Coffee and Cigarettes: Seahawks Links for Sunday

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Robert Griffin III wins the Heisman " Seahawks Draft Blog
Griffin’s skill set does compare favorably, however, with what the Seahawks appear to want at quarterback. So far they’ve added mobile quarterbacks who can extend plays, run naked bootlegs/play action and get the ball downfield when needed. Pete Carroll stresses winning the turnover battle like your life depends on it. Griffin doesn’t just fit the physical desires, but also the mental side of the game – he doesn’t make bad decisions, he’s limited turnovers and he’s been creative. For those reasons I suspect he could be high on Seattle’s board.

Robert Griffin III’s statue shatters the Heisman mold - Dr. Saturday - NCAAF Blog - Yahoo! Sports
Before the season, back in July or August when anything is still possible, Baylor mailed a series of trading cards to members of the media touting Robert Griffin III's statistics and assorted accomplishments over his first three seasons. A standard reminder from one of college football's most neglected outposts: Hey, our quarterback is pretty good. You know, in case you hadn't noticed.

Nate Burleson wants you to know where he went to elementary school | Seattle Seahawks & NFL News - seattlepi.com
Seattle native Nate Burleson went to the University of Nevada. He also went to O’Dea High School.

Sam Bradford gets some work in at Saturday’s practice | ProFootballTalk
America may not necessarily get to watch Tom Brandstater’s first NFL start on Monday night after all. Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that Sam Bradford (ankle) returned to practice Saturday, albeit on a limited basis. Thomas says Bradford moved around "pretty well."

Andrew Luck has no qualms about joining a team with an established quarterback | ProFootballTalk
Five days ago, Archie Manning said that he doubts that son Peyton and Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck would want to be teammates. One day ago, Andrew Luck said he’d have no problem with that.

Michael Weireb on Baylor quaterback and potential Heisman winner Robert Griffin III - Grantland
A visit to Waco with the future first-round pick.

Hua Hsu on the arrival of San Francisco 49ers quarterback Alex Smith - Grantland
How San Francisco learned to stop worrying and love the Bust.

Three to Focus on: 49ers @ Cardinals Week 14 | ProFootballFocus.com
The battle for the No. 2 seed in the NFC between the San Francisco 49ers and the New Orleans Saints continues to heat up with the Saints looking better and better each week and the 49ers continuing to show their impressive defense with the best front seven in all of football.

Three to Focus on: Rams @ Seahawks, Week 14 | ProFootballFocus.com
It’s safe to say that this is not the matchup that ESPN envisioned when carving out their schedule prior to the season. They likely assumed the Rams and Seahawks would be battling it out for the division title at this point. It was a gamble to bank on two teams with such an underwhelming recent history, but it was a calculated one. Heck, somebody had to win this division and who could have imagined it would be the 49ers. Several months, injuries, and defeats later, we’re stuck considering whether 2 Broke Girls or the Charlie Brown Christmas special might be a more entertaining Monday night viewing choice. Not to fear, there are enough intriguing storylines and matchups in this affair to warrant a look.

HBCU All Star Bowl Preview | National Football Post
The NFP hits the road Monday for our first senior All Star game of the season.

NFL Sunday: Five things to watch | National Football Post
Carson Palmer, Tebow vs. the Bears, Jets' defense and more.

NFP Sunday Blitz | National Football Post
The Titans and CJ are heating up, examining defensive ends in the coming draft, latest coaching rumors and more.

LB David Hawthorne should play despite MCL sprain - Blog - MyNorthwest.com
The Seahawks have very few injuries and one of the healthiest rosters in weeks heading into Monday night's game. "It’s been a good week of preparation and we can tell that our guys are feeling pretty good – the legs are there," head coach Pete Carroll said after the Saturday walk-through. "Hopefully we can take that into the game and make a difference."

Rams even more banged up than the Seahawks | HeraldNet.com - Sports
The Seattle Seahawks have battled more than their fair share of injuries this year, but it could be worse. After all, their head coach isn't joking about having to play quarterback on Monday night.

Given the chance, Chris Maragos makes sure to maximize | Seattle Seahawks - The News Tribune
He has earned everything during his football playing career, so when Chris Maragos arrived in Seattle as a practice squad addition during the second week of the regular season, all he wanted was an opportunity. "My whole career, there’s always been a little crack in the door, and I’ve always said I just want to kick the thing open," Maragos said. "Wherever I can fit in, whatever I can do, I’m just trying to look for my opportunities to excel. And when they present themselves, you’ve got to be ready to take advantage of them."

Seahawks | Seahawks' secondary becoming first-rate unit | Seattle Times Newspaper
The entire league passed on Richard Sherman in April. Every team passed him over a few times, in fact, as the cornerback from Stanford was not chosen until the Seahawks picked him in the fifth round of the NFL draft.

Seahawks.com Blog | Saturday in Hawkville "
David Hawthorne. It looks like the NFC Defensive Player of the Week for Week 13 will play in Week 14. After sitting out practice all week, Hawthorne, the Seahawks’ middle linebacker and leading tackler, participated in all phases of today’s 85-minute practice that was held in the indoor practice facility. "We think he’s going to be all right. He looked OK today," coach Pete Carroll said. "It was a good effort to rest him, to get him strong for the game."

NFL run-pass ratios for red zone and closer - NFC West Blog - ESPN
Sam Bradford's return to practice Saturday gives the St. Louis Rams some hope heading into their game against the Seattle Seahawks on Monday night. Backup A.J. Feeley is all but out. The other quarterbacks, Tom Brandstater and Kellen Clemens, have limited experience.

Five things to watch: Rams-Seahawks - NFC West Blog - ESPN - There was almost no way, it seemed, for the St. Louis Rams to be this bad. The schedule suggested they might struggle early in the season. No one could have known that they would have only 11 offensive touchdowns and two victories through 12 games, or that they would allow more rushing yards than any team in the NFL.