From what I gather, people appreciated the post I threw up on Saturday that rounded up (possibly) interesting radio interviews and shows that might be worth a listen, so I plan on making it a semi-regular column here at Field Gulls. Brock and Salk had Seahawks QB Matt Flynn on their show today, and Softy hosted former Seahawk great Dave Krieg. I've embedded the audio for those interviews below, head in and give them a listen.

Continue reading this post »

I'm taking a brief moment to update you on the state of the teams that we must be better than in order to return to the playoffs in 2012. Well, we don't technically have to be better than all of them, but given the state of the NFC West over the last decade, we must assume that a Wild Card isn't coming. Winter is coming, but probably not a wild card because in that case we'd have to be better than a whole lot of teams.

Yesterday I went over the likely cellar-dweller of the division, the Rams but the Cardinals all of a sudden look like a formidable opponent. I actually kind of think that the Cards will be the "hot pick" for many analysts as winners of the NFC West when those predictions come out. As the 49ers regress to normalcy and Alex Smith throws more than five interceptions, San Francisco will be in danger of not repeating their division crown. But will it be the Cards, Seahawks, or even Rams that take that crown?

Probably not the Rams but the Cards might just be legit. After winning seven of their last nine games, Arizona is rollin' and feelin' good. Have they done enough to win double-digit games for only the second tiem since 1976? Let's see...

2011 Record: 8-8

Standard League Offensive Rankings: 24th scoring offense, 19th total offense, 17th passing offense, 13th passing touchdowns, 27th in interceptions, 24th in rushing offense, 16th in rushing touchdowns, 17th in yards per carry, 28th in turnovers, 28th in turnover differential.

Standard League Defensive Rankings: 17th in scoring defense, 18th in total defense, 17th in passing defense, 5th in passing touchdowns allowed, 26th in interceptions, 21st in rushing defense, 23rd in rushing touchdowns allowed, 16th in yards per carry, 26th in turnovers forced.

Continue reading this post »

Russell Wilson's strong performance over the weekend at Seahawks' rookie camp - he took close to 500 snaps and threw nearly 400 passes - caused a major stir, especially considering Pete Carroll officially declared Wilson part of the three way competition at quarterback once the activities were over. To an extent, the media/scouts' buzz about his potential - in other words, everyone's continued surprise as he continues to succeed - reopened Pandora's box in regards to Wilson and his unique skill set. It's not uncommon for a young player to be impressive in shorts and no pads - which he should be - but still, he made a positive impression; thoughts about his anticipation, his high release, and the ability to throw people open downfield were just some of the observations passed along via twitter and other mediums by those on the scene.

As I was able to see exactly none of what occurred, I did what I considered to be a decent consolation prize and went back to the three "game tapes" of him from 2011. Additionally, though I advocated for Wilson up to the draft - my first choice third rounder heading into day two - I never posted anything visual pertaining to him. So, the conjunction of the two sentiments above has gotten me to here. In case you're beginning to wonder; this isn't a "why Wilson is great" themed post or a comprehensive scouting report, but instead a look at some of the little things that made him stand out over the past months - when applicable, how that translates to his "fit" in Seattle. These aren't necessarily the best or biggest plays he makes, just ones that show what he can do - with a few negative plays sprinkled in for some balance.

At the least, with all of the gushing quotes that have been said pertaining to him by Carroll, Schneider, and his Wisconsin coach Bret Bielema; though quarterback talk will be abundant in the coming months, it could help to pair some visuals with the overwhelming praise that has been thrown on him in the past few weeks. As his first impression is fresh, hopefully the tape will help give a rough idea of what seemingly occurred in rookie camp last weekend.

The first video, the loss at Michigan State when John Schneider texted Pete Carroll from the sidelines about how much Wilson was tilting the field, after the jump.

Continue reading this post »

Jaye Howard is one player that I'll be watching closely come training camp and preseason for the Seahawks. He's a guy that I had done no scouting on prior to the Draft, hadn't really heard of, and haven't really followed up on a whole lot since he was picked.

Still, he could be a guy that actually gets a good amount of snaps in 2012, and if he impresses the coaching staff enough, he could likely be a part of the Seahawks' version of the Giants' NASCAR package, as Eric Williams laid out yesterday. Howard did receive a good amount of praise though during the Seahawks' 3-day Rookie Mini-Camp from beat writers and the coaching staff, so educate yourself on his style and skillset by watching the videos below, all courtesy of DraftBreakdown and their crew of gametape cutup magicians.

Continue reading this post »

HUMPDAY.

Hawks rev up version of "NASCAR" package | Seahawks Insider
For Pete Carroll this offseason the idea was simple – add more speed to the team’s pass rush to create more sack opportunities, similar to the way New York Giants defensive coordinator Perry Fewell drew up his NASCAR package with four defensive ends on third down, Jason Pierre-Paul, Osi Umenyiora, Justin Tuck and Mathias Kiwanuka.

Ram tough: Les Snead leans on strengths to rebuild St. Louis - NFL.com
Tuesday was May 1. For new St. Louis Rams general manager Les Snead, the beginning of the new month meant it was finally time to tie up a whole bunch of loose ends.

Rebuilding? Rams prefer to look at 2012 as re-stocking period - NFL.com
The St. Louis Rams approached the 2012 NFL Draft embracing the reality that they were not one player away. As last year's 2-14 finish clearly illustrated, they were missing far more than that.

Can Russell Wilson win a starting job as a rookie? | National Football Post
Pete Carroll is going to give the QB a shot to compete.

Russell Wilson's shot to start reveals Pete Carroll's lack of commitment to Seahawks QBs - Yahoo! Sports
There are many derivations on the basic theme of finding and committing to a good quarterback. Or you could be like Seattle Seahawks coach Pete Carroll and continuously date.

2011's Best Performances: Defensive Tackles | ProFootballFocus.com
We began focusing on the defensive players yesterday in our continuing look at the best individual performances from the 2011 season. Today we stay on that track, shifting to the inside guys as we turn our attention to those players who spend their life at either defensive tackle or nose tackle. As is the norm, we’re going to give you the 10 highest-graded individual displays from the position in 2011. This takes into account how a DT performed while stopping the run, rushing the passer, and even when dropping into coverage (and the penalties they took, too). Let’s get to it.

Pressure point: Seahawks - NFC West Blog - ESPN
Examining who faces the most challenging season for the Seattle Seahawks and why.

Pressure point: Rams - NFC West Blog - ESPN
Examining who faces the most challenging season for the St. Louis Rams and why.

Marquess Wilson (WR, Washington State) vs ASU & Washington " Seahawks Draft Blog
Wilson fits the criteria as a player who should really benefit from Mike Leach’s presence at Washington State. Whether he ever develops into a first round prospect remains to be seen, but he’ll probably get plenty of targets next season.

Don't believe the hype during OTA season - NFL.com
The Super Bowl was more than three months ago. The NFL Draft is over and free agency slowed to a crawl. We are hungry for football, so we turn to Organized Team Activities (OTAs) and minicamps for sustenance.

NFL - Seattle Seahawks' QB competition is getting crowded - ESPN
It's a quarterback free-for-all in Seattle, Ashley Fox writes.

NFL - Bad time to be a rookie - ESPN
As the new 10-year collective bargaining agreement starts to play out, there may be no more notable difference in the business of the NFL than the timing and ease of rookie contract negotiations. The new CBA has, for at least a decade, radically simplified and shortened the negotiation of these deals.

Continue reading this post »

We talk Bruce Irvin, Russell Wilson, Matt Flynn, T-Jack, and a whole lot more. Give it a listen y'all, and you can head over to KJR's website to download it as well.

Continue reading this post »

The Seahawks have signed veteran and former 19th overall pick Alex Barron after he had an impressive mini-camp with the team last weekend. He was out of football last season rehabbing from a knee injury, and prior to that had a short stint with the Saints, Cowboys and started 74 games for the Rams after they chose him in the first round in 2005. Barron looks the part at 6'7, 320 pounds and though he was mostly known for penalties, he's looking to start fresh in Seattle, as he told Seahawks.com. "[The Mini-camp] was pretty good, because it's a little different than just a one-day workout. I got to move around, be in the huddle, do some drills, have some one-on-ones with some guys, show a little movement. It was great. I just wanted to get somewhere. I'm pretty confident in my play. I've made some mistakes in the past, also. But I've gotten to the point where after last season, and coming into the offseason as a free agent, all I want to do is come in and just show that I can play, because it can't be talked about, it always has to be shown."

It will be really interesting to see how Barron does over the rest of the offseason, and obviously possessed enough physical tools and potential to be a first round pick back in 2005. Players can and have certainly turned things around while moving to different cities, different coaching staffs and different teams, so he'll be a player to keep an eye on throughout this process to see if he can realize some of his first-round potential.

The Hawks also signed CB Donny Lisowski, TE Cooper Helfet, and T Andrew Mitchell while releasing CB London Durham, Adrien Moten, T Jon Opperud, and G/C Brent Osborne. Lisowski is a very athletic and quick-twitch athlete at 5'11, 185 pounds that had a very good weekend at the Mini-camp. He drew rave reviews from Pete Carroll "He was all over the place out here. I had no (idea about him), other than he ran extremely fast when he showed up for a workout day. And then he went out there and made a bunch of plays. So I was really fired up about him." Carroll wasn't the only one signing his praises, as several of the beat reporters covering the camp echoed this sentiment over the weekend. Lisowski obviously impressed enough to stick around for a while.

Also drawing some reviews from reporters over the weekend was Cooper Helfet, a 6'3, 240 pound tight end H-back type from Duke. Helfet had 43 catches for 395 yards for the Blue Devils in 2011, and was one of the players to work out with Peyton Manning during the offseason when he was training at Duke's facility. He's got very nice athleticism - 4.71 40, 1.63 10-yard split, 6.82 3-cone drill, and 4.22 short shuttle, - and the Seahawks have shown a lot of interesting in players of his type so he's a guy that could have a decent chance to catch on with the Seahawks, who are still seeking depth there.

Finally, Andrew Mitchell went undrafted out of Oklahoma State in 2010 and was signed by the Bengals at that point. He's 6'5, 308 pounds.

Being in a division with great teams isn't nearly as detrimental in the NFL as it is in the MLB, but it can't be ignored that sometimes you're only as good as the opponents you face most often. Seattle itself made the playoffs as recently as 2010 simply because there wasn't even an average team in the NFC West, we were just the least suckiest of all the sucks.

For the purpose of this series, I'll just be checking in with the teams that we'll play twice-a-piece this year, starting with the Rams.

2011 Record: 2-14

Standard League Offensive Rankings: 32nd scoring offense, 31st total offense, 30th in passing offense, 32nd in passing touchdowns, 4th in interceptions, 23rd in rushing offense, 29th in rushing touchdowns, 20th in yards per carry, 11th in turnovers.

Standard League Defensive Rankings: 26th in scoring defense, 22nd in total defense, 7th in pass defense, 9th in passing touchdowns, 23rd in interceptions, 31st in rushing defense, 27th in rushing touchdowns allowed, 28th in yards per carry, 28th in turnovers forced.

Continue reading this post »