Coffee and Cigarettes: Seahawks Links for Gameday

Gameday baby.

Pete Carroll's Seattle Seahawks are NFL's most fascinating team - NFL.com
With less than two weeks until the first game of the 2012 NFL season, and I'm ready to officially declare the most fascinating team in the NFL. Ladies and gentlemen, presenting your never boring, your tradition-bucking, maverick-thinking, wild man haven in the great Northwest. Let's see how this reads. The 2012 Seattle Seahawks are the most fascinating team in the NFL. No, really.

Sports Radio Interviews " Blog Archive " Seattle Seahawks Had to Hide Non-Red Jerseys from Sidney Rice, Who is Being Eased Back From Injury
Sidney Rice joined Ian Furness and Jason Puckett on KJR in Seattle to discuss his shoulder injuries, rookie quarterback Russell Wilson and new offensive weapons Terrell Owens, Braylon Edwards and Kellen Winslow.

Which way is up? Players making their mark on Hawks roster | Seahawks Insider
First cuts take place on Monday, when NFL teams have to get down from 90 to 75 players. So Friday’s contest against Kansas City will be important one for those players on the fringes of earning a roster spot for the Seattle Seahawks. With that in mind, we take a look at some players that have helped themselves in the first two games and training camp, and some guys who still have to work to do in order to prove they deserve a starting job or a spot on the roster.

Seahawks.com Blog | Thursday in Hawkville: Calling all captains "
Against the Titans in the preseason opener, former Titans defensive lineman Jason Jones was a co-captain, along with veteran linebacker Leroy Hill, Pro Bowl fullback Michael Robinson and Heath Farwell, who led the league in special teams tackles last season. "It meant a lot. Actually, it was my first time being a captain," said Jones, who played the previous four seasons with the Titans. "I told coach Carroll after the game and before the game that I appreciate that. Going up against my old team, that meant a lot to me. It was cool."

Camp Confidential: Cardinals - NFC West Blog - ESPN
If those descriptions stirred thoughts of Kevin Kolb and John Skelton, respectively, you'd be correct. But the same passages applied to the Cardinals' ill-fated 2010 quarterback race between Matt Leinart and Derek Anderson. Back then, Arizona cut Leinart, struggled with Anderson and finished with a 5-11 record.

Seahawks' Sidney Rice ready for action, will play vs. Chiefs | Seattle Seahawks - The News Tribune
"We’re anxious to see him get out there," Carroll said. "He’s had a fantastic process getting back. He’s done everything we’ve asked him to do. He’s practicing really, really well. And so we’ll get him a little bit of (playing time) just to break the ice on that one."

Thiel: Wilson’s elevation gain no shocker | Seattle Seahawks
Not only has Russell Wilson won over Carroll, he’s winning over teammates, which is more important. He doesn’t have to be great, only efficient — his specialty.

NFL Head Coach Power Rankings - NFL.com
New England Patriots chief Bill Belichick heads Around the League's head coach power ranking series, but which first-time coach finds himself "knocking on the door"?

Randy Moss, John Skelton among NFC players who must shine - NFL.com
Offense: Breno Giacomini, offensive tackle A former Packers prospect, Giacomini made a big leap in Week 11 of 2011, when he stepped into a starting role. The one-time college tight end has long arms and excellent work habits; his athletic ability and strength seem to have finally caught up with him. He's the kind of player offensive line coach Tom Cable loves to develop.

Keep an eye on these offensive linemen who may deserve Pro Bowl shots -
3. Russell Okung, Seattle Seahawks: Injuries are the main issue for this young player. When healthy he demonstrates why he was a first-round pick. If he stays on the field for 16 games, the truth will come out about this athletic pass blocking left tackle.

Rice ready to return, but who else will catch on?
Kippy Brown, who coaches the position, can only wish he had the answers to those questions. "The competition is as open as it could be. It couldn’t be any more open," Brown said after Wednesday’s practice, when he continued to mix and match his receiver in trying to find the most-productive groupings. "It’s an interesting deal. Everybody is playing hard and trying hard. There are only so many reps. So there are going to be some difficult decisions."

A quick look at the Seattle Seahawks schedule " The Matchups Zone
Going into this pivotal third preseason game against the Chiefs in Kansas City, the Seattle Seahawks first-team offense has yet to gain much offensive traction.

Rethinking Terrell Owens Fit With The Seahawks - 12th Man Rising -
Last Saturday, Owens has one of the worst games you’ll ever see a WR have. He was targeted 5 times for zero receptions. This included dropping a perfect pass for a touchdown, missing another back-shoulder throw near the goal line because it appeared he wasn’t paying attention. Those 2 plays were bad, but they aren’t what i’m concerned about. It’s the other 3 that concern me.

Roger Goodell: Replacement refs ensure long-term improvement - NFL.com
"These officials have been trained," Goodell said of the replacement refs who have been calling preseason games. "We've been working with them. We think they'll do a very credible job."

Terrell Owens, Vince Young head veterans on cut line in Week 3 - NFL.com
Terrell Owens, WR, Seattle Seahawks: The temperamental Owens caught the attention of Seahawks officials with his remarkable workout early in training camp. He immediately became the buzz of camp when put together a few spectacular practices upon signing a one-year deal with the team. However, a disappointing debut performance against the Denver Broncos that included a drop of a would-be 46-yard touchdown has led to questions about his ability to contribute as a consistent playmaker in the passing game. If Owens doesn't put forth a solid showing against the Kansas City Chiefs on Friday night, he could see his NFL career come to an unceremonious end in Seattle.

The New England ripple effect | National Football Post
A profitable betting trend exists if you’re willing to swim in the Patriots’ wake.

NFL Preseason Week 3: What to watch | National Football Post
The third week of the preseason is viewed as final "dress rehearsal" for the vets and another opportunity for rookies to stand out on tape. With a full schedule set to kickoff tonight, here's what I'm looking for over the weekend.

Five single-season NFL records that could be broken in 2012 | Shutdown Corner - Yahoo! Sports
From the blog Shutdown Corner: 5. Passing Yards Drew Brees, 2011: 5,476 yards Dan Marino's single-season record for passing yards stood for 27 years before being broken in 2011 ‒ twice. Tom Brady topped it and Drew Brees smashed it, throwing for 5,476 yards to … Continue reading →

Seahawks camp report: Even with offensive holes, the D, run game could win NFC West -
The Seattle Seahawks really, really like their young defense. There is a general excitement about where that young group is and where it is going. But to the coaches, execs, and even some players in this organization, the offense is much more of a work in progress.

First Impressions: Second-Rounders, No. 43 to No. 52 | ProFootballFocus.com
Pick No. 47 – Bobby Wagner (Seahawks) During the months of build-up to the NFL Draft I heard Bobby Wagner described as a poor man’s Mason Foster, which makes even damning with faint praise sound positive. The good news for Seahawks fans is that on the evidence of two preseason games that comparison is unwarranted. Wagner is far more disciplined in his play against the run than Foster showed during his rookie season in Tampa Bay. The bad news for Seahawks fans though is that their rookie MLB did not look particularly active or effective when shedding blocks in his preseason debut.

He was easily controlled at the second level by Tennessee offensive linemen and tight ends alike. His only positive play came with a tackle of Chris Johnson on a broken play. Wagner immediately looked to rectify this tentativeness in the game against Denver–he shed the lead block of Jacob Tamme to make a tackle for short gain on Willis McGahee on the first snap of the game. However, Wagner’s snaps were extremely limited in this encounter. He does not feature in the Seahawks’ nickel defense (Leroy Hill and K.J. Wright are the Seahawks’ three-down linebackers) and with the Broncos running three-wide personnel for the majority of the first half, Wagner spent most of his time on the sideline. Wagner will need to get used to this in the regular season with the proliferation of ’11′ personnel, and concentrate on being as productive as possible in the Seahawks’ base defense.

NFL - Sam Bradford among overrated players in the Big Book - ESPN
Underrated Quarterback: Tarvaris Jackson, Seattle Seahawks To be honest, it was hard to find an underrated passer in the Big Book rankings. Most of the names at the bottom of the list deserve to be there. But Jackson's ranking (41) seems a little harsh. He finished in the top 25 last season in both DYAR (Defense-Adjusted Yards Above Replacement, Football Outsiders' total value stat) and DVOA (Defense-Adjusted Value Over Average, which measures value on a per-play basis).

He did that playing most of the season with a torn pec, with an undrafted rookie as his top receiver and behind an offensive line whose starters combined to miss 23 games. And it's not a one-year fluke, either -- on a per-attempt basis, Jackson's career numbers surpass those of players like Alex Smith and Mark Sanchez who enter 2012 as starting quarterbacks for teams with realistic playoff goals. Jackson is 29, so there's not much sense in hoping he'll develop into a championship-caliber quarterback, and there's no room for him in Seattle after the Seahawks acquired Matt Flynn and Russell Wilson. But whoever wins the trading auction for Jackson's services will get a surprisingly effective backup.

ProFootballWeekly.com - Situational awareness key to Locker's development
After a strong showing in training camp, Locker convinced the Titans that time is now. Make no mistake: there will be bumps along the way. Locker’s ability to read defenses and knowledge of the offense remain far behind Hasselbeck, who consistently has been one of the more prepared QBs in the NFL over the past decade. But that’s hardly an indictment of Locker; the savvy Hasselbeck is arguably the smartest person in the Titans’ locker room.

ProFootballWeekly.com - Rams not tipping hand on D-coordinator game plan
"It’s been a well-kept secret, which I think (head coach Jeff) Fisher is doing on purpose," one team insider said. "One reason is that, in Fisher’s mind, he fully expects to have Williams back next season."

Colin Kaepernick named No.2 quarterback in San Francisco | ProFootballTalk
The writing has been on the wall for a while now, but Jim Harbaugh made it official on Thursday.

The 21st century is bringing new ways to break down football games - Grantland
Get ready for an explosion of information that will change how we interpret and understand professional football

Bob and Groz Show - Podcasts - MyNorthwest.com
Seahawks offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell tells "Bob and Groz" about quarterback Matt Flynn's sore arm and why Russell Wilson is starting Friday against the Chiefs.

8-23 Gus Bradley - Seattle's live and local sports station
Seahawks Def. Coordinator Gus Bradley stops by to talk Bruce Irvin and Red Bryant.

John Clayton Show - Podcasts - MyNorthwest.com
Former Seahawks wide receiver Mike Williams tells "The John Clayton Show" that he thinks Seattle can "easily" be a 12-win team. Williams also discusses his release from the team, his health and his hopes of landing with another team this season.

Mike Williams has 'nothing but love' for Seahawks - Blog - MyNorthwest.com
Mike Williams says he doesn't resent the Seahawks for releasing him, and he doesn't have a bad word to say about his former teammates or any of the receivers Seattle added to replace him.