Coffee & Cigarettes: Seahawks links for Thursday

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FOR SOME, THAT WAS RADIO CITY MUSIC HALL ON DAY 1 OF THE - 05.06.13 - SI Vault
The NFL draft, for the league's 32 teams, is about shoring up deficiencies with an eye on the competition. Last season the St. Louis Rams lost just once in four games against San Francisco and Seattle, the behemoths of the suddenly formidable NFC West. And yet the 49ers and the Seahawks both won playoff games in January while the Rams sat at home. Since then the Niners (adding Anquan Boldin and Nnamdi Asomugha) and Hawks (Percy Harvin, Cliff Avril) have been in an arms race. "They're like the Yankees and the Red Sox," says Rams COO Kevin Demoff. "But that's O.K. We don't mind being the Ray

Ricardo Lockette Sets Big Goals
Ricardo Lockette has set big goals for the 2013 season.

The Weekly Gut Check No.260 - Milk Carton Men
Kicking off with quarterbacks, the Milk Carton Men series profiles players who went missing last season. Any information leading to their whereabouts may prevent future crimes in the fantasy preseason.

Another Note on the Relative Impact of Offense vs. Defense on Scoring
Last week, Chase had a great post where he looked at what percentage of the points scored by a team in any given game is a function of the team, and what percentage is a function of the opponent. The answer, according to Chase’s method, was 58 percent for the offense and 42 percent for the defense (note that, in the context of posts like these, “offense” means “scoring ability, including defensive & special-teams scores”, and “defense” means “the ability to prevent the opponent from scoring”). Today I’m going to use a handy R extension to look at Chase’s question from a slightly different perspective, and see if it corroborates what he found.

Explaining the Minimum Salary Benefit - Over the Cap
Imagine for a minute that you are an NFL GM who knows that cap dollars are limited when building a roster. On one hand you can sign a veteran who is likely on the downside of his career, perhaps well on the downside, for around $1 million or instead sign a relatively unproven young player for around $500,000. The young player has more upside and can play special teams but could also be a total flop. In many cases the deciding factor is simply money. The $500,000 gamble on the older player still being capable isn’t really worth the time of the NFL team.

Darnell Dockett 'hated' old Arizona Cardinals scheme - NFL.com
"Personally, I had nothing against Ray," Dockett told Darren Urban of the team's official website. "But I hated that scheme. I really hated it. I played it because I needed to. But this defense is based on guys and what their ability allows them to be good at. What they were drafted for."

NFL position is Gray area for 49ers newcomer | CSN Bay Area
MarQueis Gray knows he has a Thursday flight to the Bay Area to attend the 49ers' rookie minicamp, which runs Friday through Sunday. Beyond that, he has very little information about the organization's plan for him.

Seattle Seahawks: Character, Chemistry, Leadership and What Will Send Them to the Super Bowl | Pre Snap Reads
After an off-season full of excitement and unexpected additions, it’s fair, although a little bold, to call the Seattle Seahawks Super Bowl favourites right now. They are by no means clear favorites. With Tom Brady’s New England Patriots and Peyton Manning’s Denver Broncos setting the standard for the AFC, there will be no easy Super Bowl matchup for the Seahawks if they come out on top in the NFC, the presumed better conference that has watched it’s top teams look to one-up each other at every point of this off-season in some supercharged arms-race.

GGN Chalkboard: The Nickel Defense and why I see the light on Sheldon Richardson - Gang Green Nation
The Jets use a nickel defense differently than that you'd expect. Instead of using a 4-2-5, they use a 2-4-5. Looking at the recent draft picks, it makes sense why the Jets used the first two picks on a DL and CB.

Seahawks waive tight end Darren Fells | ProFootballTalk
The Seahawks have waived tight end Darren Fells, the brother of Patriots tight end Daniel Fells and a one-time professional basketball player. The NFL disclosed the move in its Wednesday transactions.

Will Seahawks be able to get a leg up in Levi’s Stadium? | Seahawks Blog | Seattle Times
News is breaking this morning that what looms as maybe the NFL’s best rivalry in the coming years will soon be held once a year in, well, Levi’s Stadium.

Chris Harper vs Oregon « Seahawks Draft Blog
Been busy with work for the last few days, while also taking some time after the draft to do ‘life’ things. Expect a couple of pieces later this week. For now, here’s the newest Seahawks receiver versus Oregon in the Fiesta Bowl.

Seahawks.com Blog | Tight end Darren Fells released
The release of Fells leaves the Seahawks with five tight ends on their 90-man roster, as the veterans put the wraps on the second week of Phase 2 in their offseason program today and the rookies are set to report Thursday for a three-day minicamp this weekend: starter Zach Miller, who finished third on the team with 38 receptions last season; incumbent backup Anthony McCoy, who had career-best totals in receptions (18), receiving yards (291) and TD catches (three) last season; Sean McGrath, a rookie free agent last year who spent most of the season on the practice squad before being signed to the 53-man roster in December; Luke Willson, who was selected in the fifth-round of the NFL Draft last month; and Cooper Helfet, who was signed to a future contract in January after being with the team in training camp last year.

Seahawks.com Blog | Seahawks well represented in Top 100 Plays of 2012
NFL Network’s NFL AM has been counting down the Top 100 Plays of 2012, and 40 plays into the countdown, the Seahawks are well represented on their list. We take timeout on this Wednesday afternoon to pay homage to five plays on the list that feature some of Seattle’s very own.

Leroy Hill won't face felony charge for January arrest - Blog - MyNorthwest.com
Linebacker Leroy Hill will not face a felony charge in King County for his January arrest on suspicion of domestic violence in Issaquah.

Reviewing Seattle’s unrestricted free agents | Seahawks Blog | Seattle Times
With both Marcus Trufant and Leroy Hill in the news in the last two days, it seemed a good time to review the players off of last year’s Seattle roster that are now unrestricted free agents. Here’s the list, and the current status of that player:

Talented Seahawks roster creates uphill climb for draft picks | Seahawks Insider - The News Tribune
There’s a reason that most draft analysts gave the Seattle Seahawks a pass when it came to the curious choices the team made in this year’s draft. They’ve earned it.

Will Seahawks' 2013 rookie class make an immediate impact? | HeraldNet.com - Seattle Sidelines
With rookies reporting to their first training camp on Friday, I thought it’d be a good time to go back and take a look at the impact rookies have had in the past three years since Pete Carroll and John Schneider took over.

New Orleans Saints top list of sub-.500 teams with a playoff shot - NFL.com
For teams that suffered through a losing season in 2012, the gift of spring is especially great. Everyone is 0-0. Everyone has a chance. But what losing teams have the best shot at the playoffs?

Andrew Luck: 'I'm 100 percent more comfortable' now - NFL.com
Andrew Luck's rookie season with the Indianapolis Colts went very well. Even better: Luck sounds a lot more confident after having a full NFL season under his belt.

Redskins, Cowboys, Colts set at backup QB; Falcons in trouble - NFL.com
Kirk Cousins gives the Washington Redskins QB security -- which is more than one would say Graham Harrell does for the Green Bay Packers. Our analysts eye the backup situations across the NFL.

DeMarcus Ware channels Bane with updated facemask - NFL.com
DeMarcus Ware is following in the footsteps of Justin Tuck in matters of the facemask. The Dallas Cowboys star posted a Facebook photo of his new helmet, which has eight horizontal bars.

Cardinals linemen happy with new ‘attack’ scheme, but may see a decline in results | Shutdown Corner - Yahoo! Sports
When former Indianapolis Colts offensive coordinator and interim head coach Bruce Arians became the head coach of the Arizona Cardinals (a well-deserved honor), some changes to the staff were inevitable. One change that could alter the franchise in a negative way was defensive coordinator Ray Horton moving on to take that same position with the Cleveland Browns. Despite an offense that was an unmitigated dumpster fire, Horton led Arizona's defense to one of the best single-season performances in the long history of the franchise.

49ers announce $220 million naming rights deal with Levi’s | Shutdown Corner - Yahoo! Sports
From the blog Shutdown Corner: The San Francisco 49ers are scheduled to begin play in their new $1.2 billion stadium in Santa Clara in 2014. When they do, the name of another iconic San Francisco company will be branded throughout the interior and exterior of … Continue reading →

Congratulations, Tebow fans: You've run your favorite son out of the NFL - NFL - CBSSports.com News, Rumors, Scores, Stats, Fantasy
There's not a GM in the league who wants Tim Tebow on his team, says Gregg Doyel, especially a Tebow whose influence has reached ridiculous proportions.

Jaguars owner 'fascinated' with fans wanting Tebow in Jacksonville - CBSSports.com
Tim Tebow was once almost traded to the Jaguars but opted for the bright lights and big stage of New York City instead. Now a free agent, there are Jaguars fans who still would like their team to sign the quarterback.

Pierre Thomas believes Saints backfield roles will be more defined | ProFootballTalk
The New Orleans Saints cycled through four different running backs last season as they tried to find something to spark a struggling running game. The Saints finished last season 25th in the league in rushing.

Draft 2013: Impact Rookies - Offseason Low Down - Rotoworld.com
Adam Levitan ranks the 20 rookies most likely to have a fantasy impact this season. Eddie Lacy came in at No. 3.

Finding the Fits: Miami's OL woes soon over with versatile Thomas? - CBSSports
It is perhaps appropriate that the Dolphins selected Dallas Thomas with the No. 77 overall pick, considering this is the jersey number Jake Long wore for Miami. Expect the versatile and battle-tested lineman to emerge as a quality starter in Miami ... and soon.