Seahawks Saturday: The Field Gulls Week in Review

The past week was a busy one in the world of the NFL, as the Goodell machine continued to churn despite there being almost twenty weeks until the return of football.  When a week begins with Brian Hoyer being released, you get the feeling you're in for a doozy of a seven days.  And what do you know, it was indeed! 

Home Cookin’

Son of a gun were there ever some great posts here this past week.  Don’t fret if you missed anything, here are some of the highlights.

Joshua Kasparek wrote two awesome stories on the returning veterans, Chris Clemons and Brandon Browner.  Take a stroll down memory lane, won’t you?

Kenny breaks down which teams in the NFC have gotten better and which have gotten worse.

Lars Russell made a terrific Field Gulls debut with this article on the Seahawks’ Legion of Boom in 2015. 

With Brandon Browner’s return, Evan Hill wrote this cool article on the bully mentality that’s returning to Seattle.

A good week of podcasting for the Field Gulls crew, as Kenny, Danny and many others were joined by Zach Whitman to talk SPARQ, the draft and a guy from Kenny’s high school that almost died from Jack In The Box on Real in the Field (Gulls).  On 3000 NFL Mock Draft, Kenny and Rob talk the Rams trade up, Myles Jack and Rob’s latest mock draft. 

Seahawks Stuff

Brandon Browner is back, baby!  The Seahawks and Browner agreed to a one-year deal this week, reuniting Browner with his fellow LOB members.  Perhaps the worst cornerback in football last season for New Orleans, it was later revealed he played the season on a torn MCL.  A low-risk, high-reward signing for the Hawks that brings some bite back to a defense that lost Bruce Irvin this offseason.

The team returned to the VMAC on Monday, beginning their offseason workout program.  Of note, both Jimmy Graham and Kam Chancellor were in the building.

Well That’s Stupid

The Philadelphia Eagles sent a bunch of draft picks to the Cleveland Browns on Wednesday to move up to the second overall pick in next weeks first round.  The Eagles sent two first-round picks, a second, a third and a fourth in exchange for the Browns first round selection and a fourth round pick next season. 

Kansas City will not recoup their 2016 third-round pick nor their 2017 sixth-round pick as the NFL denied their tampering charges appeal.  The Chiefs were found to have tampered in their recruitment of wide receiver Jeremy Maclin and, despite reducing the fines levied against the club, the NFL will not return the forfeited selections. 

Crappy Quarterback Corner

Days after the Los Angeles Rams traded up to the number one spot in the 2016 NFL Draft, quarterback Case Keenum signed his first-round restricted free agent tender.  The deal, worth 3.6 million, enables the Rams to now trade their former starter(?), which seems unlikely because he isn’t very good.

Released by the Houston Texans this past Sunday, Brian Hoyer has been on a free-agent tour reminiscent of Peyton Manning’s time in free agency prior to signing with the Broncos.  Hoyer first visited with the New York Jets and later visited with the Denver Broncos.  A deal will likely come after the draft, when quarterback-needy teams have a clear idea of where they sit at the position.

For the second time this offseason, an agent has cut ties with Johnny Manziel.  This time it was Drew Rosenhaus parting ways with Manziel, after giving him five-days to enter treatment or he would no longer represent him.  Instead, Manziel was in a ball pit at Coachella.  Priorities! 

When asked about the Colin Kaepernick situation this week, John Elway said the it's dormant and an offer remains on the table.  Again, if something were to come soon it would likely be after the draft, when Mark Sanchez-itis kicks in for the Broncos front office.

It’s April 23^rd, What Did You Expect?

This is the fifth or sixth weekly recap at Field Gulls, and for the third time I’m writing about Trent Richardson.  This time, he has an actual contract though.  Finally, the Ravens and Richardson have agreed to terms on a one-year deal that will see Richardson and his 3.3 career yards per carry compete to make the final 53-man roster this summer.

Ronnie Hillman returned to Denver this week after agreeing to a one-year contract with the Broncos.  The deal, worth a reported two-million, will see Hillman return to the backfield he shared last season with CJ Anderson. 

After his season was cut short due to a neck injury, Larry Donnell has been cleared to play and has returned to the Giants, signing his one-year restricted free agent tender. 

Josh Norman and Other Stuff

The Carolina Panthers puzzled NFL fans on Wednesday, deciding to rescind the franchise tag from cornerback Josh Norman, making him a free agent.  Unable to come to an agreement on a long term deal, Norman was expected to sit out team activities long into the summer.  Avoiding the headache, the Panthers chose to move on.  Washington acted quickly, flying Norman in on Friday and not letting him leave as he agreed to a five-year, 75-million-dollar deal with fifty million guaranteed.

Cardinals cornerback Patrick Peterson underwent ankle surgery this week after suffering the injury on Sunday Night Football in November against the Bengals.  He hopes to be able to participate in OTA’s at some point this offseason. 

Already thin on the defensive line, the Cowboys will now be without defensive end Demarcus Lawrence for the first four games of 2016 after he failed another drug test.  Lawrence joins Randy Gregory on the suspension list for the Cowboys to open the season. 

After missing all of 2015 with a calf injury, defensive tackle Chris Jones will play 2016 in a new home.  Released by the Patriots last weekend, Jones was claimed by the rival Miami Dolphins. 

Recommendation Station

On The Clock: SI’s Draft Podcast released its round one mock draft spectacular this week and it’s a fun listen for those that like that kind of thing.

That’s it for this week in the NFL but make sure to join me again next weekend, where there will certainly be some exciting talking points following the 2016 draft.  Thanks for reading and Go Hawks!