This was not a good night for RGIII and the Redskins

This is a team that keeps making statements.

Despite a lot of positive media coverage this week, the often trotted out ‘can’t win on the road’ excuse reared its ugly head again. A long 29-years of waiting for a road playoff victory will do that.

Matt Ryan, Julio Jones, Roddy White or Tony Gonzalez might win a playoff game for Atlanta next week. But it won’t be the fact Seattle is playing on the road that is the problem. This was the teams third straight road victory and but for a crazy opening, it was about as comprehensive as anyone could’ve hoped for. The Seahawks can win away from the Pacific North West.

Washington came out flying and threatened to show up a number of lingering issues for the Seahawks. The team failed to generate any meaningful pass rush early on while again sticking with four rushers. Robert Griffin III had an age to throw the ball and he made it count with two quick scores. Alfred Morris also found early running room. The Redskins were playing Seattle’s game against them. They were physical, they were relentless and they executed with confidence.

It brought back memories of Seattle’s last playoff game – a pasting in Chicago. And the previous road game in the post-season against Green Bay. Surely this wasn’t going to be another beat down? Not this time — not this team?

Had you said at the time that Washington’s 14th point would be their last, nobody would’ve believed you. We can talk about the play of Russell Wilson, the defense or Marshawn Lynch. You don’t often come from 14-points down on the road in the playoffs. For a young team to show that level of composure when they were up against it is quite something. The Seahawks dominated from the second quarter onwards and fully deserve to reach the Divisional round of the playoffs.

There are some issues I want to talk about…

The offense had several missed opportunities. Anthony McCoy stalled a promising drive with a bad drop, Lynch had a momentum-destroying fumble in the red zone that was crying out to be a deciding factor. The play calling mixed between genius and puzzling. The zone read jumped in and out with a little too much frequency despite it’s relative success. I didn’t much care for a third down call at 13-14 that included one receiver (Doug Baldwin) on the field, almost inviting the Redskins to blitz (which they do well). Wilson was sacked on the play.

There were several things Washington did that were very predictable, but still had success with. Is this just execution and you take your lumps, or could certain early problems have been avoided? Even an untrained eye like mine could see how frequently they brought the secondary blitz against Dallas last week, yet the Seahawks struggled to adjust to it at any point today.

The pass rush is still a major concern – even more so if Chris Clemons is out for the Atlanta game. PFT is reporting it could be an ACL injury. The Seahawks cannot press a quarterback with four rushers. We see it every week. I’m not entirely sure how you solve this issue during the playoffs. It’s clearly a focal point of Pete Carroll and Gus Bradley’s scheme. It might be something they have to live with for now until improvements can be made in the post-season. But if they can’t get pressure on Matt Ryan next week, it’ll be more of an issue than it was today against an injured Robert Griffin III.

Funnily enough the one player who is most susceptible to criticism due to a lack of pass rush – Alan Branch – had possibly his best game of the season today. He was amped up and had a couple of key plays in the backfield, including a sack. Even so, the defensive line in general was predictable against the pass. Late in the game Carroll and Bradley clearly felt confident enough to attack Kirk Cousins and brought all-out blitzes with major success. I don’t think you can do this from the start, but there’s a duty to be a little more creative next week especially if Clemons can’t go.

One suggestion is to perhaps re-consider adding Ray Edwards this week. He’ll need no motivation against his old team and is probably the best free agent on the market who fits the scheme. Even if Bruce Irvin starts – and he played extremely well after replacing Clemons – they’ll need another pass rusher. For those not aware, Edwards was cut by the Falcons earlier this year despite signing a big contract in Atlanta after leaving the Vikings. Unless he really failed to impress during a recent work-out in Seattle, I’m not sure what they’d have to lose?

It’s hard to be too critical of the defense on a night when they made key adjustments early and dominated after the first quarter. Carroll and Bradley deserve a lot of props. They combated the early problems and came out swinging. This was a good night for Bradley, who could interview with the Eagles in the next day or two for the vacant Head Coaches position in Philadelphia.

On the whole the offensive line did a good job against Jim Haslett’s creative scheme. J.R. Sweezy had a much better game and it probably helped having John Moffitt in for a few series. Zach Miller had a terrific night making clutch plays and looked every bit an elite tight end. He was probably the MVP for Seattle. He sprung Lynch for the go-ahead touchdown with a crunching block before catching the two-point conversion. On the same drive he had a catch and run for a key third down. This was Miller’s best day for the Seahawks.

You cannot give Russell Wilson enough credit for winning his first road playoff game. He wasn’t perfect – he missed some throws and had one or two questionable decisions. Yet he’s already playing like a veteran and is a defining playmaker. At times he looked like Wisconsin-Wilson again, which is no bad thing. The game is really slowing down for him with every passing week, no doubt due to his extreme preparation and growing experience.

The Redskins came into the game with the #5 rushing defense. The Seahawks ran for 224 yards on the ground. That’s impressive.

Our wishes go out to Robert Griffin III, who played hurt throughout and appeared to suffer a further nasty injury to his right knee. Serious questions have to be asked about the way Mike Shanahan has dealt with his star quarterback. The Redskins traded three first round picks for Griffin, yet appeared to be gambling with that investment all night. He clearly wasn’t anywhere close to 100%, yet he was still running zone plays and rushing basically on one leg. When he twisted awkwardly trying to recover a botched snap, it was evident just how weak his knee was. It doesn’t matter how much a player wants to play sometimes, you have to be above that. The coaches should know better in that situation. You drafted Kirk Cousins for this exact situation.

Make no mistake, the Falcons will be a far superior test. They’ll milk the clock, use their playmakers and play a bend-but-don’t-break defense. It might be their year after several playoff disappointments. However, the Seahawks can go their with nothing to lose. They’re playing the NFC’s #1 seed on the road in a game that starts at 10:00am PST. The win tonight qualifies the season as a major step forward and it legitimises the franchise. Losing in Atlanta won’t change that. But I doubt anyone is contemplating a losing scenario right now.

Bring on the Falcons.

Draft order update

The Seahawks will now pick no lower than #25 overall in the 2013 draft. This was also a good night for the St. Louis Rams as they own Washington’s first round pick. They will pick twice in the second half of the draft as things stand with the #16 and #22 overall picks. Here is the updated draft order for picks 1-24:

1. Kansas City Chiefs
2. Jacksonville Jaguars
3. Oakland Raiders
4. Philadelphia Eagles
5. Detroit Lions
6. Cleveland Browns
7. Arizona Cardinals
8. Buffalo Bills
9. New York Jets
10. Tennessee Titans
11. San Diego Chargers
12. Miami Dolphins
13. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
14. Carolina Panthers
15. New Orleans Saints
16. St. Louis Rams
17. Pittsburgh Steelers
18. Dallas Cowboys
19. New York Giants
20. Chicago Bears
21. Cincinnati Bengals
22. St. Louis Rams
23. Minnesota Vikings
24. Indianapolis Colts

Aaron Murray returning to Georgia

The Bulldogs quarterback tweeted out today that he won’t be turning pro. Considering the way the SEC Championship game finished, this isn’t a big surprise. He’ll be playing on a Georgia team without some serious defensive talent. Alec Ogletree, Jarvis Jones, Bacarri Rambo, Jonathan Jenkins and others are all heading for the NFL. Even so, he doesn’t have the physical tools to warrant early round consideration. Why not spend another year chasing glory in the SEC?

Blessed to be the QB for the Dawgs, not ready to leave just yet. Time to get back to work & help lead this team to a championship #GoDawgs

— Aaron Murray (@aaronmurray11) January 7, 2013

What to expect this week…

Lots and lots and lots and lots of mock drafts projecting Syracuse quarterback Ryan Nassib to Buffalo in round one. Because, as you know, as soon as a college coach heads for the pro’s, he spends a top ten pick on his old quarterback who really isn’t worth much more than a mid-round grade. Or maybe not.

Sunday is a great opportunity for the Seahawks to prove they're as good as advertised

Thoughts on Seattle @ Washington

All week the Seahawks have been praised, promoted and respected. It’s now time to prove the hype is justified.

I’ve never seen so many members of the media fall over themselves to declare the Seahawks as Super Bowl contenders. They’re a great ‘on paper’ team. Statistically they rank well in all three facets of the game. They have key positions filled with talented players. There’s the quarterback, running back, shutdown corner, left tackle, passer rusher with double digit sacks. There’s a lot of balance on the roster. And they play a style of football that traditionally does well in the playoffs.

None of this means much. Because the people who watch the Seahawks every week know the deal. This is a young team still growing into its trousers. There are issues that flare up every now and again. Third down defense, pass rush on early downs, pass protection against certain schemes, run defense. There are also a ton of positives too, but this isn’t a flawless team. And they’ll have to play a great game to beat the Washington Redskins.

For me it’s all about establishing an early lead and chipping away. I don’t think it’ll be a high scoring game. It could play out a little like the Bears game. But getting a lead and keeping the Redskins at arms length will be crucial. Alfred Morris and the Shanahan ZBS can beat the Seahawks. They’ll be able to run to the left side and have some success there.

Seattle has to try and minimise the threat and make the Redskins chase. If Washington gets in front, they’ll run it and let Robert Griffin III manage the situation. He isn’t turning the ball over and he won’t make mistakes if he’s protecting a lead. He might make mistakes if he has to force things. The run is less of a factor if the Redskins have to chase the game. Starting fast is always important, but it may be more so tomorrow.

I think Jim Haslett will blitz a lot, just like he did against Dallas. Russell Wilson is more mobile than Tony Romo, but Romo has always had a knack of extending plays. Not against Washington last week. H looked like Ryan Mallett in the pocket last weekend, struggling to find time and exploit a shaky Redskins secondary. The St. Louis Rams gave Haslett a blue print on how to rush against the Seahawks, so there could be some issues in the first half again.

Seattle needs the offensive line to step up again. They’d played very well in recent weeks until that half against the Rams. It might be best to play max-protect early and rely on the receivers, knowing that Rice, Tate or Baldwin are likely to match up well against DeAngelo Hall and co. Washington’s pass rush isn’t quite as emphatic as St. Louis’ and it’s a different scheme. The Seahawks handled San Francisco’s 3-4 handily. Getting the read-option going will help and Washington didn’t do a great job against Cam Newton and the Panthers in week nine.

I think it’s the greatest review of Seattle’s quarterback situation and how it’s changed that I don’t have any concerns about Russell Wilson going into this game. I feel pretty confident he’ll do his job well. And if the Seahawks lose, it won’t be on the quarterback. Imagine that. Just a few months ago this team had no hope at quarterback. Now they have one of the best young signal callers in the league. For a third round pick.

For a couple of weeks people have talked about Seattle being the team nobody wanted to face in the playoffs. Now it’s time to back that up. Even though I’d say it’s a coin-toss type of game, it’ll also be very disappointing if a season of such promise ended with a first round playoff defeat. If there’s one thing worse than nobody talking about you, it’s being called a fraud. The Seahawks are getting praise. Time to prove it’s worthy.

DeAndre Hopkins tape vs five teams

Thanks to JMPasq for putting this together. We’ve talked a lot about DeAndre Hopkins on the blog this week and even mocked him to Seattle in round one. Here’s a compilation of his performances against Florida State, South Carolina, Georgia Tech, Boston College and NC State.

Will Sutton vs Navy

This was a pretty odd performance. For most of the game he did very little, often getting pushed around at the line of scrimmage and failing to have an impact. Then right at the end, he exploded into action. Sutton was only credited with 2.5 sacks according to ESPN, but it looks more like four to me. Either way he ends the year with 13 sacks which is very impressive for an interior pass rusher.

Is he stout enough against the run to be an early down lineman? That’s the big question. Without doubt he has a spark as a pass rusher. But if he’s getting blown up more often than he’s penetrating into the backfield, he’ll be a liability. As a mid-round option though he’s incredibly intriguing. I wish he had a similar kind of mean streak to Sheldon Richardson. I wish he was a little bigger. He’s still one to monitor.

"Pssst... I'm not that obvious"

Why Chip Kelly will be more ‘pro-style’ than you think

Reports are coming out today that Oregon’s Chip Kelly will be the next Head Coach of the Cleveland Browns. It’s a good fit for Kelly, who will inherit a talented roster with plenty of potential. What’s more, the AFC North isn’t quite as intimidating as it’s been in the past. The Browns can be competitive going forward. Mike Holmgren and Tom Heckert didn’t do a terrible job recruiting talent, but their time in Cleveland shouldn’t be viewed as anything close to a success.

Firstly, they made a complete mess of the coaching situation, to the point where Holmgren would’ve been better just taking the gig himself. They made Eric Mangini a lame duck before turning to Pat Shurmur after a less than high-profile search. All the while you kind of wondered if Holmgren was itching to get back out there. Would a big-name coach take the position with the Walrus judging everything from close by? Doubtful. How can you work for a successful former Head Coach like that? Which is why Holmgren was better off doing it himself. After all, he clearly wants to coach again.

They drafted two quarterbacks early in Colt McCoy (2010) and Brandon Weeden (2012). McCoy lacked anything like the necessary tools to be an effective pro-passer, while Weeden turned 29 during his rookie season leaving very little room for progression during his career. One of Holmgren’s big remits would’ve been to use his vast experience to help identify a legitimate starting quarterback for the long term. He (and Heckert) failed to do so.

I think you can call the Julio Jones trade a big mistake with hindsight. The two first round picks they got in return for Jones turned out to be Phil Taylor (DT, Baylor) and Weeden (QB, Oklahoma State). Given Cleveland’s dire need for a receiver over the last few years, they probably should’ve just drafted Jones themselves. He isn’t just one of the more physically impressive receivers in the NFL, he’s also a workaholic without an ounce of diva about his personality. Basically, the kind of playmaker Cleveland has needed for a long time. Hindsight is a wonderful thing, but with a little more shrewdness they could’ve had an offense that featured left tackle Joe Thomas, Julio Jones and Trent Richardson. That would’ve made life easier for whoever was the quarterback.

Essentially their inability to get a trade done with St. Louis for Robert Griffin III will be listed as the main reason why they lost their jobs. However, it’s more likely a new regime just wanted their own guys all along and needed an excuse. Who can blame them? The Browns are going in a new, exciting and unpredictable direction with their front office set-up and Kelly coaching the team.

So what about the soon-to-be former Oregon coach?

Here’s what I don’t understand. I go on Twitter minutes after the Kelly-to-Cleveland news breaks and there’s a ton of Tweets linking Tajh Boyd to the Browns. Forget that Boyd’s father is still maintaining he’s likely to return to Clemson for the 2013 season, what is it about Kelly that strikes you he’d make this move? Nobody has been touting Tajh Boyd as a top ten pick or even a first round pick this year – and with good reason. A great performance against LSU in the Chick-fil-A doesn’t change a great deal unfortunately – he still has issues with deep accuracy and velocity, his decision making is inconsistent, he’s mobile but not electric as a runner and he’s not particularly evasive. He’s solid. He can throw with some velocity on shorter routes, his accuracy is fine on the short-to-intermediate throws. He’s a fairly good college quarterback.

But nobody has touted him as an early pick before this week’s game against LSU, or before Kelly emerged as a presence in the NFL.

If it’s not Boyd, you can guarantee it’ll be E.J. Manuel being linked. Or some other quarterback with plus athleticism. It reminds me so much of the early days of Pete Carroll in Seattle. Suddenly the Seahawks were going to trade for Reggie Bush, draft Taylor Mays, sign any free agents who ever played for USC. All presumptions based on nothing but a lazy thought process.

What is it about Kelly that makes you think he’ll try and re-create Oregon’s offense in the NFL? Or that players like Tajh Boyd are even remotely close to the players Kelly has been working with? Is he really just going to draft any old quarterback who can move around in the first round of his first draft? Come on!

This is a coach who lists guys like Carroll and Bill Belichick as friends. He watches their teams practise, he asks questions. He studies, he learns. The pro-coaches equally spend time looking at his Oregon team and try to use some of his more fascinating concepts. Kelly might not have any previous NFL experience, but he probably has a good idea what works. That’s why he surrounds himself with winners from the pro’s.

If he does end up in Cleveland, rather than go out and immediately draft whichever quarterback runs the quickest forty yard dash, he’ll probably put tape of the Patriots on. See what they do well. Then look at the New York Giants. And the San Francisco 49ers. And the Seattle Seahawks. And the Cincinnati Bengals. And the Denver Broncos. What are these teams doing well? How can I use this to make Cleveland a winning franchise? In fact he’s probably done all of this already. Several times.

People are getting excited about seeing the Oregon Ducks playing the Pittsburgh Steelers. I suspect that won’t ever happen. Kelly will undoubtedly keep some of his concepts – his penchant for speed and a quick tempo offense. But he’ll modify it for the pro’s and do whatever it takes to build a winner. Cleveland aren’t appointing Kelly because they like the Ducks offense or their jersey combo’s. They’re appointing Kelly because he builds teams, gets praised by the best coaches in the NFL and understands you have to adapt to survive.

In all honesty it wouldn’t surprise me if he went out and drafted a guy like Matt Barkley with the #6 overall pick, trolling 95% of the media in the process. And then asked Barkley to hand off 60% of the time to Trent Richardson. That’s the brand of football that has won football games in the AFC North for a generation. Rest assured that’s what Kelly is going to be dreaming of – winning in the AFC North – not putting the ultimate spread offense together to get beaten up by Haloti Ngata.

Jarvis Jones to turn pro

One of the players that could be on Cleveland’s radar in round one will be Georgia’s Jarvis Jones. The Bulldogs announced his intention to declare for the 2013 draft today. He has enough pure talent to be a top-five pick. However, in November I wrote a piece questioning whether his spinal stenosis condition could impact his stock. The issue was serious enough to end his time with USC, although Georgia were pretty emphatic in their decision to let him continue his career in the SEC. Jones has missed some games, but there doesn’t appear to be any lasting problems so far.

The big question is whether or not those issues will emerge in time. The condition has cut short many blossoming careers. Teams will have to decide whether they want to take the risk on Jones being a possible five-year player. He’ll go through a whole gambit of tests at the combine and front offices will seek every form of expertise and reassurance before pulling the trigger. It’s anybody’s guess what could happen, but Jones could easily be a top five pick in round one… or he could be set for a big fall.

The Browns do need a pass rusher so Chip Kelly could consider Jones with the #6 pick. I went that way in my latest mock. It’ll also be interesting to see if Kelly entertains the possibility of drafting Dion Jordan that early. He’s been touted as a top-ten prospect due to his athletic prowess. If he dominates at the combine, expect to see a lot of Jordan-to-Cleveland projections. Given the Browns’ need for a pass rusher, would it be a cautionary note if Kelly goes for a defensive end but passes on his former player? Similar to when Pete Carroll opted for Earl Thomas over Taylor Mays? That would be an interesting dynamic if Jordan proves worthy of top-ten consideration.

Why not a three-technique?

I mocked a wide receiver to the Seahawks this week. Some have questioned how likely this is given Seattle’s extreme need to improve their pass rush on base defense. I’ve ‘banged on’ about why I think upgrading the three-technique is the teams greatest need, but I’ve also been hesitant to mock the position to the Seahawks in round one.

Let me explain why.

I do not think the defensive tackle class of 2013 is quite as good as first anticipated. Star Lotulelei didn’t quite make the giant strides in terms of consistency that we’d hoped to see. Kawann Short had a mediocre season and went from a potential first round pick to seemingly a range in rounds 2-3. Johnathan Hankins really disappointed me when I watched Ohio State, while further study left me wondering whether Jesse Williams and Sharrif Floyd are better fits in the 3-4.

The three players that impressed me the most were Sheldon Richardson (a pure three-technique who completely looks the part), Jonathan Jenkins (a nose tackle from Georgia who weighs +350lbs) and Sylvester Williams (a big, pass-rushing tackle from North Carolina). I’m going to watch more LSU tape over the next couple of weeks to get a better angle on Bennie Logan, who at least has the size to act as a three-technique.

The Seahawks are going to be picking in the #21-32 range in April. Barring any unforeseen character issues, it’s a major stretch to think either Richardson or Lotulelei will be available without trading up. The likes of Jenkins and Hankins could be around but are too big and aren’t good enough pass rushers to fill this role. The options end up being quite limited, where you either buy into Jesse Williams or Floyd working inside or draft Sylvester Williams.

He’s an older defensive tackle as a former JUCO transfer. I’m not sure that has any impact, it didn’t for Bruce Irvin. Pete Carroll did have previous with Irvin though and he fits the teams LEO position perfectly. Williams is 320lbs which is pretty big for a three-technique and I wonder if he’s better suited to the one-technique. He really just abuses college lineman at North Carolina – which he won’t be able to do as regularly in the pro’s. And while I really like Williams’ swim move, I can’t help but think his size is better suited in the one. Having said that, the Seahawks have used big Alan Branch at the three-technique for the last two years. Isn’t this the issue though? Don’t the team need to get smaller and quicker at this position?

Either way, unless I’m going to project Williams as Seattle’s first round pick every week, I find it hard to solve this problem in my mock drafts. People have questioned why I go for a receiver or WILL linebacker so often in these projections, but I do see those two positions as the second and third biggest needs. Plus, the value at receiver and linebacker looks quite strong in the late first round at this early stage.

Things can change. They often do. But as we stand here today, I still believe Seattle’s best options to solve this problem are to target key free agents (Randy Starks, Henry Melton) or to continue to try and find the next Darnell Dockett or Geno Atkins in the middle rounds. This has been a breeding ground for undersized three-techniques in the past who don’t fit every scheme. The Seahawks drafted Jaye Howard last year I believe with the intention to see if he could be their guy. I’m tempted to say he won’t be given how little he’s featured this season, especially after the injury to Jason Jones.

Players like Kawann Short, Will Sutton and Bennie Logan might be available outside of the first. There’s also been quite a lot of first round busts among interior defensive lineman in recent years. So this is how I justify not addressing the teams biggest need in the first round of my mock drafts. It might not be a problem the Seahawks can solve with that early pick.

John Simon game tape

Someone requested game tape of Ohio State’s John Simon recently. He’s one of my favourite ‘underrated’ players. I think he’s a late first round or early second round pick. I’ve added his performance against Wisconsin below:

Offensive rookie of the year?

St. Louis came agonisingly close to ending Seattle’s unbeaten home record today. It was a gritty, hard fought rivalry game – the type you’re going to have to get used to in the new NFC West. A 20-13 win is only worth as much as a 42-13 win, but there were some familiar issues that cropped up this afternoon.

First and foremost the pass rush simply wasn’t good enough today and it’s becoming a worrying trend. Seattle had zero sacks against a team that had given up 34 going into the final week of the season. Even putting Bruce Irvin on the field for early downs had little impact. When the Seahawks attack with four rushers, they struggle to create pressure. Considering rushing with four is at the heart of the teams defensive philosophy, it’s a problem. Maybe things change in the playoffs? We can but hope. As things stand the pass rush has to be the teams greatest concern going into 2013.

Time and time again Sam Bradford had an age to throw the ball. The Rams do not possess a great offensive line. Jeff Fisher has two first round picks in the 2013 draft and it wouldn’t be a total shocker if both were spent on shoring up Bradford’s pass protection. Miami, Chicago, Arizona, Buffalo, St. Louis. Five opponents since the bye week, five opponents with mediocre or average offensive lines. Seattle has not taken advantage on any occasion.

Chris Clemons had a couple of pressures as usual today but apart from that only an Earl Thomas-blitz gave Bradford anything to think about. If the Seahawks are going to go deep into the post-season, they need more than that. Perhaps they dialled things back a little, not wanting to give anything away for next week? It’s a possibility. But one thing is sure – this team cannot rush four in base. Whether it’s Robert Griffin III or Tony Romo next week, they’re going to need to get creative. And that probably means coming up with some blitz packages.

The greatest need on the team is – still – finding interior pass rush. How did you know we were going to discuss this today? It’s non-existent at the moment. This has to be addressed. Spend big on Henry Melton if you get a chance. Consider adding Randy Starks at a slightly cheaper cost. Trade up for Sheldon Richardson. Work that late round magic again. Whatever. A solution must be found because it’s holding this team back. I suspect the teams front office doesn’t need anyone to highlight this issue. We see it every week.

Seattle relies too much on Chris Clemons. It’s been that way since he joined the team in 2010. Even Bruce Irvin – drafted to help out – has one sack in six games since the bye week. It’s no coincidence that Ray Edwards had a work-out recently. Both players need interior help. And right now the Seahawks are using a 330lbs nose tackle at the three technique. Alan Branch deserves to stay with this team when he hits free agency. But he offers no pass rush. And for that reason, he’d be better served as a rotational cog and backup for Red Bryant rather than a starter at a position designed to collapse the pocket and aid the LEO.

These are topics for another day. But that day will come unless the Seahawks suddenly turn it on in the playoffs. You don’t expect great pressure every week. But so far the only bad offensive line Seattle has abused was Green Bay’s for one half. And there’s too much talent in the secondary to allow this to be an issue again in 2013.

A lot of people are going to want to talk about the offensive line. St. Louis played a great game today. Jeff Fisher and his staff constructed a scheme that consistently confused Seattle’s line. Russell Okung had his worst game for a while. Breno Giacomini took a step back after several weeks of good play. Most of all J.R. Sweezy showed the kind of growing pains we saw against the Cardinals in week one.

It’s also worth remembering the likes of Julius Peppers, Mario Williams, Aldon Smith, Cameron Wake and others who’ve been shut out in recent weeks. This was a bad day at the office. The second half adjustments slowed some of the schemes St. Louis were using. I’m tempted to chalk this one down to experience and good scheming by the Rams. Although John Moffitt really needs to be active next week just in case we see similar struggles from Sweezy again.

Some other issues? Penalties returned with vengeance. One chalked off an early touchdown for Zach Miller, another put paid to a big play for Doug Baldwin. On both occasions, Anthony McCoy was the culprit. There were some sloppy penalties against the offensive lineman, Bruce Irvin had a silly ‘roughing the passer’ call.

Russell Wilson on the whole was exemplary and equalled Peyton Manning’s rookie passing record for touchdowns. In a way, equalling the record and having your name placed alongside Manning seems just as good as breaking the tally. Having said that, in the first half he was guilty on a couple of occasions of trying to do too much. It’s hard to be too critical given the pressure he was under, but there were at least a couple of sacks before half time that were avoidable. Barring a dramatic performance from Robert Griffin III tonight, I think it’s hard to keep the offensive rookie of the year award away from Wilson. How many third round rookie quarterbacks do what he’s done this year?

Nobody appeared to get injured which was a big positive. Golden Tate had another terrific performance. Richard Sherman finished the regular season with eight interceptions, making a mockery of the decision to put Patrick Peterson into the Pro-Bowl ahead of him. Seattle’s 11-5 record is the third best in franchise history. Wilson is the first rookie quarterback to go 8-0 at home. The Seahawks dominated every game they played at Century Link apart from one that we won’t mention here today.

The Rams have come a long way since the New England beat-down I had to endure in London earlier this season. On that night it was like watching the Rams we’ve come to know – lacking in talent and capable of being blown away. This is a completely different beast a few weeks on. And with four first round picks to spend in the next two drafts, the Rams will be a threat in the NFC West with Jeff Fisher running the show. Seahawks fans should be pleased with a hard fought win today. It’s the only type of win you’re going to get against the Rams for the next few years.

2013 draft order

This hasn’t been confirmed, but I understand this is how the top-20 will look now that the regular season is complete:

#1 Kansas City
#2 Jacksonville
#3 Oakland
#4 Philadelphia
#5 Detroit
#6 Cleveland
#7 Arizona
#8 Buffalo
#9 New York Jets
#10 Tennessee
#11 San Diego
#12 Miami
#13 Tampa Bay
#14 Carolina
#15 New Orleans
#16 St. Louis
#17 Pittsburgh
#18 St. Louis (via Washington) or Dallas
#19 New York Giants
#20 Chicago

I’m not convinced by Terrance Williams. He led the NCAA for receiving yards this year (1832) – 152 more yards than Biletnikoff winner Marqise Lee prior to USC’s Bowl game. He almost doubled his output as a junior and scored twelve touchdowns in another successful year for the Bears.

Despite all of that, I’m not sold.

You can’t knock his straight line speed and he’ll probably get a little boost at the combine. However, he lacks elite size (6-2, 200-205lbs) and he flashes inconsistent effort.

The biggest issue I have though is his tendency to body catch and how it leads to mistakes. Against UCLA in the Holiday Bowl there was moment in a simple jump-ball situation where he didn’t even raise his arms above his head. He’s got to go up and high point the football, win the play and make a big gain. Instead he’s waiting for it to drop into his frame. At the next level, he’s not going to be able to just run into space, get open and be in a position to make big yardage in a spread scheme. He’s going to have to win 1v1 match-ups. He’s going to have to compete for the ball in the air.

Not only will he require improved technique in this area, he’s just got to want it more. Like I said, he can’t afford to just rely on speed at the next level. Tell me a current NFL receiver who does that. You’ve got to be smart, competitive and consistent. You don’t see a great deal of that on tape. A corner like Richard Sherman can work a guy like this, beat him for effort and measure to avoid giving up the deep route. It’ll be a cake walk for any chirpy corner playing man.

Teams that are looking for a pure deep threat will show some interest, but the entire package is only worthy of a late second/third round grade in my view. According to Scouts Inc he’s had some maturity issues and I’m not convinced mass-production in a prolific offense will be enough to bail him out.

I’ve added a video showing his performance against Iowa State above. Look at the play at 1:08 where he gets in behind the defensive back, seemingly completes the catch but then drops the ball at the last minute. It’s sloppy and frustrating. At 2:13 he has another unforgivable drop. Sift through his 2012 back catalogue and there are plenty of big plays to counter such a lack of concentration – but this mistakes also keep cropping up.

I’m just not convinced he has enough spectacular aspects to his game aside from speed. The Seahawks want unique, not just fast. Can he fit into a quick strike offense? Possibly. But not as a high first or second round pick in my opinion. There are more explosive receivers with just as much speed eligible for this draft. If the Seahawks do go receiver early, I think they’ll look elsewhere.