Coffee and Cigarettes

Morning Coffee and Cigarettes folks, if that's your thing. Drink it in. Take a drag. Feels good to be alive huh? I don't know what the hell I'm talking about anymore. Here are some links for you.

Hasselbeck sounds sold on Seattle | Titans Insider: This coming from the Titan's Insider blog. Said Hass: "It's too bad that we can't just have our (whole team available), but we just don't have the numbers for that," Hasselbeck said. "All in all, it's sort of competitive that way. It's like ... you don't want to get outdone by the guys in your division."

Five trades that need to happen when lockout ends - NFL - CBSSports.com Football: CBS' Clark Judge on the Palmer to Seattle idea:

"This one's a longshot because I don't think Cincinnati -- OK, owner Mike Brown -- is going to budge on Palmer, which means I don't think the Bengals make a deal with anyone before next year -- if at all. Nevertheless, the Seahawks should press them into doing something. Palmer won't play again for Cincinnati, and the coaches there know it, his teammates know it and, frankly, I think Brown knows it. But there's a precedent involved, and if Brown lets Palmer walk, guaranteed, the line starts forming today at the company exit. That will make Brown reluctant, but it should push Seattle that much harder into making Brown an offer he can't refuse.

Look, the Seahawks surrendered their second-round position and a third-round draft pick for Charlie Whitehurst, and from what I've seen of Whitehurst he's not the answer. Palmer is. He played for Pete Carroll at USC, he's 31, he's at home on the West Coast and he could mentor Whitehurst. I know, Matt Hasselbeck could, too, but he's an unrestricted free agent, and the Seahawks seem lukewarm about re-signing him. So Seattle should push hard for Palmer as it pushed hard for Whitehurst, and who cares if they overpay? You must solve this position, especially now that St. Louis is armed and ready to take back a division it once controlled. I can't imagine a better or more logical solution than Carson Palmer."

Goodell: Teams could have dealt between lockouts - CBSSports.com: Are you kidding me? Very intriguing.

""Goodell said that "trade talks about players were not allowed during the draft, but he said two teams could have agreed on a deal before the lockout went into effect and could then carry through when the lockout ended." This is a pretty huge deal, because it could potentially mean that players are already heading to different destinations, perhaps without even knowing about it." --Essentially, teams may already have deals in place, legally. 

Lockout victims: Ten teams being hit hardest - NFL - CBSSports.com Football: More from Clark Judge on the Seahawks: "

Quick, now, who's the Seahawks' starting quarterback? Matt Hasselbeck? He's a free agent and turns 36 in September. Charlie Whitehurst? I saw what you saw last season, and let's just say that I don't think he's the answer, either. So who is? Well, that's why the Seahawks are on this list. Pete Carroll has a pro football team; he just doesn't have a starting quarterback, and, no question, the longer the lockout lasts the more it hurts clubs like Seattle -- which, by the way, also operates with a new offensive coordinator. Meet Darrell Bevell, and, no, he will not talk Brett Favre out of retirement.

The Seahawks would like to make a commitment to somebody, but good luck in this environment. They're waiting for the courts to deadlock this stalemate, just like the rest of us. Except most of us know what we're doing this fall and how we're doing it."

No OTAs, no minicamps? This season could be ugly - NFL - CBSSports.com Football: CBS' Mike Freeman on why this lockout could hurt the on-field product.

Marc Bulger skilled, but has look of shell-shocked QB - NFL - Sporting News: Since Bulger could very well end up in Arizona, I thought I'd include this - another in a series of posts being put together by Russ Lande. I've got a lot of respect for Lande's analysis, for whatever that's worth.

Players' battle with owners not a lost cause - NFL - Yahoo! Sports: Mike Silver, with another take on the Lockout situation. 

NFL.com news: QB Smith says he's likely to return to 49ers for seventh season: Pretty strange he'd actually want to. Guess the guy has thick skin. It's not like anyone else is going to start him though.

NFL.com news: Don't knock it: Smith back in San Fran makes sense for both: NFL.com's Steve Wyche defends this move, if it is to happen.

Owners court victory a path to a deal? | National Football Post: Andrew Brandt is very smart. He weighs in on the lockout battle between the players and owners. 

Hasselbeck, Carlson seek advice from ex-players - Blog - MyNorthwest.com: Interesting piece from Liz Mathews on how some Seahawks have met with former players for advice. 

"Some of these guys have gone through work stoppages before and it's good to hear their side of it -- what they did to stay in shape, how they kept their teammates together, communicating and those kinds of things," Hasselbeck said. "The reason that we are here is that I think it would just be wonderful for new guys as they come to town if they had guys that have sort of been there and done that. So I just told them how when I was struggling here as a player in Seattle, all the former quarterbacks in this area -- whether it be Warren Moon or Jim Zorn or Jeff Kemp or Tom Flick -- guys that just played, they were just there as a resource. 'Hey man, I get it.'

"It wasn't necessarily a teammate that you let down that Sunday or a coach that is going to berate you on Monday. They're just someone there that's kinda been there that you can just learn from. So I thought, 'Hey, it's just crazy that our current Seahawks don't know many of the guys that used to play for the Seahawks.' So I thought, 'is there a way that we can hang out once a year, twice a year?' I don't know, girls do it, I think guys should get to do it too."

The 2011 Wide Receiver Market - Offseason Low Down - Rotoworld.com: Evan Silva takes at the free agent/trade climate for WRs, and has James Jones and Bernard Berrian ending up in Seattle. Says Silva:

"James Jones, Packers

Scouting Report: Jones is a physical receiver with elite run-after-catch skills, just a notch below Brandon Marshall and Anquan Boldin as a tackle breaker. He also accelerates well enough to beat defensive backs downfield. At 6-foot-1, 218, Jones is a prototypical flanker in a West Coast offense, but a penchant for back-breaking drops has been his downfall in the pros. Jones has 17 drops over the past two years, and his last two would've gone for long touchdowns in the playoffs. The miscues could be partially related to Jones' focus during inconsistent playing time. He's been a rotational player in Green Bay, only playing around 55 percent of the snaps.

Availability: Jones, 27, was extended an original pick tender in February, but the Packers went on to use the 64th pick on Randall Cobb. Donald Driver is expected back behind Greg Jennings and Jordy Nelson. Brett Swain also figures into the mix. The Packers may balk at paying Jones roughly $2 million to be a backup, and instead rescind the tender. As a free agent, Jones could draw significant interest from ex-Packers personnel man John Schneider in Seattle.

Prediction: Seahawks on a two-year, $7.5 million contract.

Bernard Berrian, Vikings

Scouting Report: Berrian signed a six-year, $43.4 million blockbuster with the Vikes in 2008, delivered a career-best 964-yard first season, and has all but fallen off the map since. He was plagued by hamstring problems throughout 2009, and in 2010 became one of the least effective receivers in football. A deep threat once upon a time, the 30-year-old Berrian is averaging 10.48 yards per reception across his last 30 appearances. He adds nothing as a blocker, lacks any hint of physicality in his game, and is due a $3.9 million salary for the 2011 season.

Availability: ESPN's Adam Schefter reported that Berrian was in danger of being released in March. The Vikings intend to sign Sidney Rice long term, and he has supplanted Berrian atop the depth chart along with Percy Harvin. Berrian will resurface elsewhere, perhaps with old OC Darrell Bevell in Seattle or wide receivers coach Ron Turner in Indianapolis.

Prediction: Released, signs with Seahawks."

I'll follow up on his ideas soon.

FP - Carson Palmer: Does Anybody Know What Really Happened?: Cris Collinsworth has a new blog/column thing called FootballPros.com. It's basically a forum, but it's pretty cool because you can interact with him - it's free to sign up. This was an interesting thread because they're chatting about the Carson Palmer rumors. They're a little different than what we've heard, but worth a read.

Reading between the lines on Matt Hasselbeck - CBSSports.com: Andy Benoit talks about Matt Hasselbeck and his return to the Hawks:

"Free agent quarterback Matt Hasselbeck said in an interview with 710 AM Seattle that he got a copy of the Seahawks' playbook from a teammate, which will allow him to learn some of the new terminology that new offensive line coach Tom Cable is bringing to Seattle's run game. More notably, Hasselbeck also said that he and some of his teammates are quietly holding offseason workouts. This all suggests that the 35-year-old veteran is sure to re-sign with the Seahawks once the lockout is lifted...right? Well, not exactly. Included in those workouts are members of the Rams, Cardinals, Titans, Browns, Ravens and Lions. In other words, these are definitely just workouts and definitely not some semblance of a true Seahawks practice."

Well put. 

NFL.com Blogs " Blog Archive Kolb, Palmer are best QB options for teams in need ": Future Hall of Fame QB Kurt Warner weighs in on the subject. FWIW, he likes both Kolb and Palmer.