Seattle Seahawks news, rumors, links, info, interviews, analysis. You name it, I got it here for you.
NFL Lockout Players As Star Wars Characters And The Week In Seahawks Fandom - SB Nation Seattle: "I'm here to give you a look back on the week in Seattle Seahawks' news, rumors, analysis, and everything else related." Check out a piece I put together for SB Nation's Seattle regional site. Just for fun. And for Star Wars info.
2010 Pass Blocking Efficiency: Tackles | ProFootballFocus.com: "Khaled Elsayed opens a series looking at individual players in pass protection by discussing the offensive tackles." Russell Okung appears on the list, check it out.
Where NFC West left tackles stack up - NFC West Blog - ESPN: "Russell Okung, Seattle Seahawks: Injuries limited Okung to 10 games as a rookie. He had been durable previously and will need better luck with his ankles to realize his obvious potential. Okung has more raw ability than any left tackle in the division. I think he'll challenge for a spot among the five best left tackles in the NFL within the next couple seasons."
NFL Blog: Shutdown Corner - Yahoo! Sports Blog: "Marshawn Lynch(notes), Seattle Seahawks — minus-53.7% DVOA (15 carries, 21 yards, 27% Success Rate) Lynch is seen as a bruiser, but watching him on short-yardage run after short-yardage run brings a different kind of player to the fore — he generally needs help to bust out of first contact at the line, which is why he had 11 instances of third-and-1 or third-and-2 last season, and converted just five of them. For the record, Lynch's unforgettable 67-yard touchdown run against the Saints in the wild-card round of the playoffs came on second down, and second down was Lynch's most efficient down in 2010."
NFL fathers distancing from stereotypical past - NFL - CBSSports.com Football: "Four NFL fathers spoke to CBSSports.com about the modern state of football fatherhood: Ward (one daughter), Arizona's Jay Feely (four children), Seattle's Chester Pitts (two) and San Diego's Philip Rivers (expecting his sixth child). Those four are cited by many other NFL players as exemplary dads. Despite the group being a mix of ethnicities, political backgrounds, and marital statuses they each had the same message: the NFL father is changing beyond the Henry stereotype and into a newer area of fatherhood where more players are taking responsibility for the children in their lives while gaining a deeper appreciation of what it means to be a father. "Fathers in the NFL are portrayed one way publicly and that portrayal is not always accurate," said Pitts, an offensive lineman for the Seahawks. "We're not a bunch of bums that don't take care of our kids.""
Williams: Getting past 'the Oprah part of it' - NFC West Blog - ESPN: "Mike Williams' comeback with the Seattle Seahawks last season was more shocking because Williams had failed so famously earlier in his career. He did not come back so much as he showed up. Williams' 65-catch, 751-yard production with Seattle exceeded his career totals since entering the NFL as the 10th player chosen in the 2005 NFL draft. It was a great season for someone who had not caught a regular-season pass since 2007, but it was not a great season by NFL standards -- or by Williams' standards."
What if ... it's still Skelton?: "Week 3: Cardinals at Seahawks (75 degrees, medium wind): Arizona falls behind 17-0 right off the bat before a second-half comeback falls short. The offense never gets much going, posting just 251 total yards, while the defense gives up 167 on the ground and 202 through the air to the Seahawks. Skelton goes 10 of 18 for 146 yards and a touchdown (to Fitzgerald) with no picks for the third straight game, but it’s not enough production. Wells runs for his first TD of the season but has just 10 yards on eight carries. Seahawks 27, Cardinals 20 (1-2)."
2012 NFL Mock Draft 2 Rounds " NFL Mocks | Covering the 2012 NFL drafts, Mock Draft Database, Scouting Reports, and Fantasy Football: "9. Seattle Seahawks Landry Jones QB Oklahoma If Whitehurst or Hasselbeck screws up Seattle will draft a quarterback here regardless of whether Pete Carroll sticks around because Seattle will need a quarterback. Landry Jones is the best quarterback available at this point. Oklahoma runs a shotgun spread offense and besides Sam Bradford they haven’t managed to produce a factory of NFL quarterbacks. Bradford had a questionable arm due to his torn rotator cuff and had pinpoint accuracy when watching him on film. With Landry Jones it is quite the opposite with Jones having a deadly arm, but very mediocre accuracy."
Seahawks Skills Camp Offers Advanced Training for Youth - Renton, WA Patch: "The NFL lockout has cancelled many of the usual off-season events for the Seattle Seahawks, but one tradition has remained during the owners/players dispute: youth camps. The Seahawks host three different kinds of camps and, later this month, will host their All-Pro Varsity Skills Camp for kids ages 7-12, on June 28-30 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center in Renton."
FOOTBALL OUTSIDERS: Innovative Statistics, Intelligent Analysis | Varsity Numbers: Fourth-and-15: "Rutgers head coach Greg Schiano made waves last week when, in light of the paralysis suffered by Rutgers defender Eric LeGrand on a kickoff (not to mention the countless number of concussions that have taken place), he proposed getting rid of the kickoff altogether. We've reached the point in the game's evolution where something must change. Players have grown too big, too strong and too fast to play by rules conceived decades ago for smaller, weaker, slower players. The kickoff, Schiano reasoned, is the most obvious place to adjust. Take away the kicker and two men who hang back in case of a jailbreak, and eight players get a 30-to-50-yard head of steam before they hit anyone. If they dip their heads as LeGrand did, they might never walk again."
2011 NFL Free Agency Primer: The Safety Position And The San Francisco 49ers - Niners Nation: "Jordan Babineaux Seattle Seahawks 2010 Stats: 46 Tackles, 37 Solo, 8 Passes Defended, 1.5 Sacks, 2 INT, 1 Forced Fumble."
Dave Krieg's Strike Beard: Forgotten Years: Top 10 Games: "This one is simple enough: Here are the Top 10 Seahawks wins from 1992-1998- Enjoy!"
Staff enrichment time at VMAC! Coach Cable bringing it this m... on Twitpic: "Staff enrichment time at VMAC! Coach Cable bringing it this morning"
Ranking the Divisons By WR " NFL Mocks | Covering the 2012 NFL drafts, Mock Draft Database, Scouting Reports, and Fantasy Football: "8.N.F.C. West Larry Fitzgerald Mike Williams Danny Amondeloa Steve Breaston Josh Morgan Ben Gibson? Yuck. I don’t like to put the N.F.C. West last in everything, but very early on it’s trending that way. Fitzgerald is a top, top player and Michael Crabtree could become that kind of player in time, but right now he’s still a ways away. After the top two it gets dicey and arguably none of the other listed players in the top six would make it in the top six rosters of WR on any other team."
FOOTBALL OUTSIDERS: Innovative Statistics, Intelligent Analysis | Higher Education: The Best and Worst Third-Down Backs: "So, of course, it would make perfect sense that the most effective third-down rushing quarterback, based on DVOA, would be ... Jay Cutler?
Kind a shocker considering Matt Forte's status as the worst third-down running back, but of course Cutler was doing his thing behind that same horrid line and had to make some breakaway plays. And he was very effective in doing so. On his 12 third-down runs (11 of which were listed in our game-charting as "scrambles" and not intentional runs), Cutler converted eight, including instances of third-and-9, third-and-15, and third-and-16.
Here are the best five rushing quarterbacks on third down (minimum 10 carries), followed by the five worst."
Three routes you must stop to win in the NFL | National Football Post: "Let’s talk route schemes today and focus on three concepts that are in every NFL playbook: Flat-7, Dagger and Spot. It doesn’t matter if we are looking at the game plans of Mike McCarthy, Andy Reid, Mike Martz or Sean Payton—because all three of these routes are up top on their Sunday call sheets."
Mike Munchak must find key to Locker in Tennessee - NFL - Sporting News: "X-factor The quarterback position. Vince Young’s enigmatic time in Tennessee is over. The Titans selected Jake Locker with the eighth overall pick in the draft, but he may not be ready to start the season because of lost preparation due to the extended lockout. The Titans might have to go with Kerry Collins or another veteran who could be a bridge quarterback until Locker is ready. Eventually, Locker will be the starter. He’s athletic, he’s big, he’s physical and he has the qualities to lead a team. One of the questions about him — and it’s a big one — is his accuracy. Munchak is going to have to push the development of Locker, because his performance will have a big bearing on Munchak’s new job. "Munchak and Locker are joined at the hip in this thing," Wilcots said. "If one fails, both fail.""
Twitter / @schadjoe: Terrelle Pryor has chosen ...: "Terrelle Pryor has chosen Drew Rosenhaus as his agent"
ProFootballWeekly.com - They Said It: week of June 13: "Bears GM Jerry Angelo, quoted on USATODAY.com on the lack of quality free safeties available in the NFL: "Free safeties are like dinosaurs. You can't find them."" Well, I'm glad we got Earl Thomas then.
Harbaugh expects July settlement, praises Smith: "After asserting his belief that the NFL lockout would end in early July, Jim Harbaugh made some interesting comments about the presumed 2011 49ers starting quarterback, Alex Smith."
The revenue tidal wave is on its way | National Football Post: "The players could be the unhappy ones if they underestimate NFL revenue growth. I hate hearing the term describing the NFL labor talks as "billionaires fighting millionaires" for more money. For the average working fan it may appear that way. But for all you fans who are members of a union it’s not much different than what happens in your own labor negotiations."
Hope floats? | National Football Post: "The ongoing confidential discussions between NFL Owners and Players represent good news for the near-term continuation of the NFL. The decision makers are there – owners such as Jerry Richardson and John Mara and influential players such as Jeff Saturday and Mike Vrabel – along with the leaders and faces of each side, Commissioner Roger Goodell and NFLPA chief DeMaurice Smith. Optimism appears to be coming from the meeting but we have heard that before. The key for the meetings is to not have a hardening of negative feelings as we had in March. There are a lot of moving parts here and the two sides need to stay on task without losing sight of the goal for both sides: a full slate in 2011."
Seau: Lockout hurts 'little guys' | Reno Gazette-Journal | rgj.com: "Jacob Green, who played defensive end for the Seattle Seahawks from 1980-92, looked at the lockout differently. He said he "can't feel sorry for guys making millions of dollars when you had guys before me making $30,000." "The thing that's most disappointing is you got a bunch of guys making millions of dollars and the owners are making billions, and they can't get it together," said Green, who went through two strikes as a player. Despite the lack of progress so far in negotiations between the players and team owners, Seau, Jones and Green said they thought a 2011 NFL season was a sure thing."
HeraldNet.com - Local news: New hospital impresses visitors: "On both days, about 200 people lined up outside the tower before it was scheduled to open for tours. The Seahawks Blue Thunder drum line entertained the early arrivals both days." I love the Blue Thunder.
The Go 2 Guy wanders through the Mist -- again - seattlepi.com: "Normally when I write a column, I take the subject matter very seriously. I sit at a desk in an ergonomically correct chair so I can focus all of my attention on the important task of conveying really insightful viewpoints while fighting off the threat of carpal tunnel in my aging wrists. But today I'm writing about Seattle's Lingerie Football League team again, and here's how seriously I take this sport – I'm writing from a chaise lounge on my deck and am pretty much in an un-ergonomically correct position."
NFL: How post-lockout schedule might look - ESPN: "Both sides will meet again this week, and there is some cautious optimism that something could get done before the end of June. The good news is that a June settlement would mean no games would be lost. What's interesting, though, according to sources, is what might transpire in July. Let's say, for example, a deal is reached in late June. The league would have to figure out the start of free agency. Any questions? Have a question for John Clayton? Connect with him here. While it may be optimistic to think free agency could start the first week of July, it's a possibility. The more likely scenario is for free agency to start around July 15."
Agent Linton: "#2: An agent called one of my players who is an UDFA and said, "I have my guy a guaranteed deal once the lockout is over, does your agent have you a deal?" To which my player responded no. The agent then went on to tell the player that I wasn't doing my job, if I was I would have already promised him to a team and you wouldn't be worried about where he was going to play. Sounds good right? I don't think so. We do not know what's going to happen with the CBA. Who's going to be a RFA or UFA. Which players and at what position the teams are going to sign during Free Agency. So if you tell teams your mind is made up and they go out and get other players at your position, then where does that leave you? I like the option of three teams that my guy has, puts him in the better position to make a team. Or that's what I think, maybe I'm wrong." Interesting look at the seedy underbelly of rookie free agency.
If New Orleans Saints' 2011 draft class contributes, they are Super Bowl favorites - ESPN: Adam Schefter: "Q: Am I reading into this too much, or is it telling that Justin Forsett told Mike Sando he called Matt Hasselbeck to get the team together for the informal workouts the 40 or so Seahawks players are holding because "once I got Matt on board (for the non-formal practices), a lot of guys would want to come work out." Isn't this a pretty strong signal, at least from the locker room, that Hasselbeck is still desired in Seattle? -- Brandon (Wash.)
A: The bigger issue, Brandon, isn't with Hasselbeck; it's with Charlie Whitehurst. How come he's not leading these workouts? Wasn't he supposed to be the Seahawks' quarterback of the future? I think the fact that this happened speaks volumes about Hasselbeck and Whitehurst. Of course, Hasselbeck is desired in Seattle, and the Seahawks should want him back. He represents their best chance to win this season. The question is whether he will be back. And a lot will depend on which teams come at him in free agency and what they're offering. Hasselbeck still might ultimately wind up returning to Seattle, where he is desired, but the Seahawks' problem is that he might be desired in a place such as Tennessee or San Francisco."