By now, most people have heard the news that the Seattle Seahawks have released strong safety Jamal Adams, free safety Quandre Diggs, and tight end Will Dissly. While shocking moves to some, more tempered fans who may have been studying Seattle’s roster, salary cap situation, and pending free agents probably saw these actions coming. There could be more on the way before free agency begins next week.

With all respect to Diggs and Dissly being players for Seattle that I really liked over the years, these moves should pave the way for a fun, and active offseason. In this piece, I kinda blend my hopes for what this franchise does with what I think are also kinda likely moves.

With the NFL Scouting Combine now at its conclusion, a neat little picture is forming for how the offseason might go for our beloved Seattle Seahawks. This draft appears rich at interior defensive line, offensive line, wide receiver, quarterback, tight end, and possibly safety. Not so much for linebacker.

This informs us what to expect the free agent market to be. The areas of the draft that appear weak will drive up those same areas in free agency, and conversely, the areas that are deep should make those same positions more affordable on the free agent market.

How this effects Seattle is pretty simple. I feel they should be able to reach a deal with defensive tackle Leonard Williams, but given the fact that both of their starting middle linebackers are currently without contracts, Seattle is likely going to have to pay the piper one way or the other in free agency to settle a position who new head coach Mike Macdonald says he has a special affinity towards.

Seattle has a lot of work to do this offseason. They need to find two quality starting middle linebackers, they have apparent holes at guard, center, and tight end, and, in my opinion, they need to be thinking about a long term plan at quarterback.

The draft can offer some solutions, but they must nail free agency first. Now up to general manager John Schneider to make all the right calls.

The good news is that everything the Seahawks have done, so far, this offseason has been highly encouraging. In short, they made the bold move away from long standing head coach Pete Carroll in favor of bright young defensive mastermind Macdonald, and they paired the new coach with former Washington Husky offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb. They filled out the coaching staff with numerous promising coaches including a dude who looks like he might become a star offensive line coach in the league.

In my last piece, I wrote all my reasons why I am excited about the Macdonald/Grubb partnership moving forward and you can read it here. It is clear that the Seahawks want to become the Baltimore Ravens. They want to play dominant on defense, and they want to be explosive on offense. While this can be said about virtually every NFL team, I believe with these coaching changes paired with the talent already existing on this roster, Seattle is poised to be this team right out of the gates this Fall with a proper offseason of free agency, trades, and the draft.

The Seahawks are committed to Geno Smith this year by restructuring his deal, and that is a good thing. Fans are very polarized about him with some viewing him as a top ten-ish quarterback, and other feeling like he is bottom half. My view of Geno is that he is a solid second tier quarterback. There are only four quarterbacks in the league who I would describe as elite, and then there are everyone else.

For me, I will take a good vet like Geno and partner him with DK Metcalf and others in a Ryan Grubb offense that will lean further into the run and play action. Smart football minds can see the fit with Geno in that style of offense, as he is one of the best deep ball passers in the game. Physically and tools-wise, he is similar enough to Michael Penix Junior.

Offensively, I think Seattle is close to being some special in this league, but it is defensively where I see the most work being needed. Personally, I think there is talent on that side of the ball, but currently, neither middle linebacker is signed to a contract, nor is DT Leonard Big Cat Williams who the team sent a second round pick to the Giants for mid season last year. Personnel wise, there is a lot of work to do on that side of the ball.

Thus, this is what most fuels my wish list for this team moving forward. Here it is.

Commit to the front seven of this defense through free agency and the draft

Enough is enough with sinking nearly $50 million dollars into the safety positions. Seattle needs to start paying for boys that play much closer to the ball and around the line of scrimmage.

The need to work a deal out with Big Cat Williams feels like a given. Seattle sent a 2024 second round pick and a 2025 fifth round pick for him, and those are valuable assets. He is a very good defensive tackle, and losing him to free agency would seem like a bitter blow considering what Seattle gave up to bring him in for half of a season.

However, this free agency cycle appears to be a very good one for the DT position, and I think this is an intriguing draft class for the position, as well. I would think that the hiring of Macdonald is going to be appealing to Williams, who can be a star up front in that defensive scheme, but should he decide to sign elsewhere, Seattle could find a player of similar value out there one way, or another. For me, the goal should be Big Cat, or one of these other talented dudes out there in free agency. Just get one.

The more daunting issue for the defense might be middle linebacker with starters Jordyn Brooks and Bobby Wagner both being free agents. For me, I think Seattle will probably move on from Wagner at this stage, but might make an effort to bring back Brooks at the right cost.

I don’t think Brooks coming back is a given, though, and I wouldn’t be surprised if Macdonald chooses to sign a couple middle linebackers from outside who he feels might be better suited for his scheme. Currently, I am leaning more towards this idea.

Instead of seeing this team drop a huge amount of money on a big name free agent like Patrick Queen, I would rather see them add two very good veteran coverage linebackers who would fit Macdonald’s scheme well, and then see whatever the draft brings. Maybe they add former Washington State Cougar Frankie Luvu who has played well in Carolina with 123 tackles, 6 sacks, 11 QB hits, let him have his homecoming, and then pair him with promising Bills linebacker Tyrel Dobson who earned high honors from Pro Football focus as being one of the top coverage linebackers in the league last year. That could be a dream scenario, and it would give Seattle a solid and affordable one two punch at middle linebacker.

In the draft, just keep depth adding pieces to the linebacker room and the D line. You can never have enough defensive linemen.

Find the Quarterback Of The Future

I need this team to start an honest search for the Quarterback Of The Future. Geno will turn 34 this October, and his salary in 2025 inflates to a whopping $38.5 million. I don’t see Seattle bringing him back next year at that cost, and their choices will be either to move on or sign him to another extension that will bring that 2025 salary number down.

There are many reasons why Seattle should be actively looking for its next franchise quarterback. Geno, while good, is probably at his ceiling, and is only going to get older, but even if he keeps playing well enough, he will continue to be an expensive good not great quarterback. Therein lays the problem.

In the rough economics of the NFL, there are huge benefits to having a quality franchise quarterback playing on a rookie contract for a while, but even if he plays into an expensive deal, time and youth will still be on his side. Continually extending a good not great Geno Smith until he is near 40 is not a great path towards getting another Super Bowl ring, in my humble opinion. How well has that worked out for the Minnesota Vikings and Kirk Cousins?

What I would like to see this team do this offseason is either take a shot on one of the seven or eight quarterbacks in this draft who look like they could become promising NFL starters, or trade for a young talent already in the league. If they walk back Drew Lock to be QB2 again on a one year deal behind Geno, and don’t address the position again, it will feel like a let down.

Next year’s quarterback class doesn’t feel nearly as promising as this year’s does, and Seattle will likely be too competitive in 2024 to earn a top ten pick to draft a quarterback worth it this year. Because this year’s QB class feels unusually deep, it feels like this is the year to take a swing at one. I hope they do.

Anyone who has regularly reads my writing knows how strongly I feel about the Seahawks drafting Michael Penix Junior. I think his arm talent is A+, and he’s a lot more athletic than people are making him out to be. He can extend plays, but he does his best work from inside the pocket, and if you are to run a committed play action offensive such as Mike Macdonald has said he wants to see in Seattle, well then, Penix was the best play action passing quarterback in college last year. He just ticks so many boxes for what it appears Seattle wants to be moving forward. If Macdonald wants an explosive offense, Penix has the arm talent to deliver that exact threat, make no mistake about it.

There are others in this draft I fancy, as well, and I don’t have a great preference over any of them, to be honest. I would just love to see Seattle take a shot at one.

Some people are freaked out about the idea of Seattle trading up for one of these guys. If Seattle did that, I would be flipping out with excitement. I trust John Schneider to find his guy, and if he sees one in this class that he really loves and doesn’t want to wait around to see if he falls to 16, I say just go get that dude.

Alternatively, if they felt inspired to trade a page out of the Mike Holmgren book and trade for a young QB who might have some upside, I wouldn’t be opposed to seeing them take a shot on Sam Howell, if Washington drafts a QB second overall. There was a rumor a couple years ago that Howell was the quarterback Seattle was considering drafting after they traded Russell Wilson. Howell is a good deep ball passer and has some fun duo threat abilities as a runner. Maybe it is just me, but I feel like there could be something there with him, and he has two years left on his rookie deal to find out. I think it would be worth a shot, if they choose to go another direction in the draft. Just a thought.

Be aggressive fixing the offensive line

Listening to Ryan Grubb discuss how much he values his offensive line play the other day got me ridiculously pumped. He wants an aggressive offensive line that will dictate the tone of his offense. This was the Washington Huskies for the past two years with him running the offense.

Seattle has some pieces in place on the line that can probably play to that style. I think they need possibly two more on the interior at guard and center. This is looking like an insanely good draft to add a guard and a center, and it doesn’t even have to happen in the first rounds.

My ideal approach would be to solve one spot with a quality veteran and use the draft for the other. I won’t lie, I think it would be perfectly fine to bring back left guard Damien Lewis, or center Evan Brown, and use the draft to fill the other spot.

I think you want to give Anthony Bradford (drafted last year) legit shot at the other guard spot. He is a massive athletic freak of a player who offensive line coach Scott Huff should be tasked to develop into a monstrous starter. I think his upside is pretty special, to be honest.

It would be incredibly tempting to sit at pick 16 and take the best guard or center prospect, but I think 16 is way too rich for those positions. Rounds 2 and 3 tend to be the prime spots unless there is a true blue chip Steve Hutchinson type player sitting there (Wasington’s Troy Fautanu might be that guy, if they don’t go quarterback).

This is why I feel the best move for Seattle might be to find a trade partner who is picking in the twenties and willing to move up by adding a second round pick to the deal, and they make that deal. It may not happen, but it opens the possibility of Seattle being in position to draft QB of the Future and a talented offensive linemen with their first couple picks. Then in round three with two picks there, they can take shots at safety to replace Quandre Diggs, or a tight end to replace Dissly.

At any rate, Seattle needs to dip into the offensive line in this draft, and preferably double dip. Even if they wait it out into the middle rounds, it looks like the value will be there. Just seize it.

Bring back Noah Fant at tight end

At first thought when thinking about this offseason, I felt Seattle could probably let Noah Fant walk in free agency, rework Will Disney’s expensive 2024 salary to get the cost down, and then draft a tight end. Upon further reflection, I have shifted to thinking the opposite.

As much as I love Uncle Will, I think Seattle was right to release him, and now maybe use those dollars on Fant who is a superior athlete and receiver. Ryan Grubb loves to feature tight ends in his offense and Fant has the speed and pass catching ability to stress a defense. He also has a built in chemistry with Geno Smith. In Grubb’s offense, I think Fant has a real chance to become the star he was meant to be when Denver drafted him in the first round.

The Seattle front office appears to think highly of him, as they themselves considered drafting him in the first round of the 2020 draft, and demanded that he be part of the Russell Wilson trade to Denver. So, why not commit to him long term? It makes perfect sense to do this.

Sign Fant, and use then draft for depth. This appears to also be a good draft for tight ends.

Or how about this wild idea? Have Jake Bobo add weight and convert him into a tight end. Bobo is a natural route runner with great hands, and good size, but will never have the speed to truly work the perimeters. Converting big receivers into tight ends isn’t foreign in the league as Vegas did this very successfully with Darren Waller a few years back. Just a thought.

Find a way to keep Tyler Lockett

Tyler Lockett is the name that some folks are locked onto these days as either a cap casualty or a trade candidate. His 2024 cap hit is $27 million, and Seattle would be able to save about $8 million by moving on from him pre June 1st, and considerably more afterwards. With DK Metcalf and the emergence of Jaxon Smith Njigba, Lockett does feel like the eventual odd man out, especially considering how easy it is to draft and develop receivers these days, and this draft is crazy deep at receiver.

For me, Tyler Lockett feels too much like a Mr Seahawk to just cut bait with him, though. Instead, I would rather this team work out a short extension that will free up 2024 dollars, and give him an opportunity to retire here. He has a great chemistry with Geno, and is still very productive. He is also a supremely awesome teammate. My feeling is that Lockett would be receptive to this idea, and a deal can get done.

If the goal is for Seattle to win games early with this new coaching staff, and be a playoff contender in year one of this new regime, I think keeping Lockett makes tons of sense. I want it to be the case. We shall see.

Continue developing this roster from within

John Schneider has done a great job of drafting the last couple years, finding immediate starters in the 2022 and 2023 classes. For Seattle to truly take the next step into building a contender, it’s probably not so much as what they do in free agency and this draft as it is for this new coaching staff does developing and uncorking these current youngsters on the roster.

I believe Derick Hall has a chance to be a very good edge rusher in this league mixing in with Boye Mafe, and Uchenna Nwosu. They have to get him ready to take the same step forward in 2024 as Mafe took in 2023.

Cameron Young and Mike Morris need to be developed as starter types on the defensive line mixing in with Jarran Reed and hopefully Leonard Williams. If Morris can take a big step forward, he has the traits to become a really effective pass rusher.

Coby Bryant is too talented to be lost in the depth chart of this secondary. This coaching staff needs to decide what his position is and have him own it. Perhaps he is a reason why the coaches felt they could move on from Quandre Diggs, and they will lock him down at free safety.

Anthony Bradford has too much size, and physical talent not to be a mauling force of nature guard on the offensive line. He must be made a starter this season.

Kenny McIntosh has too much playmaking potential to be buried in the depth charts of the running back group. He should be developed as a legitimate third down back at the very least.

Riq Woolen needs to be developed and used in ways that complement his unique blend of size and speed at corner. Have him play to his strengths or move on from him.

We can talk about what Seattle should do at quarterback, free agency, and the draft, but the number one task of this new coaching staff under Mike Macdonald must be developing this roster from within. This is the Baltimore way, and in the early years of Pete Carroll, it used to be the Seattle way, too. Time to get back to exactly that.

Final thoughts

I don’t think the recipe for building this team up into a proper contender is that daunting of a task. Having the right young coaching staff prepared to be bold in their schemes, and having an ability to coach young players up is the biggest key, and it feels like Seattle is on the right track there (even though it is probably too early to really call it).

I have faith in this new staff, though. So much faith that I feel Seattle can afford to be bold at going after a young quarterback, if they so choose. It is nothing against Geno Smith. He is a fine quarterback to ride with right now. I just have a very particular feeling that Seattle should make the move on a quarterback this offseason, if they can.

That said, quarterback is not the end all be all of needs and wants. I want better coverage linebackers, and that is why I am not totally sold the absolute need to bring back Jordyn Brooks or whether there are other players in free agency who would suit the Mike Macdonald defense better.

I love my idea of adding Frankie Luvu and Tyrel Dobson to be the new starting linebackers. After all, this is no longer Pete Carroll’s team, so why not have Mike Macdonald put his own stamp on it now by adding new blood with players who will be “His Guys” moving forward?

The one player who I do believe suites his defense is Leonard Big Cat Williams, though, and I hope Seattle works out a deal with him, or lands another DT with similar traits. Something tells me that Seattle and Big Cat will get a deal done. I can see him wanting to play for Macdonald, and feeling like this team is close to really competing.

I need Seattle to add to the offensive line. I need a quality veteran player added and I need them to draft there. I wouldn’t mind seeing a couple picks in the draft go to the offensive line.

Finally, onto the more sensitive topic of what to do with Tyler Lockett. This is tough. I would like to see them figure out a way to bring back Noah Fant as the starting tight end, and keep Tyler Lockett. I just don’t know if that is going to happen. As much as I want Tyler back, I can see John Schneider making a tougher call to save dollars with the belief he can draft his replacement in this class.

With new regimes, often surprising moves are made with players. It wasn’t surprising to see the team cut Jamal Adams, Quandre Diggs, and Will Dissly. These were all bad contracts given out to good not great players playing non premium positions.

I won’t lie and say that there isn’t some small part of me who thinks the true stunner around the corner might being Lockett, though. A lot of money can be freed up if this team trades or releases him.

What if they want to go really aggressively into free agency signing top tier players to the offensive and defensive lines? Those guys would prove quite expensive and the $36.5 million opened up by releasing the two safeties and Will Dissly won’t cut it if they also want to find a couple starting linebackers and possibly a safety, as well.

Therefore, something tells me that Lockett might be the surprising odd man out of this equation with the offense moving forward. Receivers are easier to draft these days based on what is happening in college, and Seattle might simply see Lockett’s replacement in this draft easier than it sees other veterans they want to keep.

My hope remains that they can rework his deal to drop the 2024 costs down, but we shall see. Right now, I can’t call it either way.

At any rate, I’m excited. Are agency begins next week, and I am ready to get this offseason going. Let’s do it.

Go Hawks!

As you might have guessed by my reactions to the Seahawks getting bullied by the mediocre Pittsburgh Steelers last Sunday, I am about done with this club, and how Pete Carroll and John Schneider have put it together. They lack toughness. I can’t handle that.

Football, at its core, is a game about toughness. Fundamentally, it is the teams that block better, and tackle better that make the playoffs, and advance. Even the pass happy attacks we have seen get Super Bowl rings have generally gotten them because of great offensive lines and good to great defenses.

The Seattle Seahawks have a defense that sucks. Some will argue that it is the players while others will say it is the scheme. I think it is both. Schematically, I think it is stuck somewhere between a 4-3 and a 3-4, and many players are tasked to be jacks of all trades and masters of none. Personnel wise, I think they too often struggle to defeat blocks, set edges, fill gabs, and play decent coverage in the middle of the field. I don’t think these fellas are coached up enough to be fundamentally sound football players, either.

It is as bad of a look as it gets for a defensive minded coach such as Pete Carroll, and the fact that his offense no longer dictates any sort of run game also doesn’t help his image, either. Fans have grown exhausted over his team’s mediocrity. You see it all over social media, you hear it all over the airwaves, and where you really feel it is in the stands where season ticket holders now prefer to sell their tix to opposing team fans instead of attending games themselves.

If Jody Allen allows Pete Carroll to walk everything back next year with his current coordinators, and high priced underwhelming players on this club like Jamal Adams, I fear she will alienate the Twelves to such a point that Lumen Field will become an advantage for visiting clubs next Fall. That is not hyperbole.

Therefore, I need this team to take a radical shift in coarse this offseason that is perhaps starting next week. Some will say that Seattle needs a young bright offensive minded head coach to lead them to some new age hipster brand of football. I respectfully say “fuck that shit.”

I need Seattle to become the biggest baddest bully team in America. I need them to become a mixture of Cobra Kai, and Orc Berserkers on Sundays. I need whatever coach is out there and GM who is willing to make that happen above anything else.

I need them to be the Baltimore Ravens. I don’t care what actions are taken to get there, either. Pete Carroll can stay if he is willing to do whatever it takes to get this team to that goal, but if he’s not, he needs to leave. Either way, I need aggressive actions taken towards achieving it this offseason.

Any expensive player who is not dynamic enough, or does not play on the line of scrimmage can be cut, or dealt for all I care. Seattle doesn’t need $48 million dollars tied up into their safeties. They need that money going to their offensive and defensive lines.

They don’t need the expensive salary of Will Dissly. This will read as blasphemy to many, but I am not so sure they need Tyler Lockett when they have JSN and DK Metcalf, either.

It’s debatable whether they should continue on with Geno Smith and his salary, or if they should bring in a cheaper bridge quarterback and draft a quarterback in the Spring. Either way, I firmly believe they need to draft a quarterback next Spring, and I would prefer them to select one of the six that are most often thought to be first round material. Of the bowl games I watched on New Year’s, I salivated all over my TV set watching Bo Nix, JJ McCarthy, and of course, Michael Penix Junior.

I appreciate Geno as much as the next fan, but the move that makes most sense to me is to cut Geno lose and let him go play for another team that can contend for the playoffs elsewhere while they bring in a cheaper bridge QB, and they draft one of these guys. Ultimately, that frees up the most money to go sign some badasses in free agency. I perfectly willing to trade decent veteran QB for more big, nasty, bruising badasses, and take my lumps with a rookie passer.

My youngster is really super into dinosaurs these days. Specifically, he loves the big meat eaters, T Rex, Giganotosaurus, Spinosaurus, etc.. and he could give two squats about the gigantic sauropods like Brachiosaurus. He is also really deep into Godzilla.

Little dude is attracted to all things that kick mother fucking ass, if I am being perfectly honest.

I get it. So, am I. I think that is what has attracted me so much to football in the first place. It is not a contact sport. It is a game built on violence, a blood sport like boxing and martial arts, and I think it speaks to our hard wiring.

Yes, it is joyous to watch Michael Penix Junior throw perfect rainbow bombs in the Sugar Bowl, but on many levels, it is more satisfying for sorts like myself to watch Bralen Trice absolutely dump the Texas quarterback hard on his ass bone. The latter speaks more closely to my soul, if I am being perfectly honest.

That is football for me. It is Tyrannosaurus Fucking Rex when it is working at its best. I will take Penix (or Bo Nix) in a heartbeat to be a part of that equation, but I want that rookie quarterback surrounded by absolute monsters. In my mind, the surest way to get as many monsters as possible is to have a talented quarterback on a cheap rookie deal. That is the golden ticket in this league.

So, yeah. Count me in on the Gimme Penix To The Seahawks Bandwagon Club. I have been on that ride for months now. However, what I truly appreciate, what most speaks to my twisted mind, and warped soul, is all the dudes who can walk into a phone booth with any other dude and duke it out until the other guy has lost the ability to continue and collapses in near death until medics arrive.

That may sound graphic, and unpleasant, and you might think I am boiling over in toxic masculinity while reading this, but fuck it, that is how I am hard wired. Maybe it comes from somewhere deeply embedded into my DNA where ancestors hundreds of years ago fought in close quarters constantly, and there was value in those skills, or maybe it is just simply because I am total asshole, but that is the way it is, and I am perfectly willing to own it.

In that wiring, nothing annoys me more than watching my favorite football team get kicked around like it did against the Steelers last Sunday. I can stomach my quarterback throwing five interceptions in a game as long as the rest of the team is battling like warriors like they did in that NFC championship game against Green Bay almost a decade ago.

I cannot handle my team being physically owned by another. I cannot have that any longer.

The Seahawks need to get back to the team they once were when they physically bullied others with defense, an intensely tough ground attack, and playmaking quarterback on a rookie contract. I need dudes who are horses and elephants and grizzly bears up front. I need Dan Campbell knee biters.

I also need coaches who will mandate physical dominance. I need that staff to demand excellence at the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball, and a physical style from all the skill position players equally, as well. I need fundamentally sound football drilled into these dudes so much that they dream about tackling grannies at grocery stores just for sickly dark humor.

I do not feel that from this coaching staff on any level. Maybe it starts and stops with Carroll, and it is time for him to walk away, or maybe he just hasn’t surrounded himself with the right coordinators. Either way, something has got to give. Realistically, I don’t know if Jody Allen fires Carroll after year two of the post Russell Wilson rebuild, but perhaps I underestimate that.

Watching this defense lose its will to fight against an average Steeler team last Sunday was beyond damning, in my mind. It looked like they plainly stopped fighting for Carroll, and it was an absolute embarrassment. If they bring the same flat performance to Phoenix against the Cardinals, then perhaps it is time for Jody to act in a sweeping manner.

On one hand, it feels unfair to fire Carroll during an injury plagued year with a tough schedule, but on the other hand, teams like the Bengals and Browns have lost all kinds of starters (including their quarterbacks), and are competing better for the playoffs. These Seahawks have lost games due to inept coaching, bad scheming, and embarrassing fundamentals more than lack of talent on the field, in my opinion. Now it feels like perhaps players aren’t even playing hard.

If players aren’t fighting for their coach, then something has to give. Either change the players or change the coach. This is what Jody Allen needs to decide if Seattle lays another egg this Sunday. For me, I think it’s easier to change the coaching.

I could go on and on about the things I want for this team. I want better coaching and I am actually fantasying about nutcase Jim Harbaugh taking over, if Carroll can no longer cut it. I want a bright young playmaking quarterback to build around. I need a powerful offensive line. I need an intimidating defense. What I really circle back to is that I just need this team to be exactly like the Ravens.

The Ravens had Joe Flacco at QB, and decided to spend a late first round pick on the raw but talented Lamar Jackson, anyways. The Ravens constantly draft offensive and defensive linemen in abundance. The Ravens pay good money for top free agents offensive and defensive linemen, as well. The Ravens also do not spend second round picks on running backs in back to back years. The Ravens change coordinators when they are stuck in ruts to where the team just isn’t advancing far enough with the talent it has.

This is what I crave. I don’t just want greatness. I need greatness born out of total physical domination. I want to break the wills of players, not watch the will of my defense fly out the window because Mike Tomlin simply decides to stay with his run game.

Yeah. How could you not want this for the Seahawks?

Why not just do whatever to be the biggest and baddest ever? Is this not what football is about????

Or are we just going to give out orange slices every time Tyler Lockett catches a pretty pass from Geno Smith that temporarily elevates our hopes. If this is what we have become as a fanbase, then yeah, sell your tickets off to 49er fans when their team comes up to play because we have all totally lost our edge, and the Seahawks have clearly become a joke again.

For my part, I want the edge back. I need nasty. I need to feel a team that I can be really proud to root for.

This year, I have really struggled to find that sort of pride for the Hawks. Deep down, I punted on this season the moment we got swept by the mediocre Rams and had to then face the dominating 49ers twice. I am positive many other fans did, as well.

If these Seahawks were more like the Ravens, however, I would deeply feel pride. I think most other fans would, as well, and perhaps Lumen Field would be better packed with Seahawk fans instead of traveling ones. This whole enchilada would be fun again, instead of an exercise of constant, unrelenting frustration of bad football fundamentals, bad clock management, and bad schematics.

It is just a thought, anyways.

Go Hawks.

Ah, what’s a matter, Twelves? Santa didn’t give your team a blowout win on the road over the Tennessee Titans? Just got another nail biter victory, instead?

Well, what on Sweet Baby Jesus’s Earth did you think was going to happen? Have you not learned a solitary thing about these 2023 Seahawks, yet?

Wins are not going to be easy. No fricking way. These Seahawks aren’t talented enough to bury a lot of inferior opponents right now, and I am not so sure they are always schemed the right way, either. Because of this, I think they can make games harder than they need to be.

They are showing some interesting late season resiliency, though, with late scoring come from behind victories against a good Eagles team, and then a not so good Titans team. With this latest win against Tennessee, I feel it is increasingly likely that they will secure a playoff spot, but they have two games left to stress all of us out in the process.

So, buckle yo’ selves ups, Buttercups. These Seahawk games are not going to be for the queasy.

I know what a lot of reactions and mood meters are for a lot of Seahawk fans. I suspect many aren’t impressed that they are climbing out of the four game losing streak hole they dug for themselves. Never you mind that two of those losses came against San Francisco, who are playing above and beyond any other team in football right now, and then narrow losses on the road against Dallas and the LA Rams, who are both in the playoff picture, as well.

Nah, I think many Seahawk fans need those style points. I’m sure many thought this game in Tennessee was supposed to be easy even though Tennessee has one of the best defensive lines in football and a run game that can pose a problem to Seattle’s spotty hybrid defensive scheme.

It is easy for folks to look at records of opponents and chalk up wins before games are even played, but they often fail to respect the truth of a seemingly weaker opponent. The truth of the Titans is that two weeks ago they traveled to Miami and beat the Dolphins on the road. The Dolphins might be the third best team in football right now behind the 49ers and Ravens.

So, I for one, did not think this was going to be an easy game for Seattle. I thought the Titans would be playing with something to prove. I felt a trap game, and Seattle has given me little reason to think they wouldn’t potentially fall victim to it. They narrowly did, but then they showed resilience for the second game in the row.

In doing that, it amuses me how much the outcome mirrored last Monday Night Football’s against the Eagles, but this time around, it was Geno Smith leading the team for a late go ahead touchdown. I could feel the hoards of fans laboring through most of the game that Drew Lock should have been the starter, but Geno stepped up and delivered two big time fourth quarter touchdown passes that put his team up twice.

For all the Geno haters out there on social media, forums, and sports radio, Geno Smith now leads the league in game winning drives this year. He has four of them, and he had done this while missing two games as a starter.

I revel in this fact. I soak in its bath water.

Gee, I thought the whole big argument from Geno Smith haters is that he is not capable of such feats on the field. Turns out that he very much is, and is currently best in the league at it this year. Guess they are going to have to find another reason why Pete Carroll is a moron for starting him over Drew Lock.

Seattle may have numerous issues preventing them from being a true Super Bowl contender this year, but I do not think quarterback is one of them. If Geno Smith had the offensive line that Lamar Jackson has in Baltimore, or Brock Purdy does in San Francisco, I think we would be celebrating this offense A LOT MORE. If Geno Smith was on a team that truly had a defense capable of making a good offense one dimensional, I think this team would be better at fighting San Francisco for this division. He has neither of these things.

If Seattle is going to fight their way into the playoffs, they will be doing it with a journeyman center, a raw rookie right guard, and a defensive scheme that perhaps plays too varied with an aging middle linebacker who is not the player he once way in coverage. They will be doing it playing more out of shotgun than perhaps they should in order to best utilize Jaxon Smith Njigba, Type Lockett, and DK Metcalf over a potentially potent run game with Ken Walker and Zach Charbonnet.

Therefore, each game is going to be an adventure. I don’t expect the Steelers to be easy next week at Lumen Field, and I don’t imagine the Cardinals are going to lay down in Arizona afterwards. While it is possible Seattle wins out, it’s far from a given.

So, I am just going to enjoy these final couple games and hope for the best for Seattle. I would love to see them back in the playoffs, but I’m not punching any ticket anytime soon.

That said, I sense a vibe with this team that does make me increasingly hopeful they will find themselves in the post season. I sense a resiliency vibe brewing now.

I think they are getting timely play from key starters. I get frustrated with Shane Waldron’s play calling still, but I can see some light at the end of the tunnel for the offense when all I saw a few weeks ago was darkness. I don’t love the varied scheme Clint Hurtt runs with this defense, but I can see positive trends there, as well. I think a lot of this is the players responding positively on both sides of the ball recently.

I think DK Metcalf is stepping up more when he needs to do it. As is Tyler Lockett, and K9, and JSN. These are the top playmakers for this offense, and I sense them all coming on together.

I think Julian Love is becoming an interesting playmaker on defense, and Qunadre Diggs seems to be coming around. I think Seattle’s defensive line is finally gelling better now with Leonard Williams, Jarran Reed, Boye Mafe, and Dre’Mont Jones all coming on together. I think this defense has a chance to get better these last two games if they get Devon Witherspoon back.

On Christmas Day, I have optimism for my Seattle Seahawks. I will take that gift.

If it is not universally shared with all Seahawk fans, I get it. Some need style points. Some are exhausted of a 14 year run by Pete Carroll where all they see is trends of inconsistencies, lack of discipline, and lack of prior dominance.

I think it’s fair game to criticize this team, and I, for one, do not believe in holding back on it, myself. I just look at this whole landscape of the NFC, and I wonder who the class of the division is outside of San Francisco.

For as much as you want to bemoan how difficult these wins are for Seattle, and how disappointing some of the losses have been, Seattle has beaten the NFC North leading Detroit Lions, the playoff bound Philadelphia Eagles, the likely playoff bound Cleveland Browns, and they narrowly lost to the Cowboys, Rams, and Bengals who are all in the playoff mixes. I think that is worth keeping in mind.

I mean, is Seattle really that much different than most of the top competition?

I would argue that they are not, and there is only one or two teams in the entirety of football that is dominant, and those would be San Francisco and Baltimore.

Seattle won this game in Tennessee without their best player on defense in Witherspoon, and without their best linebacker in Jordyn Brooks. They won it with a spotty offensive line going up against one of the better defensive fronts in football.

I will take this victory, absolutely. Stats are for losers, and style points are for whiners. Just give me the W. I will take that every single time.

Merry Christmas!