Coffee and Cigarettes: Seahawks Links for Saturday

Seattle Seahawks news, rumors, info, interviews, analysis --  from around the interwebs.

NFP Friday Forecast | National Football Post
Our special contributors tell us what's in store for Week 4.

Seahawks defense ready to challenge Atlanta - NFL - Yahoo! Sports
Seahawks defensive coordinator Gus Bradley says that while the Atlanta Falcons have been more vulnerable to pressure this year, he’s preparing as though this was the same group that handily beat Seattle last December. "They’re about good, fundamental football," Bradley said. "Mistake-free, no turnovers, limited penalties, and that’s what was impressive to us. We know they’ll get back to that. We talk constantly in our room about just take care of what we do and if they’ve got issues or they’ve got things they need to work out, they’ll get that taken care of, but that can’t affect how we perform." So far, Seattle’s defensive line has been the team’s most confident positional group. 

Seahawks | Mike Williams not overly concerned about lack of production | Seattle Times Newspaper
Mike Williams makes a poor diva. He lacks the necessary volume. At least he did as he nearly whispered his way through an interview earlier this week, sitting in his locker with his voice cranked down so low you had to crane your neck to hear him. And when asked about his lack of opportunities in the passing game, he did his best to douse any fumes of discontent after he didn't have a single catch in the game last weekend. "I don't want my lack of targets to be a distraction for us, especially as an offense," he said. "I feel like we're heading into the right direction. Last week, we were kind of finding our groove, finding our personnel."

Dave Krieg's Strike Beard
My little brother can't make it to this Sunday's game, so I'm looking to sell my Seahawks v Falcons tickets- The above picture is the view from my seats in section 325. The face value of the pair is $86, but I'll be honest: I'll probably take the first semi-respectable offer from someone that can pay via PayPal.

9/30: A win over Atlanta would enhance playoff hopes - Blog - MyNorthwest.com- In Friday's Wrap Up video, Mike Salk explains why a victory over the Atlanta Falcons this Sunday would go a long way to ensure a second consecutive playoff appearance for the Seahawks.

Seahawks wary of the real Atlanta Falcons - Seahawks News - MyNorthwest.com - Sunday afternoon at CenturyLink Field, the (1-2) Seattle Seahawks host the (1-2) Atlanta Falcons. It's last year's (14-2) Falcons team which has the attention of Seahawks coach Pete Carroll. He spoke about Atlanta's potential on Seattle's Morning News on 97.3 KIRO FM on Friday. "This is one of the best functioning teams last year in the NFL," Carroll observed. "They were efficient, never turned the ball over, time of possession, ran the ball well, played great defense. This is a very loaded team, but they have struggled a bit this season. They haven't protected the quarterback well, they're getting more penalties and turning the ball over."

Baring Injury, I Doubt Jackson Gets Benched - 12th Man Rising - A Seattle Seahawks Blog - Over the last couple days, I’ve looked at the QB problems the Seahawks have been having from a couple different angles. First I showed that Jackson has been about as bad as any QB in the NFL so far, and then later I showed that Whitehurst isn’t a magical cure, but that he at least is equal to Jackson and could continue to improve and end up better than Jackson with a few starts under his belt. The thing is, I don’t see the Seahawks making such a move. I don’t mean to suggest that Carroll and Co. don’t see the same things that you and I see. And no, I’m not implying some irrational stubbornness and inability to admit a mistake. We all know that’s not the case. (See Lendale White, Mark Legree, etc.)

Kam Chancellor doubtful for Sunday | Seahawks Insider - Seattle head coach Pete Carroll said second-year safety Kam Chancellor is doubtful for Sunday, after watching practice for a third straight day on Friday. Veteran Atari Bigby will get the start in place of Chancellor, who’s been nursing a deep thigh bruise all week. "We’re looking for a speedy recovery here at the very finish," Carroll said. "And it’s not an injury that he can’t come back from, it’s just he has to have to have enough flexibility to run, and right now he doesn’t have it."

Seahawks Blog | O-line coach Tom Cable returns to practice | Seattle Times Newspaper - Offensive line coach Tom Cable wasn't totally back on his feet. He watched most of Friday's practice while sitting in a motorized cart. That he was at practice at all was incredible considering he underwent major back surgery on Monday after experiencing numbness in one of his legs. "This is a miraculous recovery for this guy," coach Pete Carroll said. "He had major, major surgery just a couple days ago."

Seahawks.com Blog | Friday in Hawkville " - FOCUS ON Earl Thomas and Kam Chancellor. Not that there hasn’t already been enough talk about the Seahawks’ young, but oh-so-talented, safeties. And rightfully so, since Chancellor (22) and Thomas (17) are the leading tacklers on a defense that ranks No. 10 in the league. But before practice today, we caught up with John Lynch, a nine-time Pro Bowl safety during his career with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1993-2003) and Denver Broncos (2004-07). Lynch will be the analyst on Fox for the telecast of Sunday’s game between the Seahawks and Atlanta Falcons at CenturyLink Field. Lynch also did the Seahawks’ season opener against the 49ers in San Francisco, when Chancellor and Thomas combined for 17 tackles.

Falcons-Seahawks Preview - Sep. 28, 2011 - NFL - CBSSports.com Game Preview - Things were much easier for Matt Ryan when he was one of the NFL's best-protected quarterbacks while leading the Atlanta Falcons to the NFC's best record in 2010. It's been a much different story this season, as Ryan hopes to stay on his feet and help his offense find its rhythm when Atlanta visits the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday. Ryan has been sacked 13 times, including four last week when the Falcons (1-2) lost 16-13 to Tampa Bay. He went down only 23 times all of last season - 29 fewer than the league-high suffered by Chicago's Jay Cutler - and coach Mike Smith said he will evaluate his offensive line in order to better protect his franchise quarterback. Ryan has been sacked at least four times in each game. He'd been sacked four times in a single contest just twice in his first three regular seasons. "We are very disappointed with the way we have protected our quarterback in the first three ballgames," Smith said. "We'll have to look at what's going wrong schematically as well as evaluate our personnel."

Seahawks could need ex-Packer Bigby - NFC West Blog - ESPN - NFC West injury reports came and went Friday without a great deal of change. Steven Jackson plans to play for the St. Louis Rams despite a quadriceps injury. The Arizona Cardinals hope to have Beanie Wells back from a hamstring injury. The San Francisco 49ers expect Frank Gore to play despite an ankle injury, although reports suggest his status is a little more tenuous (he is questionable). One lower-profile injury of note: Kam Chancellor, strong safety for the Seahawks, missed practice again and was listed as doubtful for Sunday. It's looking like veteran Atari Bigby, formerly of the Green Bay Packers, will start against the Atlanta Falcons.

Seahawks defense ready to challenge Atlanta - NFL - SI.com - Seahawks defensive coordinator Gus Bradley says that while the Atlanta Falcons have been more vulnerable to pressure this year, he's preparing as though this was the same group that handily beat Seattle last December. "They're about good, fundamental football,'' Bradley said. "Mistake-free, no turnovers, limited penalties, and that's what was impressive to us. We know they'll get back to that. We talk constantly in our room about just take care of what we do and if they've got issues or they've got things they need to work out, they'll get that taken care of, but that can't affect how we perform.'' So far, Seattle's defensive line has been the team's most confident positional group.

NFL News Updates - CBSSports.com RapidReports - Carroll not happy with practice effort so far Pete Carroll said he hasn’t been happy with his team’s level of practice during the first few weeks of the season, but that he saw a big improvement this week, calling it, "Probably the most solid week we’ve had. . . It’ll be interesting to see if it carries into the game."

Seahawks Blog | Safety Kam Chancellor not expected to play | Seattle Times Newspaper - Safety Kam Chancellor is not expected to play this week because of a thigh bruise he suffered in last week's game. Chancellor did not practice at all this week, and he is listed as doubtful on the team's injury report. He will be replaced in the starting lineup by Atari Bigby, a safety Seattle signed in August. Chancellor is in his second season with the team and started the first three games at strong safety. He led the team in tackles in the season-opener with eight at San Francisco, and his fourth-quarter interception of Arizona's Kevin Kolb sealed Seattle's victory in the home opener last week.

Falcons vs. Seahawks: 6 Keys to a Seattle Win | Bleacher Report - The Seahawks and Falcons both enter Week 4 with a 1-2 record, looking to get to .500. Atlanta is playing their second road game in a row, while Seattle is looking to capitalize on last week's home win and seize momentum heading into their own two-game road trip, sandwiching the bye. Last year in Week 15, Atlanta won 34-18 in a game that was close for 28 minutes before the Falcons took a seven-point lead into halftime. They created a large enough margin that Seattle inserted backup Charlie Whitehurst into the game—after a horrific performance by Matt Hasselbeck. Seattle is hoping for a different storyline this week.

Week 4 N.F.L. Matchups - NYTimes.com - Falcons (1-2) at Seahawks (1-2) Sunday, 4:05 p.m. Line: Falcons by 4.5. The Falcons have surrendered 13 sacks in three games, prompting Coach Mike Smith to consider personnel changes: left tackle Sam Baker is a leading candidate to be benched if there is trouble Sunday. Meanwhile, on the police blotter, kicker Matt Bryant got his stolen golf clubs back. A Chinese food deliveryman swiped the clubs from Bryant’s garage, then traded the clubs for drugs — who knew there was even an exchange rate? The police eventually tracked the stolen clubs by their serial numbers on the Internet, untangling one of the most pathetic webs of crime ever spun. Bryant’s prized Scotty Cameron putter, like the Falcons’ pass protection, was still missing at press time. Pick: Falcons.

The Importance of Film Study - Seahawks News - MyNorthwest.com
By the time my nine-year NFL career was over, I had watched enough film to make me never want to see another football game as long as I lived. Now, I'd give anything to watch some real game film. What we see on television doesn't begin to tell the real story of the game and what players, coaches and scouts can find out about an offense, defense or an individual player. Game film is shot from two different angles - the sideline view and the end zone view. Every play is displayed first from the sideline and then from the end zone. The two are spliced consecutively so that you see the entire game in that order. The sideline shot is fairly similar to what we all see on television except every player is kept in the frame no matter how far the play stretches down-field. That's important because coaches scour through an entire film watching each player throughout every play, grading them for the steps they took, the assignment they did or did not fulfill, and the decisions they made. For a linebacker coach like Ken Norton Jr., who is in charge of three players every down, he'll either watch the entire film three times, or run it back several times per position, per play.

NFL mock draft 2012: Alshon Jeffery new No. 1, for Rams - NFL - Sporting News
Each week, Sporting News looks ahead to next April's NFL Draft with projected picks based on current SN power rankings, team needs and player evaluations. The final order will be set following the season, but it's never too early to peer into our crystal football. Last week, we picked Stanford's Andrew Luck (to Seattle) as the top selection. But with St. Louis owning the No. 1 pick based on SN's power poll, here's our latest forecast:

NFL Picks Week 4: Falcons Vs. Seahawks - SBNation.com
The Atlanta Falcons are looking for a rebound after last week's loss to Tampa Bay. The schedule gives them an NFC West opponent. Can Matt Ryan and his team take advantage?

Williams trying to find role in Seahawks offense - Seahawks News - MyNorthwest.com
Mike Williams won't say he's frustrated by his lack of involvement in the Seattle Seahawks' offense. Through the first three games of the season, Williams has just five catches for 43 yards and was held without a catch in last week's 13-10 win over Arizona. Williams has gone an entire half in each game without a single pass thrown his way by quarterback Tarvaris Jackson. In fact, Jackson has more rushing yards (45) through three games than Williams does receiving yards. "I'm not frustrated, I'm just competitive," Williams said.

NFL Draft - CBSSports.com - NFLDraftScout.com
The surprising success of rookie quarterbacks Cam Newton and Andy Dalton will only encourage NFL teams to eschew other needs and make quarterback the ultimate draft priority. This fact could pay off for teams "lucky" enough to be in competition for the right to select Stanford's Andrew Luck, Southern Cal's Matt Barkley or Oklahoma's Landry Jones. Other than the top quarterbacks, the 2012 draft does not appear to be an especially elite. The elite defensive linemen that have characterized each of the past few drafts are gone. On the other hand, assuming a few noteworthy underclassmen leave early as expected, this could wind up being a strong draft for offensive tackles, wide receivers and cornerbacks. No mock draft written this far in advance is going to be 100% accurate. After all, the easy part-- the draft order -- is even far from being finalized. So, take this mock draft for what it is -- a preview of what may happen in April so that you can focus on the players your favorite pro team may already be scouting.

Seahawks.com Blog | Thursday in Hawkville "
FOCUS ON No-huddle offense. The Seahawks have used it at times in their first three games, and never more successfully than during the 14-play, 72-yard drive to their only touchdown in last week’s 13-10 win over the Arizona Cardinals. Will we see more of it in Sunday’s game against the Atlanta Falcons at CenturyLink Field? "I’d say there’s a chance you’ll see more of it, but it’s something that will be determined by game plan, by game, by opponent and seeing if it’s something that will help us," offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell said. "Then there’s also times when there may be something to it because you’re not doing much and you want to change the tempo. So there are a lot of different scenarios when you’d go to it." Whatever the situation, or scenario, quarterback Tarvaris Jackson is all for it.

The growth (and shrinking) of rookie T James Carpenter | HeraldNet.com - Seahawks blog
When athletes, particularly young ones (college freshmen, rookies, etc.) start finding success, they often talk about the game slowing down. In the case of Seahawks right tackle James Carpenter, he doesn't necessarily feel like the game is slowing down, but rather that, by getting in better shape, he is speeding up. "I’ve lost 25 pounds since I’ve been here," he said. "So I think I’ve gotten faster."

Seahawks rookie James Carpenter gets comfy | Seattle Seahawks - The News Tribune
James Carpenter’s look of constant consternation has been replaced with a confident smile in the locker room these days, as he received some gentle ribbing from fellow offensive linemen Russell Okung and Max Unger. "I feel like I’m not a rookie anymore," Carpenter began. "What? You’ve played in like three games," Unger said, listening in. "I just stopped being a rookie," added Okung, now in his second year. "Can you just let me do my interview?" said Carpenter, chuckling. "I feel like I’ve learned a lot. I feel like I’ve had a lot of weeks to learn and prepare, so things have kind of clicked and I feel like I’ve got it now."

Seahawks | Sidney Rice proves a valuable commodity | Seattle Times Newspaper
He's the best basketball player Seattle will never see. At least that's the scouting report on Sidney Rice from his hometown. P "I still, to this day, believe he probably could have played basketball at South Carolina," said Mark Huff. Huff is the basketball coach and athletic director at Gaffney High School in South Carolina. It's a fairly big school in a relatively small town located southwest of Charlotte in a part of the country where the drawls are as sweet as the tea.

Seahawks hope to follow Falcons' lead at QB " Kitsap Sun
When Seattle Seahawks coach Pete Carroll looks at the Atlanta Falcons, he sees a lot to like. The way he describes the Falcons — his team's opponent Sunday — sounds a lot like what he wants the Seahawks to be. The Falcons take care of the football. Last year they had the league's third-best turnover ratio at plus-14. Atlanta is led by a defensive-minded coach, Mike Smith, is also balanced on offense, solid on defense, and plays a disciplined brand of football. All of that explains why the Falcons were so good despite being average — statically speaking — on both sides of the ball. "This was a team that I admired throughout last year," Carroll said. "They had an incredible season, but more than that it's the way they did it last year with tremendous balance."

Scout's take: Where Seahawks stand - NFC West Blog - ESPN
Matt Williamson of Scouts Inc., like just about every other football analyst, pulled no punches in assessing the Seattle Seahawks' chances with Tarvaris Jackson as their quarterback. Back in August, he called Jackson the NFL's worst starting quarterback. "I still think Tarvaris Jackson is terrible," Williamson said this week after Jackson and the Seahawks claimed their first victory of the 2011 regular season. But focusing disproportionately on what Jackson offers the team right now should not obscure a fuller analysis. The contracts Seattle has committed to Jackson and Charlie Whitehurst tell us the organization isn't banking on either player for more than what a placeholder would provide -- short-term stability until the team finds a brighter prospect, most likely in the 2012 draft. There is much more going on in Seattle than what is happening at quarterback. "I like just about everything else," Williamson said. "They have set themselves up big-picture to bring up Andrew Luck or Matt Barkley and make a pretty comfortable transition." A few additional thoughts from Williamson on the Seahawks coming out of Week 3: