible decision, lofting a floated deep ball into double coverage. It was beyond reckless. His second interception was thrown way off target and behind his wide open tight end.

There should’ve been a third. He threw another suicidal pass into thick coverage and just floated it into the air, begging to be picked off. The ref’s threw a flag for a DPI which was one of the worst calls you’ll ever see. The receiver was shoving the defender out of the play and his team mate jumped in to make the pick. If anything, it was OPI.

Rattler has physical tools and he’s very capable of extending plays. Yet to me he looks like a player who trusts his traits too much. He takes chances and gambles and that won’t cut it against pro opponents. Heck, it nearly cost Oklahoma a game against Tulane.

This was a trend early last season too. I’ve no doubt he’ll settle down as the weeks go on but for me there are big concerns about how he plays the game.

College players throw interceptions. They have bad games and make mistakes. There are different levels of error though. Opponents can make plays, you can be pressured, you can be forced into bad decisions.

Just chucking throws up into double coverage under no pressure? That’s different. Just thinking ‘ah f-it’ and lobbing one up? You can’t just do that. Having a play design where the TE is your first or second easy read and you throw it late and five yards behind him? Not good.

With Rattler, I just get the impression this is what he is. A toolsy player who takes chances. When the risks come off, great. When they don’t, we get a lazy, mistake-riddled performance like today that almost costs his team a game.

On the other hand, Pratt was poised, accurate, laid everything out for his team and almost pulled off the upset. He had great command of his offense and made the right decisions. He will be one to watch going forward.

Meanwhile, Howell and North Carolina were handily beaten by Virginia Tech on Friday. To me, Howell is a case of a player being elevated by internet scouts purely because he earned the starting role as a true freshman. It catches attention, people take notice. It’s assumed he must be something special but he’s not as good as some think.

He has a reasonable arm but he’s not elusive. He showed well on some quarterback keepers in this game but you’d never mistake him for a dynamic runner. There’s very little improvisation when the script breaks down.

I’m concerned about his accuracy and consistency. Too often he frets in the pocket under serious pressure and drops his eyes. I don’t think his tools are so good that you look beyond any of this.

To me he’s a fairly regular mid-round draft pick. At least with Rattler there’s the possibility of him working things out over time. Howell to me just appears pretty average.

Liberty’s quarterback Malik Willis is a very intriguing player and one to keep an eye on. There were a lot of flashy ‘wow’ plays on tape in 2020. There were also some ‘WTF’ moments and some serious technical issues he needs to address.

2. A safety worth a mention

Tulane’s Larry Brooks, take a bow. He delivered the toughest, most dynamic clean hit we’ve seen in years against Oklahoma. It was absolutely textbook — with superb striking range, power and it knocked an opponent out of the game.

Big hits are a thing of the past for the most part — and understandably so as the game transitions to a post-concussion-controversy era.

So it was such a delight to see Brooks deliver such a crushing blow — and that the refs acknowledged it by keeping the flags off the ground.

Furthermore, he also recovered an onside kick that gave Tulane an opportunity to win and he recovered a fumble which would’ve been crucial had it not been for the dumb flag on Rattler’s third pick.

Brooks is 6-0 and 200lbs and a junior. I’ll be keeping an eye out for him.

3. Kayvon Thibodeaux has an injury

With a mediocre looking quarterback class in 2022, Oregon’s star pass rusher had a pretty clean route to being the #1 overall pick with a good season.

However, after an impressive start including an early sack…

Kayvon. Thibodeaux.#GoDucks | @kayvonT8 pic.twitter.com/hfyvccVmm8

— Oregon Football (@oregonfootball) September 4, 2021

…he left the game with an injury and re-emerged on the sideline wearing a walking boot.

It’s reportedly an ankle injury which isn’t good news.

Meanwhile another pass rusher had a bright start to the season. Ohio State’s Zach Harrison had a tremendous sack/fumble against Minnesota, leading to a scoop-and-score touchdown for impressive defensive tackle Haskell Garrett.

The pair have a chance to really elevate their stock this season.

Aidan Hutchinson (DE, Michigan) also started with four tackles and a sack against Western Michigan. Provided he can stay healthy, Hutchinson has every chance to be a high pick next year. He has everything — great athleticism, size, power and the nouse to work out a route to the quarterback. Terrific talent.

Buckeye receivers Chris Olave and Garrett Wilson both were productive too. Olave had four catches for 117 yards and two touchdowns. Wilson recorded five catches for 80 yards and a touchdown. On the score, Wilson created a country mile of separation on a 56-yard throw-and-catch.

That said, I have reservations about their testing speed. They will have productive seasons, no doubt. But if they test at the combine I wouldn’t expect the kind of times that will have scouts salivating. Wilson ran a 4.61 forty at SPARQ. Olave only managed a 4.73.

4. A pair of running backs to keep an eye on

Kenneth Walker is 5-10 and 210lbs. He transferred from Wake Forest to Michigan State and on his MSU debut ran for 264 yards against Northwestern.

He scoured four touchdowns and had 11.5 YPC.

Walker has the size Seattle likes, he ran with power and explosion and showed breakaway speed on a long run to start the game. He’s one to watch moving forward, although he didn’t test at SPARQ so I don’t have any numbers as an early gauge.

Last week I highlighted UCLA running back Zach Charbonnet as one to watch. In a big win against LSU he again impressed, running for 117 yards on just 11 carries and a score.

He’s working in a backfield rotation which limits his snaps but so far he’s making the most of his opportunities with a tough, physical running style. Tacklers bounce off him, he has great balance and quickness. He accelerates quickly to get through the gears and he appears to have good vision to read opportunities and the physical talent to take his chances.

He also had a 35-yard reception in the game.

I’m a big fan. He’s a Michigan transfer and a former four-star recruit. He’s originally from California and seems to be settling back in on the west coast. Take the opportunity to check him out when you get a chance.

5. Tight ends make an impression

Two of the leading TE’s for 2022 were productive albeit in losing efforts.

Cade Otton had eight catches for 82 yards in Washington’s embarrassing effort against Montana. It’s hard to think what UW’s offense would look like without Otton.

Jake Ferguson had nine catches for 52 yards as Wisconsin lost to Penn State. Ferguson made one incredible diving, one-handed catch.

Both players warrant close attention this year.

Iowa’s Sam La Porta is someone I haven’t studied closely yet but will do. He’s highly rated by many. He had five catches for 83 yards as Iowa hammered Indiana. He’s difficult to bring down and had one play by the right sideline where he broke two tackles and dodged another for a few extra YAC.

The play of the day by a tight end, however, goes to UCLA redshirt junior Greg Dulcich. He scored on a 75-yard run-and-catch where he dodged one open-field tackle, sprinted down the sideline and then hurdled another defender to fall into the end zone. He had two other impressive plays too. I’m intrigued to see more.

6. Something my wife said

The Louisville logo flashed onto the screen at one point on Saturday. My wife, who wasn’t initially watching the college football, spotted and laughed loudly.

“Look at that bird! With its teeth and its beak!’

I’d never noticed until now. Why the hell does it have teeth!??!

7. Quick-hitting thoughts

— I am not convinced Justyn Ross at Clemson is as good as the internet believes. He started the season with four catches for 26 yards as Clemson toiled and struggled against Georgia’s ferocious and creative pass rush. It was pleasing to see Jordan Davis standing out again for Georgia. He’s not just a huge, space-eating defensive tackle. He’s more athletic than people realise and he’s capable of dominating the interior. He’s one of the best players in college football.

— Highly rated LSU pass rusher Ali Gaye also had a sack against UCLA, engaging with the right tackle and hand-fighting to disengage before finishing to the QB. Safety Eli Ricks is one to watch for the 2023 draft. He had four picks last season and had a good interception against UCLA — reading the play superbly. He has good size. One final note from this game — the commentator describing Caleb Johnson picking off Max Johnson as a ‘Johnson on Johnson crime’… was… interesting. At least he only called it a house call when Kayshon Boutte scored his second touchdown. Boutte, for what it’s worth, looks like a real talent. He had nine catches for 148 yards and three scores.

— It’s going to be an absolute precession for Alabama this season.

If you saw any prospects worth checking out this season jot their name down in the comments section. I have a few other games saved on my system to get into in the coming days.

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Sources: The #Seahawks are trading CB Ahkello Witherspoon to the #Steelers. A little secondary help before the opener.

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) September 3, 2021

Just a couple of quick thoughts on this…

Firstly, whatever the compensation, this is a good move. It was becoming increasingly clear that the Seahawks were not impressed with Witherspoon. He failed to create an impression and had lost out in the competition to start.

Moving on and getting something, anything, in return is fine.

(Edit — it’s been revealed the compensation is a 2023 fifth round pick)

However, it does again highlight a glaring issue on the roster.

Seattle goes into the off-season searching for answers at corner. They’ll hope Tre Flowers really is better this time. They want Sidney Jones to push for a starting gig.

Yet at least at this initial stage, it’s difficult to be optimistic about the position.

And just as a year ago Seattle started the season with an inadequate pass rush — you have to hope that cornerback isn’t going to be the 2021 version.

It’s also worth noting that while the Seahawks save $1.5m by making this trade, they absorb $1.25m in dead money this year and next year.

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I think Quandre Diggs tried to pull a fast one at the end of camp and has been left with his tail between his legs.

Having seen Jamal Adams hold out and receive a record-breaking contract and Duane Brown hold out amid increased media talk that the Seahawks would sweeten the pot for their left tackle, I suspect Diggs wanted some of the action.

You could even argue, why not? There’s no harm in trying.

Yet I think it’s very evident that here is a man trying to save face after a failed attempt to get the team to act.

Last week Pete Carroll said in a press conference that Diggs was making a statement. Yesterday, Diggs played that down. It was all just a small, personal situation he needed to take care of.

Now it’s emerged he’s trying to take out an insurance policy against injury this season.

Surely though, he could’ve done that weeks if not months ago?

Not only that, why start camp and risk injury then right at the end decide you need insurance? Meanwhile you single yourself out by not practising and write a series of prolific tweets hinting at your dissatisfaction.

Chalk this one down to a victory for the team. It appears Diggs tried to get them to extend his deal now, amid the huge extensions for not only Adams but also Harrison Smith in Minnesota. The Seahawks, quite rightly, said this isn’t the time.

And it isn’t. If Diggs stays in Seattle beyond 2021 it’ll likely be after he establishes his market in free agency. This would be the worst possible time for the team to negotiate with their other starting safety.

Not only that, it would be an invitation for every other player on the team to ‘hold out’ prior to their final season on a contract. Eventually you have to draw a line in the sand and say, ‘no’.

Diggs’ press conference on Tuesday was a bit like the ‘comical Ali’ meme. Nothing to see here. I suspect the truth is he had a go and failed to coax more money out of the Seahawks. He’ll be playing in week one on the same deal.

The key is going to be Duane Brown. There’s less than two weeks to resolve this issue, which is far more important.

53-man roster notes

— I am baffled by the decision to keep three quarterbacks, mainly because Geno Smith and Sean Mannion aren’t actually any good. If keeping Mannion around due to his knowledge of the scheme is important, cut Smith. It seems they want to retain both somehow, perhaps with Mannion reverting to being a veteran member of the practise squad, and they think retaining him for now is the way to make it happen. It still seems a bit unnecessary.

— This is very much an incomplete picture. With four receivers, five pure running backs, 11 offensive linemen, a cluster of D-liners and weak depth at corner and linebacker there will presumably be claims and transactions coming this week. I just hope they don’t get too cute over the next few days.

— The Seahawks have never been a team to save a lot of cap space. The fact they have $13m in effective cap space currently suggests a potentially aggressive period of roster construction is forthcoming. I know people keep saying it’s unlikely but it’s got to be a possibility that K.J. Wright returns. They need another linebacker. Geno Atkins also is a distinct possibility, at the expense of maybe even L.J. Collier. If it’s possible to keep adding at cornerback too, that would be wise. Nobody wants to see Tre Flowers start, surely?

— Yesterday was a reminder that UDFA’s are still UDFA’s for a reason. There was much praise for Seattle’s undrafted class this year — and how a lack of draft picks had helped the Seahawks. Well, in the end, only Jake Curhan made the roster. Players like Cade Johnson may well make the practise squad and eventually get called up. But the lack of players making the team is indicative of the nature of UDFA’s. The Seahawks have never been more wide open to make the roster and only one undrafted player made the initial big cut.

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Trade: Jaguars sending CB Sidney Jones to Seattle, per source. Jones returns to area where he shined in college.

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) August 30, 2021

Cornerback is a real issue for the Seahawks.

With D.J. Reed banged up during camp the talent levels were exposed. Pierre Desir didn’t last long. Ahkello Witherspoon has looked average. Tre Flowers continues to do Tre Flowers things. Tre Brown now has an injury.

There’s a distinct lack of quality and depth at the position.

It will be a problem during the season unless they find solutions. No amount of pass rush will completely cover up for being terrible at corner.

It’s not beyond the realms of possibility they find some answers. After all, Reed was an opportunistic pick-up a year ago. The 49ers even admitted they messed up letting him go, hoping to stash him once he’d suffered a somewhat serious injury. The Seahawks took a chance on his health and it paid off. Provided he stays healthy, Reed will be Seattle’s #1 cornerback in 2021.

These situations are relatively rare though. And this is the first time where there’s widespread uncertainty at the position under Pete Carroll. If nothing else, they always had a Shaq Griffin or Marcus Trufant in the past.

The urgency of the problem is evident in how much they’re scrambling around making deals. John Reid from the Texans last week, Sidney Jones today (in a deal for a sixth round pick in 2022).

They don’t have the draft stock to make a splash and readily available quality cornerbacks are not exactly commonplace in the NFL.

Thus, this is seemingly where they’re at. Hoping, praying that a solution emerges.

Jones was once a very talented, highly rated cornerback with first round potential. He suffered a serious injury at his pro-day and his stock dropped into round two. Before his third season in Philadelphia he was cut and picked up by Jacksonville.

By all accounts he had some relative success with the Jaguars last year — starting six games and collecting 26 tackles, two interceptions and a forced fumble. His PFF grade was a 68.1. Shaquille Griffin, in comparison, graded at 64.1.

It’s just hard to invest much faith in Jones with his career to date. He’ll get his opportunity now though to see if he can make things happen. It might be his last opportunity to do so.

Growing pains at corner seem inevitable at this stage and while you don’t necessarily need elite, top-level cornerbacks to succeed — it’s a position you can’t be dreadful at.

The Seahawks should probably get Geno Atkins back in Seattle pronto…

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It’s stating the obvious but this was a vast improvement (well, they won 27-0, duh).

More importantly than any score or victory though was the fact there were legit positives to come out of the performance.

Firstly, some praise for Pete Carroll. I feared he would play key starters in this game after two sloppy, god-awful outings in the first two weeks. He hinted at it after the Denver game and it was concerning. As bad as Seattle were against the Raiders and Broncos, there was absolutely no reason to risk any stars against LA.

Just look at the JK Dobbins knee injury earlier in the day for a case in point.

It was a relief to see Carroll, who has started key players in virtually all of his pre-season games previously, resist the temptation — and be rewarded by those who did play.

The main positive for me was Darrell Taylor. He had an early speed-to-power rush that resulted in a pressure. Then he came screaming off the edge, rounding the tackle for a big sack. Later on he showed great effort to chase back to a pressured QB to share a sack with Kerry Hyder.

This is what everyone has been hoping for. Nobody could be blamed for wondering whether Taylor would ever see the field in Seattle, let alone perform if he did. In this game he looked like a player who can cause opponents problems.

Forget the SAM — they have enough money to go and get KJ Wright and still should do that. Get Taylor off the edge on key downs and let him be in attack mode.

Don’t do what you did a year ago, making Alton Robinson inactive so Luke Willson can be active for zero offensive and special teams snaps. This guy needs to play.

Taylor showed enough in this game to warrant a big role as a specialist pass rusher.

It was also good to see another recent second round pick, Dee Eskridge, looking quick and explosive. He was fluid with the ball in hand and made one typically eye-catching grab (the type he used to make in college all the time). I was a big fan of Eskridge going into the draft and there’s no doubt he can be a very exciting player for Seattle if he stays healthy.

There was actually a running game this week, which was extremely pleasing to see. Alex Collins in particular was agile, explosive and physical. For me he should’ve sealed the RB2 position with this performance, ahead of Rashaad Penny. Collins looks like a player who should be getting a sizeable role to limit the wear and tear on Chris Carson. In fact he looks very capable of leading the rushing attack if needed.

I liked the way Seattle blitzed in this game. I’ve not studied it closely but on first view the timing and variety was pleasing. One big blitz by Cody Barton obviously led to a touchdown for Marquise Blair.

There may be others I’m missing, writing immediately after a first condensed viewing, but I thought Joshua Moon played well.

Overall defensively they made the Chargers look as bad as the Seahawks did in the previous two weeks, so that was a big improvement.

There are three issues I want to discuss too.

I’m not sure why referee’s decide annually to take over pre-season games but someone needs to tell them, finally, to stop. The number of penalties was ridiculous and even watching in a 40-minute condensed replay it was painful at times.

If avoidable injuries are reason #1 to finally get rid of pre-season, then refereeing nonsense is a close #2.

It remains a big mystery why the Seahawks over the years have been unable to find a backup quarterback of even middling ability. Geno Smith, as fun as his scrambling around in this one was, isn’t good enough. Sean Mannion isn’t good enough.

John Schneider arrived in Seattle talking about drafting quarterbacks regularly and yet in the Carroll/Schneider era they’ve selected just two in twelve drafts. One of those, of course, was seventh rounder Alex McGough — cut last week because he’s even worse than Smith and Mannion.

Perhaps Russell Wilson’s consistent availability has made it a moot point? Yet it’s a little surprising that in well over a decade they haven’t drafted a solid, decent backup that you might actually be excited to see in an emergency.

If Smith or Mannion has to start for Seattle, it’ll be ugly.

I’m also not sure we learnt that much about the cornerback position in this one. It still looks like a weak area that will need to be further addressed.

Seattle has plenty of cap space. It’ll be interesting to see what strings they have to pull before week one to ensure Duane Brown and Quandre Diggs take the field.

With Brown, there’s simply no alternative other than making this right.

With Diggs, I’m not sure that’s the case. Seattle has depth at safety and they can’t have every player who is moderately displeased holding out. They don’t want to set that precedent. Calling his bluff might be best. Or even considering trading him. Especially if you can get an upgrade at corner in return.

Quick draft thought from the weekend — I only watched some of one game. UCLA vs Hawaii. If you want a name who shone in that one, check out UCLA running back Zach Charbonnet. He’s 6-1 and 220lbs and ran with explosion, power and quickness. He’s a former four-star recruit who has transferred from Michigan.

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Firstly, some welcome news today…

Former #Bengals All-Pro and Pro Bowl DT Geno Atkins is visiting the #Seahawks today, per his agency @_SportsTrust. Fully cleared from surgery that short-circuited last season, Atkins could be big-time addition to Seattle’s D-line.

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) August 23, 2021

Geno Atkins is 33-years-old. Who can say whether he still has anything to offer? It’s at least worth finding out.

Jarran Reed’s departure has somewhat been glossed over. An argument can certainly be made for his cap hit simply being too high in 2021, justifying his exit.

It’s also worth remembering in his last two full seasons in 2018 and 2020, he combined for 17 sacks.

There aren’t many defensive tackles who can produce those numbers.

It’s certainly not impossible for Poona Ford, Al Woods and Bryan Mone to pick up the slack. I’m just not convinced it’s their game. And there’s nothing wrong with that. Ford in particular was superb in 2020 and elevated his performance to a new level. The Seahawks played a blinder by extending his contract before he reached free agency next year.

He can and hopefully will excel — but I don’t expect that to be to the tune of 6-8 sacks.

Maybe Atkins is too old, too injured and too past his best? I still think for a team intending to seriously contend this year, you might as well give him a few games to find out. They need an Atkins-type, after all.

In a specialist role where you limit his snaps and give him a chance to get you off the field with a sack or pressure, there aren’t any better options out there.

Carlos Dunlap is only a year younger than Atkins. He hasn’t had the recent health issues but he was invigorated by leaving Cincinnati and moving to Seattle.

Bringing in Atkins would be a smart move — even if it doesn’t work out. Nobody will complain for rolling the dice here.

It’s a win-win. A shot to nothing.

Personally I’d hoped Atkins would be part of a double-veteran signing. It may well be — but not in the way I expected…

Interesting stuff here on Wright. As for the Seahawks and their LB corps with BBK out, as I wrote the other night, if they sign someone, it's to be a backup and play a lot on special teams. I don't think that's something they'd ask Wright to do, or that he'd want to do. https://t.co/5wm79UoBmf

— Bob Condotta (@bcondotta) August 23, 2021

I’m confused by Seattle’s approach here. Firstly, their depth is weak at linebacker. Secondly, they’re messing around at the SAM position. Signing K.J. Wright kills two birds with one stone.

I said this on Saturday and in recent podcasts. Put Alton Robinson and Darrell Taylor on the field as pure pass rushers and let them get after the quarterback. Forget about putting them at linebacker or asking them to adapt. They are pass rushers.

Taylor in particular looks like a fish out of water trying to make the switch.

The Seahawks have a habit of shifting players around during camp when arguably they’d be better off just honing in on a specific job. It’d be exciting to see Robinson and Taylor flying off the edge on third down. Watching them trying to handle the running game or cover someone at SAM? That’s scary.

Wright had one of his best seasons in 2020 playing SAM. Even if his contract demands are a little rich, the Seahawks have quite a lot of cap space to use comparatively speaking. They know what they’re getting from Wright and it’s all good.

Instead it seems increasingly likely they might bump Jordyn Brooks to SAM and have Cody Barton play the WILL. That is not an exciting thought.

The veteran who could be returning is, of course, Luke Willson…

Another potential reunion: Veteran TE Luke Willson is set to visit the #Seahawks later this week, source said. Originally a Seattle 5th round pick, Willson also spent some time with them last year.

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) August 23, 2021

I like Willson. He seems like a fun guy and he’s never given anything other than maximum effort.

He also seems very much like a player who must think to himself what he would’ve been doing the last few years if it wasn’t for the Seahawks giving him a job.

Lest we forget that in 2020 they occasionally chose to activate Willson for zero snaps on offense or even special teams rather than give Alton Robinson an opportunity to rush the passer.

As long as that doesn’t happen again, fine. But there’s a part of me wondering whether a 31-year-old tight end who probably wouldn’t be in the league but for Seattle might just get in the way a bit, once again.

He’s probably just a body to get them through a bit of short-term injury trouble at the position. It won’t say much for the much vaunted depth at tight end, though, if he ends up being anything more than that come the regular season.

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At the start of Pete Carroll’s post-game press conference, a loud horn-honk blurted out, presumably from someone’s cell phone.

“I agree” said Carroll, dryly, in response to the noise, after a 30-3 hammering.

I enjoy a bit of gallows humour. So kudos to Seattle’s coach for that, at least.

For the second week in a row my personal business decision not to stay up until the early hours of the morning to watch a pre-season game was rewarded.

I half expected someone to present me with a game-ball when I’d watched the condensed version of this latest enthralling counter, several hours after its conclusion.

‘Well done Rob, you’re the real winner this weekend’

Let’s get the usual caveats out of the way. Yes, Denver played a much stronger team than Seattle at the start of the game. You’d expect them to be superior and that’s very much how it played out.

I still have concerns from these two pre-season games.

Last week it looked like a well prepared, organised, functioning set of backups against a group that had been thrown together in a week or two.

Against Denver it felt like more of the same. The Seahawks barely functioned. They couldn’t get off the field on defense. They seem incapable of putting together a cohesive offense when key starters are missing.

The arguments last week about Seattle’s coaching, development and depth felt validated.

Jon Gruden put together a plan so that Nathan Peterman, Las Vegas’ third string quarterback best known for an embarrassing stint in Buffalo, could play reasonably well.

In two weeks, what have the Seahawks dished up? Watching Geno Smith, Alex McGough and Sean Mannion has been torturous. So either all three are just so bad they shouldn’t be on the roster (which is plausible) or the coaches really need to put them in a better position to succeed.

It’s not just the quarterback play though (although it was horrendous — and I don’t want to see another checkdown ahead of the LOS on fourth down ever again). There were major, back-breaking penalties. The running game was abysmal. The turnovers and decision making farcical.

The Seahawks looked hopeless, disorganised and incoherent on offense. They couldn’t get even the basics right in order to sustain a few drives to properly evaluate the roster.

It’s not about being brilliant and impressive with backups in pre-season. It would be nice to see evidence though of a team that can at least function to a basic level. Gruden got a tune out of Peterman. Frankly — a performance 50% as good as the Raiders on offense last week would be appreciated at this stage.

It was also a night to think about, once again, what could’ve been. As Rashaad Penny ran for eight yards on five carries, falling down on first contact, the name ‘Nick Chubb’ once again filled my brain.

I’m sure it was the same for John Schneider too. It’s long since been revealed how much they regret the decision they made in the 2018 draft. Chubb is fresh off a big contract extension in Cleveland. At least the Seahawks won’t have to worry about that with Penny. He’ll only be on the final roster by default at this stage. Given the way Deejay Dallas played against Denver, he might be for the chop anyway.

On defense, many key starters were also missing. Yet a number of players they’re clearly relying on also played. That includes Ahkello Witherspoon — who was beat by Jerry Jeudy early in the game for a big fourth down conversion before settling into a role on special teams.

Consistently Denver managed to move the chains on fourth down — converting three of four times.

Of course this will be a different team with Carlos Dunlap, Bobby Wagner, Jamal Adams and Quandre Diggs starting. Yet short of Rasheem Green — who is an expert in flattering to deceive — there wasn’t a whole lot to take away from this game in a positive sense.

The cornerback position feels like a major problem waiting to happen. Witherspoon left San Francisco without much of an attempt to retain him. He’s been, at best, a middling starter who the 49ers clearly saw as replaceable.

Suddenly we’re left pining for D.J. Reed’s return, while hoping he can stay healthy. Even he alone might not be enough — he was a pleasant surprise a year ago and who can say whether he’ll be reliable as the de facto #1 corner in 2021?

I’m also concerned that as Seattle evolves the scheme defensively that they’re going to try and plug square pegs into round holes. I haven’t studied either player specifically against Denver but I did notice Alton Robinson listed as a linebacker on the depth chart pre-game. A week ago he was listed as a LEO.

Robinson and Darrell Taylor, for me, should do one thing in 2021. Rush the passer on passing downs. Let them get after it. That’s what they’re good at.

Trying to fit them in at SAM feels like a mistake.

If you need a certain type of ‘SAM’ to play this way, go and get K.J. Wright.

Robinson has shown flashes as a pure pass rusher and that’s what Taylor was drafted for. Let them focus on that, where they can truly impact games.

I’ll finish with a reinforcement of what I said last week. I have concerns about the way this team develops players and I don’t think they’ve done a good enough job there for a few years. I don’t trust Ken Norton and Pete Carroll to get the most out of their defensive personnel. I think there’s a lot of pressure on Shane Waldron, as a rookie offensive coordinator and play caller, to deliver on offense.

There’s a lot of hope for Waldron but the reality is, he’s a total unknown.

I also don’t think this team has drafted well enough or used its resources properly since the re-set in 2018.

The end product is a top-heavy roster that relies on star players to cover coaching, development and depth warts. And this pre-season, we’re seeing the roster ruthlessly exposed.

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Today I was joined by Robbie Williams & Matt Mikolas to discuss the Jamal Adams contract and other Seahawks topics going into the second pre-season game…

Here’s a clip from my recent appearance on the brilliant Pedestrian Podcast. It explains why I have reservations about the direction of the Seahawks and their 2021 prospects.

After listening to it, check out the full podcast (which is conveniently available right underneath the YouTube vid…)

What a joyless experience that was.

Admittedly, a number of key players were missing. That really just highlighted an issue that has existed for some time in Seattle.

The Seahawks rely on quality players. Their stars — Russell Wilson, D.K. Metcalf et al — elevate the team.

When’s the last time a brilliant piece of scheming or coaching won the day?

Both teams rested starters. The Raiders gave a whole game to the much maligned Nathan Peterman.

Yet they were able to put together a coherent plan for a quarterback who has been the butt of many jokes. He finished with 246 passing yards and 32 rushing. They ran for 158 yards. They moved the ball relatively well, all considered — collecting 385 total yards and converting 11/17 on third downs.

The Seahawks, in comparison, delivered a total wet fish of a performance. As has been the norm over the years, the offensive play in pre-season whenever Russell Wilson isn’t on the field has been abject.

They had just 194 total yards. They ran for 68 — 25 of which came from Alex McGough. None of the quarterbacks looked comfortable. They were 4/13 on third downs.

Here’s the yardage split in the first half:

Raiders — 290
Seahawks — 44

I could sit here and talk about Cody Barton’s two sacks (well collected, yet mixed in with a poor first half performance). Yes, it was nice to see Darrell Taylor on the field for the first time (albeit in a largely unspectacular debut). Good for Deejay Dallas to take his opportunity to make a big play when the Raiders defense fell asleep.

Yet all I could think of as I watched the game on replay this morning (having rightly decided not to stay up until 2am to watch it live) was the stark difference in coaching.

Jon Gruden had his team functioning and ready to play. The Seahawks were not.

Part of that will be growing pains with a new offensive coordinator and scheme adjustments. I’m sure the Seahawks are also keen not to tip their hat for the Colts game.

Yet so often in recent years this team hasn’t been particularly well coached or prepared. They’ve failed to adjust in games too. And they rely on Wilson to execute, on Metcalf to use his insane physical skill to make a difference.

This is a team without particularly good depth across the board that relies on a handful of stars. If/when those stars underperform, the Seahawks look incredibly ordinary (as we saw at times at the end of last season). They haven’t been able to coach around those occasions.

Regardless of who did or didn’t play — Las Vegas looked reasonably well-tuned in this one. Seattle looked like they were still in the first week of camp.

And while there’s understandably a lot of excitement around Shane Waldron’s arrival — he’s still a rookie play-caller on a new team operating for a Head Coach known for meddling. It feels like everyone is pinning their hopes on Waldron to offer the kind of coaching chops that have been lacking. That’s a lot of pressure on his shoulders.

The other key takeaway was the O-line.

I’m not sure what needs to happen with Duane Brown. However, there is absolutely no way the Seahawks can afford to go out to Indianapolis with Stone Forsythe starting at left tackle. There has to be concerns about a line that is already being impacted by injuries to Damien Lewis and Ethan Pocic.

Finally — short of a quick recovery for D.J. Reed — Tre Flowers and Ahkello Witherspoon will be Seattle’s starting cornerbacks in Indianapolis. Based on the evidence in this game, that’s a scary thought.

“Not good enough… on both sides of the ball” was Pete Carroll’s assessment afterwards. And he was right.

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