Coffee & Cigarettes: Seahawks links for Wednesday

One. More. Day.

How Pete and Mike are really the same guy | Mitch in the Morning - Seattle's live and local sports station
Mike Holmgren and Pete Carroll may be more alike than anyone is ready to concede. Holmgren joined Mitch today in the studio for the first time as a KJR football analyst. Mitch asked Holmgren about his tenure with the NFL draft, something Carroll and John Schneider can relate to as the first round approaches Thursday.

2013 NFL Draft features boom-or-bust prospects like Ziggy Ansah - NFL.com
The 2013 NFL Draft is chock full of classic "risk vs. reward" prospects who are proving difficult for teams to assess. Daniel Jeremiah finds them at each position, including WR Cordarrelle Patterson

Seahawks deliver message: Follow our model for big payday | Seattle Seahawks - The News Tribune
Being a Seattle Seahawks player these days carries two implied promises:

Seattle Seahawks Team Needs for 2013 NFL Draft - Fanspeak's NFL Draft Blog | Fanspeak's NFL Draft Blog
The Seattle Seahawks team needs for the 2013 NFL Draft.

Bob McGinn - Bob McGinn's draft series: Linebackers - NFL teams try to weigh workout numbers vs. sack totals
When it comes to sacking the quarterback, usually there is no substitute for talent and speed. That, however, doesn't seem to apply to the pool of pass rushers in this draft.

Looking Beyond the Numbers: Nick Kasa | DraftBrowns.com
With only 13 games of experience under his belt at the tight end position, Nick Kasa is one of the most intriguing prospects in the entire 2013 NFL Draft class. Kasa’s combination of speed, physicality after the catch, size, and strength as a blocker make him a very enticing option for a tight end-needy team on the draft’s third day. In this piece, I am going to take a look at a few plays and point out some encouraging signs for Kasa’s development, along with some signs that Kasa still has plenty of room to grow.

Cap space leaves Redskins with little wiggle room to even sign draft picks - CBSSports.com
A snapshot of available cap space for all 32 NFL teams. Teams like the Packers and Falcons still have big signings coming up.

A Metrics Study of Overrated Draft Prospects | The Sideline View
Looking at the underrated players for my previous post exposed some prospects with less than desirable metrics. It’s not a concern if a top prospect has one or two bad metric categories if there are other positives to be had. It starts to be a problem when a player has universally bad stats across the board. Those are the type of players I picked out for these profiles. I’ll explore those negative metrics and why these players may not be worth a high draft pick. All statistics are derived from the STATS ICE program which has data from every BCS game in the 2012 season.

Scouting the "Scouts": Evaluating Some of the Top Media-Based NFL Draft Evaluators
In the most unique "niche" in sports media, the NFL Draft "community" is an ever-growing group of evaluators, mock drafters, and NFL fans. I’ve had the privilege of being able both heavily involved in the NFL Draft media as well as converse and/or meet some of the best and the brightest in the "draft media".

10 late round sleepers who could surprise: Part II | National Football Post
The NFP breaks down the final five

2013 NFL Draft: Barkley leads Rang's Gang - CBSSports
Rang's Gang is the collective answer to the question I'm most often asked: "If you were running a team and you needed a (insert position), who would you take?"

2013 NFL Draft rumor mill: Lane Johnson, Tyler Eifert create buzz - NFL.com
With the 2013 NFL Draft on the horizon, Albert Breer speaks with NFL executives and scouts to get the latest buzz. One takeaway: Notre Dame tight end Tyler Eifert is drawing plenty of interest.

NFL Films Blog " Blog Archive Greg Cosell: 2013 Draft Q&A – Part 2 "
The NFL.com Players Only BLog and showcases NFL players as they demonstrate seemingly impossible feats of athletic prowess.

NFL Films Blog " Blog Archive Greg Cosell: 2013 Draft Q&A – Part 1 "
The NFL.com Players Only BLog and showcases NFL players as they demonstrate seemingly impossible feats of athletic prowess.

Scout: Seahawks have plenty of DTs to choose from - Blog - MyNorthwest.com
The Seahawks don't have a ton of needs heading into this week's NFL draft, but defensive tackle could be considered one of them after they let two-year starter Alan Branch depart in free agency.

Two days to go… " Seahawks Draft Blog
On Thursday I’m going to do another Google Hangout during the first round. If you want to listen in and interact with fellow Seahawks fans, you can watch us on here or at Fieldgulls. It might not have the production value of ESPN or the NFL Network, but at least you won’t get overkill coverage of Manti Te’o (Kiper), hear why every prospect is "awesome" (Gruden), have to face anything that Bill Polian says (Polian), or get Adam Schefter tipping picks. Actually, all of those guys are on ESPN. So, errr, the NFL Network is too loud. But try and make it if you can.

Seahawks make a statement with Chancellor extension - Blog - MyNorthwest.com
Some statements are punctuated with an exclamation point. This one concluded with a signature.

Pre-draft roundtable with John Clayton, Mike Sando - Blog - MyNorthwest.com
ESPN's John Clayton and Mike Sando joined "Brock and Danny" on Monday for a roundtable discussion on how the Seahawks are approaching this week's draft, their fourth under coach Pete Carroll and general manager John Schneider. Below are some of the highlights

Which picks should get second contracts - NFC West Blog - ESPN
Seattle Seahawks safety Kam Chancellor recently became the fourth 2010 NFC West draft choice to sign a second contract with his original team.

Mono a Mono - Grading San Francisco 49ers vs Seattle Seahawks Pre Draft Signees By Position - 12th Man Rising - A Seattle Seahawks Fan Site - News, Blogs, Opinion and more.
This isn’t necessarily to find out who had the better off-season, it’s a push in my mind anyways. Both teams got better at positions they needed to (which just ironically happened to be the same positions this year) and upgraded their respective teams tremendously at multiple positions. There’s still work to do in the draft for both teams, but the 49ers and Seahawks went hand-to-hand in the pre-draft portion of the 2013 off-season.

#AskCoach – Keep Maximizing Every Day
As we wind down this week, we unveil our third #AskCoach video Q&A. This week is a little different–as Coach Carroll answered the four most popular questions he received on Twitter. We got some great stuff this week and can’t wait to share with you.

NFL draft trades that make too much sense to happen - NFL.com
The Miami Dolphins should acquire Branden Albert for a second-round pick, but draft season is usually filled with trades that just make too sense to happen. Here's our top five.

Evaluating wide receivers by size and speed | National Football Post
Tony Villiotti examines how much these factors really matter in the NFL draft

The countdown has begun | National Football Post
We’re just over 48 hours from the start of the 2013 NFL draft. Here’s what has been shaking down around the league.

10 late round sleepers who could surprise: Part I | National Football Post
The NFP takes a look at the first five of 10

Redrafting 2010's first round: Big changes after Bradford at No. 1 - NFL - CBSSports.com News, Rumors, Scores, Stats, Fantasy
Looking back at the 2010 NFL Draft's first round, Pete Prisco wants a do-over -- like Jason Paul-Pierre to the Lions at No. 2 over Ndamukong Suh.

2013 NFL Mock Drafts - CBSSports.com - NFLDraftScout.com
NFL Mock Drafts provided by CBSSports.com and NFLDraftScout.com, including analysis by Rob Rang, Dane Brugler, Pete Prisco, Clark Judge, Pat Kirwan and others.

Looking Beyond the Numbers: Ryan Otten | DraftBrowns.com
In a deep class of tight ends, it is easy for certain guys to fly under the radar in the months before the draft. San Jose State tight end Ryan Otten has done just that. At the Senior Bowl in late January, Otten got hit with the flu and a cut on his finger became infected all at the same time. He was forced to go to a hospital in Mobile, Alabama after the Senior Bowl’s conclusion. Otten lost nearly 30 lbs. while he was sick. He showed up at the combine at only 230 lbs., but got back up near his playing weight (242 lbs.) for his pro day in March. In this piece, I am going to look at a few plays that stand out when I think of Ryan Otten.

Which positions are the safest to draft in the first round?
Are some positions safer than others in the draft? Conventional wisdom tells us that quarterbacks are risky, while offensive linemen are safe. But is that true? Jason Lisk wrote a great article on bust rates three years ago at the old PFR Blog, and I’ve decided to update that article based on more recent data.

Redskins take steps to improve FedEx Field | ProFootballTalk
The bad news is that the Redskins won’t be replacing the playing surface at FedEx Field with FieldTurf or some other synthetic option. The good news is that they’ll take meaningful steps to improve it.

Team Needs: Seattle Seahawks | ProFootballTalk
The acquisition of Percy Harvin from the Minnesota Vikings has left the Seahawks without a first round draft pick for the first time since 2007 (Seattle sent their first round pick to New England in exchange for Deion Branch). The good news for Seattle is there aren’t many areas the team still needs to address. Most starting positions are spoken for and some minor depth issues are the only thing left for the Seahawks to clean up.

League, union calculations of cap space differ, as usual | ProFootballTalk
At a time when the NFL and the NFLPA can’t agree on much of anything, it’s no surprise that their internal salary-cap calculations differ, too.

The Revis Effect | NFL Philosophy
Blockbuster trades don’t happen often in the NFL. If a big name player is traded it’s usually at the end of his career for fifty-cents-on-the-dollar. A good example of this is Anquan Boldin being traded for a 6th round pick. The real blockbusters – a top echelon player being traded while still in his 20′s – happens maybe once every five to ten years. We got our blockbuster.

Lance Zierlein's QB Draft Grades | The Sideline View
Overall, this is a weak QB class as far as the top-end is concerned, but it does offer decent value in rounds 2 and 3. There is a chance that only one QB goes in the first round and if Geno Smith falls outside of the first 8 picks, he could keep falling until someone trades into the 1st to take him.

Lance Zierlein's RB Draft Grades | The Sideline View
I'm beginning to doubt that we see any RBs taken in the first round. Eddie Lacy has the size that NFL teams love, but there is nothing truly special about his game. This draft offers some solid options for committee caliber backs and we might see a run on the position around the middle of the 2nd round.

Bill Barnwell on the inconsistency of the NFL draft - Grantland
Do NFL teams actually have any idea what they're doing at the draft?

2013 NFL Draft: Top-100 conference breakdown - CBSSports
Just like in college football, the SEC is projected to dominate the other college conferences among prospects in the 2013 NFL Draft

Broaddus: Minter, Brown Among LBs Adept At Reacting
Here are some notes on linebackers to take a look at as the Cowboys get set for the NFL draft:

Andre Ellington, RB, Clemson Scouting Report | Tom Melton's NFL Draft Blog
Size: Ellington is weighed in at 5’9", 199 pounds at the combine and weighed 194 pounds at his pro day. He lacks the size and bulk to be an every down back at the next level in my opinion as he looks skinny on film. To be drafted on the second day he will have to compensate for his lack of size with speed and quickness.

Mike Gillislee, RB, Florida Scouting Report | Tom Melton's NFL Draft Blog
Size: Gillislee has solid running back size, but he looks slim despite weighing 208 pounds. I think he could pretty easily put on some weight, and at 5’11" he has the frame to do so.

It's Ready: Get Your Copy of Our 2013 NFL Draft Guide!
Our 2nd Annual NFL Draft Guide is Ready for Purchase, and it's Packed with Scouting Notes, Measurements, Comparisons, our Big Board, and More. We've evaluated over 230 NFL Draft Prospects and Ranked Over 400 Players in Total.

Optimum Scouting
After what was a long season for me and everyone at Optimum Scouting, we've finally arrived at our final 2013 NFL Draft Big Board. We've been to every major All-Star game, spoken with people close to these players and got NFL insight, and we've combined our own scouting insight to form this final Top 300 board.

2013 NFL Draft: Quinton Patton Scouting Report
In one of the deepest wide receiver classes in recent memory, teams are going to have their pick of some excellent talent in the second and third rounds. Quinton Patton isn’t one of the sexier names in the class, but his skill set projects extremely well to the next level. He doesn’t have the measurables or athletic upside of a player like Cordarrelle Patterson. He’s only 6’0" and slightly above 200 pounds. His vertical jump was "only" 33" and his broad jump was only 9’10". He’s not a combine warrior, but he’s mastered much of the nuance of the wide receiver position, so his NFL learning curve won’t be steep, and he’ll have a high floor, even as a rookie.

2013 NFL Draft: Jesse Williams Scouting Report
Alabama defensive tackle Jesse Williams has had a fascinating journey to his current status as a potential first-round pick. He was born and raised in Australia, and grew up playing rugby. He only started playing football at the age of 15, but he took to it like a natural. He originally committed to the University of Hawaii, but eventually ended up at Western Arizona Community College due to insufficient credits. He was a dominant junior college prospect, drawing offers from Oregon State, Oklahoma State, USC, Mississippi, LSU, Arkansas, Tennessee, and Alabama.

2013 NFL Draft: Menelik Watson Scouting Report
Menelik Watson is one of several internationally born and bred prospects in the 2013 NFL Draft. The big offensive tackle, who is originally from the United Kingdom, spent most of his life playing basketball. He ended up in New York on a basketball scholarship, then dabbled in boxing a little bit before attending a college football game and deciding he wanted to pursue American football as a career.

2013 NFL Draft: Phillip Thomas Scouting Report
Phillip Thomas has been one of the most productive college football players over his career, even considering he missed an entire year because of a gruesome leg injury. He’s been in the Mountain West Conference, so there are some strength of competition questions. But when scouting lower levels of competition, you want to see players really stand out. And Thomas really stands out.

2013 NFL Draft: Jordan Poyer Scouting Report
The Oregon State Beavers ranked second in the PAC-12 in scoring defense in 2012, and a big reason for that was the play of first-team All-American cornerback Jordan Poyer. The lanky senior was taken in the 42nd round of the 2009 MLB Draft by the Florida Marlins, but elected to focus on his football career at Corvallis. It looks like he made a good choice, as he’s likely to be selected on the second day of the 2013 NFL Draft.