Losing the Heater hurt, but yesterday's re-signing of veterans Leroy Hill and Matt McCoy increase confidence in our linebacker corps.
Hill is a solid defender. It is disappointing that he has never managed to match the promise he showed in 2005, when he and fellow rookie Lofa Tatupu won Pro Bowl honors. (Injuries prevented Hill from playing in Honolulu that year.)
I blame the indiscipline evinced by his frequent off-the-field character lapses for Hill's failure to establish himself as one of the league's best players at his position.
Nevertheless, his return brings needed veteran skills to a linebacker corps looking for an identity after losing Lofa Tatupu and David Hawthorne--the unit's best players and strongest leaders--in a span of less than a year.
Like Hill, journeyman Matt McCoy entered the league in 2005. A perennial reserve and special teams kamikaze, McCoy hits hard, playing with a ferocity, hunger and reckless abandon that all backups should emulate, capitalizing upon every opportunity to make the case for a promotion. When pressed into the starting lineup, he has acquitted himself admirably.
The veteran talents of Hill, McCoy, KJ Wright and Barrett Ruud strengthen Seattle's position in the draft. We don't need to reach to find a linebacker.
In fact, we don't need to reach for anything. At this point, there are no holes in Seattle's roster so gaping that desperation will force us to make bad decisions on draft day. We can choose the best player available every time our turn comes, instead of making the kinds of risky gambles and forced choices that teams make when they're trying to shore up glaring personnel weaknesses.
GM John Schneider and Coach Pete Carroll have done well to maneuver the team into this enviable position entering the draft.
Friday, April 13, 2012
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
Tru returns
Finding little love on the free agent market, Marcus Trufant signed a one-year deal with the Seahawks.
Tru's recent history of season-ending back injuries overshadowed his Pro Bowl credentials, compromising his appeal to NFL teams searching for a quality cornerback.
Even if healthy, Trufant might not start. That's how good our secondary has become.
If Tru does beat out Richard Sherman, then all four members of our starting secondary will have had Pro Bowl experience: Trufant, plus fellow cornerback Brandon Browner and safeties Kam Chancellor and Earl Thomas.
Even if Sherman relegates the senior Seahawk corner to the nickelback slot, that still gives us one of the league's best and deepest secondaries.
Welcome back, Tru.
Tru's recent history of season-ending back injuries overshadowed his Pro Bowl credentials, compromising his appeal to NFL teams searching for a quality cornerback.
Even if healthy, Trufant might not start. That's how good our secondary has become.
If Tru does beat out Richard Sherman, then all four members of our starting secondary will have had Pro Bowl experience: Trufant, plus fellow cornerback Brandon Browner and safeties Kam Chancellor and Earl Thomas.
Even if Sherman relegates the senior Seahawk corner to the nickelback slot, that still gives us one of the league's best and deepest secondaries.
Welcome back, Tru.
Friday, April 6, 2012
Shades of Tim Ruskell
Seattle snagged three free agents today, signing all of them to low-risk one-year deals.
First, the Seahawks wisely secured the continued services of valued reserve safety Roy Lewis, a hard-hitting defender, and distinguished alumnus of the University of a Thousand Years, the University of Washington, to which all should humbly bow down.
In their signees, if not in their durations, the other two contracts seemed more characteristic of former GM Tim Ruskell than of the Great Collaborators (GM John Schneider/Pete Carroll/Tom Cable). Many Seahawks fans came to revile Ruskell because--among other things--he signed too many fading, over-the-hill veterans to overlong and overgenerous contracts. (The financial terms of today's deals are not public, yet.)
After passing on the stalwart David Hawthorne, the Great Collaborators secured the services of a different middle linebacker, Barrett Ruud, an ex-Buc and ex-Titan.
Ruud resembles the Heater in that both men average 100+ tackles when they start a full season, and both capably cover receivers, defending several passes and intercepting a few every year. Both missed games due to injury for the first time in their careers last season.
So, how do Ruud and Hawthorne differ? Ruud is a little older (28) than Hawthorne (26), but has logged much more mileage: the Heater just finished his third starting season, while Ruud has started the equivalent of five full campaigns.
Moreover, Ruud's recent injury history is significantly more alarming than Hawthorne's. The Heater sat for just one game last year, though his knee hampered and slowed him for much of the season. Ruud, on the other hand, missed 9 games with a pulled groin (by far my least favorite injury; so he certainly has my sympathy).
Perhaps Ruud was simply less lucky than Hawthorne last year, but linebackers dish out and absorb huge doses of punishment, so Ruud's greater age and (possible) greater susceptibility to injury render him a less desirable signing than the Heater.
However, Hawthorne wanted, deserved, and received a five-year deal (from New Orleans), while Ruud settled for a single year with Seattle.
Offensive guard Deuce Lutui presents an even more uncertain prospect.
My first reflexes were favorable. I dig it anytime we beef up the O-Line, and the sentimentalist in me approves of perpetuating the proud tradition of Pacific Islanders playing for the Seahawks. Like Lutui, I've lived in Arizona for a while, and I can't blame him wanting to relocate to Seattle's ideal climate.
Perennially a key cog in the Cardinals' offense until last year, the Tongan titan signed with the Bengals after the lockout ended, but failed his physical when he reported to Cincinnati too fat to play, pushing 400 pounds. The big man bounced back to Arizona, where he continued to struggle with his weight throughout the 2011 season. He never started, seeing only spot duty, playing a mere 45 snaps in 16 games..
Perhaps Pete Carroll--the Tongan's old college coach--can motivate him to become the team's Biggest Loser. I'm a big man myself, so I sympathize with Lutui's battle of the bulge. However, if keeping fit were my job, and if I were earning NFL money to manage my weight, then...
If the player can't drop the weight by training camp, then the Seahawks need to drop a Deuce.
First, the Seahawks wisely secured the continued services of valued reserve safety Roy Lewis, a hard-hitting defender, and distinguished alumnus of the University of a Thousand Years, the University of Washington, to which all should humbly bow down.
In their signees, if not in their durations, the other two contracts seemed more characteristic of former GM Tim Ruskell than of the Great Collaborators (GM John Schneider/Pete Carroll/Tom Cable). Many Seahawks fans came to revile Ruskell because--among other things--he signed too many fading, over-the-hill veterans to overlong and overgenerous contracts. (The financial terms of today's deals are not public, yet.)
After passing on the stalwart David Hawthorne, the Great Collaborators secured the services of a different middle linebacker, Barrett Ruud, an ex-Buc and ex-Titan.
Ruud resembles the Heater in that both men average 100+ tackles when they start a full season, and both capably cover receivers, defending several passes and intercepting a few every year. Both missed games due to injury for the first time in their careers last season.
So, how do Ruud and Hawthorne differ? Ruud is a little older (28) than Hawthorne (26), but has logged much more mileage: the Heater just finished his third starting season, while Ruud has started the equivalent of five full campaigns.
Moreover, Ruud's recent injury history is significantly more alarming than Hawthorne's. The Heater sat for just one game last year, though his knee hampered and slowed him for much of the season. Ruud, on the other hand, missed 9 games with a pulled groin (by far my least favorite injury; so he certainly has my sympathy).
Perhaps Ruud was simply less lucky than Hawthorne last year, but linebackers dish out and absorb huge doses of punishment, so Ruud's greater age and (possible) greater susceptibility to injury render him a less desirable signing than the Heater.
However, Hawthorne wanted, deserved, and received a five-year deal (from New Orleans), while Ruud settled for a single year with Seattle.
Offensive guard Deuce Lutui presents an even more uncertain prospect.
My first reflexes were favorable. I dig it anytime we beef up the O-Line, and the sentimentalist in me approves of perpetuating the proud tradition of Pacific Islanders playing for the Seahawks. Like Lutui, I've lived in Arizona for a while, and I can't blame him wanting to relocate to Seattle's ideal climate.
Perennially a key cog in the Cardinals' offense until last year, the Tongan titan signed with the Bengals after the lockout ended, but failed his physical when he reported to Cincinnati too fat to play, pushing 400 pounds. The big man bounced back to Arizona, where he continued to struggle with his weight throughout the 2011 season. He never started, seeing only spot duty, playing a mere 45 snaps in 16 games..
Perhaps Pete Carroll--the Tongan's old college coach--can motivate him to become the team's Biggest Loser. I'm a big man myself, so I sympathize with Lutui's battle of the bulge. However, if keeping fit were my job, and if I were earning NFL money to manage my weight, then...
If the player can't drop the weight by training camp, then the Seahawks need to drop a Deuce.
Tuesday, April 3, 2012
Sad day for Seattle
The new uniforms are hideous, and the Heater signed with New Orleans.
I'll probably get used to the uniforms eventually, but David Hawthorne is a versatile athlete, a solid leader, and a real loss for the organization. I'm officially worried about our linebacker corps.
I'll probably get used to the uniforms eventually, but David Hawthorne is a versatile athlete, a solid leader, and a real loss for the organization. I'm officially worried about our linebacker corps.
Sunday, March 18, 2012
In like Flynn
Seattle won the Matt Flynn sweepstakes.
The Seahawks signed the Green Bay backup to a 3-year contract for $26 million. This is good money for a career clipboard-clutcher with a total of two career starts under his belt.
By comparison, Tennessee signed Matt Hasselbeck in 2011 to a 3-year contract for $21 million. At the time, the former All-Pro had started 131 games--including a Super Bowl--and had played in three Pro Bowls. Of course, as Hasselbeck heads into the twilight of his career, Flynn's dawns with possible promise.
We'll find out. Signing an untested backup named Matt from Green Bay worked out well the first time, though there were growing pains early on.
If Tennessee manages to sign Peyton Manning and Hasselbeck becomes available, Seattle would be wise to scrap T-Jack and bring Matt home for some real depth at the quarterback position.
The good news is that the Seahawks are competing successfully in free agency, and the Great Collaborators grasped that the free agent market offered surer bets at quarterback than our draft position did.
I'm glad the Chargers grabbed Charlie Whitehurst. Denied an opportunity to compete for the starting job in Seattle, Jesus of Clemson can resurrect his career where it began, backing up Philip Rivers in San Diego.
Although I thought Seattle was misguided in its efforts to court Peyton Manning, it is sobering that the Canton-bound quarterback declined even to consider the Seahawks. It is humiliating that the Colts castoff spurned Paul Allen's plan on the tarmac in Denver.
The face-saving, feelgood explanation is to attribute his lack of interest to the weather in the Pacific Northwest. However, the reality is that Manning only entertains offers from teams he sees as viable contenders by virtue of their coaches and their rosters. Based on those criteria, the Seahawks didn't make the cut.
However, Seattle has made several good moves in free agency.
We achieved our most important priorities by retaining Red Bryant and locking down the Pro Bowl backfield of Marshawn Lynch and Michael Robinson.
By signing Breno Giacomini and Paul McQuistan, we preserved depth on the offensive line at bargain rates, making Robert Gallery expendable. If Russell Okung, James Carpenter and John Moffitt all rehabilitate successfully, then we'll have more starting-calibre linemen (Okung/McQuistan/Unger/Moffitt/Carpenter, plus Giacomini) than starting positions on the line, and that hasn't been true since the Super Bowl season of 2005 (Jones/Hutchinson/Tobeck/Gray/Locklear, plus Womack).
It's unfortunate that Gallery didn't offer to take a pay cut, because there's no such thing as too much depth on the O-Line.
I am reassured that we pursued Steve Hutchinson, though it is hard to blame him for signing with Tennessee. If playing with former Seahawks teammates was a consideration, then he's more likely to have that experience in Nashville than in Seattle. (At this point, no veteran of Super Bowl XL remains on Seattle's roster.)
The Seahawks signed the Green Bay backup to a 3-year contract for $26 million. This is good money for a career clipboard-clutcher with a total of two career starts under his belt.
By comparison, Tennessee signed Matt Hasselbeck in 2011 to a 3-year contract for $21 million. At the time, the former All-Pro had started 131 games--including a Super Bowl--and had played in three Pro Bowls. Of course, as Hasselbeck heads into the twilight of his career, Flynn's dawns with possible promise.
We'll find out. Signing an untested backup named Matt from Green Bay worked out well the first time, though there were growing pains early on.
If Tennessee manages to sign Peyton Manning and Hasselbeck becomes available, Seattle would be wise to scrap T-Jack and bring Matt home for some real depth at the quarterback position.
The good news is that the Seahawks are competing successfully in free agency, and the Great Collaborators grasped that the free agent market offered surer bets at quarterback than our draft position did.
I'm glad the Chargers grabbed Charlie Whitehurst. Denied an opportunity to compete for the starting job in Seattle, Jesus of Clemson can resurrect his career where it began, backing up Philip Rivers in San Diego.
Although I thought Seattle was misguided in its efforts to court Peyton Manning, it is sobering that the Canton-bound quarterback declined even to consider the Seahawks. It is humiliating that the Colts castoff spurned Paul Allen's plan on the tarmac in Denver.
The face-saving, feelgood explanation is to attribute his lack of interest to the weather in the Pacific Northwest. However, the reality is that Manning only entertains offers from teams he sees as viable contenders by virtue of their coaches and their rosters. Based on those criteria, the Seahawks didn't make the cut.
However, Seattle has made several good moves in free agency.
We achieved our most important priorities by retaining Red Bryant and locking down the Pro Bowl backfield of Marshawn Lynch and Michael Robinson.
By signing Breno Giacomini and Paul McQuistan, we preserved depth on the offensive line at bargain rates, making Robert Gallery expendable. If Russell Okung, James Carpenter and John Moffitt all rehabilitate successfully, then we'll have more starting-calibre linemen (Okung/McQuistan/Unger/Moffitt/Carpenter, plus Giacomini) than starting positions on the line, and that hasn't been true since the Super Bowl season of 2005 (Jones/Hutchinson/Tobeck/Gray/Locklear, plus Womack).
It's unfortunate that Gallery didn't offer to take a pay cut, because there's no such thing as too much depth on the O-Line.
I am reassured that we pursued Steve Hutchinson, though it is hard to blame him for signing with Tennessee. If playing with former Seahawks teammates was a consideration, then he's more likely to have that experience in Nashville than in Seattle. (At this point, no veteran of Super Bowl XL remains on Seattle's roster.)
Sunday, March 11, 2012
Beware the NFC West
The NFC West becomes scarier every day.
Under the leadership of the league's most unpleasant coach, San Francisco came out of nowhere to post a 13-3 record, tied for second-best in the league and the conference. This was no fluke. Built upon the solid foundation of a stout defense and a strong running game, the 49ers will remain formidable next year.
In 2011, the Arizona Cardinals wobbled out of the gate with a 1-6 start. However, the songbirds soared through the season's second half, compiling a 7-2 record, finishing at .500, seizing second place in the division, and condemning Seattle to a losing record and penultimate place in the NFC West.
Impatient to win, and unconvinced that Kevin Kolb is the answer, Arizona has been hosting Peyton Manning this weekend.
Seattle developed some depth on its offensive line last year, and recently re-signed Marshawn Lynch, so the future looks bright for our running attack. If the team can come to terms with Red Bryant, our dynamic young defense should be able to pick up where it left off. The Seahawks need only a capable quarterback to become a contender.
However, it is lowly St. Louis that I find most frightening in the long term.
By hiring Jeff Fisher, the Rams secured the services of one of the most consistently successful coaches in recent league history. He inherited a bad Houston team in 1994 and quickly made them respectable in a tough division. In 16 full seasons with the Oilers/Titans franchise, his team posted winning records and made the playoffs 6 times, including a Super Bowl appearance. When they weren't in the playoffs, they weren't bad. They went .500 five times and posted 7-9 records twice. They rarely did worse; they went 6-10, 5-11 and 4-12 once each. They never posted more than two consecutive losing seasons.
In short, Fisher is a lot like Marty Schottenheimer: He may never win the Super Bowl, but he'll maintain a good team that will win a lot of games. As long as he's coaching in your division, he'll be a thorn in your side, because his teams will never lie down meekly to give you an easy win.
After seven straight years of losing, St. Louis is stocked with early-round draft picks. They are nowhere near as bad as their record last year suggests; an injury epidemic and poor coaching explained their underperformance in 2011. Their respectable showing in 2010--when they narrowly lost the division to Seattle--is a better indication of the strength of their overall roster.
Their roster is likely to grow even stronger now.
Recently, the Rams swindled Washington. The Skins want to draft Robert Griffin III, but they knew he would not last until they picked sixth in the first round. They entered negotiations with St. Louis, which owns the #2 pick in the draft.
Dan Snyder is hands down the dumbest owner in the NFL, with a long-established pattern of overpaying for the services of uncertain prospects. For many years, Snyder had to vie for with Al Davis of the Raiders for the title of dumbest owner, but the death of the Crypt Keeper has removed all doubt. The scam the Rams just perpetrated on the Skins simply cements what league observers have long known about Moneybags Snyder.
It is customary for Snyder to squander cash. This time, he mortgaged the future of his franchise by throwing away several draft picks.
In exchange for this year's #2 first round pick from St. Louis, Washington surrendered its...
1. #6 first round pick in 2012
2. second round pick in 2012
3. first round pick in 2013
4. first round pick in 2014
In short, the Rams will get three picks in the top forty this year, and then they'll get to pick twice in the first round in 2013 and 2014. These extra doses of young talent should help them get better fast.
St. Louis managed to exort this price from Washington because Mike Holmgren of Cleveland was willing to offer nearly as much. This makes me glad we didn't hire the Big Show to be Seattle's GM.
Congratulations to Lofa Tatupu. After a year of rest, he'll try to relaunch his career with the Atlanta Falcons. I'm sad he won't be a Seahawk anymore, but everyone in Seattle wishes him well.
Call me sentimental, but if I were John Schneider, I'd offer Steve Hutchinson a respectable, short-term veteran contract. When healthy, he can still play. His gritty attitude inspires his entire unit, and he provides credible leadership in the locker room. However, he can't wear #76 again. That number belongs to Russell Okung now.
Under the leadership of the league's most unpleasant coach, San Francisco came out of nowhere to post a 13-3 record, tied for second-best in the league and the conference. This was no fluke. Built upon the solid foundation of a stout defense and a strong running game, the 49ers will remain formidable next year.
In 2011, the Arizona Cardinals wobbled out of the gate with a 1-6 start. However, the songbirds soared through the season's second half, compiling a 7-2 record, finishing at .500, seizing second place in the division, and condemning Seattle to a losing record and penultimate place in the NFC West.
Impatient to win, and unconvinced that Kevin Kolb is the answer, Arizona has been hosting Peyton Manning this weekend.
Seattle developed some depth on its offensive line last year, and recently re-signed Marshawn Lynch, so the future looks bright for our running attack. If the team can come to terms with Red Bryant, our dynamic young defense should be able to pick up where it left off. The Seahawks need only a capable quarterback to become a contender.
However, it is lowly St. Louis that I find most frightening in the long term.
By hiring Jeff Fisher, the Rams secured the services of one of the most consistently successful coaches in recent league history. He inherited a bad Houston team in 1994 and quickly made them respectable in a tough division. In 16 full seasons with the Oilers/Titans franchise, his team posted winning records and made the playoffs 6 times, including a Super Bowl appearance. When they weren't in the playoffs, they weren't bad. They went .500 five times and posted 7-9 records twice. They rarely did worse; they went 6-10, 5-11 and 4-12 once each. They never posted more than two consecutive losing seasons.
In short, Fisher is a lot like Marty Schottenheimer: He may never win the Super Bowl, but he'll maintain a good team that will win a lot of games. As long as he's coaching in your division, he'll be a thorn in your side, because his teams will never lie down meekly to give you an easy win.
After seven straight years of losing, St. Louis is stocked with early-round draft picks. They are nowhere near as bad as their record last year suggests; an injury epidemic and poor coaching explained their underperformance in 2011. Their respectable showing in 2010--when they narrowly lost the division to Seattle--is a better indication of the strength of their overall roster.
Their roster is likely to grow even stronger now.
Recently, the Rams swindled Washington. The Skins want to draft Robert Griffin III, but they knew he would not last until they picked sixth in the first round. They entered negotiations with St. Louis, which owns the #2 pick in the draft.
Dan Snyder is hands down the dumbest owner in the NFL, with a long-established pattern of overpaying for the services of uncertain prospects. For many years, Snyder had to vie for with Al Davis of the Raiders for the title of dumbest owner, but the death of the Crypt Keeper has removed all doubt. The scam the Rams just perpetrated on the Skins simply cements what league observers have long known about Moneybags Snyder.
It is customary for Snyder to squander cash. This time, he mortgaged the future of his franchise by throwing away several draft picks.
In exchange for this year's #2 first round pick from St. Louis, Washington surrendered its...
1. #6 first round pick in 2012
2. second round pick in 2012
3. first round pick in 2013
4. first round pick in 2014
In short, the Rams will get three picks in the top forty this year, and then they'll get to pick twice in the first round in 2013 and 2014. These extra doses of young talent should help them get better fast.
St. Louis managed to exort this price from Washington because Mike Holmgren of Cleveland was willing to offer nearly as much. This makes me glad we didn't hire the Big Show to be Seattle's GM.
Congratulations to Lofa Tatupu. After a year of rest, he'll try to relaunch his career with the Atlanta Falcons. I'm sad he won't be a Seahawk anymore, but everyone in Seattle wishes him well.
Call me sentimental, but if I were John Schneider, I'd offer Steve Hutchinson a respectable, short-term veteran contract. When healthy, he can still play. His gritty attitude inspires his entire unit, and he provides credible leadership in the locker room. However, he can't wear #76 again. That number belongs to Russell Okung now.
Thursday, March 8, 2012
Peyton is not the answer
Seattle should not pursue Peyton Manning.
Although he is indisputably among the best quarterbacks ever to play the game, his ability to continue to perform at that level is dubious. When the Indianapolis Colts cut ties with the player who has defined them for more than a decade, that means he's damaged goods.
Pete Carroll and John Schneider jettisoned Matt Hasselbeck--despite his Pro Bowl pedigree--because his age, susceptibility to injury, and relative lack of mobility made him vulnerable behind our patchwork offensive line.
How, then, does it make sense to sign an older, less mobile quarterback with an even more alarming history of injury? What are the odds that his performance would justify the cost in cash and draft picks?
Seattle should shop for affordable free agents to compete for the starting slot. Among the multitude on the market are many capable quarterbacks worthy of consideration, including:
David Carr (NYG)
A.J. Feeley (STL)
Matt Flynn (GB)
David Garrard (FA)
Shaun Hill (DET)
Josh McCown (CHI)
Kyle Orton (KC)
Chris Redman (ATL)
Sage Rosenfels (MIA)
Charlie Whitehurst (SEA)
This is what economists would call a buyer's market.
Seattle can find better value and more viable starters in free agency than the team is likely to obtain through the draft, where the strongest quarterbacks go early, and teams pay dearly for uncertain prospects.
The Seahawks should use the draft to shore up other positions.
Getting an affordable quarterback will free up money to re-sign Red Bryant, the linchpin to our defense.
That move would complement the wisdom of inking a long-term deal with Marshawn Lynch, the heart and soul of our offense.
I will miss Marcus Trufant. Given his recent injury history and the strength of our young secondary, I understand the cold reasoning behind the decision, but it was a graceless way to end a relationship with one of the finest defensive backs in team history.
Although he is indisputably among the best quarterbacks ever to play the game, his ability to continue to perform at that level is dubious. When the Indianapolis Colts cut ties with the player who has defined them for more than a decade, that means he's damaged goods.
Pete Carroll and John Schneider jettisoned Matt Hasselbeck--despite his Pro Bowl pedigree--because his age, susceptibility to injury, and relative lack of mobility made him vulnerable behind our patchwork offensive line.
How, then, does it make sense to sign an older, less mobile quarterback with an even more alarming history of injury? What are the odds that his performance would justify the cost in cash and draft picks?
Seattle should shop for affordable free agents to compete for the starting slot. Among the multitude on the market are many capable quarterbacks worthy of consideration, including:
David Carr (NYG)
A.J. Feeley (STL)
Matt Flynn (GB)
David Garrard (FA)
Shaun Hill (DET)
Josh McCown (CHI)
Kyle Orton (KC)
Chris Redman (ATL)
Sage Rosenfels (MIA)
Charlie Whitehurst (SEA)
This is what economists would call a buyer's market.
Seattle can find better value and more viable starters in free agency than the team is likely to obtain through the draft, where the strongest quarterbacks go early, and teams pay dearly for uncertain prospects.
The Seahawks should use the draft to shore up other positions.
Getting an affordable quarterback will free up money to re-sign Red Bryant, the linchpin to our defense.
That move would complement the wisdom of inking a long-term deal with Marshawn Lynch, the heart and soul of our offense.
I will miss Marcus Trufant. Given his recent injury history and the strength of our young secondary, I understand the cold reasoning behind the decision, but it was a graceless way to end a relationship with one of the finest defensive backs in team history.
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