2017 Seahawks: Wilson the Magician

DanoooME

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I'm interested to see what Carson can do with a full workload again.
Now we'll never get to find out. He went out with a serious leg injury, which could be anything from a break to a torn ACL. We should find out today.

This team is now 2-2 after beating the Colts 46-18. They have played exactly one good half of football as a team in 4 games (the second half of the Colts game). That half showed how good this team can be, but it's so frustrating to watch various areas of the team just completely shit the bed. The OL had a few decent plays, but overall still suck. There's no creativity in the offense. The defense gets overworked and starts to give out at the ends of games. The special teams have been hit and miss.

Next week they go to LA to face the Rams, which is going to be a tough game. It's usually a tough game for the Hawks, but even more so with the Rams seemingly making significant improvements this year, which should end Jeff Fisher's coaching career permanently.
 

DanoooME

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Pulled that one out 16-10 at the Rams thanks to 5 LA turnovers and Goff barely missing a wide open Kupp in the end zone for the winning score.

They played this one without DE Cliff Avril and CB Jeremy Lane, as well as DE Quinton Jefferson, who was signed off of the Rams' practice squad and then broke his hand in practice the next day.

Didn't see much, but from the little I saw, it was the defense playing well and the offense sucking wind. If the OL improvement continued, I didn't see it, although the Rams probably have one of the toughest D-lines in the league.

Bye week this coming week then they face the hapless Giants in their favorite road stadium.
 

sketz

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The bye is coming at a good time - I need a break from watching this offense
 

DanoooME

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Injury updates:

** RB Chris Carson was put on IR with a broken fibula a week ago, and Pete didn't rule out a possible return, which befuddles me.
** DE Cliff Avril has a serious stinger and arm numbness, to the point that it could be a career ender. It's unlikely he returns any time soon, which is a hit to the depth in the DL
** G Luke Joeckel is getting arthroscopic knee surgery during the bye week, and it's uncertain if he'll be ready for the Giants game.
** CB Jeremy Lane remains out, as does RB CJ Prosise. There's less of a need to rush these guys back as their replacements (CB Justin Coleman, RB JD McKissic) have been playing well
 

DanoooME

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They pull off yet another ugly win, 24-7 over the hapless Giants. Their TDs were a gadget play, then Fail Mary II, then a garbage time TD with the game in hand. This offense is baffling. Somehow they put up 425 yards of total offense, including 104 on the ground at 3.4 per carry. Russell continues to scramble for his life, even though he was only sacked once. The defense does its job. The penalties were off the charts this game (15 for 110) and that has to stop.

Team scoring by quarter through 6 games: Q1 - 9 pts, Q2 - 30 pts, Q3 - 42 pts, Q4 - 53 pts

The slow starts are just endlessly frustrating and they just can't make it easy on themselves.

Next up is Houston at home, which won't be a walk in the park either.
 

DanoooME

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Giant boner for the latest big deal by John Schneider, picking up disgruntled LT Duane Brown from the Texans for CB Jeremy Lane, a 2018 5th rounder and a 2019 2nd rounder. Exactly what the team needed and dealt from a position of strength with the emergence of Shaq Griffin and Justin Coleman at CB. I wish it was a 3rd instead of a 2nd but it was important to make this deal.

This move gets the worst LT in the game out of the lineup, which should improve pass protection significantly and if he can help get the running game going, that's a bonus.

Brown may have had an idea yesterday that this was in the works:

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DNbDEzrVQAAU9Ga?format=jpg&name=medium

Edit: They will have to do some sort of restructuring on either his deal or someone else's, as they only had $1.4M under the cap and the difference between Duane and Lane is somewhere around $3M.
 

sketz

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I agree - great move. Hawks have a window open this year & next and it made no sense to hamstring themselves with their current OL.

Also seems like an acknowledgement that they screwed up in the offseason by throwing money at Joeckel & Lacy that could have gone to a better T (Whitworth). Glad to see them recognize a sunk cost though and try to fix it

Edit: especially given that there are no great teams this year. Field is wide open
 

SoxinSeattle

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Long term deal with enough guaranteed money is the only way I see Brown restructuring. This way they don't have to cut anyone right now. How long do teams get for this sort of thing?
 

edmunddantes

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Long term deal with enough guaranteed money is the only way I see Brown restructuring. This way they don't have to cut anyone right now. How long do teams get for this sort of thing?
Actually this seems kind of bizarre. I was under the impression you can't be "over" the cap during a season. E.g. You can't make a move that would put you over the cap based on the current year guaranteed money. So Seahawks already had to have made a move to clear space. Maybe we just haven't heard about it yet.

You can be over the cap for future years as they aren't on the clock yet. And also off-season there is the rule of 51 so it is possible to some extent.
 

Super Nomario

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Actually this seems kind of bizarre. I was under the impression you can't be "over" the cap during a season. E.g. You can't make a move that would put you over the cap based on the current year guaranteed money. So Seahawks already had to have made a move to clear space. Maybe we just haven't heard about it yet.

You can be over the cap for future years as they aren't on the clock yet. And also off-season there is the rule of 51 so it is possible to some extent.

Andrew Brandt‏Verified account @AndrewBrandt
To accomodate Duane Brown contract on Seahawks' Cap, Russell Wilson renegotiated contract to convert salary to bonus. Signed last night.
 

sketz

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Duane Brown just got more expensive. Lane failed his physical and will stay with SEA (which sucks in its own right), but now the Hawks have thrown in a 2018 3rd rounder and will receive (rather than give) a 5th to close the deal. Will all depend on how quickly/effectively Brown can learn the system and mesh with the other guys, but it seems like too much for an in-season trade. A 3rd in 18 & a 2nd in 19 for Brown & a 5th in 18. Plus we’re stuck with a hurt & whining Lane and his salary. Not as psyched about this deal.
 

DanoooME

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Yeah, which means more of a deal they have to cut with Wilson, probably pay the rest of this season's salary as bonus to cut the cap hit.

Lane probably won't play much, especially if Shead comes back in the next couple of weeks. If he's a malcontent, well, the rest of the team has dealt with worse.

But the important thing is fixing that OL and Brown goes a long way towards getting that done.
 

DanoooME

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Eddie Lacy to be the featured back this week. In a way, I'm glad so that when he goes 20 carries for 18 yards, Pete will know he's finally done and can cut bait and put Rawls back in the lead role where he belongs. In the meantime, the offense will have to be on Russell's back again.
 

sketz

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Running the read option and actually having the QB keep it once in a while might help the running game too. Can’t remember the last game where Russ pulled it back. They’re probably telling him to hand it off to avoid injury, but when the D doesn’t have to worry about the QB, the back gets stuffed.
 

DanoooME

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After a disheartening loss against Washington last week, they come back 4 days later and win at Arizona 22-16, but with a ton of injuries:

CB Richard Sherman out for the year with a torn Achilles, ends his streak of playing every game since he joined the league in 2011
RB CJ Prosise injured his other ankle than the one that's been keeping him out, out indefinitely. He's clearly made of glass
DT Jarran Reed, top run stuffer, hamstring
SS Kam Chancellor, stinger
LT Duane Brown, ankle
LB Michael Wilhoite, calf
DE Frank Clark and DT Sheldon Richardson collided and missed a few plays
CB Shaq Griffin missed a few plays with a shoulder issue
QB Russell Wilson missed a play after getting hit in the chin with a helmet; didn't seem concussed in post-game interviews, but should have been reviewed more closely

FS Earl Thomas was already out with a hammy, DE Michael Bennett has been playing with plantar fasciitis

They do have 11 days to get healthy, as they don't play again until Monday night, 11/20 at home against Atlanta.

They'll fill Sherman's spot with Jeremy Lane for now and hope DeShawn Shead can come off of the PUP list and be effective. Maybe Byron Maxwell is an option, but they currently have only ~$800K in cap space, so he would need to come cheap.

Depth is definitely being tested right now.
 

sketz

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Won the game, but probably just lost the season. Hard to see how they’ll be able to stick with their primary D scheme of only having to defend half of the field with Sherm shutting down the other side. A lot of QBs simply ignore the side Sherm is on, which allows Earl to shade towards the other side with Kam in the box.
 

DanoooME

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Won the game, but probably just lost the season. Hard to see how they’ll be able to stick with their primary D scheme of only having to defend half of the field with Sherm shutting down the other side. A lot of QBs simply ignore the side Sherm is on, which allows Earl to shade towards the other side with Kam in the box.
They've been playing a lot less cover-3 this year and doing some cover-2 (mostly on 3rd and long, but a few other times just to mix things up) and doing some man-to-man. They are probably less successful doing those things, but I think just putting different coverages in QB's heads will help offset some of the lack of success.

I'm hoping Shead will be back and effective. It could mean that teams attack what used to be Sherman's side and pick on Lane instead of Griffin, since Griffin really has played pretty well. They might still be able to provide more help to Lane instead of Griffin or mix it up between the two.

More importantly, they need Earl back and healthy. McDougald really has done a good job in his place, but Earl makes the secondary tick.
 

johnmd20

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The injuries are getting fucking ridiculous.
Nightmare year for the defense. It's hard to imagine them competing after losing talents like Sherman and Kam in the same couple of weeks. With the Rams, Philly, and NO looking pretty solid, the path to the SB for Seattle rests on Wilson's shoulders and he's literally, at this very moment, running away from two pass rushers, so I'm not sure he can handle it.

It sucks, though, because the NFC was building up towards a pretty solid playoffs and now Seattle has likely been removed from the equation. Maybe they can find a way. But I doubt it. After all the injuries they've faced, losing Sherman and Kam is too much.
 

DanoooME

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Sherman is a bigger loss than Kam IMO. They have a much more capable replacement at safety (Bradley McDougald) than they do at CB, unless the corpse of Byron Maxwell magically gets re-animated as Richard Sherman 2.0.

And it's not just the LOB that's had issues (missing Shead all year, Thomas for 2 games, Lane off and on). The DL has been ravaged as well (Avril out for year, Bennett playing through a foot injury, Reed their top run stuffer missing a game or two, and some of the depth guys). The OL has missed guys (Fant all season, Joeckel for 4 games, Britt for 1 game, Brown for at least 1 game), the RBs (Carson for the year, Prosise the majority of the year, Rawls hasn't been the same, Lacy for a few games, although that last one is addition by subtraction). The only healthy position groups have been WR, TE, and LB.

And as long as they have Wilson, they have a shot. No way I'm giving up at this point. I still think they win tomorrow night and still make the playoffs.
 

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Had to share this story because it's pretty cool.

I'm playing poker at Snoqualmie casino in Seattle and Sherman has a special craps table in the poker room that they only open for him. I've seen him in here a lot with other Seahawks. He's literally 10 feet from me. About an hour ago he started winning and drinking and getting loud. He's now blasting Christmas music and has come over to our table twice to give everyone a $100 chip. This is hilarious.
 

tims4wins

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"Maybe they still make the NFC playoff field as a wild-card, although I doubt it. But even if they do, it feels like the end of the era in which we took Seattle seriously as a Super Bowl contender." - Don Banks

Man, I remember during 49 when Collinsworth was talking about how Russ Wilson thought he was going to win six rings like Jordan. Sorry Russ, that's reserved for Brady.
 

PedroKsBambino

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Seems like the franchise is really at a cross-roads. The core is aging and expensive; Wilson is spectacular, though they need to be careful to put enough around him that he doesn't descend into hero-ball all the time out of necessity. Carroll remains better as a guy to build it than to sustain it, and the chemistry is looking frayed.

Still a lot there, and interesting to see what they do.
 

Time to Mo Vaughn

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Carroll is also 66, a year older than Belichick. Hard to say how long he's going to want to remain a coach.
 

edmunddantes

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This is at least their 3rd six-figure fine, right? Maybe more.
They lost a 5th rounder as a repeat offender for practice rules thing and 400K. At this point they should be at the $1 million and first rounders to help get the point across.

Edit - I mean if this is the NCAA this screams lack of institutional control.
 

Bowhemian

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They lost a 5th rounder as a repeat offender for practice rules thing and 400K. At this point they should be at the $1 million and first rounders to help get the point across.

Edit - I mean if this is the NCAA this screams lack of institutional control.
Integrity of the game!
I hate to equate this to the penalties that the NFL has given to the Patriots, but each one the Pats got was worse than the previous.
 

Marciano490

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Pete Carroll probably just deserves a little bit more of the benefit of the doubt than Belichick. The man has never had a whiff of scandal associated with his name at any of his professional or college coaching stops.
 

johnmd20

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Pete Carroll probably just deserves a little bit more of the benefit of the doubt than Belichick. The man has never had a whiff of scandal associated with his name at any of his professional or college coaching stops.
This is patently disingenuous. Carroll was at USC and the program was utterly scandal filled. A cesspool. He made a mockery of the NCAA, which is saying something. It was so bad, Carroll just walked away from it because there was no recovering from how bad it was. Losses were vacated and a Heinemann was taken away, I believe. It took a decade for USC to get back to their former glory, as Carroll left the program in ruins.

God knows why you're pretending this didn't happen. It was a pretty big story.

edit - yes, this is a joke
 

DanoooME

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This is it.

Hate to say it, but it's time for some changes.

What I want to happen: Seahawks win their last two, Atlanta loses their last two, Detroit loses one and the Hawks make the playoffs and anything can happen.

What will likely happen: Get blown out by the Cowboys 38-14, shit the bed against the Cardinals 23-3 because they don't care anymore and go home 8-8.

THEN what SHOULD happen: John Schneider gives Pete an ultimatum: Fire Darrel Bevell (OC), Tom Cable (OL coach), and Brian Schneider (ST coach - no relation). Give Kris Richard (DC) the benefit of the doubt due to his youth. If he doesn't can them, Pete goes too.

What will likely happen: John keeps everyone and the whole organization just keeps getting eaten out from the inside, like a cactus infested with spiders. Then in a couple of years, when the team falls apart and finishes 4-12, Paul Allen finally cleans house and starts over.

Thanks Pete and company for finally delivering us a Super Bowl win. We will always treasure 2013. I'd be happy to buy you a beer for that if I ever met you. But it's time to go. The institutional chaos is just getting worse and worse and we can see the desperation surrounding the entire team.

It's a shame because I think John Schneider is a really good GM and they are lucky to have him bringing in talent and managing the salary cap, but I think he's tied his boat to Carroll the Titanic, the iceberg has been hit and he's going down with the ship.

The lack of institutional control is something Pete never learned to correct and it's going to take him down again. Between the Adderall, the manipulation of the rules, and the lack of discipline within the team, all of my fears when he was first hired have all come to roost. I really wasn't for Pete's hiring initially, but hoped that he could pull off putting in a winning culture. He did that, but has never had anything put in place to sustain it and grow it like other coaches have. It's his Achilles heel and eventually he needs to pay for it again. Sadly, it likely won't be for a couple of years and we're headed to the dark days of the early 90s again despite having Russell Wilson. Hopefully Paul Allen will find a way to keep Schneider and get a new coach and retool. The team has enough talent to compete and I think Schneider could still make it competitive with a new coach. It doesn't necessarily need to be blown up. I don't think Pete's firing or a coaching staff clean out is going to happen though. And the team is doomed until it happens.
 

DanoooME

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Isn't that pretty drastic considering your team is missing half its defense?
That's why Richard gets to keep his job. He's not as good as Quinn or even Bradley, but he's still young and learning and is missing a lot of key pieces. The offense, on the other hand, does not have those excuses. And the special teams have been dreadful this year, not just the kicking game, but the coverage.
 

Super Nomario

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It's a shame because I think John Schneider is a really good GM and they are lucky to have him bringing in talent and managing the salary cap, but I think he's tied his boat to Carroll the Titanic, the iceberg has been hit and he's going down with the ship.
Are we sure Schneider's good? The Harvin trade was a disaster. The Jimmy Graham trade isn't looking much better. The drafting has fallen off after Scot McCloughan left. Alex Collins looks good in Baltimore and they've struggled at RB all year. It's hard to know where the coaching staff ends and the the front office begins on some of the moves, particularly at OL and DB, but I don't think they've covered themselves in glory from the personnel side. Part of it, too, is the copycat league has caught up to the market inefficiencies they found in terms of long corners and Combine SPARQ freaks.
 

Marciano490

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That's why Richard gets to keep his job. He's not as good as Quinn or even Bradley, but he's still young and learning and is missing a lot of key pieces. The offense, on the other hand, does not have those excuses. And the special teams have been dreadful this year, not just the kicking game, but the coverage.
Understood. I just wonder how much talent the offense has besides Wilson and Baldwin. Some of the RBs have flashed for a stretch, but there hasn't been anyone consistently good and durable. The line has had issues, and while you'd think they'd get more out of Graham and Richardson, it never was an offense that seemed loaded, especially without the defense setting them up with great field position.

I know you've hated Bevell's play calling for awhile, so that's consistent, but if this team is healthy next year and has a good draft, are they not an 11-5 team and playoff contender? And I only say 11-5 because of the Rams and Jimmy G.
 

dcmissle

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This is it.

Hate to say it, but it's time for some changes.

What I want to happen: Seahawks win their last two, Atlanta loses their last two, Detroit loses one and the Hawks make the playoffs and anything can happen.

What will likely happen: Get blown out by the Cowboys 38-14, shit the bed against the Cardinals 23-3 because they don't care anymore and go home 8-8.

THEN what SHOULD happen: John Schneider gives Pete an ultimatum: Fire Darrel Bevell (OC), Tom Cable (OL coach), and Brian Schneider (ST coach - no relation). Give Kris Richard (DC) the benefit of the doubt due to his youth. If he doesn't can them, Pete goes too.

What will likely happen: John keeps everyone and the whole organization just keeps getting eaten out from the inside, like a cactus infested with spiders. Then in a couple of years, when the team falls apart and finishes 4-12, Paul Allen finally cleans house and starts over.

Thanks Pete and company for finally delivering us a Super Bowl win. We will always treasure 2013. I'd be happy to buy you a beer for that if I ever met you. But it's time to go. The institutional chaos is just getting worse and worse and we can see the desperation surrounding the entire team.

It's a shame because I think John Schneider is a really good GM and they are lucky to have him bringing in talent and managing the salary cap, but I think he's tied his boat to Carroll the Titanic, the iceberg has been hit and he's going down with the ship.

The lack of institutional control is something Pete never learned to correct and it's going to take him down again. Between the Adderall, the manipulation of the rules, and the lack of discipline within the team, all of my fears when he was first hired have all come to roost. I really wasn't for Pete's hiring initially, but hoped that he could pull off putting in a winning culture. He did that, but has never had anything put in place to sustain it and grow it like other coaches have. It's his Achilles heel and eventually he needs to pay for it again. Sadly, it likely won't be for a couple of years and we're headed to the dark days of the early 90s again despite having Russell Wilson. Hopefully Paul Allen will find a way to keep Schneider and get a new coach and retool. The team has enough talent to compete and I think Schneider could still make it competitive with a new coach. It doesn't necessarily need to be blown up. I don't think Pete's firing or a coaching staff clean out is going to happen though. And the team is doomed until it happens.
Awesome post. It’s hard, but you are right about Pete. You hit on the strand that unifies his HC career from NEP through USC to Sea. Different manifestations, same basic problem.

The fact that he has the media utterly charmed makes it difficult to move the needle on cleaning house. It took the late great Will McDonough, tag teaming with Borges, more than a year to blow his ass out of New England even though it was evident to most of us that Pete and Grier were presiding over an insane asylum.

Edit. And Pete doesn’t give a fuck. He has digested the key point — Lombardis are not forfeited. He’ll continue to chew gum, clap his hands and aw shucks his way through the regulatory mine fields. We’re he an actor rather than a coach, a natural in Glengarry Glen Ross.
 
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