I never imagined I'd write a post under that title.
Pleased with the progress of rookie quarterback EJ Wilson, the Buffalo Bills released Tarvaris Jackson.
Seattle should sign T-Jack to compete for the backup position. I'm excited by Jerrod Johnson's potential, but I worry about having only a rookie on the roster behind Russell Wilson. Jackson did not play brilliantly for Seattle in 2011, but earned the respect and loyalty of his coaches and teammates, and he fought like a warrior to stay on the field, playing with a torn labrum. He didn't pout in training camp last year; he competed collegially with Wilson and Matt Flynn. T-Jack has had far more successful NFL game experience than Brady Quinn. He is familiar with our basic offense, and athletic enough to run the new read option wrinkles. He's already familiar with most of the receivers on our roster, including Percy Harvin and Sidney Rice, whom he threw to in Minnesota.
Tuesday, June 11, 2013
Saturday, May 25, 2013
Finally, a modicum of accountability
The Diehard appreciated Pete Carroll's apparently earnest public acknowledgement that his team's character issues are "real serious."
It was illuminating to hear the coach explain how the team addresses conduct issues. However, he missed an opportunity to concede that consistent character failures by Seahawk athletes constitute evidence that the team's methods require refinement.
Fortunately, the team's decision to cut Josh Portis after his DUI bust signaled that Seattle is starting to take a harder line against players guilty of inexplicable dumbassitude... at least when those players are expendable reserves who probably would not have made the team, anyway.
Now, Seattle should sign go ahead and sign Tyler Thigpen.
As for Carroll, now that he's getting on the right track with regard to player discipline, he should work on his grammar. The adverbial form in the English language is incredibly simple to execute. When a college-educated person consistently botches adverbs, that's "real serious."
It was illuminating to hear the coach explain how the team addresses conduct issues. However, he missed an opportunity to concede that consistent character failures by Seahawk athletes constitute evidence that the team's methods require refinement.
Fortunately, the team's decision to cut Josh Portis after his DUI bust signaled that Seattle is starting to take a harder line against players guilty of inexplicable dumbassitude... at least when those players are expendable reserves who probably would not have made the team, anyway.
Now, Seattle should sign go ahead and sign Tyler Thigpen.
As for Carroll, now that he's getting on the right track with regard to player discipline, he should work on his grammar. The adverbial form in the English language is incredibly simple to execute. When a college-educated person consistently botches adverbs, that's "real serious."
Saturday, May 18, 2013
A case where I hate being right
In my last post, I mused about the peril of loading your roster with character-challenged athletes.
Defensive end Bruce Irvin, Seattle's 2012 first round pick, was one of those guys, a high school dropout with a disorderly conduct arrest during college.
Now comes the news that Irvin must sit out the first four regular season games this year because he got busted for using a banned performance-enhancing drug.
It's a good thing the Seahawks have loaded their roster with D-linemen. We'll certainly need that depth now, at least during the season's first quarter.
To his credit, Irvin's public statements on the matter sound appropriately contrite. I'd like to interpret that as evidence of some component of personal accountability in the player's value system and perhaps also in Coach Carroll's team culture.
Defensive end Bruce Irvin, Seattle's 2012 first round pick, was one of those guys, a high school dropout with a disorderly conduct arrest during college.
Now comes the news that Irvin must sit out the first four regular season games this year because he got busted for using a banned performance-enhancing drug.
It's a good thing the Seahawks have loaded their roster with D-linemen. We'll certainly need that depth now, at least during the season's first quarter.
To his credit, Irvin's public statements on the matter sound appropriately contrite. I'd like to interpret that as evidence of some component of personal accountability in the player's value system and perhaps also in Coach Carroll's team culture.
Saturday, May 4, 2013
Talent vs. character
In terms of talent, I really like Seattle's offseason moves.
If Percy Harvin can stay healthy, then he could be the catalyst to upgrade our offense from decent to dominant.
Never in team history have the Seahawks had two great starting wide receivers line up on the field at the same time, but the reunion of ex-Vikings Harvin and Sidney Rice could change that. Rice's opportunities thus far in Seattle have been limited by frequent double coverage facilitated by the fact that defenses generally have not feared our other starting wide receiver. While neither Golden Tate nor Doug Baldwin would qualify as elite starting wideouts, they are unusually talented third and fourth receivers. For good measure, Seattle spent a fourth-round pick on Chris Harper, a big target who can also run and throw the ball, as he played quarterback in high school and for Oregon State before converting to wide receiver and finishing at Kansas State.
A stronger corps of wide receivers should strain opposing defenses and create more chances for tight ends Zach Miller and Anthony McCoy to catch the ball.
By drafting Texas A&M running back Christine Michael (2nd round) and LSU fullback Spencer Ware, the Seahawks added depth to the power running game. That gives Seattle three interchangeable battering rams at running back (All-Pro Marshawn Lynch, Robert Turbin, Michael) and two at fullback (Pro Bowler Michael Robinson, Ware). This unrelenting rotation of big, bruising backs with fresh legs will punish defensive fronts already thinned by the need to counter our enhanced receiving corps and contain our elusive quarterback. Meanwhile, the versatile Harvin can be the shifty change-of-pace running threat that Leon Washington never really managed to become for the Seahawks. (Although Washington is among the most feared returners in league history, he has begun to fade with age, and Harvin is at this point the more potent special teams threat.)
Assistant head coach and offensive line coach Tom Cable continues to play a strong role in Seattle's draft strategy. Despite the strength of his position group, Seattle drafted two O-linemen to cultivate additional depth, including another 7th round conversion project. Last year, Cable successfully developed NC State defensive tackle J.R. Sweezy into a starting-calibre offensive guard. This year, he will attempt to transform NE Oklahoma State defensive tackle Michael Bowie into a backup center. I'm betting Bowie winds up on the practice squad, but I think I wrote that about Sweezy last year, too, and Cable proved me wrong.
On offense, my sole worry remains the backup quarterback position. I continue to believe that Seneca Wallace and Tyler Thigpen were better options than either Brady Quinn or Josh Portis. Quinn might have won the tryout, but Wallace and Thigpen have played respectably and have won games. Quinn hasn't. He is a choke machine. As for Portis, if he can't complete passes in preseason against scrubs, what will happen when he faces a real NFL starting defense?
Our roster is deep everywhere except behind Russell Wilson, our franchise quarterback. Is any other team in the league risking as precipitous a plunge in player quality at the position?
- so much depends
- upon
a young- quarterback
- glazed with rain
water
- beside his choke-prone
backups
Seattle also used the draft to fortify one of the NFL's strongest corps of defenders.
Although already loaded on the D-line, the Seahawks still picked up 2-3 defensive linemen. This confirms Seattle's preference for affordable young talent, and confirms that free agents Cliff Avril and Michael Bennett are probably nothing more than short-term plugs at the position.
Analysts expected the Seahawks to load up on linebackers. At most, they took one. It's hard to classify Ty Powell, as he played safety, then linebacker and then defensive end at Division II Harding University in Arkansas. Seattle will probably deploy him as a pass rushing linebacker. The Seahawks seem content with the young talent they have developed in the linebacking corps. Though a serviceable starter, Leroy Hill will not be hard to replace. He never realized the promise of his Pro Bowl rookie season, but he amply fulfilled our worst fears regarding his character.
The Seahawks boast the league's strongest defensive secondary, but Seattle still drafted Tharold Simon out of LSU, a big cornerback who should be able to spell Brandon Browner and Richard Sherman on the outside.
Simon, who got arrested two days before the NFL draft, is one of many new Seahawks who bring considerable baggage with them in terms of character:
Percy Harvin clashed with his coaches and teammates in Minnesota. Believing himself underpaid, he threatened to quit the Vikings during the 2012 offseason. He openly questioned the ability of Vikings quarterback Christian Ponder. He also tested positive for marijuana at the NFL combine in 2009.
Texas A&M coaches knocked Christine Michael for his laziness and bad attitude. He was benched early last season and did not play in the 2013 Cotton Bowl.
Simon was arrested two days before the draft for obnoxious behavior in his hometown on the eve of a day in his honor.
Ware was a disappointment at LSU, often out of shape, and got suspended for using synthetic marijuana as a sophomore.
One of GM John Schneider's bargain-hunting personnel strategies is to pursue players with character concerns or injury issues that deflate their draft value.
So far, Coach Pete Carroll has generally succeeded in eliciting good game performances from employees with past character problems, but off-the-field issues have ended Hill's career, created distractions for Sherman, cost Browner four games, may cause Lynch to miss some games this season, and have kept Cable from consideration as a head coach.
I worry. It's easier to redeem troubled athletes when most of the players on your team are high-character guys. A few projects are fine, but when you've got the Dirty Dozen (or two) on a 53-man roster, then that corrodes the culture of your team.
Despite Carroll and Schneider's apparent indifference to good citizenship, Seattle is fortunate to have team leaders of indisputably high character like Red Bryant, Michael Robinson and Russell Wilson. Since neither the front office nor the coaches evince much in the way of moral leadership, it will be up to them to mold this motley assortment of ethical athletes and talented misfits into something resembling a championship team.
Saturday, March 30, 2013
Thoughts on replacing Matt Flynn
It looks like backup quarterback Matt Flynn is getting traded to the Raiders. He served Seattle admirably in his brief time with us. I'm happy for him that he's going to get a chance to start, but sad that he's headed for Oakland, a team unable to facilitate successful quarterback play for more than a decade and counting.
Trading Flynn benefits Seattle by clearing a few million dollars worth of salary cap space for other uses.
However, it also leaves the Seahawks without a capable backup. With Flynn on the bench, the team would have been OK if we ever lost starter Russell Wilson to injury.
Now that he's gone, it leaves a terrifying void at the position.
Many analysts propose backups with skill sets similar to DangeRuss, so the backup could execute the read option.
This is folly, for several reasons:
1) Although the read option is a potent weapon, the Seahawks ran it on less than 5% of offensive snaps last season. The frequency of use increased as the season went on, and that trend should continue as long as the formation remains effective. However, it is almost certain that the Seahawks will continue to run the overwhelming majority of their offensive snaps out of standard formations. Thus, the first priority should be finding a backup who can execute the position traditionally by throwing out of the pocket.
2) Percy Harvin can run the read option effectively, too.
3) More important than running the read option is Wilson's ability to extend the play by scrambling. We don't necessarily need his backup to be able to do that. DangeRuss scrambles largely to compensate for being short: he can't see over the line, so he often needs to move laterally find a throwing lane. A taller backup quarterback with better vision could get away with being less nimble.
4) No available quarterback has a skill set similar to Wilson. No one possesses his unique combination of focus, judgement, maturity, playbook mastery, team leadership, accuracy, touch, arm strength, elusiveness and footspeed. If we were to rank the importance of the ten aforementioned qualities to good quarterback play, then footspeed would rank last on the list behind everything else. There are many great slowfooted quarterbacks, but no great slowwitted ones. Physical skills don't matter if your teammates won't follow your lead. Elusiveness and arm strength means nothing if you can't throw with accuracy and touch.
This is a poor draft for quarterbacks, and I would not want to roll the dice with a rookie backup, except as a third stringer or practice squad project.
There is no need to call Seahawk practice squad perennial Josh Portis back from the Toronto Argonauts, unless he has magically developed the ability to throw the ball accurately.
Fortunately, several free agents crowd the market:
Charlie Batch – PIT
John Beck – FA
Kellen Clemens – STL
A.J. Feeley – FA
Rex Grossman – WAS
Caleb Hanie – DEN
Kevin Kolb – FA
Matt Leinart – OAK
Byron Leftwich – PIT
J.P. Losman – FA
Luke McCown – ATL
Stephen McGee – FA
Donovan McNabb – FA (retired?)
Jordan Palmer – JAC
Brady Quinn – KC
Chris Redman – FA (retired?)
Sage Rosenfels – FA
JaMarcus Russell – FA
Troy Smith – FA
Tyler Thigpen – BUF
Seneca Wallace – FA
Vince Young – FA
There is no need to overspend here. Seattle should be able to secure the services of a few good men to compete for the backup job for the veteran minimum. None of the available free agents are such sure things that they should earn more than that, but many have shown flashes of potential.
Several on the list have established themselves as capable game managers: Feeley, Grossman, McCown, Kolb, Leftwich, Losman, McNabb, Redman, Rosenfels, Smith, Thigpen and Wallace.
Surely we could get one or two of them for the veteran minimum and compete for the backup job.
When they're in the zone, Grossman and Kolb can really play. When they're not, they can really kill you. Neither is likely to sign a reasonable contract.
Let's pass on Byron Leftwich and his world's longest windup.
I liked Redman as a starter in Atlanta well enough that I questioned the team's decision to draft and start Matt Ryan. While Matty Ice has panned out just fine, that doesn't mean Redman isn't good. Did the Falcons cut him last summer because McCown was better, or because McCown was cheaper?
McNabb and Rosenfels could be effective mentors for DangeRuss.
Other free agent quarterbacks are established failures with possible potential.
Is there a Steve Young in the mix? (Young played poorly for Tampa Bay before evolving into a Hall of Fame quarterback in San Francisco as Joe Montana's understudy with Bill Walsh.)
No harm in rolling the dice on one or two of these unproven projects.
Coach Carroll got good play out of Matt Leinart at USC. No one has managed that feat in the NFL, but if anybody could, it would be Sunshine Pete.
JaMarcus Russell and Vince Young are intriguing physical specimens who might respond to Carroll's remarkable ability to reform bad attitudes.
As often happens, nostalgia contaminates the Diehard's thinking on this matter.
I'm sad that Indianapolis beat us to the punch and signed Matt Hasselbeck to back up and mentor Andrew Luck. I was pleased, however, that the former Seahawk declined to sign with Arizona. It would have been sad to see the tough defenses of the NFC West brutalize the aging veteran and tarnish his legacy. I'm glad Hasselbeck has gracefully embraced his role as backup and mentor.to young quarterbacks.)
If he can still play, then the Diehard would welcome the return of Seneca Wallace.
If Seattle signs one or two established veterans and one or two projects to commence a vigorous training camp competition for backup quarterback, then we should be able to find capable quarterback depth at bargain rates.
Trading Flynn benefits Seattle by clearing a few million dollars worth of salary cap space for other uses.
However, it also leaves the Seahawks without a capable backup. With Flynn on the bench, the team would have been OK if we ever lost starter Russell Wilson to injury.
Now that he's gone, it leaves a terrifying void at the position.
Many analysts propose backups with skill sets similar to DangeRuss, so the backup could execute the read option.
This is folly, for several reasons:
1) Although the read option is a potent weapon, the Seahawks ran it on less than 5% of offensive snaps last season. The frequency of use increased as the season went on, and that trend should continue as long as the formation remains effective. However, it is almost certain that the Seahawks will continue to run the overwhelming majority of their offensive snaps out of standard formations. Thus, the first priority should be finding a backup who can execute the position traditionally by throwing out of the pocket.
2) Percy Harvin can run the read option effectively, too.
3) More important than running the read option is Wilson's ability to extend the play by scrambling. We don't necessarily need his backup to be able to do that. DangeRuss scrambles largely to compensate for being short: he can't see over the line, so he often needs to move laterally find a throwing lane. A taller backup quarterback with better vision could get away with being less nimble.
4) No available quarterback has a skill set similar to Wilson. No one possesses his unique combination of focus, judgement, maturity, playbook mastery, team leadership, accuracy, touch, arm strength, elusiveness and footspeed. If we were to rank the importance of the ten aforementioned qualities to good quarterback play, then footspeed would rank last on the list behind everything else. There are many great slowfooted quarterbacks, but no great slowwitted ones. Physical skills don't matter if your teammates won't follow your lead. Elusiveness and arm strength means nothing if you can't throw with accuracy and touch.
This is a poor draft for quarterbacks, and I would not want to roll the dice with a rookie backup, except as a third stringer or practice squad project.
There is no need to call Seahawk practice squad perennial Josh Portis back from the Toronto Argonauts, unless he has magically developed the ability to throw the ball accurately.
Fortunately, several free agents crowd the market:
Charlie Batch – PIT
John Beck – FA
Kellen Clemens – STL
A.J. Feeley – FA
Rex Grossman – WAS
Caleb Hanie – DEN
Kevin Kolb – FA
Matt Leinart – OAK
Byron Leftwich – PIT
J.P. Losman – FA
Luke McCown – ATL
Stephen McGee – FA
Donovan McNabb – FA (retired?)
Jordan Palmer – JAC
Brady Quinn – KC
Chris Redman – FA (retired?)
Sage Rosenfels – FA
JaMarcus Russell – FA
Troy Smith – FA
Tyler Thigpen – BUF
Seneca Wallace – FA
Vince Young – FA
There is no need to overspend here. Seattle should be able to secure the services of a few good men to compete for the backup job for the veteran minimum. None of the available free agents are such sure things that they should earn more than that, but many have shown flashes of potential.
Several on the list have established themselves as capable game managers: Feeley, Grossman, McCown, Kolb, Leftwich, Losman, McNabb, Redman, Rosenfels, Smith, Thigpen and Wallace.
Surely we could get one or two of them for the veteran minimum and compete for the backup job.
When they're in the zone, Grossman and Kolb can really play. When they're not, they can really kill you. Neither is likely to sign a reasonable contract.
Let's pass on Byron Leftwich and his world's longest windup.
I liked Redman as a starter in Atlanta well enough that I questioned the team's decision to draft and start Matt Ryan. While Matty Ice has panned out just fine, that doesn't mean Redman isn't good. Did the Falcons cut him last summer because McCown was better, or because McCown was cheaper?
McNabb and Rosenfels could be effective mentors for DangeRuss.
Other free agent quarterbacks are established failures with possible potential.
Is there a Steve Young in the mix? (Young played poorly for Tampa Bay before evolving into a Hall of Fame quarterback in San Francisco as Joe Montana's understudy with Bill Walsh.)
No harm in rolling the dice on one or two of these unproven projects.
Coach Carroll got good play out of Matt Leinart at USC. No one has managed that feat in the NFL, but if anybody could, it would be Sunshine Pete.
JaMarcus Russell and Vince Young are intriguing physical specimens who might respond to Carroll's remarkable ability to reform bad attitudes.
As often happens, nostalgia contaminates the Diehard's thinking on this matter.
I'm sad that Indianapolis beat us to the punch and signed Matt Hasselbeck to back up and mentor Andrew Luck. I was pleased, however, that the former Seahawk declined to sign with Arizona. It would have been sad to see the tough defenses of the NFC West brutalize the aging veteran and tarnish his legacy. I'm glad Hasselbeck has gracefully embraced his role as backup and mentor.to young quarterbacks.)
If he can still play, then the Diehard would welcome the return of Seneca Wallace.
If Seattle signs one or two established veterans and one or two projects to commence a vigorous training camp competition for backup quarterback, then we should be able to find capable quarterback depth at bargain rates.
Saturday, March 16, 2013
Seahawks rock free agency
The Diehard stands in awe of Seattle GM John Schneider. Having loaded the roster with young talent at bargain rates, he exploits his team's enviable salary cap latitude to sign top free agents to fortify the team's only glaring weaknesses: wide receiver and pass rusher.
To increase pressure on opposing quarterbacks, Schneider signed two defensive ends. Cliff Avril of Detroit is a Pro Bowl-caliber pass rusher (though he has never made the Pro Bowl). Michael Bennett of Tampa Bay is a versatile player who can line up at end or tackle.
If Chris Clemons can't return to form, and if Bruce Irvin can't get any better, then Avril and Bennett help the defense get better.
However, if Clemons recovers fully and Irvin matures as expected, then Seattle may field the league's most terrifying rotation of pass rushers.
Seattle signed Avril and Bennett to reasonable short-term contracts. This gives both players a chance to earn a big payday a year or two down the road, either from the Seahawks or--more likely--from some other team. Meanwhile, Seattle buys some time to find and groom younger and more affordable pass rush talent through the draft. Moreover, Schneider avoided making any commitments that could prevent us from keeping our team's core players as they qualify for free agency in the next few years.
The Seahawks did make a substantial long-term commitment to Percy Harvin. I'll post later on the exciting possibilities Harvin brings to the team.
It was sad to part ways with Leon Washington, but with league rule changes decreasing the frequency of kickoff returns, the only case for keeping two great returners on your roster is as insurance against injury. Seattle never found a way to capitalize upon Washington's skills as a running back, but he'll be a good fit in the New England offense, which consistently and effectively features shifty, undersized backs with good hands. As a Patriot, Washington will have an opportunity to set more career records and continue stating the case that he may be the greatest kick returner in NFL history.
To increase pressure on opposing quarterbacks, Schneider signed two defensive ends. Cliff Avril of Detroit is a Pro Bowl-caliber pass rusher (though he has never made the Pro Bowl). Michael Bennett of Tampa Bay is a versatile player who can line up at end or tackle.
If Chris Clemons can't return to form, and if Bruce Irvin can't get any better, then Avril and Bennett help the defense get better.
However, if Clemons recovers fully and Irvin matures as expected, then Seattle may field the league's most terrifying rotation of pass rushers.
Seattle signed Avril and Bennett to reasonable short-term contracts. This gives both players a chance to earn a big payday a year or two down the road, either from the Seahawks or--more likely--from some other team. Meanwhile, Seattle buys some time to find and groom younger and more affordable pass rush talent through the draft. Moreover, Schneider avoided making any commitments that could prevent us from keeping our team's core players as they qualify for free agency in the next few years.
The Seahawks did make a substantial long-term commitment to Percy Harvin. I'll post later on the exciting possibilities Harvin brings to the team.
It was sad to part ways with Leon Washington, but with league rule changes decreasing the frequency of kickoff returns, the only case for keeping two great returners on your roster is as insurance against injury. Seattle never found a way to capitalize upon Washington's skills as a running back, but he'll be a good fit in the New England offense, which consistently and effectively features shifty, undersized backs with good hands. As a Patriot, Washington will have an opportunity to set more career records and continue stating the case that he may be the greatest kick returner in NFL history.
Wednesday, January 30, 2013
Decline to re-sign Leroy Hill
Weed smoking wifebeater psycho, follow Jerramy Stevens into free agent oblivion. You have disgraced your team, your city, your sex, your species. Good riddance.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)