Coffee and Cigarettes: Seahawks Links for Friday

It's Friday, so I got that going for me, which is nice.

Jones' versatility key for Seahawks
The Seahawks went into free agency looking for a player who could provide some needed pass rush from the interior for their on-the-rise defense. Enter the long-limbed Jason Jones.

Seahawks hope free-agent Jones can help pass rush | HeraldNet.com - Sports
Jason Jones grew up in Michigan chasing hoop dreams. The Seahawks, however, are dreaming of Jones chasing opposing quarterbacks.

Seahawks' Jason Jones follows team's free-agent blueprint | Seahawks | The Seattle Times
Defensive lineman signs for one-year, $4.5 million, but hopes to play way to bigger payday.

If Seahawks need nasty, Giacomini’s their man | Seattle Seahawks | The Bellingham Herald
As far as I can tell, they don’t have a name for some of the blocking techniques I’ve seen Breno Giacomini employ a time or two during the Seahawks’ recent offseason workouts in Renton. So I’ll rely on a description.

ProFootballWeekly.com - NFC rookie long shots to watch
Seahawks CB Donny Lisowski (undrafted) It’s very doubtful Lisowski will make an impact similar to undrafted 2011 phenom Doug Baldwin, who ended up leading the Seahawks in catches, receiving yards and receiving TDs last season. But just like Baldwin a year ago at this time, Lisowski, a tryout player out of Montana, made one play after another in the team’s first rookie minicamp this season. Head coach Pete Carroll made a point of singling out the local product out of Seattle’s O’Dea High School whom he signed shortly after the three-day camp ended. Lisowski adds blazing speed (4.38 40-time) to the Seahawks’ already-excellent young secondary.

Seahawks OTA notes: Jason Jones meets the media - Blog - MyNorthwest.com
The Seahawks' OTA was open to the media Wednesday, but head coach Pete Carroll was not made available to comment on the specifics of the practice. Defensive lineman Jason Jones spoke to the media for the first time at the VMAC since signing with the team as a free agent this offseason. He said the first thing he noticed about his Seahawks teammates was the swagger of the defense.

Larry Grant glad to be back with the 49ers - NFL.com
Instead of getting frustrated when no outside suitors emerged for his services, restricted free-agent Larry Grant gladly accepted the 49ers' offer to stay in the Bay Area.

Fantasy stock watch | National Football Post
10 players who are either overvalued or undervalued heading into June.

NFL Podium Awards: Justin Smith headlines interior DL stars - NFL.com
In the NFL, the flashy edge rushers get all of the attention, but there are several interior defensive linemen who can be just as dominant. Baseball analysts always point out that it's important to have a strong defense up the middle and the same holds true for football. There were plenty of quality candidates for the podium, but these three players are the best of the best.

Seahawks' new free-agency format | Seahawks Blog | The Seattle Times
Seattle's reliance upon free agency was one of the defining themes of Tim Ruskell's five-year tenure as Seahawks president.

Titans X's and O's: The Smash Concept - Music City Miracles
This post will potentially begin a series that breaks down passing concepts within the Titans playbook. I suspect these will mostly focus on plays run with Locker in the game, as that is fresh on my mind, but we may look into some with Hasselbeck as well. Today we'll look at the Smash-7 combination. It's a common passing concept, yet one that can be exceptionally effective. The play was run during the Falcons game on the first series that Locker came in the game. The result was a touchdown.

Tarvaris Jackson still looks maddeningly inconsistent - Blog - MyNorthwest.com
My apologies for those expecting a thorough blog laden with stats and trends as to how the Seahawks will climb from a top-10 defense to a top-five operation in the year ahead. That study and analysis is coming, but on a night where the city of Seattle was rocked with the horrific murders of five innocent victims and a baseball team finally hit, I could hardly pry my eyes away from the tube.

Sports Radio Interviews " Blog Archive " Mario Williams Discusses Returning to a 4-3 Defense
Mario Williams joined Brady and Lang on The Fan 590 in Toronto to discuss his comfort level with Dave Wannstedt’s defense, his decision to change numbers in his new setting and his scheduled return to Houston on Nov. 4.

Fired equipment manager accuses Rams of age discrimination | ProFootballTalk
When we wrote last year about the Rams firing equipment manager Todd Hewitt, we heard from a lot of fans who thought the team had treated a longtime employee badly. Now Hewitt is taking the Rams to court, saying they didn’t just treat him badly, they also fired him illegally.

FOOTBALL OUTSIDERS: Innovative Statistics, Intelligent Analysis | Walkthough: Southern Accents
Roman Harper cannot understand a word Steve Spagnuolo says. Harper admitted in a recent interview that he has trouble with Spagnuolo’s accent. "I kind of felt bad because I interrupted him on his meeting, but I didn't understand what he was saying, so I had to ask," Harper said. Harper hails from Prattville, Alabama. Spags is from Northbridge, Massachusetts. English is the language that divides them.

Mathias Kiwanuka of New York Giants says Osi Umenyiora's deal 'should've been taken care of' - ESPN New York
New York Giants defensive end Osi Umenyiora continues to sit out the team's voluntary offseason workouts and linebacker Mathias Kiwanuka says he certainly can understand why his teammate is frustrated.

Huddle Up: Dexter McCluster’s role changing again in Kansas City? – Audibles
It has been about 26 months since the Kansas City Chiefs made Dexter McCluster the No. 36 overall pick in the 2010 draft. They are still trying to figure out which position he should play.

Offseason Breakdown: Arizona Cardinals – Audibles
Last year was a tale of two seasons for the Arizona Cardinals. After dropping Cam Newton and the Panthers in Week 1, the Cardinals lost their next six games, essentially ending their playoff dreams. But Arizona still proceeded to take seven of its final nine games, a run that included four overtime victories and wins over the Cowboys and 49ers.

Finding the Fits: From big to small, Steelers find 'em all - CBSSports
Over the next several weeks, NFLDraftScout.com will be reviewing some of the more intriguing picks made during the 2012 NFL draft through a series called "Finding the Fits." The goal of the series is to identify one relatively unheralded player per team who appears to be a good schematic fit and therefore more likely to be a surprise contributor early in his pro career.

Exonerated high school star Brian Banks to work out for Seattle Seahawks, other NFL teams | Shutdown Corner - Yahoo! Sports
Based on what we now know, it's pretty easy to create an alternate universe in which former high school star linebacker Brian Banks goes to a major college, becomes a stud at the NCAA level, and then goes on to make a pretty serious dent in the NFL. Of course, none of that ever happened, because when Banks was 16 years old, he was accused and then convicted of a rape he didn't commit.

Apparently, Alex Smith was Jim Harbaugh’s man all along | Shutdown Corner - Yahoo! Sports
Never mind that San Francisco 49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh and offensive coordinator Greg Roman traveled to North Carolina in mid-March to assess the condition of free-agent quarterback Peyton Manning. This is a well-documented fact, as is the fact that current 49ers quarterback Alex Smith was deciding whether to accept a three-year, $24 million offer from the team. As the process went on, Smith took a free-agent trip to Miami, Manning signed with the Denver Broncos, and eventually, Smith came back home to sign the deal originally offered.

A look at the 'X Spot' | National Football Post
Using some window dressing to run a base concept.

A look at the 'X Spot' | National Football Post
Using some window dressing to run a base concept.

NFL Podium Awards: LeSean McCoy sits atop RB hierarchy - NFL.com
Former NFL scout Daniel Jeremiah is getting into the Olympic mindset early this summer, handing out NFL Podium Awards for the top three players at each position group. Remember, this list is based on where these players are ranked heading into the 2012 season. Today, he takes on running backs.

Navigating the NFL Injury Report: Pain-Killing Injections " Second Opinion
Pain killing injections are common in the NFL. A variety of medications are used in a variety of locations for many reasons. The three most common types of injections are anti-inflammatory (e.g. Toradol), anesthetic (e.g. Marcaine, etc.) and steroid (i.e. "cortisone" shot).

NFL rankings: Julius Peppers tops piquant pack of pass-rushing defensive ends - NFL - Sporting News
Julius Peppers did. Jared Allen did. This offseason, Mario Williams did. Whenever a top-tier defensive end hits the free agent market, he cashes in big.

NFL rankings: For defensive tackles, hits and hammer, no glitz or glamour - NFL - Sporting News
Defensive tackles do the dirty work, and their teammates and coaches appreciate it.

NFL rankings: Ray Lewis, London Fletcher vintage inside linebackers - NFL - Sporting News
For the past decade and a half, Baltimore's Ray Lewis has stood out as not only the NFL's best active inside linebacker but arguably, along with Dick Butkus, one of the two best professional football has ever seen.

A few thoughts on Sam Bradford's contract - NFC West Blog - ESPN
Sam Bradford reworked his contract with the St. Louis Rams. Bradford Howard Balzer has the details. Less clear: what it all means.