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Russell Wilson’s Potential Put On Display In Near Game-Winning Drive Against Cardinals During First Start

Russell Wilson’s Potential Put On Display In Near Game-Winning Drive Against Cardinals During First Start

Russ’s Rookie Year, A Re-Look At The Season The Seahawks Gained A Super Star Head coach Pete Carroll and general manager John Schneider had a decision to make. Since taking over the Seattle Seahawks organization, the team had posted consecutive 7-9 seasons. The Seahawks were still rebuilding and had undoubtedly been adding talent, but without a quarterback, the prospect of another 7-9 season felt too great. The problem was they had already been looking for a quarterback. For the 2011…

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Loss To Cardinals Full Of Silver Linings, Still Hope For Our Seahawks

Loss To Cardinals Full Of Silver Linings, Still Hope For Our Seahawks

The Seattle Seahawks (9-5-1) lost to the Arizona Cardinals (6-8-1). The Los Angeles Rams (4-11) lost to the San Francisco 49ers (2-12). Let’s Workshop This Offense (Some More) Germain Ifedi Is Getting Up To Game Speed. Weeks ago, 18to40 took apart a “stunt” play on Ifedi. During the play, Ifedi got stuck on his initial assignment, chasing Buccaneers’ defensive lineman Gerald McCoy in favor of holding his ground for defensive lineman Ryan Russell. When Ifedi realized his mistake, he watched…

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Defense Wins Championships, But This Vanilla Offense Needs An Attitude

Defense Wins Championships, But This Vanilla Offense Needs An Attitude

Minutes into the first quarter, safety Tony Jefferson hunted down Wilson on an option that Wilson had kept. Wilson attempted a stiff arm to fend off Jefferson but Wilson’s lower body strength (an underrated aspect of a successful stiff arm) was so absent that instead of repelling Jefferson, Jefferson used Wilson’s arm to scale him. If that sounds familiar, it’s because 49ers linebacker Eli Harold did the same thing to Wilson’s attempted stiff-arm in week 3 and subsequently landed on Wilson’s leg.

These facts should dismiss any thoughts of having Wilson scramble, but an easy conclusion quickly becomes a paradox. The state of the Seahawks running game is such that, if Wilson does not immediately start contributing, the passing attack could face further regression, especially from the wide-outs. While Wilson’s scrambling threat could give the offense some pop, it leaves Wilson vulnerable to injury. Wilson cannot run laterally, so his traditional toolset, the zone-read or those bootlegs that have him take off if no one is open, are off the table. The only option is to turn Wilson into a north/south runner.

Offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell needs to get a handful of plays where the offensive line directs rushers to overpursue on Wilson, Christine Michael stays home for extra protection, and Wilson escapes between the tackles. The goal is four yards per attempt, with a target of twenty yards per game.

Discombobulated But Still Dangerous, The Cardinals Lie Ahead – Seahawks Bye Week Special

Discombobulated But Still Dangerous, The Cardinals Lie Ahead – Seahawks Bye Week Special

The Seahawks played a smash-mouth game against the Rams during week two and lost in a fashion only the Rams can create. There were many reasons to ignore this game, especially since every NFL team shits the bed once per season. One could be forgiven for thinking, without Teddy Bridgewater, and in the first week of the Sam Bradford experiment, where Adrian Peterson rushed for only 31 yards on 19 carries, that the Vikings were in 8-8 territory. Fast forward to week 5 and the Vikings are now 5-0 and have won four of those five games by greater than a touchdown. Last year, the Seahawks took the Vikings twice. The first was a 38-7 stomping. Several key Viking defensive starters were missing during the game, and in the post-season, it was a different story with their presence. The Hawks still won, 10-9.

If the Seahawks are due to meet the Vikings in the post-season, this Rams defense might be the only real warm-up they get. So being the glutton for punishment that I am, I decided to watch week two again.

2015 Seahawks Re-Watch, Week 17: Lockett Goes Light Speed

2015 Seahawks Re-Watch, Week 17: Lockett Goes Light Speed

For his efforts as a return specialist, Lockett earned Pro Bowl honors. Seven other Seahawks made the squad. Russell Wilson was the only offensive player to do so, having been the best quarterback in football during November and December. Incidentally, his touchdown pass to Coffman broke the single-season team record. The previous mark of 32 was held by Dave Krieg, who accomplished the feat in 1984. The remaining spots belonged to familiar names. Middle linebacker Bobby Wagner, an underrated speed guy and sure fire tackler, made it and so did Michael Bennett, the elite defensive lineman. Cornerback Richard Sherman earned a nod, mostly likely for his success in adapting to an expanded role in the secondary. Safety Earl Thomas, by far the best player for the Seahawks in 2015, earned his nod for being a 5’10” human being who played as if he were fifty-yard wall towering along the field. Lastly, safety Kam Chancellor was selected, but the selection was a tad controversial. Chancellor had missed two games due to a holdout and had an iffy year in pass coverage. As it was, after his Pro Bowl selection, he injured his tailbone and missed the rest of the regular season, playing in only 11 games, a career low.

Several Hawks received nods as alternates, including defensive end Chris Avril, who had a superb season, and kicker Steven Hauschka, whose foot was as golden as ever. Also, running back Marshawn Lynch and left tackle Russell Okung were elected. With so many Seahawks on the roster, it was hard to imagine any players being snubbed, but two Seahawks had strong cases. Doug Baldwin earned the honor as an alternate but would have likely been a straight-up Pro Browler had voting occurred closer to the conclusion of the regular season. Meanwhile, KJ Wright was a borderline candidate, finishing the year with 116 combined tackles and four forced fumbles. A player on the rise, Wright’s efforts in 2015 were off the charts, even if he did not produce the sexiest stat line.

2015 Seahawks Re-Watch, Week 10: The Tale of Two Halves

2015 Seahawks Re-Watch, Week 10: The Tale of Two Halves

For the second time in 2015, the Seahawks were .500—but .500 at 2-2 and .500 at 4-4 were different animals. The season half over, nothing short of a two victories against the division leading Arizona Cardinals would allow the Hawks an opportunity at the NFC West crown and a home playoff game.

2016 Seahawks Opponents, NFC West

2016 Seahawks Opponents, NFC West

Post his Jake Delhomme-esque conference championship meltdown, Carson Palmer will enter this season with some serious psychological ghosts. No doubt, the Arizona Cardinals will feel no better about the prospect. In a QB starved league, the Cardinals can do no better than Palmer, but can Palmer do them any better?

Conference Championships: Denver’s Big D

Conference Championships: Denver’s Big D

Your Super Bowl is the Carolina Panthers versus the Denver Broncos. To me, this game personifies the old school versus the new school trends in the NFL. The Broncos will bring their aging quarterback with his 2000s offense and its heavy pass rush defense while the Panthers will bring their young, 2010s QB (great thrower, great runner) and their fiesta defense that feeds on a strong stable of linebackers.

Week Seventeen: End It Right.

Week Seventeen: End It Right.

The Seahawks closed out the regular season in a dominating fashion. Led by Tyler Lockett and the imploding Cardinals specials teams unit, Russell Wilson and Co found themselves within striking distance of the red zone on many drives. In fact, the field was so short that Wilson’s 3 touchdowns were accompanied by only 197 passing yards (only played 3 quarters). Meanwhile, the defense was feisty and opportunistic. With the pass rush able to put in some early hits on Carson Palmer, the potential NFL MVP began forcing his throws and lost his accuracy.

Week Ten: Wilson’s Warming Up.

Week Ten: Wilson’s Warming Up.

After 9 weeks of silence, the media is finally coming out against Seattle’s offense. I think most people felt the Seahawk’s would figure it out sooner or later but you’re starting to hear things like, “The Seahawks are just now figuring out what they have in Jimmy Graham.” Translation: “They have no clue what they are doing with this guy.” (It’s not just if they use them, it’s how they use them–it’s weird). Or when Collinsworth said, “You know, it might be nice to see some timed passing routes once and a while.” Translation: “They have no clue on how convert first downs with the passing game.”