Coffee & Cigarettes: Seahawks links for Friday

Thank goodness it's TGIF everyone!

San Francisco 49ers owner turned around a franchise and stadium -- ESPN The Magazine - ESPN
SITTING AT HIS desk at the 49ers' Silicon Valley headquarters, the din of a nearby construction project almost 20 years in the making reverberating into his second-floor office, Jed York holds two cuff links and begins to cry. He catches himself, though, his eyes red and glassy. He always catches himself. York -- by title the 49ers CEO, by inheritance the owner, by his own characterization the steward -- isn't a crier. He's an almost crier, and he seems to almost cry when talking about two things, usually when they intersect: his family and his stadium.

After Further Review: Bush, Sproles lead emerging class of 'air backs' - CBSSports.com
Prisco: Step aside, you 'three yards and a cloud of dust' running backs. Reggie Bush and Darren Sproles are leading the next wave -- quick, play-making 'air backs.'

Daniel Adongo, ex-Kenyan rugby player, learns NFL as Indianapolis Colt | The MMQB with Peter King
That’s the Colts’ motto—and also the theme of their great experiment for 2013: to take a budding Kenyan rugby star and turn him into an NFL pass-rushing beast. With Daniel Adongo, the learning curve is steep, but the payoff may be huge

49ers Blog and Q&A: Fangio: Texans are tall challenge for 49ers ILBs, and Willis is iffy
Vic Fangio today said his inside linebackers have the toughest task Sunday against a Houston Texans offense that is committed to the run, loves play action and isn't shy about going down-field - sometimes deep down field - to their tight ends.

Browns Film Room: Packaged Plays and Reading Defenders | DraftBrowns.com
With more and more NFL teams implementing innovative concepts and philosophies on offense (especially from the college and high school ranks), it is important that teams do not fall behind. With this in mind, a few plays caught my eye while watching the Cleveland Browns defeat the Minnesota Vikings and Cincinnati Bengals the past two weeks. Although each may have looked like just another simple play in a quick viewing of the live broadcast, there was a forward-thinking approach to the design of each of the plays.

Wilson: ‘We are going to have to play our best football game’ | Seahawks Insider - The News Tribune
Here’s everything Russell Wilson had to say:

Report: Seahawks might add 2K-3K seats at CenturyLink Field for 2014 - CBSSports.com
There might be a few more fans at Seattle home games next season. The Seahawks are considering adding 2,000 to 3,000 seats at CenturyLink Field in time for the 2014 season.

Clay Matthews expects to play for Packers on Sunday - NFL.com
Green Bay Packers linebacker Clay Matthews expects to play through his hamstring injury Sunday. Find out about the rest of the injuries from around the NFL in Thursday's roundup.

Zach Sudfeld waived by Patriots; Vince Wilfork to IR - NFL.com
The New England Patriots waived preseason sensation Zach Sudfeld on Thursday. Should this be taken as a sign that Rob Gronkowski is ready to return to game action?

Josh Freeman's potential teams: Packers, Raiders? - NFL.com
Where might Josh Freeman land now that he's been released by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers? Chris Wesseling places the Oakland Raiders and Green Bay Packers atop the list of potential landing spots.

Why Michael Bennett is a star, OL issues overblown « Seahawks Draft Blog
For all the attention given to the Percy Harvin trade, Michael Bennett might be Seattle’s best acquisition this year.

Thursday in Hawkville: Player of the Month? Richard Sherman has it covered
After turning in a series of September-to-remember efforts, Richard Sherman has the honor to match as the Seahawks’ All-Pro cornerback was named NFC Defensive Player of the Month on Thursday.

NFP power rankings | National Football Post
A revamped defensive unit has the 2010 champs hovering near the top of the board.

Andrew Luck and Russell Wilson are the class of their Class
Two of the rookie quarterbacks who took the NFL by storm last season will square off Sunday when Andrew Luck and the Colts host Russell Wilson and the Seahawks in Indianapolis.

Advanced NFL Stats: Podcast Episode 3: Chase Stuart
Chase Stuart, founder of Football Perspective and a regular contributor to the New York Times, calls in to the show from his home in New York City. Dave and Chase begin by discussing two point conversions, and how expected value and variance come into play when coaches make the call to go for two. Chase goes on to discuss his own metric for looking at in-game point differential, called Game Scripts. He explains how Game Scripts can be used in conjunction with run/pass ratio to contextualize a team's general tendencies over the course of a season. The episode ends with a check-in on season win projections for the five remaining undefeated teams, along with some well-deserved gushing about Peyton Manning's unbelievable season.

Person of Interest: Colts' Andrew Luck - 710sports.com
Putting the microscope on one player from the Seahawks' upcoming opponent, this time Indianapolis' Andrew Luck. - Blog 710 ESPN Seattle at 710sports.com

Trailing in the 4th quarter, send out the kicker!
Through four weeks, there have been 28 cases where a team, trailing in the 4th quarter, sent in the kicker or the punter. In general, that’s a pretty low rate — it’s just under once every two games. But while going for it on 4th down isn’t always the right decision when trailing in the 4th quarter, even 28 kicks/punts is too many.

Spiller's Struggles & More - The Smash Mouth - Rotoworld.com
Lance Zierlein discusses C.J. Spiller's struggles and more in his Week 5 Smash Mouth column.

Unger's status still uncertain for Seattle - Seattle Seahawks Blog - ESPN
Seattle Seahawks coach Pete Carroll had said he was hopeful of getting Pro Bowl center Max Unger back for the game Sunday against the Indianapolis Colts, but concerns remain since Unger was a limited participant in practice Wednesday and again on Thursday.

New Seattle QB B.J. Daniels not buying the get-even talk - ESPN
“I don't agree with that at all,” Daniels said Thursday, one day after Seattle claimed him when the 49ers released him. “During my draft process, I had Seattle come and work me out. This is one of the places where I thought I might be drafted. I'm glad it worked out I'm here.”

Bills' Kiko Alonso leads first quarter NFL All-Rookie Team - CBSSports.com
Four games isn't enough time to accurately evaluate NFL rookies, but several first-year players have stood out so far through the first quarter of the young season

Stat your case: Luck or Wilson? - Stats & Info Blog - ESPN
Each week, the Stats & Information Group will look at a noteworthy discussion topic and debate the possibilities that come from it, using data to back up their points. This week’s topic is “which second year quarterback would you rather have, Andrew Luck or Russell Wilson?”

Five questions, five answers: With Colts beat writer Tom James | Seahawks Blog | Seattle Times
Time for our weekly look at Seattle’s opponent, asking five questions, and getting five answers, of a beat writer who covers that week’s foe. This week, our guest is Tom James, who covers the Colts for the Terre Haute Tribune-StarYou can follow James on Twitter at @TribStarTJames.

Why did Seahawks add rookie QB? It’s obvious | Sportspress Northwest
The 49ers in September claimed off waivers rookie Seahawks wide receiver Chris Harper. Seattle rebutted Wednesday by claiming Niners quarterback B.J. Daniels.

Seahawks' Irvin glad to be back | HeraldNet.com - Sports
Linebacker returns to team after four-game suspension, expected to play on Sunday