Coffee & Cigarettes: Seahawks links for Saturday

Weekend, y'all.

Russell Okung runs with the bulls
Like Jets coach Rex Ryan recently did, Seahawks left tackle Russell Okung spent his down time by flying to Spain for a casual run through the streets with a bunch of other people and a collection of large, disoriented creatures with hooves and horns.
(...)
The inherently risky endeavor arguably runs afoul of the standard NFL plater contract, but it’s out understanding that the Seahawks knew about Okung’s plans and had no objection to them.

NFL position coaches to keep an eye on
Scouting departments are only as strong as the team’s position coaches. They can make us look good or can put us on the street quickly. Front offices love words like: "upside" and "high ceiling" but with poor coaching those words might as well be "bust" and "unemployed". Below are some coaches that either have a proven track record or young up and coming guys who have finally been given their shot to run a position. The NFL is loaded with coaching talent and here are just a few names to keep on your radar:

The NFL's top assistant coaches | National Football Post
A look at some of the best teachers that don't have head gigs.

Brandon Browner, the CFL and Good Value - 12th Man Rising - A Seattle Seahawks Fan Site - News, Blogs, Opinion and more.
One of the things I always thought was interesting about football was how there is no real development system. Growing up the first sports I watched were hockey and baseball and in both "the farm team" was always a major topic of discussion even for the young fans who didn’t really know what they were talking about.

Crime In The NFL - Crunchology
NFL players, while held to a higher standard, can sometimes miss the mark. Here, we take a close look at the statistics for crime in the NFL since 2000.

Andy Dalton Will Win the Sleeper Battle With Sam Bradford and Ryan Tannehill | RotoViz
It’s become de rigueur in supposed ‘expert’ leagues to draft your quarterback late, but usually that just means trying to snag Tony Romo at QB12 before somebody who owned Tom Brady in 2008 swoops in to draft their QB2. True Late Round QB will go nearly extinct this season. The incentive to use a QBBC drops precipitously when the difference between QB5 and QB12 vanishes. The depth at quarterback changes strategy in the same way the depth at RB1 should change your early round approach.

Sports Buzz | The Miami Herald
What makes the monotonous grind more pleasurable for Lamar Miller is that he is doing it alongside his friend and fellow Hurricane, Frank Gore. "The way Lamar is learning from Frank, it’s a beautiful thing," Steelers linebacker Sean Spence, another former Cane, said this week.

Caught on Tape! Aldon Smith - Week 1 @ GB - Niners Nation
We review the All-22 of Aldon Smith's Week 1 performance against Green Bay to see how he stacks up with Pro Football Focus' grading of his play.

Fantasy Football: Jay Cutler as Your Backup | RealFansSportsNetwork
The most consistent and potent position in any fantasy roster is the quarterback. While the quarterback might not be the most important position you’ll end up drafting, screwing up your starting quarterback situation will come back to haunt you.

Seattle Seahawks 12 Tour | Sports Photos | The Bellingham Herald
"Super Hawk" Amber Morrison has her cape signed by Seattle Seahawks defensive lineman Red Bryant during the Seahawks' 12 Tour at the Best Western Lakeway Inn on Thursday, July 11, 2013 in Bellingham. The Morrisons are season ticket holders and the costume came about because she wanted to do something "different".

St. Louis Rams: Starting 22 and Player Ratings - Turf Show Times
Pro Football Focus is currently grading each NFL team’s starting 22. I couldn’t wait for them to get to the St. Louis Rams, so I gave it a go…

Where did the Seahawks improve the most this offseason? | Seahawks Blog | Seattle Times
Crazy to think that we’re still 58 days away from the season opener, and yet here we are, debating and picking apart team rankings (Seahawks or 49ers?) and player rankings (Should Jaws have ranked Russell Wilson the 12th-best QB in the league?). The point is, there’s never a time that isn’t right to talk about [...]

The most significant Seahawks wins under Carroll - 710sports.com
With the Seahawks set to enter a season of unprecedented expectations just three years into Pete Carroll's tenure as head coach, Danny O'Neil revisits five landmark victories along the way. - Blog 710 ESPN Seattle at 710sports.com

Young QB debate: 'His game is complete' - NFC West Blog - ESPN
ESPN's Tim Hasselbeck and Andrew Brandt think Andrew Luck will have the best second season as a starting quarterback in 2013 over Russell Wilson, Colin Kaepernick and Robert Griffin III. They think it'll be close, however.

2013 Jaws QB ranking: Colin Kaepernick 11th - ESPN
Another day, another young NFC West quarterback for ESPN's Ron Jaworski to praise in his 2013 rankings.

Football 101: Gaps And Techniques - 12th Man Rising - A Seattle Seahawks Fan Site - News, Blogs, Opinion and more.
Football is a complicated sport. There’s an absolute ton of terminology that is thrown around every day on sites like this one that, quite frankly, can be very intimidating if you’ve never had someone explain it to you. Fortunately, once you learn a few of basics, the rest can be picked up from context when watching games or other shown on ESPN or NFLN.

Dallas Cowboys release fullback Lawrence Vickers - NFL.com
The Dallas Cowboys released fullback Lawrence Vickers on Friday, the only fullback on the roster. The move continues the phasing out of the fullback position in today's NFL.

Donte Whitner: Colin Kaepernick to get flak for photos - NFL.com
You probably don't have a body like San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick. If you did, perhaps you would pose nude, too. But that doesn't guarantee all your teammates would like it.

Austin Collie reportedly on San Francisco 49ers' radar - NFL.com
With the San Francisco needing some new wide receivers, is Austin Collie the answer? Although it's unlikely the 49ers add another receiver before camp, Collie reportedly is on their radar.

Lance Easley was 'more popular than Kim Kardashian' - NFL.com
Lance Easley, also known as the "Fail Mary" referee for his call in last season's Green Bay Packers-Seattle Seahawks game, reiterated that he made the correct call.

NFL quarterback salary comparison tells you why Russell Wilson pick was a gamechanger | Shutdown Corner - Yahoo! Sports
From the blog Shutdown Corner: When breaking down the quarterback competitions around the NFL, I once again pointed out why it makes no sense for a team that needs a quarterback to pass on intriguing players at that position in the middle rounds of the … Continue reading →

Austin Collie, not long ago a promising young receiver, waits for a team to sign him | Shutdown Corner - Yahoo! Sports
The San Francisco 49ers are interested in receiver Austin Collie, just not interested enough to sign him right now.

Wouldn't want their jobs: 8 left tackles with toughest assignments - CBSSports.com
Left tackles have it tough enough as it is. But here are eight tackles, starting with Arizona's Levi Brown, who will have their hands full.

Locker unfazed by next-to-last ranking | ProFootballTalk
Any time there’s a list, the people on it will always think they should be ranked higher. Titans quarterback Jake Locker’s no exception, but he said ESPN’s Ron Jaworski listing him 31st of 32 starting quarterbacks is not a motivator. "It doesn’t matter to me.

Robert Griffin III, Alfred Morris, and relying on rookies
The Washington Redskins were powered by a pair of rookie stars in 2012. We all know about Robert Griffin III, but sixth round pick Alfred Morris finished second in the league in rushing. Griffin’s efficiency numbers were unmatched — he led the NFL in both yards per pass and yards per run — en route to 3200 passing yards and 815 rushing yards. Morris gained1,690 yards from scrimmage; add in Kirk Cousins‘ 466 passing yards and 22 rushing yards, and Washington rookies produced 6,193 "yards" in 2012. I put that in quotes because it’s not customary to sum players’ passing, rushing, and receiving yards, but I think that’s the right idea for the point of this post: figuring out which teams have most relied on rookies.

The Tape Never Lies: The old Jake Long needs to return with the Rams | 100 Yards and Running | Blogs | theScore.com
A couple of years ago, the St. Louis Rams’ Jake Long was the best left tackle in football. He was a former No. 1 overall draft choice and he played like it, disabling rushers every week with unreal power, length, and fundamental consistency. In short, he was the ideal left tackle.

Larry Fitzgerald, Carson Palmer of Arizona Cardinals connecting in Minnesota - ESPN
New Arizona Cardinals teammates Carson Palmer and Larry Fitzgerald are getting work together in Minnesota before training camp begins later this month.