Seattle Seahawks news, rumors, links, info, interviews, analysis, and more! Happy weekend everyone - it's been a crazy-ass week. Hopefully more interesting stuff will be happening soon. It's July 30th - that means 12 days until the first Seahawks' preseason game. TWELVE. DAYS.
Big steps in the right direction: Bigger. Faster. Stronger. Deeper. Younger. And hopefully better. The Seahawks accomplished all of this Friday afternoon when general manager John Schneider announced a bevy of roster moves that have been percolating for most of the week. One of the bigger items – literally – was the re-signing of free-agent defensive tackle Brandon Mebane, a 311-pounder who has been a starter the past four seasons. Mebane attracted attention from other teams, but decide to stay where he really wanted to be. "That’s a cool thing," Schneider said. "Being able to re-sign one of our own guys who was a hot commodity in free agency was huge for us. He wanted to stay here. We wanted him to stay here."
Ryan happy to be kickin' it with Seahawks teammates again: "It’s good to be back," said Ryan, who played with the University of Regina Rams and CFL’s Winnipeg Blue Bombers before signing with the NFL’s Green Bay Packers in 2006. "Really, the timetable isn’t that far off what it would normally be for training camp. What we lost was the off-season program. Just to be back in the locker-room, back with all the guys, is the best thing about getting back into it."
Kurt Warner on Kevin Kolb: ‘The verdict is still out on this guy’ - Shutdown Corner - NFL Blog - Yahoo! Sports: Well, to heck with my scouting report on new Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kevin Kolb(notes). Thanks to our friends at the NFL Network, we now have Kurt Warner's(notes) thoughts on the Kolb deal. Of course, you'd be hard-pressed to find a better authority on the subject of what it takes to come into a Cardinals team with some question marks and help turn it around. After a great time with the St. Louis Rams and a less-successful turn as Eli Manning's(notes) babysitter in New York, Warner joined the Cards in 2005 as a bit of an afterthought and absolutely blew up the NFL over the next five seasons. He led Arizona to a near-Super Bowl win at the end of the 2008 season and retired after the 2009 campaign as a sure Hall of Famer.
Analyzing the top 10 NFL injuries to watch - ESPN: 9. Lofa Tatupu, LB, Seattle Seahawks Injury: Arthroscopic surgery on both knees Tatupu's injury status is a perfect example of how the lockout has limited the amount of available information. For each of the last eight games of Seattle's 2010 season, Tatupu was listed as probable on the injury report with a knee injury. Then, in late January, we learned that he had arthroscopic surgery on both knees. Now, it's been six months, so we know what his injury status is heading into training camp, right? Wrong; there have been zero reports about it during the lockout. What's more certain about Tatupu, however, is the impact of his leadership -- he wears the defensive headset -- and performance on Seattle's defense. According to our defense-adjusted value over average (DVOA) metric, the Seahawks were about 10 percentage points less efficient after his first appearance on the injury report in Week 10, and their run defense fell from 10th overall in 2009 to 17th in 2010. Given that the team chose two outside linebackers in the draft and that Tatupu's primary backup is actually starting strongside linebacker David Hawthorne, the Seahawks will have to play musical chairs if Tatupu's knee problems are chronic.
St. Louis Rams sign Mike Sims-Walker - Turf Show Times: The St. Louis Rams have added a veteran wide receiver, but not one of the World War I veterans, like Plaxico Burress, that had been talked about so often. From out of nowhere, free agent WR Mike Sims-Walker reported that he is now a Ram. Whispers of the Rams interested in free agent wide receivers surfaced all week. There were even a few whoppers late today that had them talking trade with the Colts for walking cadaver Anthony Gonzalez and a Twitter rumor of St. Louis as a suitor for Braylon Edwards. Instead, they got Sims-Walker.
HeraldNet.com - Sports: Seahawks come to terms with Carpenter, Hill: The Seattle Seahawks announced Friday they have reached contract agreements with rookie offensive tackle James Carpenter, their top pick in the 2011 NFL draft, and veteran linebacker Leroy Hill.
Carpenter holds his own in first NFL practice | Seahawks Insider: * As Boling mentioned earlier, James Carpenter was kind of having a ho-hum practice up until one-on-ones at the tail end of the workout, when he stoned Red Bryant twice. However, I did see Carpenter get the back of his legs rolled into while working on a zone stretch play by a defensive lineman. Both players and media members gasped as he fell to the ground, but the University of Alabama product popped back up and appeared to be fine. Perhaps an example of that durability and toughness the Seahawks have been talking about.
Seahawks Blog | Secondary school: Walter Thurmond | Seattle Times Newspaper: Walter Thurmond arrived at training camp with a little old-school flair: He's rocking a vintage '90s high-top. Like the Fresh Prince of Bel Air though he's got a little bit to go before he could be mistaken for a member of Kid 'n Play.
Official: Hawks re-sign DT Brandon Mebane | Seahawks Insider: Being able to re-sign one of your own guys who was a hot commodity in free agency is huge for us," Schneider said. "He wanted him to stay here, and we wanted him to stay here."
Kolb and Cardinals' bounce-back ability - NFC West Blog - ESPN: Kevin Kolb's arrival from Philadelphia gives the Arizona Cardinals renewed hope at quarterback and clear direction following Kurt Warner's retirement. It provides a fresh start after a forgettable 2010 transition season for Arizona. So much has changed for the Cardinals since their Super Bowl appearance following the 2008 season. Other rosters around the league have turned over since then, of course, but not every team was coming off a Super Bowl appearance.
17 Power, A Seattle Seahawks Blog: What to Do with Brandon Mebane: After months of suspense, the Conundrum has finally been resolved. DT Brandon Mebane, one of the most underappreciated talents on the team, has been re-signed by the Seahawks, who have avoided what could have been the worst mistake of this offseason: letting him go and relying on Alan Branch.
Seattle Seahawks Blog - Hawk Blogger: Tale Of The Tape: Pete Carroll Re-Shapes Both Lines: Pete Carroll made it very clear that his top two priorities heading into this off-season were the offensive and defensive lines. When I rolled over in bed last night, and saw on my phone that the Seahawks had added 6'6" 338 lbs DT/DE Alan Branch to the roster, I smiled and dreamt about Tim Ruskell locked in a room somewhere trying to convince a GM that 280 lb defensive lineman are the shiznit. That begged a more sincere line of thinking. Ruskell was the poster boy for smaller "try-hard" lineman (and horrible personnel moves), and Carroll clearly values girth and size. Now that Carroll has revamped both lines, just how much of difference is there, and where?
Seahawks: Training camp notes | Seahawks Insider: Eric Williams and Dave Boling talk about the first day of practice.
Jackson ‘a good friend’ | Seattle Seahawks - The News Tribune: When Tarvaris Jackson arrives in Seattle and makes his way through the locker room today, he’ll see at least one familiar face from his childhood. Seattle Seahawks receiver Ben Obomanu grew up playing against the team’s newest quarterback in Alabama. The two attended rival schools and played each other in high school, with Obomanu attending Selma High in Selma, Ala., and Jackson attending Sidney Lanier High in Montgomery, about a 30-minute drive away. "We shared some of the same friends when he transferred to Alabama State," Obomanu said. "A lot of my good friends played on his team and were classmates of his. So he’s a good friend of mine, so I’m looking forward to him coming in and seeing what he can do in this offense."
Titans' CB Finnegan not excited by Hasselbeck signing - Blog - MyNorthwest.com: "He throws the ball with good checkdowns, good intermediate passing game," Finnegan said. "That's a west coast offense they run, he throws the ball quick. I don't fear his deep ball. Don't get me wrong, he's great at what he's done. Pro Bowls, All Pros, even playing in the Super Bowl, but for what we have going, what direction I want to go and the team wants to go, I don't know if he fits what we need, but I'm not the GM, I'm not the front office."
New-look Seahawks don’t have much time to get up to speed - Shutdown Corner - NFL Blog - Yahoo! Sports: The 2010 Seattle Seahawks engaged in almost 300 roster transactions through the league year. That reflected the modus operandi set by new regime of head coach Pete Carroll and general manager John Schneider, who had taken over from a previous administration that had left the cupboard mostly bare. After attaining the dubious honor of becoming the first team in NFL history with a sub-.500 record to win a division and make the playoffs, and now on the other side of a four-month lockout, Carroll and Schneider are making sweeping changes once again.
Seahawks three pieces from NFC contention " Seahawks Draft Blog: Bold statement in the title? Perhaps. However, I truly believe the Seahawks are three key pieces away from being a contender in the NFC. Let me explain…
The one (impossible?) move the Seahawks need to make - Blog - MyNorthwest.com: I know it sounds kind of crazy, but I love the players the Seahawks have signed thus far, and yet I'm not sure they are good enough to win this year. That stems in part from the sheer lack of talent on the roster when the offseason began. Let's face it, the Hawks were a mediocre-to-bad football team last year that took advantage of a weak schedule and an even weaker division to take a home crowd-aided win in the playoffs. They aren't exactly laden with talent, as seen by their lack of presence on the NFL's Top 100 Players list.
Thoughts on Leroy Hill's return to Seattle - NFC West Blog - ESPN: The Seattle Seahawks wanted to keep linebacker Will Herring, but they weren't willing to pay starter-caliber money for him. As a result, Herring reached agreement with the New Orleans Saints.
Seahawks continue to fill out roster as camp opens | Seattle Seahawks & NFL News - seattlepi.com: Thursday didn’t provide the kind of splash we saw on Wednesday, when the Seahawks agreed to terms with free agents Robert Gallery and Sidney Rice. And there wasn’t quite as much news as Tuesday, either, when it was reported that Matt Hasselbeck will be moving on and quarterback Tarvaris Jackson will be in a Seahawks uniform this season.
HeraldNet.com - Sports: Seahawks kickoff training camp: Amidst a wild week of roster moves, actual football happened for the first time in months at Seahawks headquarters. Well OK, technically it was just a pair of walk-throughs, which meant no pads, no hitting and little taking place at full speed, but after a four-and-a-half month lockout, who wants to nitpick over the details? Football was back, more or less, and with a roster that is taking shape seemingly by the minute, the Seahawks took to the field to kick off training camp.
Age-old questions in the NFC West - NFC West Blog - ESPN: Updating the rosters I maintain for NFL teams becomes challenging this time of year, but I'm plowing through. Consider the chart below for use as a baseline. It shows team-by-team averages for age heading into the signing period. The averages affect players with contracts for 2011, plus restricted free agents, franchise players and rookie draft choices. The averages do not reflect veteran contract agreements or terminations that were pending heading into the day. Rookie free agents were also excluded. I'll update with those transactions as they become official.
Hawks Friday morning | Seahawks Insider: The Seahawks put on helmets for the first time Friday morning, but were in shells and shorts so contact was at a minimum. The big presence on the second day of Seahawks training camp was rookie first-round pick James Carpenter, a right tackle from Alabama.
2011 Seattle Seahawks Training Camp Schedule - SB Nation Seattle: Want to get in on the Seahawks Training Camp action? Well, if you didn't already know - some of the practices are open to the public and for five measly dollars you can watch your favorite players run around really fast and catch footballs and guard each other and chest bump and do that new thing that's like a high five but instead you just jump up and touch bodies, usually your shoulders or sides, in mid air. You can see all this in the flesh (they're not naked... that's just an expression that means you can see them in real life). Also, you may be able to get some autographs and talk to Pete Carroll and see his khakis in real life, if you're lucky.
Tennessee Titans quarterback Matt Hasselbeck: 'I am here to win' | The Tennessean | tennessean.com: The route to Nashville was difficult for new Titans quarterback Matt Hasselbeck, in more ways than one. From an emotional standpoint, he had spent the last 11 years of his life with the Seattle Seahawks. This week they informed him they planned to go in a different direction.
NFL Free Agency Rumors: Jordan Babineaux Considering Titans, Jets, Seahawks - SB Nation Seattle: Per King-5 TV's Chris Egan, former Seahawk and current free agent safety Jordan Babineaux's agent indicates his client is still considering re-signing with the Seahawks but is also getting heavy interest from the Titans and the Jets. He lists those teams as front runners but notes he hasn't given up the thought of re-signing with the team he's been a part of since 2004.
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