Carson Wentz might play this Sunday for the Colts in their season opener against Seattle.

Whoop’dy freaking doo dah.

Let me ask you this question, Seahawk fan who calls thyself a Twelve. When was the last time Carson Wentz ever beat the Seattle Seahawks?

Oh, that’s right. Never. Never ever.

Not when he was younger and thought to be the next big superstar savior of the league for the Philadelphia Eagles, and certainly not over the last few seasons when he has been a busted up inept shadow of himself.

And it’s not like these teams of Seattle and Philadelphia have rarely played each over, either. Because of each club being relatively similar in terms of regular season finishing in the NFC, they have been scheduled to play each other a lot over the past half decade, or so. Seattle has beaten them every stinking time.

Carson Wentz has never known victory over Russell Wilson and Pete Carroll.

So, like, excuuuuuuuse me if I am not dreading the prospects of a gimpy Carson Wentz practicing this week to play against the Seahawks for the Colts. If anything, I think this is a dirty tactic by Indianapolis head coach Frank Reich.

How is it so dirty, you ask?

Simple. The Colts have a banged up offensive line, and Wentz is an anti-vaxxer.

Call me crazy, but here in the 206 of the PNW, we take our vaccination rate against the Covid serious. Pete Carroll and the Seattle Seahawks take the vaccine seriously (always protect the team, duh).

Frank Reich is going to throw gimpy un-vaccinated Carson Wentz behind an offensive line that could be without its starting center and its left side. Dirty stinking Hoosiers, Man.

They know perfectly well Seattle’s pass rushers could be going to be like “Eeeeewe, I don’t want Wentz germs.” I’m not kidding, either.

Look, I don’t want to get weighted down into the politics that divide about getting the vaccine, because that’s a whole other write up, but I know dirty underhanded coaching tactics whenever I see them. Reich is going for the jock straps of the vaccination conscious Pete Carroll led Seattle Seahawks.

That’s not cool, Man. It’s dirty, low down, mid western cow patty business. Not cool.

Seahawks win this game against the Colts by

Carlos Dunlap, Jamal Adams, Poona Ford, Kerry Hyder Junior, Alton Robinson, Benson Mayowa, Darrell Taylor and LJ Collier bathing in hand sanitizer on the side lines in order to get after Wentz. Pete Carroll wants to send his pass rushers in waves all game. Keep the sanitizer well stocked and near by as the big fellas rotate in, and as God goes with them, that should be enough.

Staying aggressive with Russell Wilson and the offense. The Colts have two massive and immensely talented defense tackles up front to lead a talented group of linebackers and defensive backs behind them. This is a good test and opportunity for new offensive play caller, Shane Waldron, to shine. Instead of being pig headed about trying to bang it inside with Chris Carson against these enormous men, look for Waldron to go up tempo, get Russ moving, attack with outside with runs, miss direction, keepers and quick hitters. Get the big DTs winded some, and the guys behind them second guessing. Basically, do everything Russ has been craving to do over the past three years or more. Just be aggressive.

Seahawks lose to the Colts by

Carson Wentz phobia afflicting the Seahawk pass rush. If Poona and Dunlap are thinking about not bringing Covid home to loved ones more than their sack numbers, the Seattle Seahawks are in trouble. Wentz is not likely going to be a world beater this year, and the Colts don’t seem to have a great group of receivers, but Seattle has question marks at corner right now, and the presumptive plan is for their pass rush to get home frequently to help the coverage out. If Jamal Adams is just as grossed out by Wentz as I am, this could be a problem.

Pete Carroll being bone headed about wanting to dial back the offense against a strong Indianapolis front seven. Pete Carroll has to let Shane Waldron cook in this one. He needs to give him space to work out the kinks with Wilson and company. Indianapolis likely is going to have a pretty good defense in this one, and at times, it will show. I think the best way to go about it, is to not play possum and then let it rip in the fourth quarter. I think you go after them in the beginning and try to gas them, if you can. I mean, isn’t this why we brought in Waldron from the Rams? To essentially be the Rams? Hopefully, Carroll sees it the same way.

Prediction

Seahawks start their season on the road against the Indianapolis Colts and prevail in victory, 31-27. You read it here first.

The final score will make the game appear closer than it actually ever was.

Seattle will have a healthy lead going into the fourth quarter, and in typical fashion, Carroll will call off his dogs in favor of a prevent style defense to help chew clock. This will give whomever is quarterbacking the Colts at the time the ability to test the corners of Seattle more, and a degree of Seahawk fans will surely be pulling their hairs out in front of their screens when easy passes are given up left, right, and center.

This will taste like a double turd burger when Carroll also asks Waldron to dial back the offense into a predictable running attack that the Colt defenders snuff out with ease. On the rage on Seahawks Twitter when this starts happening.

But alas, the cagey old coach’s conventional wisdom pays off. The Colts won’t have enough time to complete any come from behind triumph and the final play of the game will end on a Russell Wilson kneel down, and some angry old white dude somewhere in Idaho will getting triggered by the sight of that kneeling.

Because that’s where we are as a nation right now.

Go Hawks.

I love the smell of angry Russell Wilson in the morning.

It smells like.. victory.

Put everything you think you know about Russell Wilson aside. Stow away the Namobubble water, his Tuesday visits at Seattle Children’s Hospital, his “Go Hawks” sign offs after every interview, his self promoting and branding, and put away his everyday sunny disposition.

Russell Wilson wants to destroy souls in 2021, and he’s got a locker room full of dudes behind him eager to make it happen, and a cagey culture building head coach ready to take advantage of it all.

Here is my 2021, position by position, Seattle Seahawks preview, and bold take prediction. Drink your coffee, chew your turkey jerky, and make sure your laces are tied. This is going to be a ride.

The Quarterback Position

Every superhero goes through a rebirth.

Iron Man went from egotistical womanizing booze hound to becoming a loving husband, best super hero dad in the MCU, and the guy who literally single handedly saved the entire universe. Thor went from a daft super jock to a Moses for his people. Superman went from a lovable and charming guy next door type to a disappointingly vengeful jerk by the time Zack Snyder got his hands on him. Times change, so do superheroes, and so does Russell Wilson.

Russell Wilson is shedding a bit of his squeaky clean nice guy persona for a little bit more of an impatient asshole type. Call it a mid-football-life crisis (or what have you), but he’s not cool with what has become the status quo of his team being decent but not great, and he’s become more vocal about that.

When you put yourself out there like that (willing to call out how the offensive line has been put together, etc), you had better respond by doing everything you can to take care of your own shit, to make sure you are always bringing your best version of yourself on the field. Otherwise, if you don’t, you can expect criticism to pour down on you in ways you have never before experienced in your lifetime.

By voicing out this off-season, Russell Wilson has put himself on the line like he has never been before. I’m sure that he knows it.

If you have seen footage or photos of him during training camp, you will have noticed that he appears the slimmest he has looked since his rookie season. If I am part of the coaching staff of the Arizona Cardinals, San Francisco 49ers, or the Los Angeles Rams, I’m a wee bit nervous about that.

We haven’t seen Russell Wilson in this new Shane Waldron offense yet. Some fans might be nervous how it’s going to go down. I am not one of them. I got enough glimpses from the three preseason games to envision what Russ will do by watching non world beaters Alex McGough, Sean Mannion, and Geno Smith run the show.

I am fully convinced that Waldron has put together an offense with will fit Russ like a glove. The tempo, the variations of personnel and plays, the balance of run and pass are all perfect for a quarterback such as Russ to operate out of.

If you have a quarterback such as Number 3, the last thing you want to do is run a system that a defenders can predict. His skill set matched with his height requires an offensive that is aggressive, and can hit you in the mouth in a multitude of ways out of the same looks to the point in which you second guess. I got enough glimpses in the preseason to rest my ease.

For the first time in his tenure in Seattle, this is truly going to be the Russell Wilson show with an offense designed specifically for him. Pete Carroll looked at that trade offer from the Bears last Spring that would have netted him all-world edge rusher Khalil Mack, another starter of his choice, three first round picks and a third, he sat on it for a minute, and he was like, “nah, I think I will just let Russ cook.”

Russell Wilson is going to have a monster, MVP caliber, year. Put it in the bank now.

A Seahawk hating friend of mine said that Seattle’s offense breaks without Russell Wilson and they better give Duane Brown whatever he wants. I couldn’t decide if this was trash talk, or just a simple statement of fact, but I fully agreed with it. Most offenses would break with their star quarterback going down.

I seriously doubt the Seattle Seahawks would go to the length they have to build it further around Russ in 2021 to not figure out the Duane Brown situation and have Russ play without his star left tackle. I expect the situation to be resolved within the next week or so.

And for those nervous that this could be the year injuries catch up to Russ, let me remind you of 2016. That was the season Russ played through a high ankle sprain sustained during game one, and a torn pectoral muscle sustained in October. Most quarterbacks would not have played through those injuries. Russell Wilson has never missed a game of professional football, and he has never looked more slim and fit as he does today.

And he’s pissed off.

I’m not nervous about Russell Wilson. This is going to be a fun season.

The Running Back Position

Perhaps the deepest unit on the roster. In a year where Russ is poised to cook like nobody’s business, it’s ironic that Seattle is choosing to keep five backs.

Here’s the truth about Russell Wilson cooking, y’alls. Russ needs to cook with a cooking run game, and this backfield offers enough versatility to make things happen in interestingly different ways. The Seattle Seahawks obviously want their backfield as deep and rich as it can be, and I dig it.

They got bangers who can run physical like Chris Carson and Alex Collins. They got a home run hitter type like Rashaad Penny. They got an interesting x-factor type in Deejay Dallas who has receiver skills to split out wide and looks worlds more explosive in 2021 than he did in 2020. They kept Travis Homer (to my surprise) who proved to be a useful third down back for Russ when he was cooking at is best in the early part of the 2020 season.

One bold hot prediction I got for you out of this group is this; expect Deejay Dallas to be a very interesting player for the Seattle Seahawks in 2021, and not just as a returner.

Supposedly, Russell Wilson really likes this cat a lot, and when Russ gets behind someone on this team, that’s usually a good sign. Dallas looks explosive with the ball in his hands, and my money is on Waldron figuring out a variety of ways to do it in this offense. I’m down for it.

The Wide Receiver Position

At the time of publication of this piece, the 2021 Seahawks will have only four receivers on the active roster. Expect that to change to at least five once the season gets going.

As for the four dudes currently on the roster, we all know what DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett bring as a starting tandem (I think they are tops in the league), but I’m also pretty excited about Dee Eskridge and Freddie Swain are poised to add. I thought Swain flashed underrated skill last year, but in the one preseason game that we finally got to catch a glimpse of Eskridge, his skill set was obvious.

You can see why Seattle chose to draft him in the second round over a center. Time will tell if that was the right move, but in two plays, you could see an aggressive style of player who looks willing to fight through holes and contact, and who leaped up to attack a highly thrown ball 19 yards down field in a very Doug Baldwin like way. This guy looks like a football player. He looks like someone who understands that this is a violent sport, and he is willing to bring it. He looks like a badass. I’m excited about this guy a lot in this offense.

The Tight End Position

I think I like this group. On paper, I like what Gerald Everett brings as a more athletic pass catcher who understands what Waldron wants out of the position, and I still like Will Dissly as an inline blocker and safety value receiver.

I’m intrigued by the size and pass catching abilities of Colby Parkinson, but I’m nervous about his ability to stay healthy.

As of right now, I have to be honest in saying that I didn’t see enough out of this group during the preseason to be able to get a good read. None of these guys really played, and the tight ends that did weren’t really featured. That could totally be by design to not reveal much of the offense, but I don’t know.

At best, I can say that I’m intrigued by matching Gerald Everett with Russell Wilson and DK Metcalf. His presence gives Seattle two big run after catch guys that defenses have to consider while mixed in with quicker jet sweep guys. It could get really interesting.

At worst, I just keep my fingers crossed that injuries don’t take a toll here.

Offensive Line

I love the starting guards of Damien Lewis and Gabe Jackson. When we finally saw them play together in that final preseason game, I felt we saw what this offense can more accurately be on Sundays. They look physical and active. They look like the type of badasses you want your guards to look like.

I like the tackle situation with Duane Brown getting sorted out and Stone Forsythe developing behind him on the left side. I like Brandon Shell on the right side, but I really, really like un-drafted rookie Jake Curhan, and thought he was the quiet star of the preseason. Don’t be surprised if Curhan starts some games in 2021.

I’m nervous about center, but not deathly nervous.. yet.

Perhaps Kyle Fuller will be the surprise player on the line. Maybe one time starter Ethan Pocic will prove a valuable backup, but I would say that grabbing Dakoda Shepley off wavers from San Francisco could be a sign that Seattle isn’t totally settled at this spot heading into week one of the regular season.

Shepley had a solid Pro Football Focus grade during the preseason, and Carroll was surprised San Fran let him go. Sounds like a guy who could end up being the starter at some point down the line this year, if he picks things up fairly smoothly. Maybe that will be a blessing, like DJ Reed was last year at corner, but we don’t know.

Center is the one spot on this team that I have the most questions about. We will see.

Defensive Line

Poona Ford. Poona F’ing Ford.

Poona, Poona, Poona.

Poona Ford is going to be the break out star of this defense, ya’ll. Cash that check right now.

I love me the edge rushers in Carlos Dunlap, Alton Robinson, Kerry Hyder, and Rasheem Green in his new stand up edge rushing role. I like that they will likely have Benson Mayowa and Darrell Taylor mixing in at LEO end, and SAM linebacker. It feels like they can send these guys in waves every game every week, and I’m excited about that.

I like the big DT’s they got in Al Woods and Bryan Mone.

I wish I liked more of what I saw out of LJ Collier during the preseason, but maybe a fire gets lit under him when the games start to matter, and he looks better. I worry that he’s a guy without a true position though, but we shall see.

I also think that, eventually, we are going to see a Geno Atkins type of signing happen to split time at 3 tech with Poona F’ing Ford.

But folks, let’s be real. This is Poona Ford’s time to shine as an every down DT. Pro Football Focus loves this guy. I love him, too.

Let Poona Cook.

Linebackers

Some folks are nervous KJ Wright isn’t coming back, and they are concerned about the linebacker depth. I’m not.

Absolutely no disrespect to KJ. He’s been one of my favorite Seahawks in the Carroll era, and I thought he had a fantastic year last year. But this defense is changing out of Carroll’s traditional 4-3 under cover three. It’s becoming more versatile to match what they have to play within their division, and I think it’s something they need to do, too.

Now, more than ever, we are going to see the line blurred between a 4-3 and a 3-4 look on base downs with what will be a Bear Defensive look. The outside linebacker and defensive end positions will be more blurred. I am putting Benson Mayowa and Darrell Taylor in the linebacker group as likely featured pass rushing types at strong outside ‘backer, which is what KJ played last year.

KJ did a great many things for this defense but he was not a pass rusher at the SAM. This is why he wasn’t coming back to Seattle.

That said, Seattle will likely spend the majority of it’s time in what will be a 4-2-5 look in order to get its talented group of safeties on the field together in the ever pass happy nature of modern NFL football. The linebackers to fill those two inside roles are Bobby Wagner, Jordyn Brooks, and Cody Barton, who are all fast as f***.

Barton, for me, was maybe the best looking and most consistent looking defender during the preseason. It seems like that light switch has turned on for him going into year three. I’m intrigued.

Given the fact that all-world hybrid defender Jamal Adams will factor in with the linebackers, I think this could be a sneaky good part of the team this year. I’m pretty hopeful here.

Best of luck to KJ, though. My God, he’s almost going to make me root for the Raiders some.

Cornerback

Ain’t gonna lie. This is the group that concerns me most outside of the center spot on the offensive line.

Do I think they will suck? Nope. Not there with those feelings yet.

Do I see potential for any world beaters out of these guys? Nah. Not really.

Hopefully, DJ Reed stays healthy and shows that he can be a number one corner. Hopefully, Tre Flowers locks down the left side. Hopefully, Sidney Jones picks up the scheme quickly and pushes one of those two guys for playing time.

Hopefully Tre Brown continues to show the scrappiness he had as a cover corner in college, and factors in positively when called upon.

Maybe newly acquired Nigel Warrior looks as badass as his name suggests.

I just hope that John Schneider has Richard Sherman’s number on speed dial. I’m serious about that, too, even with the brush up with the law. I still maintain that Sherman returning to the Seahawks would be a huge positive for this club, and I want it.

Safety Position

Jamal Adams. Quandre Diggs. Marquise Blair. Ryan Neal. Ugo Amadi.

Folks, the Seattle Seahawks have the richest looking safety room in the league, and it ain’t close. I expect A LOT of three safety looks out of this team this year.

They are so deep here, if they do make some sort of splash mid season trade, I wouldn’t be surprised if one of these players is dealt. They are DEEEEEEEEP.

The idea of having a healthy Marquise Blair on the field with Adams and Diggs is mind boggling-ly exciting. Holy crap in your pants, Batman. That’s a lot of explosive skill at safety.

I dig this group lots.

Special Teams

Michael Dickson is a golden footed punting football god, and Jason Myers ain’t too shabby either.

Watching Deejay Dallas returning kicks will be fun all season long

The Coaches

Pete Carroll is a master culture builder to which the writers of Ted Lasso owe a lot of credit towards. He is also showing that an old dog can learn new tricks by giving Russell Wilson a style of offense that he wants, and adjusting his defense out of the standard cover three look that the league has figured out pretty darn well.

Shane Waldron is in position to put forth a stellar offense that could have him a strong head coaching candidate not before long. It wouldn’t hurt Seattle if there is some sort of handshake deal in place for him to become Carrol’s heir apparent to keep him around, and keep Russ happy.

Ken Norton Junior will work with Carrol to continue adjusting their defense to fit Jamal Adams, and expect that defense to become more versatile and better in 2021. Cornerback doesn’t feel ideal, but I suspect that they have pressure packages in place with the personnel they have up front to mitigate that lack of starter talent. We shall see, but I think they are onto something. I’m cautiously very hopeful.

Prediction for 2021

What year is this for Pete Carroll in Seattle now?

It’s year 12.

What ranking did Russell Wilson have on the NFL Network’s Top 100 players?

He was ranked number 12.

You can laugh all you want about the superstitious natural of numerology, but I know better. I am part Native American, and I was raised Catholic. If there’s two things that I know, it’s that you never want to build on tribal burial ground, and you don’t want to mock the numbers.

I call it like I see it, and I see a special year for the Seattle Seahawks.

The Seattle Seahawks hang onto their NFC West Division title by fending off a tough San Fransisco 49er club. The Rams will figure out what Matt Stafford is, and that is an overrated quarterback with a really pretty arm, and the Cardinals will fire their playboy head coach to hire Doug Pederson in 2022.

Russell Wilson will get MVP votes for the first time in his decade long career, but will lose out to Patrick Mahomes. Seahawk fans will be annoyed by that, and some will find ways to blame Pete Carrroll for it (and call for his firing on the Twitter).

That’s all cool, though, because Russ will out-dual Mahomes in Super Bowl LVI and he will hoist the Lombardi Trophy as Super Bowl MVP (the only MVP that really matters).

And you read it all right here first.

Go Hawks!

Safety. NIckel Corner. Linebacker. Defensive End.

What’s in a position name anyways?

Technically, Jamal Adams is listed as a strong safety, and it is a position that he is expected to play for your Seattle Seahawks. But he took a lot of snaps last year at those other spots that I listed above, and that is why he is well within his rights to call himself a defensive weapon.

This is why the Seattle Seahawks are making him the highest paid safety in the league by a healthy margin. Personally, I say bravo to that.

Good. The Seattle Seahawks need dynamic players on their defense again. Bobby Wagner is a dynamic linebacker. Jordyn Brooks has the potential to be one, too. Poona Ford, if you believe the analytics of Pro Football Focus, is one of the more dynamic defensive tackles in the league. Carlos Dunlap still looks capable of being a dynamic edge rusher. I think Quandre Diggs is a dynamically underrated free safety.

Not one of these guys is the defensive weapon play-maker Jamal Adams is.

Adams is poised to be the straw that stirs the drink of the ’86 Bears style defense with Pete Carroll is transitioning towards in Seattle. Now, more than ever, it will require versatility at all three levels of the defense, and Adams is poised to be the king pin of that versatility.

Expect Seattle to pressure in more varied ways, from linebacker to safety and probably even corner. There’s a reason why they are looking at pass rushing defensive end types at strong side backer instead of bringing back KJ Wright. They want to be able to dial up pressures from multiple positions and ideally, if they have enough pass rush savvy on the field, it will be the offense’s job to guess where the extra pressure might come from.

The fact that they brought in more veteran pass rushing defensive linemen this year means that they don’t intend to always send extra. Ideally, they can show blitz and end up playing coverage. Seattle wants to play a game of rushing with four, sending more if they need to, but always showing pressure looks for which they can choose to either send extra or not.

With the right personnel, this can be a very intimidating style of defense to play against. With all respects to the Legion Of Boom, the ’86 Bears Defense was a very intimidating defense to watch, and if you are too young to have been around, go look it up. Watch the Super Bowl they played in against the Patriots.

There will be voices out there that will say that Pete Carroll is an ancient coach who wants to rekindle an ancient defense, but these assertions are nonsensical poppycock, in my views. That style of defense flourished in the nineties in Philadelphia when its architect, Buddy Ryan, brought it there. It flourished in New York some years back when his son, Rex Ryan, ran his 3-4 version of it, and he made the Jets relevant for a quick spell (and nobody else has since).

Bring it on, Pete!

Pete Carroll is about to drink your milkshake bigly

The NFL is an evolving league. This is a statement of truth, but I think there is an even more specific statement of truth out there. The NFL is an evolving and recycling league.

American football has been on this planet for a long time. It’s gone through a lot of different incarnations and I think it will continue such a coarse.

Kyle Shanahan gets a lot of credit in San Francisco by running this exotic run first offense that will likely be a new trend, but that offense has been coached since the 1980’s by his dad. Why is he considered through the media as being this innovative genius? Maybe because he’s young and fresh faced along with being a smart football coach.

Player safety will also be a factor that fuel change. As athletes continue to become bigger, stronger, and faster, and head injuries become more of a concern with parents, and for the game to survive and dominate such as it has, it will continue to evolve into something that allows it to thrive (much like how a dangerous virus will change to survive and thrive during a massive pandemic if the vast majority of the human population doesn’t vaccinate against it).

Pete Carroll’s 4-3 cover three style zone defense can physically take a toll on its own defenders. I’ve noted it here before. Recall want happened to the Legion of Boom players in 2017. Look what happened in San Fransisco last year with their version of it and how many of their players dropped like flies.

But let’s go back to, Pete Carroll.

There are loud critics of Pete Carroll who’s voices grow loader each year that the team doesn’t get back to the Super Bowl, even though he annually coaches them into the playoffs. From their perspective, Russell Wilson is the show, and Pete needs to step aside to let him cook even though, yearly, Russell Wilson is prone to have a slump at some point of the season, and has historically been a streaky passer in the league (albeit a dynamically talented one).

A current argument that has been floated out there by Pete Carroll critics is as follows. If Pete can’t coach up a top ten defense anymore, what good is he as a head coach? It’s a reasonable question to ask, I think.

I would answer it by saying that Pete Carroll continues to be a master culture builder, and most players want to play for him. If you question that, why are former Pete Carroll players who left the organization supposedly way on the outs with him so eager to come back after being away a few seasons?

Marshawn Lynch came back when most thought it unlikely. Richard Sherman wants to come back. A season or so ago, Michael Bennett wanted to some back.

Stars from other teams want to play for him. Duane Brown wants to be here and be extended, and wants to be extended again. Carlos Dunlap wants to be here and re-signed to play here for him. Jamal Adams wanted to sign this extension here.

Players want to play for Pete Carroll. That’s an invaluable benefit for Seattle.

And I think Pete Carroll is evolving his defense by recycling a version of this Buddy Ryan ’86 style Bears defense. I’m exciting about that.

This 2021 Seattle Seahawk defense has the makings of being the most versatile hybrid looking defense in the Pete Carroll era and it will be greatly aided a cat who is listed as a strong safety but plays all over the place.

Now more than ever, when the Seahawk defense lines up, your eyes will see something that will make you question whether your are seeing a 4-3 or a 3-4 style defense. The truth is that is will look like something in-between.

Seattle will deploy 4-3 personnel into something that can look like a 3-4 with three defensive linemen bunched in the middle and one defensive end wide to the outside flanked by a large linebacker at the line of scrimmage on the opposite side. If you are a running team like the 49ers, this can be an imposing front. If you are a team that likes to pass out of run looks like the Rams, pressure will be free to come in different ways.

Pete Carroll’s historically superb 4-3 cover three defense, like many other NFL trends, has largely gotten figured out. Eventually, the league discovered how to move the ball against it, and it became a defense that, if it didn’t have enough depth and talent rotating in to play it, you could dink and dunk it to death in games.

That’s been the case in Seattle up until mid season last year (when Carroll shifted into the Bear front). That was the case for Pete Carroll disciples spread through the league, as well, such as Dan Quinn in Atlanta and wherever Gus Bradley and Kris Richard have gone. It’s worked well recently in San Fransisco but let’s see if it actually sustains for long.

For those that are clamoring that Pete has lost his way about making an expense trade for a dynamic blitzing safety, instead of hanging onto his traditional defense, he drinks your milkshake. His defense is changing, and he wants blue chip talent whenever he can get it. If it is a blitzing safety, so be it.

For those such a Colin Cowherd to go on about how Pete Carroll’s ego is getting the best of him in that he will willing to pay a safety these kind of dollars instead of extending Duane Brown and building more around Russell Wilson, I hear you, I see you, but Pete Carroll drinks your milkshake. He drinks it hard.

There is time to now work on Duane Brown, if they choose, but make no mistake, Pete Carroll will always try to win with a top defense. It’s waaaaaay to late in his life to expect him to win like an Andy Reid. He drinks your milkshake.

He probably drinks Russell Wilson’s milkshake from time to time. He definitely drinks Russell Wilson’s baseball agent’s milkshake.

(He ain’t gonna be traded Russell Wilson, y’all! I’m telling ya now. Won’t happen! Milkshake drinky, drinky, yummy, yummy!)

Pete Carroll may concede to more of an uptempo offense for his star quarterback. He might even concede to a more pass to run ratio with Russ and be more willing to get him more weapons. But Pete Carroll will never ever concede his defense for the sake of his offense.

Never. Ever.

And bravo for that.

Jamal Adams is a great football player. He’s a rare defensive weapon that Seattle now has for the next five seasons.

And if you don’t like that, Pete Carroll drinks your milkshake.

Go Hawks and keep a sharp eye out for a new podcast we will be eventually starting up. It should be fun!

Alright, Ladies and Gents that don the colors of Blue and Green, and call thy selves the Twelves. It’s Seattle Seahawk preseason time; an annual August tradition known to the Pacific Northwest August that long predates all the climate changing conditions which bring us horrific smoke filled forest fire air to endure at this time of the year seemingly every year now.

Here, at 12th Life, have I got a preview for the 2021 Seattle Seahawks for you. Gird your loins because this deep dive isn’t going to be pretty.

Russ smuss. I say let Poona Ford cook.

Seriously, I’m excited about Number 97 this year. I’m excited about some other Seattle Seahawk players, too. Lots of them!

.. And I’m nervous, here and there, about some spots, as well.

We will go through all of it together, position by position. We will metaphorically hold hands. Because that’s what we do here. We care for each other. Blood is thicker than water, but for those that bleed Blue and Green, well, we are just simply better than everyone else. We go high when others go low.

Important Disclaimer!

It’s highly unlikely that I will be in attendance for this Summer’s Seahawk training camp. It’s nothing personal, but here at 12th Life, I take the Delta Variant of Covid probably more seriously than your tin hat wearing uncle from Kenmore who I could be standing next to while watching pass rush drills. So, I am just going to stay in my rat hole until enough people get a real clue.

Thus, all my analysis will be solely based on lazy intuition. If you crave more detailed analytical style takes, just go read the folks from Field Gulls, or watch the Hawkblogger podcast crew. They all do fine.

If you are still reading this, here we go. Gird your lions. I mean, loins.

Comedy is hard.

The Quarterback Position

Let all the hype begin.

This is a big year for Russell Wilson and the Seattle Seahawks!

If they don’t go farther in the playoffs, Russell Wilson could be traded in 2022!

Well, it’s true. It is a big year for Russ and the Seahawks, and if all doesn’t go well, it is possible that he could be traded next year.

It is also entirely possible that if I dip my toes into ocean waters, I could be attacked by a great white shark. Both things are entirely possible, but if I were to look at the probabilities, I think most Seahawk fans (and shark anxiety types) can rest a bit more easily. The odds are highly against either scenarios actually happening.

Bottom line is that Russell Wilson is a great quarterback, and in order for Pete Carroll to trade his best chance of winning, he would have to get a very good quarterback in return plus three first round picks and change. What team out there would be willing to trade all that for a quarterback nearing his mid thirties?

The realistic probabilities point to Russ having a nice bounce back year under first year play caller Shane Waldron, and Seattle making the playoffs yet again. There are many aspects of a Ram style offense that Waldron will assemble that fit Russ like a glove (especially the up tempo and play action portions of it).

Even if they don’t reach the NFC Championship game, and Russ’s agent starts making negative waves through the national media that piss off Pete Carroll again, Carroll will most likely reach the same exact conclusion next off-season as he did during the last. Russell Wilson remains his best chance to win, and he won’t trade him unless a team offers an absolute absurd price in exchange (which most likely won’t happen).

Here’s what I expect at this “all too important” quarterback position for Seattle. Russell Wilson will likely have some early growing pains with the Waldron offense. That first game against the Colts might not look pretty, and some fans are going to be nervous. I also think that once we get through September, we are going to start seeing Russ and the offense clicking more, and by the end of the season, I think we are going to see some actual MVP votes for Russ for the first time ever.

Russell Wilson looks like he is in absolute stellar shape, and I think that’s likely by design. My hunch is that Waldron is looking at all of Russ’s strengths as a quarterback, and a big part of those strengths are going to be his legs again (God bless it). I suspect Waldron is probably going to be much more willing to get Russ running a bit more than Brian Schottenheimer was, and that will put more stress on defenses.

Running Russ terrifies defenders.

There are aspects of Russ’s game that I don’t love. I think he chases the big play too much and invites sacks. I think he struggles, at times, to find targets in the short middle to mid portions of the field if he stays square in the pocket. I don’t love him with screen passes a lot.

That said, I absolutely love Running Russell Wilson beyond what words can be typed. His ability to throw on the run remains largely unmatched, and his spide-y senses of when to get down on the turf on keepers are superb. Running Russ puts extra stress on defenders, especially when it is paired with.. wait for it.. a solid run game.

This, in my humble opinion, is how you want Russell Wilson to quarterback. Looking at this slimmed down version of Russ makes me think that Shane Waldron sees it the same.

I’m excited about that. I see the potential of 2015 Russell Wilson coming back, and I’m ready for it. Go Hawks.

And no, I don’t think this is Russ’s last year in Seattle regardless of how it all finishes. I’m sure I will have plenty of opportunity to expand on that later as the season moves on. It’s not even a matter of whether or not I think they should or shouldn’t trade him, either. I just don’t see it.

The Running Back Position

Chris Carson is a beast and I’m glad that the Seahawks brought him back on a reasonable two year deal. Also, unlike more than a few on Seahawks Twitter, I’m actually a fan of Rashaad Penny’s potential even though injuries have hampered his impact in the league.

On paper, these two backs offer exciting potential in a Ram style offense that loves to get it’s best athletes the ball in space, and certainly, Carson and Penny are two of the top athletes on the Seahawk roster.

Then I sober up when I look at each of these player’s injury history and their inabilities to play full seasons. We better hope the Alex Collins is a good fit for the Waldron offense, or maybe one of DeeJay Dallas, Josh Johnson, or Travis Homer pops in camp.

I’m gonna be honest. I’m a bit queasy here with the depth, and the injury history. I honestly think this is another reason why Running Russ might be a genuine plus for the offense. Not only does it keep a defense more honest, it might help keep these runners more fresh.

Color me worried about injury potential and depth here and don’t be surprised if Seattle makes some sort of move to add another proven vet.

The Wide Receiver Position

I honestly think that DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett deserve to be in consideration for the top receiver tandem in the league. They are an outstanding pair, and DK is only still scratching the surface of what he can be.

That said, like running back, depth worries me greatly here.

I don’t love that rookie second round pick Dee Eskridge is starting camp unable to practice because of a lingering sore toe. I like second year receiver Freddie Swain’s potential as a third or fourth receiver, and there’s a lot of camp hype around Penny Hart that has me cautiously optimistic. Maybe the combo of Hart and Swain will make Eskridge’s impact less necessary, but that feels like a relatively large maybe.

I think there is a strong chance that Seattle will look to add another vet before camp is out.

The Tight End Position

Color me pumped about this group.

Gerald Everett was a guy I wanted the Seahawks to draft a few years back and they got him in town on a one year prove it deal with a chance to be the main man, and cash in. He’s a big fast dude with great run after catch upside and run blocking want to. Seattle has not had a tight end like this under Pete Carroll. Jimmy Graham was a post up power forward playing the spot, but jets he had little, and a willingness to be a blocker he had zilch.

Conversely, Will Dissly is returning as a steady blocker and outlet receiver, but the guy that I am perhaps most intrigued with is second year tight end Colby Parkinson out of Stanford. He was a tall and athletic touchdown scoring machine in college, and I have a sneaking suspicion that Carroll is going to give him every chance to be a factor this year. The coach keeps talking him up. I kinda suspect that he might become the surprise breakout player this year on offense. That’s my honest hunch.

And I honestly think that the tight end group could become a major area of strength on the team this year. In fact, from what this roster looks like, I am ready for seeing a lot of two tight end (12 personnel) looks with this offense. I will be good with that.

The Offensive Line Group

I absolutely love the guards and the tackles, and I am nervous about center. I’m not one that thinks Ethan Pocic is a bad player, but I wonder about his durability. I would have loved for Seattle to have been aggressive going after a center in either free agency or the draft, but they chose to continue with familiar faces.

We will see how that shakes out. My one thought about a potential long term answer at center remains the idea of moving promising guard Damien Lewis there, but the team seems to like him at guard, and I don’t frankly blame them. He’s one of the better drafted players that they’ve had in recent years, and I believe one with serious pro bowl potential.

Duane Brown remains a cornerstone player at left tackle who I hope they reach an extension with, and I love how the team went out and grabbed veteran guard Gabe Jackson. Brandon Shell last year brought a steadiness to right tackle that the team hasn’t had in a long time.

The player that I am most interested in is sixth round pick Stone Florsythe out for Florida. The scouting reports were all over the map with him from calling him a second round talent and perhaps the best pass blocking left tackle in the draft to calling him a major project because of his unusual length and the fact Florida didn’t run much. Because he lasted into round six, it’s obvious that the league viewed him as a project, but Hall of Fame guard Steven Hutchinson now works in scouting for the Seahawks, and supposedly he is quite high on the Gator. I trust Hutch knows a thing or two about O liners. Therefore, this dude might be the player I most want to see in preseason games.

This all said, I think if Pocic can stay healthy through most of the season at center, this can be the best line Pete Carroll has had in Seattle. That’s a very big if, in my opinion, but I think the potential is there.

Fingers crossed Pocic holds up.

The Defensive Line Group

Let. Poona. Cook.

Ya’ll hear me on this one?

Let 97 Cook. He’s legit.

Seattle has not had an defensive tackle this first step explosive since Cortez (rest peacefully) was playing in the 1990’s. I’m fricking serious about this, too. Yeah, they had John Randle for a spell when he was at the end of his career, and Brandon Mebane was fun, and yeah, Jarran Reed put up some nice sack digits, and there was Rocky Bernard, but Poona’s explosiveness is legit good.

If you lose that leverage battle with him (easy to do), it’s game over against the run, and last year, he finally started putting together his pass rush, and QB pressures came in abundance. Honestly, when it comes to the DT position, I would gladly take pressures over sacks because sacks can happen by the QB running into you. Pressures show disruption and disruption forces bad throws and sacks. Poona is a disruptive dude. Period.

The analysts at Pro Football Focus fricking loves this dude, and so should you.

So no disrespecting Carlos Dunlap, Kerry Hyder, and Aldon Smith, but fricking let Poona cook in the middle of that defensive line.

You wanna know why the team released Jarran Reed and his expensive contract?

Poona F’ing Ford.

Here’s the bit of dramatized dialogue that I think went down between GM John Schneider and big J-Reed last Spring.

JS: Jarran, we love you and your leadership, but Poona looked really good at 3 technique and Coach wants to play him more there. We’d like you be play more nose this year, but here’s the rub. We can’t really afford two expensive D tackles. So, we want to ask you to take a pay cut.

Reed: F that. Just cut me.

I like this group and it’s depth a lot. I see ten players here that they should keep and rotate in.

I like seeing Poona asserting himself as the main 3 tech and putting biggies like Brian Mone and Al Woods next to him to soak up blockers that will let him f’ing cook. I like the stampede of edge rushers they got behind Dunlap in Aldon Smith, Benson Mayowa, and especially second year player Alton Robinson. I like the big end types they got in Hyder, and LJ Collier. I’m intrigued about giving former first round pick Robert NKemdiche a shot to revive his career as a DT or big end.

The one player outside of Poona that I really want to see further take off is Alton Robinson as a LEO (rush end). I thought the dude looked terrific as a rookie last year. He kinda reminds me of Frank Clark a bit. When you see him closing around the corner, your eyes instantly go with him. It would be a great thing for this club if he takes on an expanded passing rushing role and maybe beats out a bigger named vet. If that happens, this could be a really fun season.

But for goodness sake, folks. Let Poona Ford cook.

The Linebacker Group

I like the potential of this group with All Pro Bobby Wagner back at MIKE (middle), and Jordyn Brooks further taking over at WILL (weakside). I really wanted to see this team bring back KJ Wright for another year or two playing the SAM (strong side) position where he excelled last season.

That said, I’m very interested to see what former second rounder Darrell Taylor does at SAM instead of the LEO end role we assumed he would inherit. Taylor is a better athlete than KJ, but is built a bit similarly. He has experience in coverage from his college days, and as a pass rusher, he shows crazy bend around the corner. There is good clay to mold there.

Here’s the thing that Taylor at strong side linebacker has me really excited, though. I think it’s a signal that the Seahawks intend to stay in more of a Bear style defense than their traditional cover three 4-3. To run that Bear front, you ideally want the SAM to be a pass rush threat in order keep the offense guessing where the extra pressures are coming. That’s how you truly make this Bear thing work.

KJ did a great job setting an edge on the line of scrimmage and blowing up screens behind the line, but he has never been a serious pass rush threat. This is the reason why I believe we haven’t seen him return to Seattle.

Personally, I want to see more of the Bear and less cover three. My hunch is that the league has long caught up with that defense that the legendary LOB ran, and it is time to move onto something else.

If Taylor doesn’t quickly take to the spot, and the team has Aldon Smith and Benson Mayowa who have also played that position. Third year player Cody Barton will also be given a chance to compete there (although I like him better at WILL and MIKE), but I suspect that it is Taylor’s gig to lose.

A player that I hope sees the field more is former UW Husky Ben Burr-Kirven. I still believe in his starter potential as a WILL, and I would like to see moments in games where Brooks takes over for Wagner at MIKE, and BBK and Brooks are on the field together. It would keep Wagner fresher, and it would allow Brooks to gain valuable experience quarterbacking the defense.

I think Jordyn Brooks is an exciting talent. I didn’t love that Seattle spent a first round pick on a off ball linebacker in 2020, but watching him during the second half of the season last year moved me off that spot. He is crazy fast to the ball and Seattle desperately needed his speed on the field.

I think that the success of this group probably hinges on how well Taylor takes to the strong side, though. If he takes to it, that could be a very special thing for this defense. We shall see.

Cornerback Group

Anyone who has been following my little blog knows how much I have wanted the team to bring back Richard Sherman. It’s a drum I have been beating all season long. Even after his recent domestic brush up with the police out in Redmond, I have remained a fan of bringing him back.

That said, I think this is more of a sentimental wish than it is me seeing a huge team need.

Yes, this defense can use the return of his veteran leadership, and his play on the field, and his swagger. I don’t doubt any of that.

But there are some younger players that I am very interested in seeing what Pete Carroll make out of them this preseason. I loved the team bringing in former 49er Ahkello Witherspoon to potentially start with former 49er DJ Reed. Witherspoon is tall like Sherman and he’s probably a better athlete. Like Gerald Everett, I like Seattle bringing him in on a relatively handsome one year deal to prove his worth in the league. He will be motivated in the PNW to prove himself a top end corner in the league in order to cash in next year.

I really like the swagger and scrappy play of DJ Reed who will be playing for a big contract down the road, as well. He kinda reminds me of Doug Baldwin in a way.. just an air about him.

It’s been intriguing to hear that former Green Bay first round pick Damarious Randall has been looking sharp in camp and has been a thorn in Russell Wilson’s side. Seems like he is giving Witherspoon a fight for that left side spot, and that is a good thing.

I’m interested in how rookie Tre Brown looks during the preseason games.

With shorter players like Reed, Brown, and Randall all competing outside, I think it’s another interesting tell that Pete Carroll is moving more towards that Bear defense where quicker coverage players become more needed rather than the longer corners that were used in cover three zones.

I really love Ugo Amadi as the inside nickel corner, and if safety/nickel Marquise Blair beats him out there, Seattle is going to have potentially crazy depth with this group (more about that coming up soon).

As much as I want to see the glorious return of Richard Sherman, I think Seattle is probably pretty good here. But, man, I would still love to see Sherm back in Seahawk blue. I just can’t shake that desire.

The Safety Position

The Seattle Seahawks have play-making Quandre Diggs returning at free safety, and are set to make Jamal Adams a very rich man playing a hybrid role of strong safety and linebacker. The starting duo of Diggs and Adams is awesome, and I am excited to see these two continue to grow with each other. If I am John Schneider, I am locking them both down with long terms contracts.

Some noise was made during the off-season about how good of a fit Adams is to the Seattle defense, and whether they should spend big dollars on the dude. I’ve read stuff from some other Seahawk writer types (much more smarter than myself, I’m sure) who believe it was a mistake to trade what they did for him, and have thus given amble “Sky Is Falling” takes about what a big Adams contract will mean for the club.

I’m more optimistic.

I think Adams can continue being a very interesting straw that stirs the drink of a transitioning Seahawk defense. I am comfortable paying for his services as a hybrid player. I see these type of defenders mattering more as offenses continue to evolve and defenses needing to counter.

I believe that is what Seattle is doing with him. Folks want to criticize his coverage in 2020, but they have a hard time explaining away the fact that his coverage got better as the season played on.

I wouldn’t let that performance in the playoff loss to the Rams be a determining factor to who he is as a player, either. Dude played with one shoulder and a busted hand. If anything should be questioned, it should maybe be the coaching decision to have him gutting through it on the field instead of going more with his backup, Ryan Neal, who played well enough earlier in the season when Adams missed games.

Marquise Blair will be the top backup at safety but really, he’s probably going to earn the nickel role and effectively be playing like a starter in most games. In fact, if we get a full healthy season out of Blair, I’m ready to say that it could be a massive shot in arm for this club. Seattle can then blend its base Bear front with a 4-2-5 look and keep similar pressure packages going. Don’t under look how much of an impact Blair might be even if officially he isn’t listed as a “starter.”

Ryan Neal is a very dependable backup strong safety, and with Adams’ pension to get injured, that is vital for this team. As I just stated, I think it was a bit short sighted not going with Neal in the playoffs against the Rams. He showed instincts and play-making abilities that warranted it, and the Rams came into the game with a backup under center. I’m sure Adams was chomping at the bit to play in his first playoff game, and that was weighed. But I am a Neal believer, and I just would have gone with him and trusted that.

Damarious Randall and Ugo Amadi can each play safety, as well. Because of that, I think this group is crazy deep.

I love this safety group. I really do. This might be the group that I feel best about on the team, outside of quarterback, honestly.

Kicker and the Punter

Jason Myers is a solid place kicker, and Michael Dickson is a BEAST of a punter.

Conclusion

I love what could be shaping up on the defense (especially at D line and safety), but I have concerns about depth on the offense (especially at running back, receiver, and center). This is probably a contrarian take to what many others who follow closely this club are feeling. But I also think that a tiger shark would kick the ass out of great white in a match to the death for a swimming poodle, so there you have it.

There will be the expected hype around Russell Wilson being happy and meshing with new player caller Shane Waldron. There’s likely going be some drama regarding Jamal Adams reaching a mega deal with the Seahawks, and maybe whether the team needs to extend Duane Brown and Quandre Diggs (they should), but for me, and my deep desires.. well, you know.

Let Poona Cook. Let him cook a lot.

They do that, and I’m good.

I will be writing more as the preseason games get going, and down the round, I am planning to put together a podcast with friends that I am very excited about. I hope that you are able to follow both.

Happy Seahawks Preseason, and go Hawks!

This is not the off-season that I wanted for Richard Sherman.

I wanted a different story-line. I wanted the former lead singer of the Legion of Boom to return to the Virginia Mason Athletic Center in Renton, Washington to sign a two year contract with the Seattle Seahawks. I wanted him to finish out his career where it all began.

This wish felt like proper destiny in the making. Richard Sherman was interested in this return, and supposedly, the Seattle Seahawks were open to it. It’s a move that would have made too much sense for it not to happen.

Richard Sherman has made the Seattle area his home since 2011 when he was drafted out of Stanford. Beyond being a foundational member of a Super Bowl winning team in Seattle, and the player responsible for the biggest play in the team’s history, he has been a stalwart in the community. It is right for Sherman to retire a Seattle Seahawk.

From a Seattle Seahawk perspective, the team has some need at cornerback, and their defense can use an infusion of the swagger that it hasn’t had since Sherman left. With all respects to Bobby Wagner, this kinder and gentler Seattle Seahawk defense has left most defensive minded Seahawk fans wanting more, to say the least.

Bringing back Richard Sherman would also give the opportunity for he and Russell Wilson hug it out, as it were, and get past whatever grievances each other might have felt in the past as they worked together, once again, leading this team towards their common goal of winning a second Super Bowl together.

Above all, this was the Hollywood style scripted story that I wanted.

Then early morning July 14th, 2021, happened.

Whatever is plaguing Richard Sherman, it’s serious

I started my Wednesday morning just like I had been for the last several weeks. I got up early, made coffee, watched an episode of Loki, and then sent a trolling text to a friend who has been deeply dissatisfied with the Marvel show.

He sent a text back informing me that Richard Sherman just got arrested for domestic violence and burglary, to which I responded with a gigantic “WTF.”

WTF, indeed.

Richard Sherman is many things.

He is a highly intelligent man with a Stanford education to back it up. He’s also superb football player fueled by a ferocious sense of competitiveness almost unrivaled.

He has also been a very thoughtful and giving person to the communities in which he has been a part of, and aside from any beefs that he might have had with Russell Wilson, he has seemingly been a stellar teammate towards players around him.

He’s a guy that you would want on your side, and most definitely not a guy you would want as an adversary (ask Tom Brady).

There is a darker side to Richard that is also problematic to reconcile. This darker side is something that we have also sort have sensed for a while as Seahawk fans, or fans of the game.

Richard Sherman will seek out the slightest of slights and use it as motivation to not only beat but humiliate an opponent, if the opportunity is presented to him. I think it is safe to say that most Seahawk fans loved that about him when he played up here, but he can also be incredibly headstrong when he is defending his actions, if they are not viewed as ideal.

Of all the cringe worthy moments that I’ve seen from a high profile athlete, the time in 2016 when Richard Sherman decided to go after a Seattle sports reporter towards the end of a press conference after the reporter asked some tough questions about the ugly sideline tantrum he had ranks right up there pretty highly. The audio of it revealed a gross display of behavior, and it was made even more gross months later, when on a national sports talked show, he proclaimed that it never happened, and was fake news.

So, it actually wasn’t surprising to me that, supposedly, Seattle had him on the trade market during the following off-season. It was equally unsurprising for me that Seattle cut him after the following season in which he blew out his Achilles, and the team missed the playoffs for the first time in the Russell Wilson era. The writing felt like it was on the wall, as ruthless as the move seemed.

It still didn’t feel good, and it felt considerably worse when Sherman decided to immediately sign with bitter NFC West rival San Francisco. The very idea of Richard Sherman wearing a 49er uniform felt like a gigantic slap across the face for me.

The move felt petty. Just like his sideways shots at Russell Wilson and Pete Carroll in the few seasons that followed.

The reality is that breakups are hard, and people heel from them in different ways.

I would be lying if I were to say that I never had a petty thought or acted in a petty manner towards an ex (or four) of mine. It can be a tough pill for anyone to swallow whenever you are in a relationship with someone who you believe loves you, and then that person tells you that they no longer want you around.

I can guarantee that it hurt Richard Sherman when he realized that Pete Carroll was ready to move on from him. He can deny that all he wants to, but I guarantee that stung.

Richard Sherman was one of Carroll’s biggest disciples. He was his prized pupil on his beloved cover three defense. Sherman embraced all of the principles needed to master it, and he excelled on the highest of levels. One could argue that, at the height of the Super Bowl years, he was the true face of the franchise, beyond Marshawn and Russ.

Being rejected by Carroll had to have had a major effect on him.

Seeing the team choose a talented yet somewhat inconsistent quarterback over what he probably thought of himself as the cornerstone of the Legion of Boom, the unit arguably most responsible for the team’s success, had to have felt like a massive betrayal to everything that he believed the Pete Carroll Seattle Seahawks were.

The further we can imagine this level of hurt that Sherman likely felt, the more that his immediate signing with San Francisco makes sense. Sherman likely wanted revenge.

Now, it appears like San Francisco is ready to move on from him, as well.

And guess what?

The cornerback needy Dallas Cowboys with Dan Quinn haven’t been knocking on his door, and the Saints with Kris Richard haven’t either. Nor have the Jets with Robert Saleh. All teams that have coaches with direct ties to the greatness that is Richard Sherman haven’t come chasing after him.

How has that been making Richard Sherman really feel this off-season?

None of us can really know for certain, but it has filtered out through the news the friends close to Richard have been concerned about his state for a while. Apparently, back in February, something occurred where a court mandated that Richard be in no possession of a firearm. That’s scary stuff.

As things become more revealed, there is a chilling sense around Richard Sherman. The footage of him beating on the door is a tough watch, but it feels like things have been brewing for a while.

Speculating on what is going on with Sherman is a slippery slope.

Our minds can speculate on a lot of things. My mind has been thinking about something in particular that I don’t know if it is right or wrong to speculate on, and that would be CTE.

A good friend of mine noted to me that Brandon Browner, Earl Thomas, and now Richard Sherman have all had disturbing domestic brush ups with the law overs the last few years (Browner’s being the worst with an attempted murder charge involving his girlfriend). This is 3/4 of the original Legion of Boom.

This is pretty jarring stuff (no pun intended).

Still, we don’t know what is fueling Richard’s mental health. CTE is a real thing, but so is depression, and if we are to couple untreated depression with a prideful athlete who is heading towards the inevitable downside of his once stellar NFL career, a lot of things add up, especially if he has been using alcohol in excess to bury his feelings.

This is partly why I remain hesitant to say, with any certainty, that CTE is at play here.

Bobby Wagner plays a position in the league that is good for being in roughly fifty car crashes a game during a 16 game schedule and the playoffs. He has been as solid of a person on and off the field as one good have in this blood sport league.

For every case of someone struggling with life outside of football, there are many examples of former players moving on from the game quite well.

But that doesn’t mean that the league shouldn’t do more to help players beyond the game, and help might need to come in the form of how this game is played at the highest levels.

Should the league move away from the LOB style of defenses?

This is something that I have been wondering about for a while. Is the cover three Legion of Boom style defense good for the health of players in NFL?

I honestly think that this is a fair question to consider more in the wake of this incident with Richard Sherman (if CTE is at play, especially when you weigh it to what has happened with Browner and Thomas with their off-field brush ups, as well), and how quickly Kam Chancellor’s body broke down going into his eighth year in the league.

I can even take it further by examining the San Francisco 49ers.

Two years ago, San Francisco vaulted themselves into the Super Bowl largely off of the success that they had from their defense that copied what Seattle had with its Legion of Boom. Last year, their defenders dropped like flies to injury, and their season was lost.

For a short few seasons in Seattle, it felt like the LOB was invincible and Seattle was going to be a certain destiny. By 2017, most of those defenders ended up on the injured reserve and they missed the playoffs for the first time since 2011.

If you observe this style of defense, you will note how they play in zone and pass off receivers to back end defenders, and how, if played correctly, it frees up everyone to play fast and violently towards where ever the ball ends up. If you have the right mixture of size, strength, and speed working together, it can be beyond intimidating to watch.

Seattle had it 2013 through 2016. San Francisco had it the last couple years. Other teams throughout the league continue to try to mimic it.

I think it’s possible that it is a defense that, with the right parts, will burn bright, but it is almost destined to burn out quickly, if you can’t sufficiently restock the roster with quality depth.

Ever since Seattle moved on from Sherman, and others, it has tried to rekindle it, but has pretty much failed up through last year.

Last year, they did something different. First, they traded an absurd amount for safety/hybrid player Jamal Adams, and they eventually, mid season, shifted out of their standard cover three into what is called a Bear defense that functions somewhere in-between a 4-3 and a 3-4.

This Bear style defense calls for basically three defensive tackle types and an end and linebacker to play at the line of scrimmage, and it can send a blitzing linebacker or safety (or both) while corners play more man. It doesn’t call for players to drop and smack as much, it attacks at the line of scrimmage more to pressure and confuse the quarterback.

So, while it is more aggressive at the line of scrimmage, it actually might be a more safer style to play for back end defenders and those that make their money playing in space.

Further more, when Carroll shifted to this, he interestingly enough had pint size corner DJ Reed playing outside, and he fared pretty well. This off-season they drafted another smaller sized man cover corner in Tre Brown who they intend to have compete to play outside, as well.

Looking at this, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to speculate whether Pete Carroll is abandoning his prized cover three for more of a hybrid Bear style defense moving forward. It is certainly possible that Carroll has seen a light, and that light is his prized cover three defense has run its course, and he is transitioning it into something else.

What I am wondering out loud in this piece is if it would be better for the players in the league if the whole LOB style of thing just sort of went away all together.

I don’t know how the league would even go about that. Teams in San Francisco, Vegas, New York, and New Orleans are set to play their versions of it.

Perhaps more rule changes protecting players in order to discourage it from being coached is the obvious thing to do. Maybe actually heavily fining or penalizing quarterbacks for throwing ambulance balls wouldn’t be terrible either.

It will be very interesting to monitor this season how much Seattle continues to move away from it, and if their Bear look becomes an even bigger stamp of their team.

It will also be interesting to monitor if the other teams that run this LOB type of defense find their players breaking down from injuries with the league now adding an extra seventeenth game to their already long season.

There’s a lot to mull over here.

I want what is best for Sherman

Circling back to 25, I really just want what is best for Richard Sherman.

I wanted his reunion to happen with the Seahawks in the biggest way this off-season, but given the weight of what just happened last week, I’m not sure football is something he should be concentrating on.

With the fact of the five counts of what he has been charged with, I’m not sure how the league will even rule on him. Suspension feels almost certain, and that he probably going to make a cold market all the more colder for him.

If I were him, I would take the year off, even at age 32. I would work on getting my head right so that I don’t put loved ones through anything like this ever again.

If, after a season away from the game, with my head in a much better place, and my body feeling right, I want to explore the free agent market for an opportunity to end my playing career on a brighter note than what 2021 was about, I would go for it. That opportunity would probably still be there for me, especially if I am willing to return to the game knowing that I will not be paid top dollar again.

As a Seahawk fan, obviously I would love that to be here in Seattle, but in the end, I just want the best for him.

I hope he gets that. His football story should not end with a 911 call. It doesn’t feel right. If he can’t play again, I hope he figures out ways to be around the sport that will show us all again just how special of a human being he is.

Because Richard Sherman is special.

Go Hawks.

Who’s the best athlete currently in Seattle sports?

Is it Russell Wilson?

He’s certainly the most popular, and probably still the most spectacular, but if we are to look at recent history, can we view the last ten games that he played in during the 2020, and say with a straight face that, pound for pound, RW3 is undoubtedly that player?

I dunno. I am no football expert but I’ve watched A LOT of the game over the middle aged course of my life, and I don’t know if I have ever seen a quarterback struggle to beat a basic cover two defense as much as I did watching Russell in 2020 after the league finally got the memo on how to defend him in Seattle’s vertical passing offense.

Yes, I get that it was likely not all of his fault as some play caller named Schotty continued to call long developing pass plays against defenses designed to take them away, but from what I saw, it seemed like, in many of those instances, Russ still had outlet receivers available that he either did not see, or was hesitant to go towards.. and the results weren’t pretty. It was so bad at times (especially against the NY Giants and the Rams in the playoffs), that I legitimately began to wonder if we have seen the best of what the plucky passer can be, and perhaps being a true volume passer like Manning or Brady is not in his wheelhouse.

That’s not to say that he isn’t incredibly gifted as an athlete and quarterback (he is), but it does make me think that perhaps 2021 isn’t just about him evaluating whether the Seattle Seahawks are going to be a long term fit for his lofty goals, but also whether he is also going to fit what the team now wants out of a quarterback in their new offense under Shane Waldron, which will require getting the ball out quickly and on time in a consistent manner (something that Russ has a bit of a spotty history with, if we are to be honest as Seahawk fans).

So, if Russell isn’t the best athlete in Seattle Sports, who is?

Can we say it is Bobby Wagner? He’s an incredibly gifted linebacker, but does he change games?

Jamal Adams? I guess you can make a case if you think the number one priority for a strong safety is to blitz, but I think most who think of football conventional terms would list blitzing for a defensive back probably third or fourth on the list in terms of importance on the field.

How about Mitch Haniger?

Man, why do we have to bring the Seattle Mariners into this? That just makes me miss the SuperSonics more.

Unfortunately, I can’t even list a single player on the Seattle Sounders. I know they got a crowd and it’s a scene, but to me, soccer is just hockey on the field without sticks, skates, a puck, and body slams (Weirdly, I always get up for the World Cup, though. Go Zambia.)

Let’s face it, folks. When it comes to Seattle sports right now, I see two franchises that reign supreme. It’s the Seattle Seahawks and it’s the four time WNBA championship winning Seattle Storm.

And if we don’t make a case that Russell Wilson is the best overall athlete in Seattle sports, then we might as well be examining the 9-2 Seattle Storm led by the ageless Sue Bird and the MVP winning Breanna Stewart. Surely, one of those two gals must be in consideration as the best athlete in this Emerald town.

Good Lord in Heaven. Have I forgotten the title of this piece? Why am I even bringing all these other two Storm players up? This is the longest, most unnecessary build up ever. This is why I shouldn’t tell jokes. Good God, I need an editor.

In all seriousness, though. Let’s get real with the PNW marvel that has become Jewell Loyd.

If you have not been paying attention to the 2021 Seattle Storm either because the WNBA isn’t your jam, or your more dialed into the NHL and NBA playoffs, or you’d rather enjoy the Mariners dog paddling in the MLB, or whatever, you are missing out on something special, and that is the impressive assent of shooting guard Jewell Loyd as an All-World basketball player.

On a team that has been built around the legend of Sue Bird, and the unique skill set (and ridiculous seven foot wingspan) of Breanna Stewart, Jewell Loyd has been their most consistent player, and MVP in this early part of their season. What she is quietly becoming in the league is special, and right now, teams do not have an answer for her.

As of right now, if someone were to describe her as the Kobe of the WNBA, it would not be hyperbole. I think it would be pretty accurate.

For those that follow the WNBA and know her story, they know that she was close with the legendary Kobe Bryant. She viewed him as a close mentor while he was alive. She would lean into him for advice and to be pushed as a player. She has stated in the past that she has committed to dedicating her game to him, and I can believe that.

If you are watching her now, you can see some of Kobe living through her game.

Nobody on the Seattle Storm roster has Bird’s savvy and years of knowledge on the game.

Nobody on that team has Stewart’s incredible length and inside/outside skills as a scorer and defender.

Nobody on the WNBA championship winning Storm has the ability to create for herself scoring opportunities like Jewell Loyd now has. She’s an explosive dasher to the basket when a lane opens up. Her ability to drive and pull up for a mid range jumper is lethal to defend. Perhaps most impressively now, is how automatic she has become at the three point range.

If you want a fun basketball highlight to watch, dial up the last half second of overtime game Seattle played against the Dallas Wings on June 4th. That’s as impressive of a catch and shoot three point play as you will find in any basketball game, period.

What I find most interesting about Loyd is, while she has always been a very talented player for the Storm since entering the league in 2015, it has taken her this long to truly ascend beyond an All-Star caliber status. In recent years, the Seattle Storm has felt like a two headed championship level monster between Sue Bird and Breanna Stewart. Loyd has felt a bit like the George Harrison between their Lennon and McCarty.

This season feels different. Through eleven games, it is clear that it is becoming more and more of the Jewell Loyd show. If you have been following any of these games, you can sorta sense Sue Bird sensing it herself. It feels like she is giving way to Loyd more and more.

Maybe it is the focus that teams are giving Stewart that is opening up more opportunities for her, or maybe it is Seattle leaning more into Loyd’s unique skills and athleticism with first year head coach Noelle Quinn now taking over with a fresh perspective on her as a player, but one thing is certain; the league doesn’t appear to have much of an answer to stopping her, and she’s fun to watch.

And she should be watched. Pound for pound, she is undoubtedly now one of the best basketball players on the planet. It’s all clicking for her, and it’s exciting to see her ascend.

Ultimately, it’s more than a bit of a silly thing to argue who a better athlete is between a football player and a basketball player or even a baseball player. It takes such uniquely different set of skills to play quarterback over a shooting guard, or even a striker in soccer.

It’s still can be a fun debate to be had if you’re not throwing kitchen wear at each other during the course of it (or arguing with strangers on the internet).

Unquestionably, Russell Wilson remains the biggest sports figure in Seattle sports, but I think the hottest player right now is Jewell Loyd, and it isn’t close.

That’s why I think an argument can be had that she is the best athlete in this town, currently. Until the league figures out a way to stop her, or until Russell Wilson figures out how to consistently beat a basic cover two scheme once again, my vote is on her right now.

If you haven’t checked her or the Storm out this season, you should. Treat yourself.

Go Storm!

It’s been a weird goofy year, and a weird goofy Seahawk off-season with all the weird goofy stuff that Russell Wilson and his agent have been cooking.

I’ve had to write a lot of weird goofy stuff as a result. I’ve had to start every piece about how weird and goofy everything is from Russ throwing his offensive linemen under the bus to his agent saying that he doesn’t want to be traded but if he were, the Raiders, Saints, Cowboys and Bears all have uniforms that he would be happy to wear.

Days before the draft, I concocted a weird goofy mock draft where I sent Bobby Wagner to Carolina for an early third and fifth round pick. I then sent Quandre Diggs to Jacksonville for quarterback Gardner Minshew and a fourth round pick.

On top of feeling the need for Seattle to have an insurance plan at quarterback in the invent that Russ goes nuclear like Aaron Rodgers has done, I saw glaring needs at left tackle of the future, slot receiver, and corner back. With a little maneuvering, I found a way to gain three day two picks to address these three biggest needs, in my view.

Apparently, outside of a quarterback insurance policy, John Schneider saw things very similarly to me. With only three picks, Schneider maneuvered through this draft to select a receiver, corner, and a left tackle of the future.

In my humblest of humble opinions, Schneider killed this draft. He squashed it like a bug on a rug.

Folks will complain about Seattle only landing three picks, and that is fair in terms of building for the future, but I would say that what Seattle has done in signing undrafted free agents after the draft is pretty interesting, though. They landed players at receiver, corner, and offensive line with decent enough draft grades to think that they legitimately have a shot to make this club.

Players already on this roster that have been thought of as solid depth pieces are going to be in for a battle for a roster spot with players that have gone undrafted. It’s going to make for a fascinating training camp. I’m excited.

But lets look at this small but promising draft haul.

D’Wayne Eskridge, WR, Western Michigan

Seattle stayed at it’s native second round pick and took the player they viewed as the best player on their board. At 5-9 190 lbs, Eskridge is a lightening fast run-after-catch type who kinda stole the show at receiver during the Senior Bowl. He displayed good route running, solid hands, and exciting run after catch quicks.

He is being compared a bit to Tyreek Hill some. I can see some Percy Harvin type qualities as well. He’s an exciting returner as well as a receiver and runner.

It’s exciting to envision what he can do in this new Ram style offensive that Shane Waldron will be installing. It will be fun to watch him in motion and as a threat with end around runs, and occasional quick screens.

He’s played a lot outside, so I don’t believe he is strictly a slot receiver. Seattle can mix and match him with DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett, and they all run 4.3 speed. That’s really exciting.

The only blemish with this pick is that the dude is already 24 years old, but that is a minor blemish in my view, and if the dude is making game changing plays on Sundays, very few people are going to be concerned that he will be 28 by the time he reaches his second contract. If you are concerned about that, do more yoga and lay off the coffee and red meat.

I love this pick. I felt like this was the biggest immediate need on the team, and I think Russell Wilson has missed having a deep receiving room over the past couple seasons. He should be thrilled about this pick.

Tre Brown, Cornerback, Oklahoma

It’s not a shock that the Seattle Seahawks took a cornerback with their second pick by the time they selected in the fourth round. It was a need for the team with all their top corners set to be free agents in 2022, and Seattle typically waits until the mid portions of the draft to select the position.

They know what they like at the position, and feel like they can be patient there. The highest they have ever picked a corner is in the later portion of round three when they took Shaquille Griffin in 2017. Richard Sherman and a long list of others have all be day three picks.

What is somewhat shocking is that they took a 5-9 190 lb fella to play outside corner on this team, and they view him as a player who will compete to start.

I call this the DJ Read/Jamal Adams effect.

With DJ Read, the tie in is obvious. Read was an undersized corner who was thrust into starting mid season for the Seahawks, and that was roughly the same time Seattle’s defense started to make its dramatic turnaround. Read proved sticky in coverage and a play-maker who looked more dynamic than Griffin in coverage and he played the run quite well, as well.

Brown has A LOT of Read’s sticky coverage game and play-making ability. He’s also shown to be quite explosive blitzing and playing the run. John Schneider said in the post draft press conference that had he been 6-2, he would have been a top ten pick in this draft. His game tape is impressive.

What I really think is going on with this pick, though, is all about Jamal Adams and what Pete Carroll’s defense is shifting into. I think will are going to see a continual shift out of the standard slanted 4-3 cover three defense into a much more aggressive hybrid Bear front that will call on more blitz looks and because of that, Seattle will require it’s corners to play more man than zone coverage in past years.

6-3 guys are not as necessary anymore, they are looking for pure cover guys, and that is what Brown is. Like Eskridge, he was another Senior Bowl standout.

I dig this pick and what it is potentially signaling for the defense moving forward.

Stone Forsythe, Offensive Tackle, Florida

The NFL draft is a funny crap shoot. We don’t ultimately know how is will shake out as things get going. For those of us that enjoy studying the prospects as we gear towards it, we gain ideas in our heads how we believe it was unfold.

When I did my mock draft last week, I had Seattle drafting a left tackle of the future project with it’s first pick. While I viewed receiver and corner bigger immediate needs, I acknowledged that perhaps the biggest future need is a replacement for 36 year old Duane Brown who’s contract is due to be up in 2022.

If Seattle took Stone Forsythe with its first pick on Friday, I would not have been disappointed with the selection. At 6-8 and 307 lbs, he is a towering left tackle prospect who was one of the best pure pass blockers in college last year going against the best pass rushers in the SEC, and he was viewed by many as a legit day two pick.

The knock on him is that he is not nearly as polished as a run blocker and the height is a concern in playing with good leverage. He was also viewed as a quite guy who might be more finesse than bully.

I think he slid into the sixth round because teams were concerned about his unusual height as his rawness as a run blocker, and maybe his demeanor as a person.

What he appears to be on tape is a very natural looking pass blocker with good feet and an impressive wingspan that made it more of a challenge getting by him in college, even for the top pass rushers. While it’s possible that he needs to get a bit stronger and he needs to refine his run blocking, he might not be as much of a project as one perhaps thinks.

He will also have the luxury of being the direct backup to one of the best left tackles in the game. Learning from Duane Brown is going to be a huge benefit for him, and it was clear by the sounds of Carroll in his press conference that he is viewed solely as a left tackle.

My view of this pick is that Seattle may have gotten the steal of the entire draft with this pick.

Getting a starting left tackle beyond the second round of the draft is really rare. This was a good draft for tackle, though, and if there was a year to do it, this might be the very one. I think that if it had not been for Covid, and if there would have been a NFL combine and team workouts, there is a chance this guy would be been drafted much much sooner than he was.

This was by far my favorite pick in this small class for the Seahawks and I loved the Eskridge pick.

Seahawks make noise in undrafted free agency.

Moments after the NFL draft concluded, the Seattle Seahawks agreed to term with Tamorrian Terry, a tall speedy receiver from Florida State. I had him mocked to Seattle in the later rounds as a backup to DK Metcalf as a player with upside who can fast, physical, and can stretch defenses.

The surprise signing for me, though, was Seattle signing South Dakota State receiver Cade Johnson, who as he was sitting there in round four, I began to wonder if Seattle would double down at the position and take him there. He’s viewed as a solid Tyler Lockett type of nifty route runner. I love this signing.

Seattle tripled down on undrafted receiver signings by bringing in local kid Connor Wedington from Stanford and they paid him an expensive $20K signing bonus to come home. He’s an athletic freak who might have more impact as a kick returner than receiver, but clearly, there is something to him that they really like a lot. This could be Seattle’s primary kick returner, which is interesting.

Suddenly, Freddie Swain’s roster spot doesn’t seem as certain with these three signings. If Wedington looks more promising as a returner than Swain and they don’t want to risk Eskridge there because they see a more immediate prominent role for him this season in the offense, Swain could be the odd guy out, especially if Johnson and Terry flash enough during the preseason.

Seattle also added cornerback Bryan Mills from NC Central who is a taller corner and another Senior Bowl standout. This is an interesting signing in my view and if Seattle would have taken him where they took Tre Brown, very few draft pundits would have batted an eye. He looks like a classic taller Pete Carroll corner. My only hope is that this signing doesn’t diminish the chances of Seattle bringing home Richard Sherman.

Out of all the other undrafted signings, I’m probably most intrigued by Texas A&M guard Jared Hocker who is a gigantic 6-6 327 pound human being. He’s another guy who was viewed as a potential mid round pick who was a three year starter coming out of Jimbo Fisher’s zone blocking scheme. With this signing, there is a big part of me that Seattle might have scored it’s left tackle of the future with Forsythe and it’s right guard of the future with Hocker.

As I view these signings mentioned, I see a scenario where, if Seattle had more picks sprinkled through this draft, a number of these guys could have been drafted by this team. It’s clear that Seattle viewed WR, CB, and OL has their top needs, and that is how they attacked things.

Moving forward

I’m much rosier about the 2021 outlook of the this team now. They avoided the Russell Wilson drama and look very committed to him now. In fact, I don’t expect to see him traded at all, and will write more on the reasons why in another piece later.

I think this draft, along with free agency reflects a shift of philosophy on both sides of the ball.

Offensively, this draft and free agency as Shane Waldron written all over it.

With Eskridge and Cade Johnson, there is an emphasis on smaller speedier run after catch guys who can be used in motion over vertical threats. I think we are are likely to see a return of more three receiver sets for Russ to cook with and in that, Seattle wants guys who can get open fast.

I think the drafting of Forsythe also spells a shift towards Waldron’s philosophy. There is no point that I can recall, under Carroll, that the team drafted an offensive lineman who is regarded as a pure pass blocker. Russ has got to be thrilled about that.

Former Rams tight end Gerald Everett sparks a clear contrast to tight ends that Carroll has coveted. He’s all pass catcher.

Defensively, I think we see a clear trend towards an aggressive Bear style defense to be built around Jamal Adams and his ability to drop and blitz. Seattle wants corners that can cover in man. I also think we might be seeing a different shift in philosophy on the defensive line, in particular at defensive tackle.

I think Seattle is looking to get quicker inside with the preference of Poona Ford over Jarran Reed, and the additions of Robert Nkemdiche and Al Woods. Perhaps gone is the idea of loading up inside with traditional space eaters, and they want guys who can explode more aggressively into the backfield when needed.

I kind of suspect that we could see former first round pick LJ Collier convert more towards a defensive tackle now more than ever with how they loaded up at defensive end during free agency. When he was drafted, I thought that there was a chance he could grow into a future starting three tech. Now, I am almost expecting it to prove true.

Moving forward, I have a sneaking feeling that we could see the return of Richard Sherman to Seattle and KJ Wright coming back, as well. These are the two moves that, in my view, would put this team prime position for finally going deeper in the playoffs.

Make this happen, Pete and John! Do it.

Go Hawks.

Hey, you.

How’s it going? Are you feeling any uneasy Russell Wilson vs Seattle Seahawks fatigue?

Don’t be embarrassed if you are. We’ve been through a lot over the past year.

Look, I’m going to be honest. I love the NFL Draft, it’s my Football Christmas, but this year Football Christmas feels weird as a diehard Seahawk fan.

Because Russell Wilson decided to publicly air a major tiff with the Seattle Seahawks days after he won the Walter Payton Man Of The Year Award, the Seattle Seahawk 2021 off-season started off with a major case of diarrhea that I am sure every Ram and 49er fan cherished.

While I’m won’t rehash it all, I will say that if your spouse says that they don’t want a divorce but then they give you a list of four people within your network that they would be happy moving on with, you might want to start lining up your ducks some.. or at least think about it.

On top of that weirdness, because of the Jamal Adams and Gabe Jackson trades, the Seattle Seahawks will be entering Football Christmas with only three picks to select any players.

For perspective, that’s the fewest amount any team has had since 1999 when the New Orleans Saints couldn’t get the crack pipe out of Mike Ditka’s hands when he traded away their entire draft class for Texas running back Ricky Williams.

For a team that has prided itself over building through the draft over the years, it is incredibly hard to imagine that general manager John Schneider will stay with only three picks. In fact, if there is one certainty that I have as we sit a week away from this draft, it’s that Schneider will figure out a way to turn 3 picks into 6 or more.

How he manages to do this will take an enormous amount of creativity. This mock draft is my attempt to embrace being creative to fill needs and maintain a roster capable to winning the hyper competitive NFL West division.

What are the team needs for these 2021 Seattle Seahawks, anyways?

On paper, it appears like the biggest glaring needs of this team are a third receiver, cornerback, and a strong side linebacker. Those are the spots that Seattle, on paper, appears to be most shaky.

However, we could easily add defensive tackle if we feel like Al Woods coming back isn’t enough to replace Jarran Reed, and center if we feel like bringing back Ethan Pocic isn’t enough there, either.

If we are to peel back the layers of this team a bit more, we could probably come up with a number of other needs, especially if we start looking at this roster in 2022 and beyond. Currently, this team has no long term answer to replace Duane Brown at left tackle should he decide to retire. It also has no backup quarterback that could be the quarterback of the future should the situation between Russ and the club continue continue to sour beyond repair.

Plus, do we feel great at running back with the history of injuries that have plagued Chris Carson and Rashaad Penny? I dunno.

Some of these positions could be remedied in free agency after the draft. Seattle could bring back KJ Wright to be the SAM backer once again, and for that matter, they could (and perhaps should) bring back former Hawks in Richard Sherman at corner, and Golden Tate as the slot receiver.

But as I look at this roster, I legitimately worry greatly about the long term answer at left tackle, the depth at receiver and corner, and I think that this situation with Russ legitimately warrants considering bringing in a quarterback who the team could turn towards if a trade feels inevitable.

These are probably my biggest needs, as I see them, and I would say of them, left tackle and quarterback are probably to two hardest positions to fill through the draft.

John Schneider has a lot of work to do. Never fear. Here is my 2021 Seattle Seahawk mock draft to help him find solutions. If anyone has John’s email address and wants to send this his way, feel free.

Warning! Two shocking trades happen.

Well, maybe one shocking trade happens, and then another that will be less shocking goes down. Nevertheless, let’s just rip the band-aid off and announce the shocking trade first.

In a move that is sure to shake up the PNW, Seattle sends All-Pro middle linebacker Bobby Wagner to the Carolina Panthers for picks number 73 (third round) and 151 (fifth round). This will stun long time Seahawk fans, but the reasoning here is two fold. Seattle drafted a middle linebacker last year in Jordyn Brooks in round one, and Seattle is going to have to pay All-Pro safety Jamal Adams and his services won’t be cheap. Having invested $17 million in a middle linebacker, and $18 plus million in a safety who thinks of himself as a “defensive weapon” is a LOT of cheddar to throw into two positions that aren’t widely considered premiere ones in the league.

Panther GM Scott Fitterer has strong Seahawk ties and he is working for a mega billionaire owner that probably wants to make a Paul Allen like splash to put his team ahead in the NFC South. Seattle opens up enough cap space to bring back KJ Wright, and possibly Richard Sherman and/or Golden Tate. More importantly, Seattle nets high third round and fifth round picks to get back in this draft.

Trade number two involves sending pro bowl free safety Quandre Diggs to the safety needy Jacksonville Jaguars for pick 130 (fourth round) and quarterback Gardner Minshew. Jacksonville will be viewed as the winner of this deal netting a pro bowl safety who is still relatively young, but this will be potentially a very important trade for Seattle. We will delve more into the merits of this deal for Minshew later and a mid round pick later.

Warning! A not so shocking third trade happens.

John Schneider is going to John Schneider and trade down out of 56th pick. A good cornerback falls to Seattle’s pick and the very corner needy Green Bay Packers are afraid of the Rams selecting him at 57, so they send picks 62, 135, and 173.

The Seattle Seahawks now have a total of eight picks to work with. They have a late second, early third, three fourth round picks, two fifth round picks, and a seven rounder. For a regime that has typically drafted well in the fourth and fifth rounds, this will do.

With the 62nd pick of the 2021 NFL Draft, the Seattle Seahawks select D’Ante Smith, Offensive Tackle, East Carolina

The Seattle Seahawks do a very Seattle Seahawky thing in trading back and selecting a talent that most draft pundits viewed as a player that should be drafted a bit later. Seattle is the most honey badger-y team in the league when it comes to the draft. They are going to do what they are going to do.

They are especially drawn to traits in the player and are willing to grab onto perceived projects early if they see special traits. They’ve done with Bruce Irvin, Bobby Wagner, Frank Clark, LJ Collier, Christine Michael, Justin Britt and others. Admittedly, this is a bit of a hit or miss approach.

Smith has great length and athleticism to be a future left tackle and he plays with a nasty edge. He also had a decent Senior Bowl showing (another thing that Seattle pays attention to). Seattle could start him out at left guard along side Duane Brown, and have recently acquired Gabe Jackson play right guard while Damien Lewis shifts to center. Or they could have him compete with Brandon Shell at right tackle. Either way, this is very much a pick for the future, and Seattle sees this as a rare opportunity to select a starting left tackle in the back end of the second round.

With the 73rd Pick of the 2021 NFL Draft, the Seattle Seahawks select Tylan Wallace, Wide Receiver, Oklahoma State

If the Seattle Seahawks are going to run a LA Rams style offensive under Shane Waldron’s play calling, they are going to need receivers that are strong route runners with soft hands and can get easy separation. Essentially, they will need more Doug Baldwin types over vertical threats.

Tylan Wallace checks those boxes out and posted a decent 4.48 time that Seattle will likely find attractive as well. He also possesses decent size at 6-0 and 190lbs, and is a willing blocker in the run game.

His toughness, route running, speed, and ability to haul difficult passes make him a potentially classic Pete Carroll Seattle Seahawk receiver. He’s not a project player, he’s plug and play, and his additional should finally give Russ a level of comfort he is not had since Baldwin, Jermaine Kearse, Tyler Lockett, and Paul Richardson were all this the team together.

This is a highly important selection.

Trade Alert! The Seattle Seahawks send picks 129 and 130th to the draft pick needy New Orleans Saints for the last pick in the third round (105), and select Ambry Thomas, Cornerback, Michigan

Pete Carroll has a fondness of Michigan players due of his respect for Jim Harbaugh, and Thomas comes with enough size and coverage skills to be viewed as the longer term fixture they need on the outside of their defense. With DJ Reed, Ahkello Witherspoon, and Tre Flowers all set to become free agents in 2022, this is a big position of need for the club, and I think Thomas is a guy Seattle would easily be willing to move up for if they had the extra picks to do it.

With the 135th pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, the Seattle Seahawks select Dayo Odeyingbo, Defensive Lineman, Vanderbilt

Odeyingbo feels like a classic Pete Carroll defensive lineman in his ability to play inside/out on the defensive line. At 6-5 and 285 lbs, he possesses great length and size, and he showed enough potential as a pass rusher in college to be destined to be a likely second round pick had he not torn his Achilles out during a workout days before the Senior Bowl. If he lasts to this pick, I can see Carroll being excited about grabbing him here and red-shirting him in 2021 with the hopes that they landed a future starter at either the 5 tech end or 3 tech tackle position on their defensive line.

With the 151st pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, the Seattle Seahawks select David Moore, Guard/Center, Grambling State

Seattle loses a David Moore WR in free agency, and gains a David Moore G/C in the draft. This David Moore is was a short and robust guard in college who showed up pretty well at the Senior Bowl, and showed enough while taking snaps at center to think that some team is going to find a potential mid round diamond in the rough with him. Personally, I would like the Seattle Seahawks to be that team. Moore gives Seattle depth at guard and center in 2021 and could be viewed as the future starting center beyond. This would be a solid selection, IMO.

With the 173 Pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, the Seattle Seahawks select Charles Snowden, Linebacker, Virginia

By trading away Bobby Wagner, Seattle will need longer term depth at linebacker. They have a good piece in Jordyn Brooks to take Wangers place inside, and they have two guys that can still develop in Cody Barton and Ben Burr-Kirven. All three of these guys are off ball players, and what the team need is a true strong side middle linebacker. Even if they bring back KJ Wright, they need depth behind him. Snowden is unusually built for a 4-3 linebacker at 6-6 243 LBs, but has shown enough fluid lateral quickness and drop back ability to think that there is something to work with there. He’s a project, though, and will possibly need to get stronger to anchor at the line of scrimmage. At this range, I could see Seattle being interested in taking on this project.

With the 250th Pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, the Seattle Seahawks select Tamorrion Terry, Wide Receiver, Florida State

The NFL draft is a funny business. Sometimes players you think should be drafted later get drafted much earlier, and sometimes a player that you think would be a solid pick in an earlier round slides into the later rounds, or doesn’t get drafted at all. Terry falls into the later grouping in this scenario. He’s a good athlete with good size and hands but never fully lived up to his hype in college. His “boom or bust” label has teams leery here but Seattle takes a flyer on a guy that they think could add solid depth behind freakish DK Metcalf as a taller wide-out who can stretch defenses.

My Thoughts on this Mock Draft for the Seahawks

I don’t know if Seattle is going to make any splash moves in this draft like packaging a star player or two for more picks to be an active player, but I think that they need to do it.

They need to have a stronger eye for the future of this club and they have invested a lot of draft capital at linebacker and safety recently. Therefore, those are the areas that I am more willing to play “let’s make a deal.”

Bobby Wagner is an iconic Seahawk and it’s hard to see moving him, but I think with drafting Jordyn Brooks last year in the first round, you’ve likely got his replacement. I’m comfortable moving on.

The simple truth is that Seattle needs long term fixtures at left tackle and center, and cornerback, and they have to figure that out. This mock draft presents strong potential solutions to these important positions and it adds a third receiver who reminds me of Doug Baldwin and Golden Tate some. If Seattle can walk away next weekend with this kind of haul, I would be extremely pleased.

The rest of this picks represent projects for the future, but I think Dayo Odeyingbo could be a sneaky good pick as someone to red-shirt and have as an interior pass rush presence for years to come.

The downside to this draft is that they miss out on depth at tight end, running back, and a true defensive tackle, but you can’t draft at every position and free agency could still offer short term solutions.

Overall, I think this would be an outstanding draft for Seattle. I dig it.

My Thoughts on Seattle trading for Gardner Minshew

Despite all the noise quieting down on the Russell Wilson front, I still believe that there is potentially enough fire with that smoke that Seattle needs to start thinking more seriously about its future at quarterback. It’s the smart and right thing to do.

At this point, I think it’s highly unlikely that Seattle would trade Russell Wilson this year, but should this team fall short of expectations in 2021, I think it is more than likely that a divorce could be brewing in 2022.

I hope that I am wrong about that, but until I see the team restructure his contract to free more salary cap space up now and kick more money down that road, thus making it cost prohibitive to trade him in 2022-2023, I feel like the chance of dealing him is still very alive.

It is also possible that with another Covid influenced off-season with no live OTAs or mini-camps, the team is willing to deal with the awkwardness of hanging onto Russ one more season for the sake of continuity. The simple fact is that we could be looking at a loveless marriage between the quarterback and the team as they have decided to kick the inevitable divorce down the road.

What I love about bringing in Minshew is that Seattle gets a quarterback who has enough starting experience to know NFL defenses better than any rookie quarterback of the future type, and he has passing numbers that suggest that he can play an efficient brand of football that Pete Carroll would like as a starter. They don’t have to reach on a player with their first pick, and because Minshew has two year left on his rookie contract, Seattle gets him on the cheap. Those are huge benefits.

I also think that Minshew likely still has an interesting potential as a longer term starter in this league, if put into the right system with the right talent around him. I think Shane Waldron’s system could be that fit.

His style of play reminds me some of Mark Brunell and Jeff Garcia (older fans will know those guys pretty well). He’s not the biggest guy but he’s not tiny either. He’s a scrappy leader with good athleticism and while he doesn’t have a huge arm, he can make all the necessary throws to play in this league. He’s accurate and I think he might have a better understanding of route concepts than Sam Darnold, the young quarterback that Seattle was allegedly interested in when all the Russell trade stuff was leading headlines over a month ago.

Another thing to consider about potentially moving on from Russ is how fans and teammates will take that. Minshew has a built in popularity in the PNW from his wondrous senior season at Washington State. In one season as a starter, he captivated the Northwest. He’s also a lovable personality.

This all could go a long way with fans and teammates should Seattle eventually pull the trigger on a blockbuster trade sending Russ out of Dodge. If Minshew spots Russ in a few blowout games and surgically manufactures scoring drives, I think fans would enjoy watching that, and there would be a natural rest easy feeling about the uncertainty of the future.

I also think that Minshew might be a really good fit for any Rams style offense that Seattle could be installing. He’s good at play action and throws accurately with nice anticipation. He’s also a nifty scrambler with space in front of him.

As I see it, there is absolutely no harm in Seattle bringing him in.

Even if Seattle and Russ work it all out and Russ stays, Seattle acquires a guy who could easily be one of the very best backups in the league, and at some point, Russ is likely going to come up with an injury that could keep him out a few games. Wouldn’t it be nice for Seattle to have a quarterback behind him that they could continue rolling out some wins with?

It hurts to give up a quality safety in Diggs but Seattle has traded for Jamal Adams and they drafted Marquise Blair and Ugo Amadi, and they still have Ryan Neal. They have plenty of pieces there that I would be comfortable moving on from Diggs and not having to pay two safeties top end dollars.

I am officially on the Gardner Minshew to Seattle hype train. I want this deal to happen. I think it’s an important insurance policy move that makes too much sense for it not to be a thing. Just my two cents on the matter, anyways.

Hope you enjoyed this mock draft. Who knows what happens in a few days but I, for one, am excited to find out.

Go Hawks!

This off-season as been one of the weirdest ones that I can ever remember as a Seattle Seahawk fan. They have made a number of moves through free agency that I think should get fans pretty excited, but I get a sense that, for many, these moves have been reflected upon as ho-hum-ish.

They also made a trade for one of the better veteran pass blocking guards in the league to which the cost was nothing more than a 5th round pick, and weirdly, I’ve actually seen some argue on Twitter that the move wasn’t an upgrade from the turnstile blocker that had been at left guard last year (never reads the comments on Twitter).

This weird alleged rift between Russell Wilson and Pete Carroll has kept a dark cloud over this team for the last two months. In case you have been living in a hippy surf commune on the North East corner of Kauai for the past sever months without any internet (okay, now I’m jealous), let me sum up the weirdness of this feud.

Apparently, Russ, through his agent and Colin Cowherd, doesn’t want to play for Pete anymore because Pete likes a balanced offense that doesn’t turn the ball over, and now Russ wants to be a Chicago Bear. That’s pretty much the long and short of it.

Weird right? Yeah, I’d run back to that Hawaiian North shore nudist colony too and suck on dried out noni fruit as well, if only I could drop thirty pounds.

Because of all this stuff, many Seahawk fans have been thrown into this strange nebula that is part denial, part gloom, and part f**k it all let’s rebuild. I’m sure many casual fans of the team are now distancing themselves into becoming either more Mariner fans or just giving up on sports in general in exchange for watching all the Marvel films in timeline order on Disyney+, like I am (Iron Man 3 is vastly underrated stuff).

For my part, I’m dug in. I’ve been a diehard Seahawk fan for decades, and have experienced all the highs and lows. I’ve seen much worse from this organization than a power struggle between a top five-ish quarterback and a hall of fame-ish head coach. I’ve experienced Ken Behring and Dan McGuire.

Bring. It. On.

My skin is thick as the leather on Conan The Barbarian’s belt strap when it comes to the Seattle Seahawks and I am actually intrigued what might lay ahead for Russ and the team, whether he stays or is dealt. One thing that I know for certain is that, if he is eventually dealt, it will be for an absolute monster haul of picks and players, and the Seattle Seahawks won’t deal him unless they know for certain they have an appropriate replacement at quarterback. Either way, Seattle should be fine, I think.

One thing that I know for certain is that when news broke yesterday about the Seattle Seahawks extending Tyler Lockett for four more years, that made me really happy. Like, giddy happy.

Tyler has always been one of my favorite Seahawks under Pete Carroll, and he has been nothing but productive ever since his rookie year. On top of being a highly skilled route runner with clutch hands and sneaky speed, he seems to be one of the genuinely nicest dudes on the planet. His teammates love him, and so do countless fans.

In a weird 2020 season where we saw the Seattle offense put up record numbers in scoring and yardage only to drastically taper off in the second half of the season, we could sense frustration from some of the offensive players, and I don’t think Tyler was immune to that. In fact, in post game interviews, I think he was fairly frank in his assessments that defenses had simply figured Seattle out.

For me, I think it’s the way that he delivered that frankness that is worth noting. He didn’t sugarcoat the truth, but he didn’t erupt in anger either, or cast blame. He kept it all very real, and simple for us all.

I think Tyler Lockett is a hugely underrated member of the Seattle Seahawks. On top of the countless clutch moments that he has helped bail out his team (and perhaps his quarterback) on the field, he has perhaps been an even greater teammate and leader. He volunteered in an interview last season that he was seriously contemplating sitting out 2020 because of Covid, but decided to play because he loves his teammates and he plays the game for them.

My guess is that, in a nutshell, is what makes Tyler Lockett a Pete Carroll favorite. He is “all in” not for himself, or perhaps even the game. He’s “all in” for his team.

I love that. That’s a player that you want around and want to build off of. Absolutely.

And I love that he will now likely retire a Seahawk.

Go Hawks.

I really like how the Seattle Seahawks have attacked the free agency market this off-season. I am aware that this might make me seem like a homer, that I am not looking at this team as critically as a growing number of discontent fans on Twitter are, and perhaps I am living in some sort of Seahawk blue and green world of denial, but I love what they have been doing.

I love the free agent signing of former Ram tight end Gerald Everett. I liked him a lot as a pass catching option coming out of college a few years back, and I love the fact that he is coming into Seattle well versed with knowledge of the offense that new offensive coordinator Shane Waldron will likely be installing. He was a player that I had singled out as a potential free agent target in previous pieces. This was a smart move, in my opinion.

I love that fact that Seattle did not overspend to keep cornerback Shaquill Griffin and they brought in former 49er corner Ahkello Witherspoon on a one year deal to add to the competition to replace him. Witherspoon has a very traditional Pete Carroll Seahawk corner air about his physicality and play, and he played in a style of defense in San Francisco that is closely modeled after Carroll’s defense. Again, this was a smart move.

I really love that Seattle did to trade for veteran guard Gabe Jackson by sending a fifth round pick to the Raiders for his services. Jackson did not allow for a single sack in 2020, and Seattle has improved their left guard spot for at least two seasons, if not more.

By bringing back center Ethan Pocic, Seattle now has it’s starting 2021 offensive line likely set, and there is nothing preventing them from drafting a young center at some point next month. These were both solid moves, in my opinion.

What I love most of all about this off-season, however, is how Seattle addressed it’s defensive line. I love every move Seattle made. Being able to correctly gauge Carlos Dunlap’s market by releasing him and bringing him back on a two year $16 million deal is inspired front offense navigating. Adding back Benson Mayowa and bringing in former 49er Kerry Hyder are both sneaky good moves. With Dunlap, Mayowa and Hyder all on multip year deals, Seattle now has a deep and proven rotation of edge rushers to mix in with the younger talents of Alton Robinson and Darrell Taylor.

The release of Jarran Reed stings a bit at defensive tackle, but I would much rather have Dunlap back on the edge than Reed inside, especially when you consider that Seattle has committed to up and coming defensive tackle Poona Ford, who might be a more talented player than Reed. Bringing back former Seahawk DT Al Woods helps mitigate the loss of the toughness Reed brought inside, and I suspect that we are likely to see former first round pick LJ Collier transition more to defensive tackle, as well. From my eyes, I thought Collier looked way more interesting rushing inside in 2020 than when he was asked to play end, and Seattle also has Rasheem Green as an inside pass rusher, as well. Color me not worried.

Suddenly, this defensive line feels deep. It feels loaded with players who can play multiple positions and it has some that excel specifically at certain ones. It looks like they can go big against the run, if they need to, and they can go quick against the pass when needed, all game long. I’m very intrigued.

I also think that Seattle might not be done shopping as we inch towards the draft next month. I think it’s still possible that we see the return of KJ Wright at SAM linebacker, and I really hope that happens. I also think that if they can dip a bit towards a third receiver in the market, they would enter the draft with no glaring holes for their 2021 season, and that is a huge deal because they only currently have three picks (although, spoiler alert, I suspect John Schneider will figure out a way to add more).

So, as I sit and gauge these activities, I have to grade Seattle pretty highly, right?

I think so. As I look over the roster, I have to feel pretty good about this club, especially considering that they brought back superhero running back Chris Carson with all these other moves. I mean, we should all be pretty pumped.

Why isn’t everyone so pumped?

What the heck is really going on with all this Russell Wilson stuff?

My guess is that the issues around Seattle’s star quarterback are the reasons why not everyone is on board with what Seattle is presently doing. There seems to be this growing trend with NFL fans believing that the quarterback position means everything in the game, and if you don’t have a really really really good one, you can’t win.

Never mind that a few years back the Philadelphia Eagles won the Super Bowl with Nick Foles as their starting quarterback, and both the 49ers and Rams got to the Super Bowl with the very average talents of Jimmy Garoppolo and Jared Goff as their passers, or a few years ago both the Vikings and Jaguars made it to the conference championship games with Case Keenum and Blake Bortles at quarterback. These facts don’t matter to the fans who believe in today’s NFL it is all about the quarterback and doing whatever it is humanly possible to make the player happy, at all costs, if he’s thought to be a pretty darn good one.

So, to repeat prior thoughts, here’s what I think is likely going on in Seattle with Russell Wilson. I think Russell Wilson wants out of Seattle. I don’t think he wants to play for Pete Carroll anymore, and the only way he wants to stay is if Jody Allen fires Pete and replaces him with a coach who will do everything that Russell Wilson wants him to do. I think that is the long and short of it.

Russell Wilson might say and do things that, on the surface, makes you think that he still wants to be around. He will say “go Hawks” on Instagram, and he will tweet his approval of Chris Carson and Carlos Dunlap coming back, but make no mistake, this dude is looking for greener pastures. That’s why he’s floated out destinations that he would like to be traded to, and why he is constantly back channeling to Colin Cowherd all his issues with Pete Carroll. The dude wants out of Dodge.

He wants to play in a market that will take his brand farther. He also wants a team to be so desperate in trading for him that they will do whatever he wants to fashion the team around him, and my guess is that we might not want to sleep on the Chicago Bears eventually coming up with enough to make it happen.

This is my gut talking here. I will repeat what many have been saying for weeks; where there is smoke, there is fire.

I also believe the reports that Seattle would be happy to trade him and be done with his pesky agent if they had the right path to a quarterback they like to replace him. I tend to believe the reports that they perhaps really like Sam Darnold.

People can laugh all they want to about replacing Russell with Sam Darnold. I won’t stop you, but I will just say that a few years back, I personally thought he was the best quarterback prospect in the 2018 draft. I would have taken him over Josh Allen or Baker Mayfield, and I realize that I am saying that knowing that I am no expert evaluator.

For me, Darnold just has a toughness at the position that I think can be undervalued, and I am intrigued by that toughness. Give him a star running back and decent line, and quality receivers, and then judge him as a player, I say.

So, yeah. I guess I just don’t think that the Jets did him any favors at all trying to build around him over the past three seasons, and I also think there is plenty of game tape out there that suggests he played admirably in difficult conditions. When I look at that and the fact that he is only 23 years old, I can get a bit behind the idea that Seattle could be interested in him. I can see it.

I’m not going to try to convince you that it is a good idea that Seattle trades Russell and then replaces him with Sam Darnold. I’m just going to suggest that perhaps we shouldn’t completely ignore that smoke.

I will also say this. I think that if Seattle doesn’t trade Russell Wilson this off-season, I think 2021 is likely his last year in Seattle. I don’t see Jody Allen firing the man that she is entrusting to run her team and replacing him with a coach that will effectively be Russell’s yes man. This isn’t the NBA. This is the NFL and with 53 man rosters, it generally takes much more than a quarterback to win. Just sayin’, and that is not taking anything away from the talent’s of Russ.

Can a Richard Sherman reunion really happen in Seattle?

Yes. It absolutely can.

Personally, I don’t think Sherman has ever held any great animosity towards Pete Carroll. If anything, I think he was more than a bit miffed that Pete chose to hang onto the quarterback over the Legion of Boom a few years back, but I think we also could be seeing a situation where time could be heeling wounds.

Sherman’s biggest mark as an NFL player came in Seattle as a Seattle Seahawk. In many ways, one could argue that he was the face of the franchise during the 2013-2014 Super Bowl years. If we go back to that time, it wasn’t really Russell’s team. It was Marshawn on the offense, and it was Richard Sherman on the defense. Yes, there was Russ, and Kam, and Earl, but nationally, who were people really thinking about?

Richard Sherman is as big to Seattle sports as Russell Wilson, Marshawn Lynch, Steve Largent, Gary Payton, Shawn Kemp, Griffey, and Randy Johnson. He’s a legend. He’s also the owner of perhaps that biggest play in Seattle sports history with The Tip in the 2014 NFC Championship game against the 49ers.

It’s been weird seeing him in a 49er uniform over the past three seasons. From a Seattle sports fan perspective, it wasn’t right, and I as much as I love the dude, I was glad he didn’t win that Super Bowl against the Chiefs.

I’m possessive when it comes to Richard Sherman.

He belongs in Seattle. Richard Sherman coming back to the Seattle Seahawks is like David Lee Roth returning to Van Halen. It’s too right for it not to happen, and it would be a blown opportunity if Seattle doesn’t make this happen.

Who the bleep cares if his return ruffles the feathers of Russ a bit? I don’t care one bit, frankly. And maybe Russell actually needs ruffling a bit more.

I really hope that Seattle figures a way to bring back Number 25, and that he retires a Seattle Seahawk.

I will also tell you this much. If they do something so shockingly bold as to trade Russell Wilson this year or next, they will need Richard Sherman in that locker room. They will need his strength and his voice.

If reports are true about mutual interest between the player and team, I don’t see anyway that this move does not make sense. It needs to happen.

Bring him home, Seattle. Go Hawks.