Observations From Training Camp Fuel My Seahawk Hopes And Dreams

Posted on July 28, 2024 by curtiseastwood

This is my good friend Ashley. Look how goofy this stoned assed motherf***er is!

We had so much fun from the berm watching training camp this weekend. I enjoyed watching tight spirals, and he enjoyed watching a couple middled aged bar hags in Daisey Dukes sitting ten feet away from us.

I got a lot of thoughts to tie into this. So, barrel down, Snowflakes. I am giving it to you straight.

Let me start this whole thing off by saying that I am not going to be delusional and proclaim that the Seattle Seahawks are going to be a top contending team this year. I think they can be a surprise team, and if they can stay healthy enough, I can see them back in the playoffs in Mike Macdonald’s first year as head coach, possibly wrecking the joy of other fanbases.

To say that the new schemes could uncork exciting potentials on this roster is an understatement. I felt all of last year that Seattle had talent on their roster that was not being maximized. What I viewed on the berm felt like a very positive step forward for a lot of those players.

I saw a lot of encouraging signs on Saturday that suggested to me they are on track to be that sort of team.

That said, there still exists a couple things that prevent me from fully buying into them becoming a truly dominant team this year. It really just boils down to two things.

For one, I believe that they play in one of the toughest divisions in the league with a ridiculously talented team in the Bay Area, a talented Rams team, and a team in Arizona that could be on the rise. While I think it is fool’s gold to buy into any hype that Kyler Murray and the Cardinals are going to finally have their shit together this year, I sense the potential of the Rams being on the upswing again, and the ridiculously talented San Francisco F*ck Faces are going to have all kinds of incentive to win it all this year before they have to pony up to make Brock Purdy the highest paid quarterback in the league in 2025.

The other issue is that, at least on paper, while I see a lot of talent spread across this Seattle roster, I see the wee potential of disaster on their offensive line, and at middle linebacker. In short, having your starting right tackle on the Physically Unable To Perform list at the start of this training camp is not the greatest omen to start things off this Summer. Additionally, Mike Macdonald needs middle linebackers Jerome Baker and Tyrel Dodson to stay healthy this, or we could see him forced to use a raw rookie fourth round pick linebacker starting in meaningful games (more on this rook later).

So, as I sit here and type out my thoughts in anticipation for real NFL football to begin, I got one thing I really need to see out these Seattle Seahawks this year.

I need to see some badass, go for the throat, toughness on both sides of the ball.

They got skill players who will make things interesting in games. I have already written about how I think Geno Smith continues to be vastly underrated as a quarterback. We all know Seattle is pretty loaded at receiver and running back. We know they have pretty good talent at corner, and there is some interesting potential on the defensive line. Barring massive amounts of injuries accruing at these spots, we should see Seattle hang with teams this year.

But I need to see a tough, aggressive, badass mentality like we haven’t seen here in a really long ass time.

Here are some of the impressions I came away with from what I saw at practice this Saturday from my seat on the berm that give me hope that Seattle can, in fact, be a pretty damn badass team this year, if they can stay relatively healthy enough.

Watching Geno Smith run this Ryan Grubb coached offense made me feel like I was watching Michael Penix Junior in the Washington Husky offense from the past two years. In fact, Geno looked just like a right handed version of Penix, and this should excite most Seahawk fans.

He was in full command of this attack, throwing perfect spirals to spots on the field where his receiver could easily catch against good coverages. Just like watching Penix in college, Geno wasn’t tossing easy gimme throws, either, but rather putting great passes downfield into windows. Everything from him was pretty damn crisp. This was a lot of fun to watch.

Barring injury, Seattle feels like they have not only their quarterback for now, but it feels possible that they got their guy for a good while, as well. I write this as a person who has been somewhat reluctant to say that Geno can be the long term fixture here, too, but after seeing it in person, I am more sold on Geno than ever. I never seen him look this sharp in Shane Waldron’s offense at this stage of training camp. I’m sold.

In terms of Sam Howell, from what I saw on Saturday, he looked much better than I was anticipating based on negative reviews through the first view days of camp when he apparently struggled. To my eye, he looked interesting, but I think we need to make important distinctions between him and Geno Smith in order to gain a realistic grasp of the Seattle QB situation.

For me, Sam and Geno are two very different styled quarterbacks and it almost isn’t fair to compare them. In fact, they are so different that I think each requires their own specific offense tailored to each of them.

Geno is a classic, tall, drop back passer who works well inside a pocket, but has enough athleticism to make plays outside the pocket, as well. He seems tailor made for the play-calling Grubb used at Washington that took the Huskies to the national title game. Penix was often compared to Geno and now I see why.

Sam, on the other hand, being shorter, I feel needs to be more on the move to find his groove (a la Russell Wilson). He threw on the run well on Saturday, at times, but the times he stayed in the pocket, it felt like he was a bit more hesitant. If Seattle were to operate out of a run heavy play action offense that used a bunch roll outs, I think Sam would be a natural fit for that style of attack. That’s not the Ryan Grubb offense we saw at Washington, however, and I think that if Geno were to get injured to the point of missing a view games, it would be up to Grubb to adjust his attack to better fit Howell.

I still like Howell as a developmental player, but I don’t see this as any contest between him and Geno Smith right now, and now I actually wonder if he would be better served in a different offense, elsewhere. I also wonder whether Seattle should look to the draft to find someone more with Geno’s attributes to groom behind him, eventually, if the Grubb Attack is something they want to ride with as their offensive identity, long term.

These are just my initial thoughts on the QB front for Seattle. Onto some other cool things.

Seattle is loaded with ridiculous levels of talent at receiver, Grubb appears ready to maximize it, and teams with iffy pass defenses are totally going to get royally hosed when they have to play them this year. Jaxon Smith Njigba feels extra in this offense, and DK Metcalf is about to do things that I don’t even want to spoil on this blog. Tyler Lockett had the day off, but depth players like Jake Bobo, Easop Winston, and Dareke Young stepped up and looked sharp. There are good players on this unit who will not make this team, and should probably end up on other rosters.

Ken Walker, Zach Charbonnet, and Kenny McIntosh should show big as runners, and receivers. K9 will probably be the star, but he will be complimented with rock solid talents mixing in behind him. Expect Seattle to use these backs in ways very foreign to what we have been used to in the fourteen years under Pete Carroll. Just wait for it.

Defensively, it felt like players got some good pressures on a few occasions, and I enjoyed seeing that. I think Jarran Reed, Uchenna Nwosu, and rookie Byron Murphy all got pressures for would be sacks (can’t hit QBs in practice), along with undrafted rookie Nelson Ceasar (badass name, by the way), but it was interesting to hear Coach Macdonald say after practice that the pass rush isn’t where they would like it to be at this point.

I wasn’t as alarmed by this as much as I was excited. Macdonald is going to run this side of the ball with very high standards, and I am more than here for seeing the defensive line continually coached up.

They will be coached harder than they likely ever were before in their lives. In that process, they will uncork their chemistry. I have no doubt about that. There is a lot of potential within the defensive tackles and edge rushers to be really, really good this year.

To the naked eye, I expect second year edge rusher Derrick Hall, in particular, to take a big step forward. His bend around the corner seems noticeably evolved from last year, and it stood out at practice.

I thought rookie linebacker Tyrice Knight looked surprising good in coverages, at times. I recall when he was drafted in the fourth round, a few folks labeled that a painful reach. He looks like he belongs in this defense, however, and perhaps this is the biggest reason why we haven’t seen the team make a move to add an addition veteran middle linebacker. Fingers crossed he continues to trend well through training camp and preseason games.

I thought cornerback Lance Boykin looked like he belonged, as well. Boykin was a bottom of the roster player last year who might make things interesting as camp progresses. He is a longer player who found himself well in position at times to make things harder on the quarterback. Make a mental note on him as you watch preseason games.

I really liked how cornerback Tre Brown looked in practice. Seattle feels like it has enough quality depth at corner where I wouldn’t be surprised if we see a trade happen in a few weeks time.

In terms of negatives, I can’t think of a lot. Training camp felt very crisp for the most part.

It was very interesting that they brought talented free agent center Connor Williams in for a workout earlier this week, and are reportedly discussing a contract with him. Given the way the offensive line gave up a few inside pressures, it scans more now. They might see a genuine opportunity to further fortify themselves on the interior of the offensive line.

I would love to see this deal get done. If they cannot rely on Abe Lucas to play a full season, and George Fant is likely going to see a lot of time at right tackle, and McClendon Curtis (massive f’ing dude) is going to be looked at more as a backup tackle than guard, the trickle down effect from this is going to impact the interior depth of the offensive line. That’s not great for an attack that probably wants to beat defenses from the pocket more now than at any point since the Mike Holmgren era.

Getting Williams to lock down center would allow Olu Oluwatimi to serve as a valuable swing interior player who can play center, and potentially kick over to guard. He has enough size to do both.

If they can add a healthy Connor Williams to this offensive line, I am going to go from cautiously optimistic about this team towards being all in on the expectations that they should be a pretty kick-ass this year. This is why I need this deal to get done.

So, just get this motherf***ing deal done, and let’s f’ing go.

Go Hawks!

The Underrated Beauty Of The Seattle Seahawk Quarterbacks

Posted on July 16, 2024 by curtiseastwood

Good lord, I need football back. These dog days of Summer are wearing thin, and if God wanted baseball to be the greatest sport in America, he would have infielders tackling base runners.

So, I need training camp to happen now, and I don’t know about you, but I am kinda more intrigued about the Seattle Seahawks than I have been in many years. Call it Mike Macdonald and his new coaching staff, and the chance for the team to field an exciting new defense. Call it the fact that I think the Seahawks are more talented than some national projections are indicating, and I am ready for them to be a surprise team.

Call it the fact that I think their quarterback situation is one of the more underrated ones in the league, and one that critics are grossly overlooking. Here are my thoughts on that.

There exists perhaps no other position in sports that creates greater division amongst fans than that of the NFL quarterback. Unless your team is blessed with having Patrick Mahomes, or peak Tom Brady, your fanbase is probably somewhat split about the quarterback, even if it’s a slight one.

No other example is better than this than when the Seattle Seahawks had Russell Wilson in his prime. Wilson had fans who were so devoted to him that they wanted to see Pete Carroll canned in favor of a more innovative offensive minded dude. At the same time, Russ also had loud detractors who felt it was a major mistake for the organization to invest so much in him in the first place, and that his sandlot style would only get this team so far. Both fronts were extremely dug in, much like people just are these days (unfortunately).

When it comes to this most important position, this sorta division amongst fans exists all over the league. If team aren’t winning Super Bowls, either expensive quarterbacks get judged with a high degree of scrutiny, or struggling quarterbacks on rookie deals get discarded way too soon.

Dallas fans are probably very split over Dak Prescott, even though he is perfectly in his prime, and was a leading MVP candidate last year. Critics say he doesn’t win enough in the post season, but to that I would say neither did Matthew Stafford when he was in Detroit. Something to keep in mind, if Dak does hit free agency in 2025.

Dolphin fans are probably very torn over Tua even though he is one of the most efficient quarterbacks in the league. Charger fans (if there are any), might start losing patience in Justin Herbert if Jim Harbaugh doesn’t get that team off to a fast start.

If the Eagles don’t have a big bounce back season, Jalen Hurts will surely be further scrutinized after he signed his mega contract. So will Lamar Jackson, if the Ravens don’t make a deep playoff run.

If the Buffalo Bills and the Cincinnati Bengals disappoint again, the narratives around Josh Allen and Joe Burrow will start to shift, just you wait. Two years ago, these two guys were thought of as the second and third best passers in the league. Now there are slight murmurings of either regression (Allen) or injury proneness (Burrow).

Also, pressure is going to be on Doug Pederson in Jacksonville to get that team back in the playoffs with Trevor Lawrence. It won’t be enough to make the playoffs, either, as fans are going to need to see Lawrence finally playing at a high level after they just penned him to his monster deal.

And mark my words on this; with perhaps the most talented team in the entire NFL, if the San Francisco 49ers don’t win the Super Bowl this year, you will see division amongst 49er fans as to whether the team should make Brock Purdy one of the richest quarterbacks in the league at the expense of breaking up that roster. It will happen. The pressure on that team to win it all this year (or next) will be like no other pressure in the league.

Then you have this somewhat curious, and under the radar situation wedged up here in the Pacific Northwest with the Seattle Seahawks, and Geno Smith, and Sam Howell.

If you are a big time talking head for EPSN, or Fox Sports, I imagine it is easy to forget about who Seattle even has as a starter even though Geno Smith was the NFL Comeback Player of the Year two years ago, and has been a Pro Bowl player in most recent back to back years. Geno isn’t a superstar veteran, nor is he a young gun with youthful upside generating interesting talking points. He was a fun novelty story two years ago when he beat out Drew Lock for the starter gig and played much better than everyone expected, but novelties wear off quickly.

Way up here amongst the Twelves, however, Geno has both his highly devoted fans, and sharp critics, as any second tier starter would. He has football film junky fans who believe he is solidly a top ten quarterback, and he has some extreme critics who think he is so bad that he is holding this team back (what is it about our society that few people can ever find a solid middle ground anymore?).

In terms of Sam Howell, while perhaps most fans probably see him as nothing more than a backup, there are some NFL insiders who believe in his potential to develop into a quality starter given his youth, strong arm, playmaking potential, and toughness. Count me in with the few who see sunnier horizons with him down the road.

Both of these quarterbacks I find interesting, to be honest.

With Geno, I’ve always liked him as far back as his college days in West Virginia. He threw then, and still throws to this day, one of the prettiest downfield passes that you will see. Give him time, and a proper scheme, and Geno can deliver positive results.

I would say that if Seattle had at least a competent defensive coordinator last year, with Geno’s late season play, they would have probably won that shoot out match in Dallas, and taken that game at home a few weeks later against the Steelers, ended up 11-6, and in the playoffs. Perhaps they would have met another quick exit, but we would still be talking about Pete Carroll coaching this team today.

This is what I believe Geno Smith is good for as the QB1 for this team with this talent, and now perhaps better competency on this coaching staff. 11-6, and a playoff run, and likely another Pro Bowl nod. Geno Smith feels destined to be the new Kansas City Chief version of Alex Smith. I will take that.

He’s a stable veteran presence who understands NFL defenses, and how to attack them. He has a strong, accurate arm, and enough athleticism to extend plays under pressure, which is kinda what you’re hoping for in this modern league of football. Most importantly, he still has a feisty chip on his shoulder to continue proving detractors wrong.

When I look at all of these variables, and the fact that new offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb is installing an offense tailor made for his exact skillsets, I honestly laugh at Geno’s critics, and how they are overlooking him Seattle. Former Washington State local kid Colin Cowherd can dismiss Geno Smith as much as he feels like he needs to do it, but I would be perfectly willing to bet that Geno finds more success this year in this offense than he has had the last two years with Shane Waldron calling plays, barring injury.

In fact, I think Seattle is poised to catch the league off guard, and I am here for it.

Nobody knows what this team will be in terms of schemes. Grubb has already said that he’s going to change it up a bit from what he did for the Washington Huskies. With Mike McDonald building his defense, he has continued to say that he is going to morph the scheme towards the strengths of the players on this roster, so it stands to reason that simply looking at Baltimore tape over the past two years may not be enough for Sean McVay or Kyle Shanahan.

While it might be really easy to write off Geno Smith and the Seattle Seahawks from an outsider’s perspective, the truth of the matter is that Seattle has the distinct advantage of the unknown in this league. This is the same unknown that rookie head coach Sean McVay had in LA back in 2016 when he inherited a young talented roster that was a hot mess because of the previous coaching staff.

General Manager John Schneider is banking on the innovative and analytic mind of McDonald coming in to take the league by storm. It’s not unreasonable to imagine seeing positive results in year one of his regime, either.

Some NFL insiders see Seattle’s defensive roster as having perhaps better overall talent on it than what McDonald had in Baltimore when he took over their defense two years ago. On offense, while the offensive line feels suspect, they are littered with skill players. Grubb’s DNA is coaching up good offensive lines, so all he needs to do is to improve that unit towards the middle of the pack, and Seattle can probably let it loose on teams.

I feel confidence in this scenario because of Geno Smith. I think Seattle can win games this year because of him, not inspite of him. You are free to scoff at this suggestion. I am free to hold receipts of doubters.

Onto Sam Howell.

I’m intrigued!

Heading into the 2021 college football season, Sam Howell was projected to potentially be the first overall pick of the NFL draft that following Spring. Scouts loved his arm strength, his ability to extend plays with his legs, and throw on the run. Some felt he had a Brett Farve vibe about him with the toughness that he played with. Toughness was the first thing John Schneider mentioned about Sam after they made the trade for him.

The 2021 season didn’t bode well for Sam after a very promising 2020 sophomore campaign that saw him as a Manning Award finalist. Having lost talent around him, his numbers dipped in competition percentage, touchdowns, yardage, and his interceptions trended up.

Then at the NFL combine, he ran a much slower than expected forty yard dash. Being a bit shorter at 6-1, a slower forty can be detrimental to a passer’s draft stock, especially if that dude didn’t live up to the hype during his last season of college football (Brock Purdy is the same height and didn’t put up impressive testing numbers at the combine, either, and was the last player drafted).

Because of all these factors, sure enough, Sam Howell fell to round five where Washington took a flyer on him, and Purdy to the bottom of round seven. I think it is reasonable to assert that Purdy fell to the perfect team who’s situation was unsettled enough at quarterback for him to step forward. I think it’s also reasonable to assert that Howell fell into a situation in DC that was an absolute clown circus from the top down.

Personally, at the time, I thought Howell was a good pickup for the Commanders. I was honestly expecting Seattle to grab in round three, much like they did with Russell Wilson. In fact, he was the one QB in that draft who had the most Wilson-esque vibes to me; a pure passer, with a big arm, who could buy time, and make plays with his legs.

In fact, when the Commanders came into Seattle last November, Sam Howell scared the crap out of me during that game. He wasn’t intimidated playing in front of a large loud crowd. He showed toughness and resourcefulness, and he made necessary plays that almost pulled out an upset.

So, I wasn’t surprised at all that Seattle made this move for him. In fact, I had suggested this very idea on this blog a few weeks before it went down. I loved the move then, and I like it even more now.

The cost of getting Sam Howell was peanuts for this team, and he has two years left on his rookie contract to see what they can develop with him behind Geno Smith. I think he’s potentially a great fit for what Ryan Grubb likes to do with his quarterbacks, too.

What Sam needs to do is demonstrate full command of the playbook, make smart, decisive decisions with the ball, and get the hero ball mentality out of his game. That’s the hurtle he needs to clear to become a quality starter. By what he has said in interviews, he seems very determined to prove that he can do exactly that, and he has the benefit of having some time to grow within this offensive scheme to do so.

So, while it is easy to look at his up and down stats with Washington in 2023, and believe he’s not the quarterback in the future here, I think it’s well worth considering that it was his first season starting in the league, and his results were not dissimilar to numerous first time starters of yesteryear; a list that would include Peyton Manning, Brett Farve, Drew Brees, and Josh Allen. There are other circumstances surrounding his year starting in DC that I think are well worth considering, as well.

Sam Howell was purposefully thrown into the fire as a starter. He wasn’t protected by any sort of balanced attack with a run game. In fact, he threw at a higher volume than any other QB in the league, and most of those throws came off of straight drop backs without the threat of handing the ball off with play action. He started out the season in a promising way, but it all came crashing down in a dismal way by December.

It was like Washington’s agenda was to make it as difficult as it could possibly be for him to see if he could rise above the flaming pits of Hell itself before deciding to go into the following draft targeting a quarterback. He wasn’t protected by any quarterback friendly system like Purdy enjoys in San Francisco. He wasn’t even protected the way Russell Wilson was his rookie year in Seattle with a scheme that leaned heavy on the run, either. Nope, instead, Washington decided to throw him into a pit of hungry wolves with a stick of driftwood to see if he could fight his way out.

Because of this bullshit handling of Howell in DC, I have a strong rooting interest in him now in Seattle, even more so than just than a hopeful shot at nothing to see if we have found our next long term starter. There are a lot of variables that I love to see in a quarterback, but perhaps my favorite is the natural sense of toughness and resolve to battle through adversity. If Sam Howell makes something for himself down the road in Seattle, it will be because of those very traits.

When you look at Seattle’s long history at quarterback, Howell finding success here feels perfectly on brand for this team from Jim Zorn, to Dave Krieg, Jon Kitna, Matt Hasslebeck, Russell Wilson, and Geno Smith. This team finds its quarterbacks under rocks while other teams blow first round picks on them (see New York Jets).

Ultimately, I want Sam Howell to push Geno Smith. I think it’s best for the team if he does this, and I think there’s a very reasonable to expect that it makes Geno better because of it.

After all, Geno didn’t struggle for years trying to convince a coaching staff to believe in him after his flame out with the Jets, only to finally get a QB1 gig again, make the Pro Bowl in back to back years, and then be automatically replaced in the second year of his extension here. He is going to be more determined than ever to prove himself all over again to Macdonald and Ryan Grubb. Bank on that.

This is why I believe it is fool’s gold to think Howell could usurp him this year with this staff. I just think it is more likely that Geno is going to be too good through camp to beat out. He won’t be outworked in this camp.

Why am I so confident in projecting al of this?

Because Sam Howell isn’t going to just idle back, either, and just accept the backup role out of the gates. He had last year to taste the QB1 role in DC, and he didn’t likely endure being thrown into a den of hungry wolves just to wilt into a backup role somewhere else. For the first time in ages, we might actually see iron sharpening iron at the most important position for this team. I can not wait for this.

I am very good with riding with Geno this season (and next year if he balls out big time). I will be honest, however, and say that I am ultimately more intrigued with Sam Howell, given his youth and upside as a potential long term starter.

Right now, the best thing for Sam is to show these coaches and players he’s well worth developing. He does that by showing solid through training camp and preseason games, and continuing to push Geno through the course of the season. He does this by being serious minded, digging deep into the playbook, and studying his ass off looking at tape against opponents. It’s his job to make this quarterback room in Seattle an outstanding one by becoming the best backup in the league.

However this QB situation ultimately shakes out long term, for now, I am just excited to see what this team can be in 2024. I’m feeling a lot of rosy optimism creeping in.

I think they are well positioned to surprise people. I see all the disrespect floating out there, projecting them to either be in third or fourth place within the division. I cannot help but laugh at it all. Hubris is naturally a very funny thing.

It was just the other month when Colin Cowherd called them a talented team without a quarterback. He then went on local airwaves and plainly stated his disbelief in Geno Smith, saying that he is essentially the same guy who flamed out years ago with the Jets, even though Geno has been a Pro Bowler in consecutive seasons, and quarterbacked this team to nine wins in back to back years with good efficiency numbers, all the while having to endure horrible schemes on both sides of the ball.

I can never tell what motivates Cowherd as a talking head, whether because he is from the State of Washington, he feels like he purposefully has to detach himself from the Seahawks with any sort of rooting interest, or if he just simply doesn’t care about sports in the region he grew up on because that doesn’t feed his brand, or if he just simply doesn’t track the teams up here because he’s a big shot down in LA rubbing elbows with the stars. Who knows, but I do know one thing; anyone watching Geno Smith on Sundays over the past two years calling him the same exact player he was with the Jets is a certifiable lunatic, and their opinions should not be trusted. It’s that plain and simple.

Could I be wrong on this stuff with Geno and could Colin Cowherd be correct?

Sure, anything is possible. Maybe Geno, with all of his experiences and life lessons, reverts back to when he was 24 years old and was a loose cannon trying to play hero ball.

I don’t think I’m going to be wrong, though. I think Cowherd is going to be eating crow once again regarding his “home team.”

The Seattle Seahawks have enough interesting talent on both sides of the ball for a seasoned, mature quarterback with a good arm and accuracy step in and find success this year, even if this division is a tough one. This team is built for a guy like Geno to guide it now. This is what I believe.

And that is what I think we are going to see.

Go Hawks.

Seahawks Building Necessary Toughness Through The Draft, Finally

Posted on April 29, 2024 by curtiseastwood

After sitting through three full days of NFL draft, I had to take a breather to let it settle in. Seattle made early picks that made me jump through the metaphorical rooftop with excitement, and then they went decidedly less flashy on day three of the event. In order to avoid writing a knee jerk reaction to them taking a linebacker in round four that some experts were anticipating would go later, I needed to see Mike Macdonald talk about him in his post draft press conference. Frankly, I needed time to sit with all of their moves.

I am not one to overly question an NFL coach or general manager’s decision on a player taken in the draft, so pardon me if I am not going to be nearly as critical as some of the other super fans and bloggers might chose to be. If Sean Payton believes Bo Nix is his guy to lead Denver to a Super Bowl, more power to him.

So, in terms of Seattle, at the end of the day, I am more willing to defer to a bright young head coach who just coached the best defense in the league last year, and a dude who has been a general manager of a Super Bowl winning program than I am some other dude on Twitter X who “knows some ball” and has an exorbitant to amount to spare time to watch game tape on 250 draft eligible players. That is just me, however. You do you however you see fit.

That said, as the dust of this draft has settled upon the Seattle Seahawks, I see a clear vision for professional football in the Pacific Northwest moving forward. As I have sat back watching the first two days of this draft, anxiously anticipating what Seattle might do in year one of the Mike Macdonald regime, I kept being struck by thought after each of their two selections. It pretty much reads as follows.

“Holy shit, the Seattle Seahawks are finally drafting badass players in the trenches.”

I do not mean to use this piece as a means to trash the Pete Carroll era, but I cannot shake the undeniable feeling that the Seattle Seahawks are finally doing something fans have long been pining for. They are drafting for impact on the interior of the offensive and defensive lines. This is my biggest take away out of this draft class for Seattle.

In two days, Seattle drafted the best defensive tackle in the draft, a guy who somewhat compares to Aaron Donald, Geno Atkins, and Grady Jarrett, and then they took an All-American guard who Pro Football Focus rated as a top fifty player at Pick 81, and who many described as the best pure guard in the draft. Byron Murphy and Christian Haynes, alone, have made this draft a huge success, in my humblest opinion. These are talented, explosive big men with aggressive mindsets. When you factor in that Leonard Williams is essentially their second round pick, it becomes undeniably easy to see a sharp contrast to a Pete Carroll style draft.

This is just my take on the Pete Carroll era now looking at it in further hindsight in comparison with this new regime. It feels like perhaps the biggest difference between what the Macdonald Seahawks will prioritize to what Carroll preferred, is building a team from the inside out on the line of scrimmage.

It feels like Carroll always preferred to emphasis talent on the perimeters. If they were to go with a lineman early, Carroll preferred taking an offensive tackle, or a defensive end. Guards and defensive tackles were most often found in later rounds or bargain shopping through free agency. Carroll also seemed to place a high importance on collecting wide receivers with high picks, safeties, linebackers, and running backs while other organizations would value these players later on.

This is just year one for Macdonald, but it is clear he values top end talent at interior positions. Here is the stark contrast between Carroll’s first draft in 2010 and Macdonald’s in 2024. The first two picks for Carroll where offensive tackle Russell Okung and then free safety Earl Thomas. Macdonald’s are DT Byron Murphy, and guard Christian Haynes. Macdonald didn’t even bother with taking a safety even though it was considered by many fans as a position of need.

For many long suffering Seattle fans, this potential shift in philosophy will be seen as a gigantic blessing. After years of watching the Rams come up to Seattle and harass the Seahawks with Aaron Donald, Seattle now as a defensive tackle who loosely comps to him, and they added a guard who will take to defensive tackles instead of sitting back passively waiting for them to come to him.

Mike Macdonald doesn’t appear to be a coach willing to live with hubris up front, believing that his coaches can coach up marginal talent inside. He is looking for top end talent there. He wants punch you in the mouth football. We should all be elated.

This is the Baltimore Ravens way. This is the Harbaugh Brothers mentality. This, I believe, is going to be the biggest distinction between what a Mike Macdonald team will be to what a Pete Carroll one was. Fans, like myself, who loved Carroll’s quirky personality and Ted Lasso like demeanor might find themselves in a bit of a culture shock looking at Macdonald’s straight forward no-nonsense way, but I think most fans are going to love the results of what they will eventually see on the field on Sundays, if Macdonald’s vision is carried out. I think it will be.

The Seattle Seahawks are determined to become a bully team again. This is what Macdonald said in response to what they were looking for when taking Murphy and Haynes.

“A style of play that no one wants to play (against), that’s what we are aiming for. That’s our standard of how we play football, and if you want to play here, you’re going to have to play a certain way. Those are a type of guys we’re bringing in.”

That sure does sound a lot like those old 49er teams coached by Jim Harbaugh, and that Michigan team that just beat the crap out of the Huskies in the National Championship game. That sounds a lot like classic Baltimore Raven style football, too.

God bless all of this. In the blustery wet weather that November and December can bring into Lumen Field on Sundays, this is the style of football that I most want to see moving forward.

Collecting big men didn’t stop on Friday either. On Saturday, day three of the draft, the Seahawks took two other big offensive linemen. In the sixth round, they took massive Utah guard/tackle Sataoa Laumea (a guy I thought they might take in round four), and then they grabbed small school offensive tackle Michael Jerrell who has an athletic upside that is described as exciting by many.

Sign me up for both of these players. Give me a big mauling guard who played for the one PAC 12 program that was determined to play SEC style football for years. With their last pick, take a flyer on a guy who played at Findlay who has high athletic upside and dominated against small school programs.

I trust O line coach Scott Huff (formerly of the Washington Husky program and who coached the best offensive line in America last year) in having a good read on Laumea, who he saw play against UW on numerous occasions. Huff probably has a pretty good idea how to work with him. I also trust him in seeing some good clay to mold with Jerrell (a la George Fant), as well.

In a draft that was widely regarded as uniquely deep with offensive linemen, Seattle grabbed three of them. I had written a few times about my desire to see Seattle do something like this, and they did. In hindsight, I couldn’t be more happier. Seattle needs to build its depth here, and they appear focused on doing that.

I am not going to bother with grading this draft for them. I think draft grades are ridiculous, and in a few years, we will see how good this class actually is, but I would be willing to give them an A for effort going after the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball. That effort alone means something to me. It shows me where their priorities lay.

Going after a high impact defensive tackle to pair with Leonard Williams is huge for this team. Getting a guard who is viewed as a day one starter in the third round is also an enormous success. Beyond that, you are free to nitpick it however you choose, if you had a favorite player in rounds four and five sitting there who they didn’t take.

In my view, rounds four through seven, teams are largely looking at depth players who could develop into starters. This is where they took Anthony Bradford and Olu Oluwatimi last year, and they just grabbed Laumea and Jerrell. If Seattle can unearth two quality starters out of these four offensive linemen, that’s going to be a big win for this program. They might, especially with Scott Huff now here to take over coaching up the offensive line.

This league is filled with quality guards and centers who were drafted in the later rounds. Of this group, I really like Oluwatimi’s chances a lot, and I am still really intrigued with the high upside of Bradford. I like Laumea as a player to perhaps push Bradford.

Schneider mentioned this the other day, and I think it holds true. Often times, the better offensive lines we see in the league are not loaded with high drafted players. They might have a couple high round picks, but they often filled with a bunch of guys who have been coached up well, and just have a really good want to in terms of smacking a dude in the mouth, and have a really strong chemistry with each other. This was the Seahawk offensive line in 2005 when they made their first Super Bowl. Walter Jones and Steve Hutchinson were studs, and the other three were quality working class joes.

In their Saturday afternoon press conference, it is fitting that Mike Macdonald and John Schneider wore mechanic shirts with this draft haul. By wearing these shirts, I think they sent a unifying message. They aren’t into flashy. They’re into nasty.

Even in the fourth round, when they took two non offensive or defensive linemen, they grabbed a linebacker who was a tackling demon in FBS football last year, and they grabbed a Michigan tight end who is being compared to Will Dissly. Both of these dudes are tough guys looking to lay hits either as a run stopper or a run blocker.

Tyrice Knight was a player I mocked to Seattle in the later rounds, so I was not too terribly shocked to see them take him earlier. If you want to call that a reach, that is fine. I would just say that Macdonald’s forte is developing linebackers, and Knight was obviously the guy he wanted at Pick 118 over many other linebacker prospects rated higher by the draft media.

I think we should afford Macdonald the benefit of the doubt in seeing specific qualities in Knight that leads him to believe he will become a good player for him in time. He will sit behind two quality veterans in Jerome Baker and Tyrel Dobson learning how to play ‘backer in Macdonald’s scheme like Junior Colson did for Macdonald in Michigan when he was kinda raw. In a scheme that simplifies things for linebackers, I can get behind this pick.

Drafting AJ Barner after Knight shouldn’t be seen that much as a shocker, either. I felt all along Seattle might be looking to add a third tight end. Instead of grabbing more of a pass catching one as I thought maybe they would target, they chose to grab a inline blocking one from Michigan who Macdonald is familiar with, and so is special teams coach Jay Harbaugh over other flashier tight ends with better pass catching reputations.

Barner, however, is also described as an athletic enough guy to have a good feel on route trees and is a capable receiver when called upon. Like Knight, if you want to bemoan this as another reach pick, that is fine. Will Dissly was also taken in round four and was described as a reach. What this pick tells me more than anything else is that under Macdonald, Seattle’s full intention is to run the piss out of the ball. Get ready to order your Seahawk mechanic shirts.

One thing that caught me off guard, however, was seeing Seattle take two cornerbacks on day three. I did four mock draft articles leading up to this three day event, and in none of them did I envision them going cornerback. In fact, I figured they’d go safety.

There were rumors circulating days up to Thursday that Seattle was doing their homework on corners, and might be preparing to take one during round one, but I interpreted it all as smokescreen material. Seattle seemed loaded up at corner, and I did not feel any sort of strong need at the position.

So, I was fairly stunned when Seattle chose to draft Nehemiah Pritchett at the top of the fifth round, and then take his Auburn teammate DJ James in the sixth. I get it that James carried a day two grade with a few analysts, and Pritchett was sorta regarded as a potential third round pick, as well. I can definitely see the value at taking both of these guys where they fell. Pritchett is a long bodied speed demon with decent potential as a cover guy, and James feels like a player who could be a really good nickel player, but Seattle now feels over loaded at nickel. Devon Witherspoon seems to enjoy sliding inside at nickel, and Coby Bryant has also shown to be decent there.

As the dust has settled, I think I understand these selections more. I think Bryant is probably destined to convert fully to the safety position now, and with Michael Jackson Sr and Tre Brown set to become free agents after this coming season, Seattle may have seen opportunities to get out in front of these situations now.

The coaches might also be unsure how well Riq Woolen will convert to this new scheme after a sophomore slump in 2023. That’s also possible, if not altogether worrisome.

So, in our eyes, we might have viewed this as a deep area of the team, but from a coaching standpoint (and a front office one), they might have seen it as an area they specifically wanted to attack in this draft, especially when they saw two talented corners fall further down the pike, and just provided great value. From this perspective, I can get behind these selections.

If I were to critique this draft for Seattle more, I would say it’s a bummer that they didn’t take advantage at the depth of receiver this year with Tyler Lockett getting older. There were numerous talented receivers to be had out of this class, and Seattle didn’t invest.

Maybe this is the Pete Carroll era that I am still attached to, and I am conditioned into feeling the need to draft at this position, but I also like to say go where the strengths of the draft is. Receiver was really strong this year. I would have liked Seattle to have out of this with one.

One area that I am not going to fault this team on, however, is bypassing quarterback for yet another year. I super duper wanted them to draft Michael Penix Junior. I would have been completely comfortable for them trading up for him. I even had a slight interest in them drafting Bo Nix, as well. Spencer Rattler and Michael Pratt never really moved the needle for me, however, and neither did JJ McCarthy, if I am being perfectly honest.

The team already has Sam Howell, and with that trade, he can be included in this draft haul. I am good with seeing what Ryan Grubb might be able to get out of him with two years left on his rookie contract. I believe he has some interesting upside, and now we get to see if that’s the case.

Also, with all six of the projecting first round quarterbacks going in the top twelve, I think the Sam Howell trade, overall, looks really smart for Seattle now. Go get ’em, Sam.

Lastly, in terms of the undrafted rookie free agents that were signed after the conclusion of the draft, I really love that they brought in Washington tight end Jack Westover. I thought maybe he would have been a player they drafted. I think he’s got not only a strong chance at making this team, I think he can have an impact in his rookie year. Grubb knows him, he was productive for Grubb, and I wouldn’t be surprised if they carve out a playmaking H back role for him in this offense moving forward. Last year’s fan favorite of the undrafted rookies was Jake Bobo. This year, it feels destined to become Westover. I love this move.

On the whole, I do love this draft for Seattle. Out of eight picks, they took four linemen, and three of them are interior fellas. That’s outstanding, in my view. The trenches needed to be the main focus, and they were. Bravo.

Seattle has built up their skill position players enough. They have loaded up on talent at receiver, running back, and they have a good tight end. They have a pro bowl quarterback, and a talented enough young gun behind him. They have good offensive tackles and edge rushers. They have good corners.

It was time overdue to focus more inside, and they did that. In the end, I really cannot ask for more than that.

Now, go start beating the crap out of people.

Go Hawks.

Assessing The State Of The 2024 Seattle Seahawks Prior To The NFL Draft

Posted on March 28, 2024 by curtiseastwood

Well, here we stand a few weeks after the initial wave of NFL free agency, and a month before the NFL Draft. Starting next week, I will be doing draft articles with thoughts on what the Seahawks might do to further build back towards being a Super Bowl contender.

The NFL Draft is like Christmas for me. I dork out about it annually, and I look forward each year writing these pieces, but until then, I thought it would be a great idea to examine further the current roster in order to determine how close they are towards legitimate contention, and how they might prioritize this year’s draft class.

The Seattle Seahawks made a wave of moves, mostly either short term two year contracts, or one year “prove it” deals to some proven vets to plug in holes, and a couple bigger moves to keep Leonard Big Cat Williams and Noah Fant on the roster. Curiously, they haven’t done much at the position of guard, their biggest need, and this particular lack of action has been panic inducing for many fans, but I think there is more to come here, and I will touch further on that below.

On the whole, I’m pretty good with all their activities. I love keeping Williams and Fant, I like what they did at linebacker, and I really dig the Sam Howell trade. These were all much needed moves, in my opinion. The real moves to jettison this franchise forward over the next few years is what they do in this draft, however.

In my view, it is the smart teams that remain dedicated to building through the draft, and not get too involved in the crazy money of free agency. Seattle, for the most part, has demonstrated this restraint once again this year. Here is a look of the health of the roster heading towards the draft next month.

Quarterback: Healthy

Say whatever you will about him, most metrics say Geno Smith is a top 15 quarterback in the league, and Seattle has him on an affordable deal in 2024. This is a win. Coach Mike Macdonald has described his desire of having an offense that will power up in the run game, and be explosive off of play action, and build the pocket passing off of that. Geno is a very good play action QB, and a great deep ball passer. I look for him to find success in Ryan Grubb’s offense.

In the wings is young gun Sam Howell who started for the Washington Commanders last year, and Seattle swapped some picks for. Most in the league would probably view Howell as a top backup with some upside to become a regular starter. This is how I see him. Geno is the starter, but Howell has the talent to make things interesting, and he could be the future.

With the trade of Howell, I don’t expect Seattle to draft a quarterback high this year. It was very telling that they traded for him right after offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb attended Bo Nix’s pro day. Grubb also know Michael Penix Junior better than anyone in the league.

Could have Seattle determined that there isn’t much difference between Howell and Nix and Penix? I think that is possible, but Schneider has stated his disappointment in only selecting two QBs in fourteen years. My translation to all of this is that, at some point in the draft, Seattle will select someone to develop behind Howell and Geno Smith. We shall see.

Running Back: Strong

Seattle is blessed with Kenneth Walker and Zach Charbonnet as a one two punch, and I believe Kenny McIntosh has the talent to be a playmaking factor, as well. I think they add a player in this draft, or afterwards in free agency if they don’t make that selection, but I suspect these guys to be the big three.

Walker has all kinds of playmaking abilities as a home run hitter once he hits the open field, but for my money, I am excited to see more of the hammering elements of Charbonnet this year. He feels like a classic Baltimore Ravens back with shades of Chris Carson and Marshawn Lynch. I’m excited to see how this all fits into Grubb’s offense.

Wide Receiver: Elite

DK Metcalf, Tyler Lockett, and Jaxon Smith Ngijba make for arguably the best receiving trio in the the league. If these three stay healthy, whether it is Geno Smith or Sam Howell throwing the rock, that quarterback is going to be blessed.

My expectation is the DK Metcalf is going to become a monster in Ryan Grubb’s offense much the same way Rome Odunze did the last two years at Washington. Pete Carroll never seemed much interested in truly featuring his weapons like other offenses do in the league. That changes this year with this staff. DK is going to become the absolute star he was always meant to be.

Tyler Lockett reworked his deal to become more affordable and will stay reliable. It will be interesting to see between him and JSN who takes on the more significant role in this Grubb offense. Seattle burnt a first round pick on JSN for a reason last year. It will be interesting to see how this evolves.

Behind these three is a reliable route running and sure handed Jake Bobo, and explosive Dee Eskridge who the team is going to give a final chance to make an impact. This is an exceptionally deep draft at receiver. I think we could see Seattle take a dip into these waters.

Tight End: Promising

I am one of the few who is pretty high on Noah Fant, and I was pleased to see Schneider make the two year commitment to him, bringing him back. Like DK, he has rare size and speed for this position, and like DK, I thought Carroll never figured out how to take nearly enough advantage of that. I am excited to see what Grubb does with him. I think he can be a star in this league with the right scheming.

Pharaoh Brown will be the primary blocking tight end, and was rated elite by Pro Football Focus that way, and he can also catch the rock. Tyler Marby and Brady Russell are slated to battle for the third spot, I wouldn’t be surprised if this a spot they use the draft for, as well.

Offensive Line: Gas Inducing

To be fair, all of these assessments are projection, and for all we know, the offensive line will become a strength of the team with the new coaching staff, but as of this date, on paper this group is scary thin. Seattle has talent at tackle with Charles Cross, George Fant, and Abe Lucas, but both guard spots and the center position all feature unknowns outside of Anthony Bradford who played okay enough as a rookie. Yikes.

Right now, I am not super stressing the incompleteness of this vital unit. The overwhelming strength of the draft this Spring appears to be the offensive line. There is little doubt that Seattle is setting themselves to take advantage of that strength and I would expect to at least make a couple selections to round this group out.

It also would not shock me if we ultimately see Abe Lucas shift to one of the guard spots to better protect his knee. It was interesting that they brought back George Fant who played really well at right tackle for the Texans last year. The playoff Texans wanted him back, but he chose to sign a 2 year $ 14 million deal with Seattle, instead. Right now, he has been called their swing tackle, but why would he come back here to be a backup when he could have stayed in Houston to start and pass block for CJ Stroud?

Something doesn’t smell right, but if envision a starting unit from left to right featuring Cross, Lucas, Olu Oluwatimi, Bradford, and Fant, all of a sudden Seattle’s offensive line feels a bit of formidable. Maybe Seattle drafts a right tackle with their first pick and another guard in the middle rounds, and by the end of the 2024 season, this is a clear area of strength of the team. We shall see.

Defensive Line And Edge Rushers: Hopeful

Big Cat Williams gives this defensive line probably the best defensive tackle it has had in the past couple decades. For a franchise that drafted Hall Of Famer Cortez Kennedy in 1990, and Sam Adams a few years afterwards, the track record for great DTs coming through here afterwards has not been stellar. Sure, John Randle made a pit stop here in the early 2000’s, and we had Brandon Mebane here from the Mike Holmgren to the Pete Carroll eras, and Jarran Reed has been decent, but Seattle has not had the disruptive force inside like Big Cat brings in a long ass time. That’s why they are paying him $21 million APY for the next three years.

Williams mixed with Reed, and Johnathan Hankins and Dre’Mont Jones give them an interesting blend of veteran experience up front. Jones disappointed last year after being a big free agent signing in 2023, but I think he fell victim of being forced to play out of position in a scheme that never felt sound under the previous coaching staff. I’m interested to see what Macdonald is able to do with him in this new scheme.

Behind the seasoned vets is Cameron Young and Mike Morris drafted last year, who both look like players that can potentially blossom into starters, and Myles Adams who has played well in the past in spots as a situational DT. Because of Young and Morris, I don’t know how likely it is that this team drafts more DT types this year. The new staff might be tasked to developing them more.

In terms of the edge rushers, Uchenna Nwosu and Boye Mafe could both shine in Macdonald’s new scheme, and I expect Derick Hall to take a big step forward after a slow rookie season. Darrell Taylor has been brought back, as well, and while fans aren’t happy with how he’s played against the run in the past, he’s always been an effective enough of a passer over the recent years to think he’s worth a roster spot for that very reason.

I like the potential of these edge rushers, but I could stand to see more added. Because they spent high round draft capital on Mafe and Hall in recent years, and invested big money into Nwosu, I actually would almost rather seem them add a short term proven vet like Kyle Van Noy (who both played for Macdonald in Baltimore) rather than draft the position high again this Spring. I want this unit to feel like a deep rave of rushers this year. Outside of Nwosu and Mafe, however, presently it feels like a wave of maybes.

Middle Linebacker: Interesting

It feels blasphemous to suggest the a couple of solid not spectacular veterans coming in on one year deals to replace Bobby Wagner and Jordyn Brooks could make this unit better, but that’s kinda what I’m feeling about Tyrel Dodson and Jerome Baker. I mean Wagner no disrespect, but I don’t trust him in coverage at this stage in his career in a scheme that calls for solid coverage linebackers, and I kinda feel the same way about Brooks. Dodson is described as a hit the gaps hard linebacker against the run but was highly graded coverage guy by Pro Football Focus last Fall, and Baker has been a highly regarded coverage ‘backer, as well.

There are two ways to look at the one year deals both players signed. One way is that you can look at it as the wanting to draft and develop this year behind them, and they are potentially just stop gap starters. The other way it can be seen is that the team believes in their potential and sold to them an opportunity to come out here into a very linebacker friendly system run by Macdonald that will reset their free agent for next Spring when they can really cash in on the big dollars, and the team will be more than happy to keep them around long termed.

Personally, I think the truth probably lies somewhere in between. I think Seattle is looking to draft a talented young linebacker this Spring, and they also have a serious mind towards Dodson and Baker shining in a way that at least one of them sticks around longer termed.

At any rate, I am interested in this group and what Macdonald might do with it. He has professed that his love is coaching linebackers and seeing the game from that perspective on defense. Carroll was always a defensive backs guy, and preferred the back seven. I am hopeful with Macdonald being a linebacker dude that the front seven will always be the strong point of emphasis moving forward.

Cornerback: Strong

Despite a disappointing sophomore season, I am still a big believer in Riq Woolen. His combined length, speed, and playmaking abilities on the ball can still make him an elite corner in the league. He needs to probably play in a zone press scheme and his fundamentals need to be honed in. Macdonald’s defense in Baltimore the last couple seasons predominantly played zone coverages. If he can scheme to Woolen’s strength, and if Woolen works his ass off to work out his own kinks, he can still be a star in this league.

Devon Witherspoon is already a star, in my view, and will remain Seattle’s difference maker on the backend, playing outside and nickel corner. He will be the chess piece in the secondary that Jamal Adams was expected to be when Seattle traded for him.

Mike Jackson, Tre Brown, Artie Burns, and Coby Bryant give Seattle high quality depth. Jackson, and Brown are starters in the league, but in Seattle they will be backups. Burns provides solid veteran depth, and Bryant has split time at nickel corner and safety, but was an outside corner in college. It would be nice to see Bryant finally settle on one spot and master it.

Safety: Okay-ish

I am not going to build this unit up anymore than I think it is, and I am not going to tear it down, either. Seattle has re-shifted it’s approach to the position by moving on from uber expensive starters Quandre Diggs and Jamal Adams, and replaced them with Julian Love and Rayshawn Jenkins on more affordable salaries.

Neither Love or Jenkins appear to be bad players. Both seem to play the run and pass well enough, and I thought Love played pretty well at times for Seattle last year in replacement for Adams. The team has also added veteran K’Von Wallace into the mix, and has Jerrick Reed on the roster, who some believe was a promising rookie last year before he suffered a season ending knee injury.

This is a position I anticipate they will address further in the draft.

Final Thoughts

Seattle has hedged themselves up pretty well heading towards the draft with the one exception being offensive guard. Unless they plan to move Abe Lucas inside, it feels like there is one more player left to add pre-draft, and former Jets and 49er Laken Thomlison has been somewhat linked to the team, recently.

Whether they add another veteran offensive lineman or not, this is the draft of drafts to address the offensive line. I expect Seattle to add at least two more players here by the time the draft is completed. I wouldn’t be surprised if they added three. It’s projected to be that good.

I also expect them to add an off the ball linebacker, as well. Keep an eye on Michigan linebacker Junior Colson being a potential target for the team if they trade back a few times to replenish more day two picks. He’s experienced in Macdonald’s system, and was highly productive for the National Champs. It would not stun me if he ends up being their first pick after trading back.

As much as I would lose my noodle with excitement if this team drafts Michael Penix Junior next month, and I don’t expect this to happen. I think they like Sam Howell as a potential long term answer at quarterback maybe more than some realize. That said, I still anticapte, at some point in this draft, they will take a shot on a quarterback to develop. I just don’t think they want to force that pick in the early rounds if they aren’t completely sold on a guy. Therefore, I would look at the middle rounds for them to maybe take a shot at a player like Tulane’s Michael Pratt who they met with at the NFL Scouting Combine.

I anticipate that safety, and tight end will also be areas that they will look to continually shore up. For myself, I would like them to add one more edge rusher, and I wouldn’t turn my nose on adding another defensive tackle, either, if the dude can rush.

At any rate, overall I like how this roster is rounding out. There is elite talents sprinkled through the skill positions of this team. Adding more beef inside feels like the final stage of overall completion of this roster construction, and this is the draft to do this that. I dig it.

Go Hawks

A Very Excellent Offseason Wish List For The 2024 Seattle Seahawks

Posted on March 6, 2024 by curtiseastwood

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!

With Mike Macdonald And Ryan Grubb, The Seahawks Are Set For Greatness

Posted on February 10, 2024 by curtiseastwood

The only thing that would make me happier is if the Seahawks permanently rough back this old look

I have not been this excited about the Seattle Seahawks in a long ass time. The last time I felt myself doing fist pumps in the air over this team is when they drafted Russell Wilson in the third round of the 2012 draft well over a decade ago.

Over the past week and a half, Seattle landed the best head coaching prospect in the league with Mike Macdonald, a guy thought to be an absolute defensive mastermind, and then they followed that up by pairing him with Ryan Grubb, the best offensive play caller in college football last year. Make no mistake, these are home run hires for this program after parting ways with the legend of Pete Carroll.

The plan for this program is clear and it is undeniable. They want to be dominant on defense, and they want to be explosive, offensively. Shattered is the image that hiring a defensive minded head coach will lead to conservative offensive play calling. No way. They plan to dominate on both sides of the ball.

Seattle wants to be the Baltimore Ravens. I wrote months ago that the way to pry this division away from the 49ers is for Seattle to adopt the Baltimore model. I’m not going to say that John Schneider reads this little blog, but I will say that the blue print is obvious, and I saw it back in December as bright as daylight.

Kyle Shanahan’s offense is too well oiled to match it with a simplified defensive scheme. You need to punch it in the mouth with talent in the front seven, and you need to send pressures and disguise coverage in ways that limit the gimme plays that make Brock Purdy way too comfortable as a passer. As a defensive play caller, Macdonald has shown this ability, and he did that in Baltimore with a defense that lacks true superstar talent.

Conversely, San Francisco’s defense is too talented to play it safe against. You need an offense that is loaded up with explosive potential. The 49ers want you to play it safe against them with quick out patterns that they can jump. They want you to abandon the run for the pass as the game wears on.

Ryan Grubb’s offensive scheme is all about creative explosive plays with the run and pass, and it was evident as throughout the Washington Husky season last year. When opponents starting doing everything to take the deep pass away from Michael Penix Junior, Grubb leaned further into setting up explosive runs with Dillion Johnson. Even when Penix slumped a bit, it was hard to make this offense one dimensional. Penix always had outlets to dump off, and he tested defenses enough to keep the run game viable to lean into. Explosives eventually would happen, one way or another.

I get it if some fans will be skeptical as to whether Grubb can translate to the NFL. I just trust more the voices of Mike Holmgren and Hugh Millen, who are former long term NFLers that have closely observed Grubb’s offense at Washington, when they say Grubb is more than ready for the league with all of his motions and creativity to get big runs and passes going.

In my very humble opinion, I think pairing Grubb with Macdonald is a Hollywood styled fairytale story concocted by John Schneider. The cherry on the top of it would be drafting Penix this Spring, and while you might feel compelled to brush that idea off, I sorta feel the table is perhaps being set up for exactly that.

I also totally get it if readers wince at this idea, and believe that I am just a locked in homer who isn’t a serious footballer mind. I just beg to differ. I think Penix has the natural arm talent to be an elite passer in the NFL, but is clouded with just enough questions about his durability and the scheme he played in at Washington for him to slide into Seattle’s loving arms in the draft this Spring.

Penix has the arm talent that John Schneider craves, the high level starting experience that makes his floor fairly safe, and above all, he has a solid history with Grubb. If Seattle does draft him, he will be stepping into a situation perfectly set up for him to succeed with the weapons he will have in this offense along his former play caller. The fact the Grubb is bringing along with him former Washington OL coach Scott Huff is yet another reason to be optimistic about this pipe dream scenario.

So, forgive me if I dare to dream of all of this becoming a reality in a few short months. I think it is worth dreaming about, and will continue this process.

As for now, I am supremely excited for these Seahawks. I love the boldness of these coaching hires. With Macdonald, Grubb, Huff, Leslie Frazier as the assistant HC, Aden Durde from the Cowboys elevated to the DC working with Macdonald, I see a fascinating staff emerging.

A lot of stuff still needs to happen. I am plenty aware of this. More coaches need to be hired. Decisions need to be made about some expensive older players, the team needs to figure out a way to keep Leonard Big Cat Williams, and Jordyn Brooks, and perhaps Damien Lewis, and improve the offensive line.

I’m excited to see how it all shakes out. So far, this is a great beginning to a promising offseason for the team I love most.

If Cougar fans and Duck fans hate the idea of Grubb as the new OC, they can suck it, and root for a mediocre Mariners ball club instead, for all I care. If they will cash in their Seahawk fandom if this team does draft Penix, I say that they probably weren’t the biggest Seahawk fans to begin with.

For me, I say bravo on Grubb, and I hope Penix is the next franchise quarterback, and I got nothing against Geno Smith. I’m just willing to dare to dream a little bit more about the longer termed outlook with this team moving forward.

And if the rumors are true that they will be going back to their old color scheme with the uniforms this Fall, I think I will have reached my football Xanadu. My fingers are very crossed for that, as well.

Go Hawks.

Seahawks Land Mike Macdonald As Their Head Coach And This Is Freaking Awesome

Posted on February 1, 2024 by curtiseastwood

Let the Doobie Brother jokes begin. The Seattle Seahawks drafted my guy, and I don’t care if he looks like a gym rat version of Doogie Howser, either.

Over a month ago, I wrote about my deep desire to see the Seattle Seahawks become the Baltimore Ravens. It was on the heels of that embarrassing debacle at home against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

In that game, Seattle got thoroughly pushed around by a mediocre Steelers team, players looked disinterested in tackling with playoffs on the line, and I had enough. I typed a long, rambling, semi deranged, and toxically fueled piece about needing sweeping change, and needing to see Seattle become an organization comprised of blood thirsty orcs and Tyrannosaurs.

The only team model out there that I saw as a beacon of hope, that if Seattle could just commit to emulating, was the Baltimore Ravens. The Ravens had recently dismantled the San Francisco 49ers on their home turf, harassing and picking off Brock Purdy five times, and physically matching them toe to toe in the trenches. Weeks prior to that game, Seattle ventured into Baltimore and they put a thorough ass whooping on the Hawks.

With the Ravens, I saw a team comprised of strength in the trenches, speed on the outside, speed at linebacker, a dynamic playmaker at quarterback, but ultimately, I saw a team that played smart, fundamentally sound, and disciplined football. In short, I saw a team very opposite of Seattle.

So, you can image my delight when this news broke that the Seattle Seahawks have made sprite 36 year old Baltimore defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald the ninth head coach in their franchise history. Bravo!

I had been keeping a very open mind though this coaching search, but he was the guy I really wanted, and not just because he was the guy Mina Kimes was banging the drums for (although I respect the hell out of everything she says). In my gut, I felt he was the best candidate, and if Seattle chose someone else, we would likely regret it for years.

Deep down, I needed a clean break from Pete Carroll, and while I wasn’t as down on the idea of Dan Quinn potentially returning as many others were, I feared a return to Quinn would have him unfairly judged by fans as being Pete Carroll-lite, and he would just never fully get out of Carroll’s shadow in his return here. I appreciate that former Legion Of Boom players were lobbying for Quinn, but if John Schneider allowed players to influence his decision making, that would frankly be pretty flawed decision making.

I will admit that I liked the idea of Mike Vrabel, but I wasn’t nearly as convinced of the greatness of Detroit OC Ben Johnson as many other fans were. I was sorta interested in Bobby Slowick for five minutes. I was also open to Mike Kafka, but the guy I kept circling back to was always Mike Macdonald. I just didn’t know if he would be interested, or if the team would seriously pursue him.

Turns out that he might have been their top choice all along based on some reports, and it was just a matter of John Schneider staying patient and waiting him out. Sometimes, things work out pretty well in the end.

I AM SO DAMN EXICTED!

I need this team to have a fresh break from Pete Carroll, and I am not completely sold on the narrative that to be successful in today’s NFL, your organization needs an offensive mind coach at the helm. Call me crazy, but I think you just need the best coach available. In my view, I felt Macdonald was most likely that guy.

You need a dude who’s vision is strong, who communicates clearly, is good with players, and it helps greatly if his Xs and Os are Grade A level stuff. In recent days, Macdonald has been described in the NFL media as a “defensive minded Sean McVay” – a guy who will adjust his scheme to attack his opponents weaknesses, week by week, and through the duration of game.

Yeah, sign me up for that.

Want to get excited about what Macdonald can bring to Seattle? In 2023, without any major investments on defensive personnel, the Baltimore Ravens had the top NFL defense in points allowed, sacks, and turnovers. First time that has ever been done, I believe.

I fully believe that Seattle is getting a bright young coach, and the cream of this coaching crop. Given the fact that they signed him to a six year contract, that tells me that they believe they have the guy who can win us titles. That should excite every fan.

Now they just need to pair him with a sharp offensive coordinator. We will see where that goes, but it wouldn’t surprise me if they are able to lure Mike Kafka out of New York with the toxic work environment of the Brian Daboll, and the Giants. Kafka was actually my dark horse candidate to win this Seahawk HC job, and it is rumored that he is so unhappy in NY under Daboll that he would be willing to make a rare lateral move.

Once I started reading up more about him, I actually grew to like Kafka a lot through this process. He’s an Andy Reid disciple who Reid and Patrick Mahomes think very highly about. I thought in 2022, he did a very serviceable job fixing Daniel Jones in New York, but things fell apart in 2023 due to the huge rash of injuries. Personally, I would love a potential pairing of him and Macdonald in Seattle, but we will see if that’s the direction they go.

What I am most excited about is Seattle pulling a guy brought up in the strong Baltimore culture to come out here. I need this team to become Baltimore Ravens West. Even more, I love the idea of pairing him with general manager John Schneider who now has full control of this team, and the freedom to lean further into his Ron Wolf Green Bay Packer background. I’m a believer in these two joined together.

I believe with John in charge for football operations, we are going to see a much strong investment in the trenches on both sides of the ball. Under Wolf, Green Bay valued the line of scrimmage players highly. In Seattle, it’s long been my hunch that Pete Carroll had always felt they could get away with going cheaper there, and John has just had to deal with that.

I also suspect that John is also itching to draft a quarterback soon, but we can get more into that another time. For now, I am just really curious and excited to see how the Green Bay philosophy melds with the Baltimore one out here.

Both organizations value offensive and defensive linemen, and both are primarily draft and develop teams. So, I don’t know if we now see Seattle slash a bunch of salaries in order to be big spenders in free agency. They might make a splash on the offensive line just because it badly needs it, but I can see them shopping for value on the other side of the ball.

The true beauty of what Macdonald has done in Baltimore is taking the 28th ranked defense a couple of years ago, and turning it into a top one, immediately, without the team spending big on talent. There are players on this Seahawk defense who would very much fit into what Macdonald did in Baltimore.

They have promising young edge rushers in Boye Mafe, Uchenna Nwosu, and Derrick Hall, and they have good young corners in Devon Witherspoon, Riq Woolen, and Tre Brown. If they can sign Big Cat Williams back at DT, their interior defensive line would be pretty similar to Baltimore’s. If they can bring back Jordyn Brooks and pair him with another fast young linebacker, I don’t think this defense would necessarily be that far off.

We will see how this coaching staff now fills out, who the OC is, if there will now be any QB change, and how free agency and the draft goes, but I have supreme optimism that with Macdonald, they can now be a true threat within the division against San Francisco and Los Angeles. Macdonald seems to match up very well against Kyle Shanahan and Sean McVay.

He makes things confusing in coverage and how he sends pressures. In that MNF game in San Francisco, Brock Purdy looked genuinely unsure what to do.. like he was anticipating one thing and then seeing stuff that was surprising him. I think that shows the quality of Xs and Os from Macdonald.

We don’t know tons about him because he has only been a coordinator for a few years, but he is said to be a man of high intelligence, and a clear communicator. Players praise his ability to coach up the small details and explain why it’s done the way it is. It was said somewhere recently that he’s so sharp that there was a future for him in high finance on Wall Street that he actually turned down for coaching.

While he is said to be a players’ coach, in many ways, I think we are also going to find Macdonald an antithesis of Pete Carroll in terms of personality. He’s more reserved, and buttoned down, and he’s a bit of an introverted personality. That doesn’t scare me. Abraham Lincoln was a famous introvert.

I’m introverted, damn it!

Macdonald does not need to get up in front of 53 players and give fiery speeches. Don James wasn’t that type, and he did alright. He just needs to show his players that he knows football inside and out, that he’s a strong communicator, and he’s got a great plan. He can let a top lieutenant on his staff give hype speeches.

He just needs to be himself, stay true to himself, and everything that got him here.

I am absolutely stoked beyond my mind about this hire. At the very least, I can dare to dream big again.

I want this team to become the thorn in the side of the San Francisco 49ers again. I don’t ever want to see Shanahan smirky smile again whenever we play them. I want that dude stressed out the whole freaking time.

Mike Macdonald wasn’t the hire to get this team more competitive against San Francisco and Los Angeles. He was the hire to eventually bury both franchises back into the cellar of the NFC West.

I’m here for that.

Go Hawks.

The Seattle Seahawks Are John Schneider’s Ship Now And What It Means Moving Forward

Posted on January 17, 2024 by curtiseastwood

For the first time in his 14 year career as a Seattle Seahawk, General Manager sat by himself yesterday to talk with reports about his search for the next head coach. I listened to the press conference in traffic and watched it later in the evening. Some have nitpicked his emotions when discussing Pete Carroll, and called his opening statement “rehearsed” because he read from a script, but I found his presser both fascinating, and highly encouraging.

First off, John is no Pete when it comes to charisma with the media. He’s likable in sort of a midwest Chris Farley-light sorta way, in moments, but I don’t think he should be criticized for bumbling a bit reading what he wrote down in his opening statement, nor should he be made fun of getting caught up in emotions when talking about his co-worker and friend for the last 14 years after he was let go last week.

It is safe to say that John and Pete probably did not see eye to eye on a lot of things over the years, but I believe it when both have said how tight they are with each other. I don’t think John did any Game Of Thrones or Succession styled back stabbing of Pete to get him fired and gain further power over the team. When ownership asked him what he saw as the issues holding this team back, I think John most likely gave a very honest and candid answer that was probably very different than Pete’s. That is how I would read all of these tea leaves.

When fielding questions, John made a big point about this team becoming stagnant over the years, and not really moving forward. This has been the same complaint most Seahawk fans have had for many years now.

He also talked about the need to keep up with the current landscape of the league, which has become more offensive and analytic driven with the top winning teams. Many of the cool kid fans of Seahawks Twitter X, for years now, have implored this team to move off of Pete Carroll’s old school-ness in favor of a coaching staff who would embrace such trends. Well, listening to John, it feels as though they are about to get their wish.

Having gone through this presser a couple times now, I believe, in his ideal world, John Schneider would love to find a bright offensive minded coach to lead this team into the future. Schneider comes from the Green Bay model, his biggest mentor is the legendary Packer GM Ron Wolf (who he spent a lengthy amount of time with on Friday chatting with), and steeped in the model is the tradition of having offensive minded head coaches who develop young quarterbacks.

There are enough tea leaves out of this press conference to conclude that Schneider wants to draft a bright young quarterback around the corner, and pair him with a Green Bay style coach. People will read into his comments of Mike McCarthy, and draw a conclusion that Schneider wants him here in Seattle should Jerry Jones cut him loose, but wouldn’t read too much into that, just as I am not reading into the idea that Dan Quinn is his top candidate.

John talked at lengths about following the current trends, analytics, and sports science. He said his one directive from Jody Allen was to find a coach who will maintain the built in positive culture of this team, but the rest of the time, he talked about keeping up with the Joneses within the division. I think it would be an INCREDIBLY hard sell on this fanbase to replace the legend of Pete Carroll with Mike McCarthy or Dan Quinn after that playoff debacle in Dallas. John is probably smart enough to see that.

Therefore, I suspect that, of the long list of candidates who Seattle has formally requested interviews with, Detroit OC Ben Johnson, Houston OC Bobby Slowick, and Miami OC Frank Smith are probably sitting top on his list to this date. I bet John would love to meet with one of these guys and be wowed with their plan for this team, and their plan to put together a great staff.

Right now, Ben Johnson feels like the hottest name with Seahawk fans, but for my money, I would circle the name of Bobby Slowick perhaps being the dude for this gig. It has been widely rumored that Johnson has a back channeled handshake deal with the new GM for the Washington Commanders to follow him there, and I am going to buy those rumors. Slowick, however, doesn’t have such rumors swirling around him.

What Slowick does have is a history that sorta ties him to the Green Bay Packers when John Schneider was the assistant GM there, and Slowick’s dad was on the staff in the early 2000’s. It is safe to assume that Schneider knew of a teen age Bobby Slowick then, and tracked his coaching career over the years. Last year, Slowick left his position of pass game coordinator on Kyle Shanahan’s staff in San Francisco to follow DeMeco Ryans to Houston, and be the guy running his offense. In the past, Shanahan has raved about Slowick, and their connection started in Washington when Kyle’s dad Mike ran that team.

Slowick’s career is very interesting as it connects to Schneider’s likely needs and wants. He started out in 2010 with Washington as a film analyst, and eventually a defensive assistant (what his dad was in Green Bay), but then after the older Shanahan was fired, he went to work at Pro Football Focus, the leading football analytic company as a Senior Analyst. When Kyle got the job in San Francisco in 2017, Slowick followed him, and has worked for Kyle as a defensive assistant, an offensive assistant, and eventually Kyle’s pass game coordinator.

Never mind the fact that, last season, Bobby Slowick took over the sad sack Houston Texan offense, made it an explosive unit, and coached rookie quarterback CJ Stroud into a star. That’s all dandy on the surface, but looking deeper into his career, it is clear that Slowick knows offensive AND defensive football, well, and he is steeped in football analytics.

I am not writing this piece to predict that Bobby Slowick is going to be the next Seattle Seahawk head coach in the next week or two. What I will say, however, is that Slowick ticks A LOT of John Schneider’s boxes, especially if Schneider wants to draft a QB this Spring (I think he does). Therefore, he is the guy that I am willing to put pretty decent odds on. If he interviews for this gig, and truly impresses with his vision on what staff he would put together, and he feels like a good culture guy, I think this gig might be his.

The other guy who I think might have a bigger shot at this job than people are expecting his none other than Mike Vrabel. A lot of the top NFL insiders are connecting the former Patriot legend to Seattle, and it has been noted, repeatedly, that he is friends with Schneider. It has been so much so lately, that I am starting to believe the idea of “where there is smoke there is fire” just as I bought into it about Carroll maybe moving on, and Russell Wilson being traded a few years ago.

People will scoff at the idea of Vrabel taking over for Pete Carroll in Seattle, but a deeper dive into him kinda shows that he is much more than a defensive minded head coach. Over the years, Vrabel has been one of the leagues more forward thinking analytic driven head coaches in the league, and he put together one of the best offensive staffs when he got to Tennessee. Green Bay head coach Matt LaFleur was his initial offensive coordinator and that immediately landed him the Packer gig. Arthur Smith then took over, and guided Tennessee’s offense into a top five DVOA unit, and that landed him the Atlanta job.

It is not too far out of the realm of possibility to image that, if given the opportunity in Seattle, Vrabel would bring Arthur Smith along with him, and because things didn’t go great for Smith in Atlanta, Smith could have an extensive stay in Seattle bringing along a young quarterback.

Arthur Smith might be thought of as a great coordinator who just really isn’t head coaching material. The league is full of these coaches, and while most fans probably prefer Schneider to land Ben Johnson, or Bobby Slowick, who is to say that both guys won’t end up more on the side of Arthur Smith’s fate than that of Matt LaFleur’s storyline?

If we really spend enough thinking about Vrabel as the next Seahawk coach, I don’t think he can be as simply written off as a Dan Quinn (who will be interviewed) or a Mike McCarthy (if he gets fired). Vrabel is highly respected across the league, and his firing came as a genuine shock across the NFL landscape. Personally, I think he is a strong CEO type of coach like Dan Campbell in Detroit and Dan Lanning in Oregon, as much as anything, and he is young enough, with enough pelts on his wall as both a player and coach, that my hunch is good people would follow him here, and players would buy in quickly.

If Mike Vrabel interviews for this job, all I think he would have to do is convince his friend John that he will have no problem with John calling all the shots with personnel, and he would have no issue with bringing along a young quarterback. I get that people believe that a rookie QB needs to be paired with an offensive head coach, but look where Vrabel came from. It was defensive minded head coach Bill Belichick who embraced a young Tom Brady over veteran Drew Bledsoe, and then embarked upon a long historic campaign of Super Bowls with the young gun.

I am saying it now, I think Mike Vrabel in Seattle is a real possibility, at the very least, and I would not be shocked at all if he ends up the dude. If John isn’t a hundred percent sure on any of these younger offensive coordinators, or Baltimore DC Mike McDonald (who I like, by the way), or Dan Quinn, I think that opens that door for Vrabel to bust through it.

And no, I do not think Jim Harbaugh will be a candidate. Not that I don’t think he is a great coach or a good culture guy. It is more so that I think he would want more control over personnel than Seattle would be willing to give. It is iron clad in Schneider’s contract with the team that he now has full control over all personnel decision making, and he has full control over coaching hiring and firing. Harbaugh isn’t going to want to work under those parameters.

In the end, given what John Schneider revealed in his presser, I am highly encouraged about this team moving forward. I think his search for the new coach will be broad, and that is right to do. I love that he is willing to look at all these bright young assistant coaches instead of going for whatever previous head coaches are and might end up on the market. I dig that he used terms like “evolving” and “current trends” frequently in his press conference.

I thought he might have dropped a few interesting nuggets in this press conference that made me believe drafting a quarterback this Spring is a very real possibility, and it should be. This year’s draft class appears quite loaded with them with as many as eight being discussed has potential franchise starters.

I am not going to predict who this guy will be. I have strong hunches on Slowick and Vrabel, but I am also very prepared to be surprised.

I just feel like Seattle is now on a path to get more modern with this this league, and I am excited for that. I believe that this team had gotten too stagnant over the years, and now I am looking forward to them breaking out of it.

John is right. This roster has bright young talent. Seattle is a great destination. The facilities are world class, and the fan base is super built in.

He has every reason to believe that he will attract a really good coach. I am looking forward to this process.

Go Hawks.

The Greatness Of Pete Carroll Deserves A Statue

Posted on January 11, 2024 by curtiseastwood

Pete Carroll was My Guy. I don’t know any other way I can characterize him for myself.

I vividly remember the day when it was announced that he was taking over as head coach of the Seattle Seahawks. I was so excited, that almost created a wreck in traffic. I listening to Sports Radio KJR, heard the news, screamed, and swerved, and course corrected. Then once I heard all the horse crap out of the station’s blowhards complaining about the hire, that is when I decided I was going to be a KIRO 710 listener from then on.

It all happened just like that, and the minute they started talking shit about Carroll, I was done as a regular listener. They couldn’t even give the hire a single benefit of doubt. Why should I give them another listen?

You see, to further set up context, back in the Mike Holmgren era, I was a film believer that the next head coach should be Pete Carroll. I once said that to my brother, and he looked at me as he so often did when I was a kid eating crayons and dog food, and he thought I was an absolute knucklehead for even entertaining the idea.

“Pom Pom Pete?!”

“That shit will never fly in this league.. fuck, I don’t ever want to see that here.”

My rational was simple. The Seahawks were a fun little kick ass team for a while in the 1980s with a defensive minded head coach who was all about great defense and running the football. I was tired of the more finesse pass happy approach of Holmgren, and I wanted more smash mouth to go along with the cold wet blustery Sundays in Seattle in the Fall and Winter.

“Dude, look what he’s going in USC.. they are running the shit out of the ball, throwing darts off play action, running up scores, and they are killing it on defense.. that is what I want up here.”

Pete Carroll was my guy long before Pete Carroll became my coach, so you can imagine my excitement that almost forced my Ford Ranger into a ditch over the news of his hiring. I wasn’t certain about much in life, but I was pretty certain we were going back to a Super Bowl, and actually winning the motherfucker this time.

Pete Carroll is the greatest thing that has ever happened to Seattle Sports. He is by far the greatest coach this region has ever seen, and I say that in complete respect to Don James, and Lenny Wilkins.

This is not my opinion. It is a statement of fact, and I will not have any debate on it.

In 14 years, Pete Carroll has guided the Seahawks into the playoffs 71 percent of the time. This team went to back to back Super Bowls, winning one, and almost winning another. They won five division titles, and were a wild card team five other times.

Without Pete Carroll, we never would has experienced the Beast Quake that galvanized us as a fanbase. Marshawn Lynch was a troubled third string running back in Buffalo, and Carroll took a chance on him. Lynch would not have likely been a fit on a Mike Holmgren coached team.

Without Pete Carroll, I highly doubt Russell Wilson would have become a long term starter in this league. Philly might have drafted him, and he would have played for Andy Reid, but I doubt they would stayed with him long term in Reid’s high volume passing system that requires a taller quarterback. He would have more likely been a bridge to the next guy, and then likely would have had a Gardner Minshew type impact on the league, but Carroll gave him a shot, grew to love him, and tried to make it work as long as he could.

Without Pete Carroll, Geno Smith would probably still be a second or third string backup, or out of the league.

Without Pete Carroll, Richard Sherman may have not ever gotten a fair shot as a starter.

Without Pete Carroll, Red Bryant may have been out of the league by his fourth year.

Without Pete Carroll, I don’t know if Kam Chancellor would have been a starter in this league when everyone was playing Tampa two stuff.

Haters are always going to hate on this dude, but Pete Carroll gave us so damn much, and I think a lot of us got really spoiled in the process. When your team goes to back to back Super Bowls, just making the playoffs is no longer enough. That’s the expectation before the first kick of the season happens.

Nah, these kids who were eight years old when Pete first got here are in their twenties now, and they don’t know football life without him. Well, get ready for it.

A lot of them want the next 33 year old Sean McVay type, but they might find themselves missing Pete a lot over the next few years. I’m not saying this to be cryptic about the future. I am just saying that Hall of Fame level coaches typically do not grow on trees, and Carroll is most definitely a Hall of Famer.

The team could hire Jim Harbaugh, or Kalen DeBoer and either one of those guys isn’t likely to have the sustained success as Pete. That’s just the nature of the league.

Pete Carroll’s greatest attribute as a head coach was not his Xs and Os, or his schemes. Pete Carroll’s strength was and always will be his heart, and his willingness to believe in others, to give opportunities, and to stay steadfast in his belief in others. That is a thing easier said than done, and this is what gave the breeding ground to his culture being the best in the NFL for nearly a decade in a half.

Pete Carroll is a great leader of men because he leads with his heart. You could feel that in his very raw and authentic way he allowed himself to be in his final press conference to announce with the team. Leaders who are willing to lay it on the line, to be real, and present, and caring, can inspire a collective to move mountains. That is what he did here in Seattle.

My dad was a combat war veteran, and he was as badass as badass could be. Like, old school Lee Marvin badass. He always used to rave about General Omar Bradley, and he hated high ranking officers because of his experience dealing with them as a squad leader in Korea.

In his booming voice, Dad would say that the only person to wear stars who was ever worth a damn was Bradley. He loved Bradley because the general always insisted on marching with his troops and carrying a rifle. If he was going to ask a man to lay down his life, he wanted that dude to know that he was willing to lay his own life on the line with him. The US troops fucking loved Omar Nelson Bradley.

I think Pete Carroll is a lot like Bradley. He’s thoughtful. He cares. He wants others to care. He is very much a servant leader.

That’s what Pete Carroll was at USC for many years, and that is how he rolled up here in Seattle. I wanted him to be the head coach of my team because I thought his style of ball was kick ass, but once I grew to know of him more after he got here, I pretty much wanted him to coach here for life.

Football is a funny fluid thing, though. In recent years, I grew tired of the dramas that crept up like the Jamal Adams stuff this year, and the odd coaching hires that led to the offenses and defenses getting worse instead of better, and I started to entertain more the idea of Carroll moving on. He had been here much longer than Holmgren or Chuck Knox ever were, I felt that maybe hubris filtered in more, and I just thought maybe it was time.

This season, I really started to feel it, and I found it creeping into my writings in ways that made me feel very Get Off My Lawn Dude. I didn’t particularly enjoy writing with that type of energy, but I couldn’t ignore my frustrations as a fan, either.

I actually started this blog as an attempt to create a space for Seahawk fans to visit that wouldn’t be so hypercritical over every little spending decision, or coaching decision, or bad play that happened in a game. I wanted my writing to have some fun, and celebrate all the highs, and joke around with the lows, and maybe share an insight or two, if ever I felt one.

I think subconsciously, I wanted my writing to reflect the goofy nutball nature of my favorite coach. That is how much Pete Carroll has impacted me as a fan, and person. I will always deeply appreciate him, and hold him in the highest regard.

I won’t deny that it’s a bit weird that I wrote about my ideas of moving on from him, and then seeing the team actually do it. I find myself in a very strange, split place with this whole thing, now.

Emotionally, I am very attached to Carroll the person, and I am really going to miss this dude as my team’s head coach. Logically, though, I believe this was the right time to move on, and give another coach a shot.

As stated, chances are significant that the next head coach won’t be nearly as good. That’s not saying this next dude is going to suck, and they won’t have success. This is just acknowledging that Pete Carroll is a Hall Of Fame head coach, and those coaches do not grow on trees.

That said, Carroll is 72 years old and was heading into his final year. I suspect ownership wanted significant changes on his staff. I wouldn’t be surprised if they also wanted a bit more of a roster overhaul with some of the older players. It is entirely possible that they do want to draft a quarterback this Spring, and Carroll isn’t super down.

In any case, I think Carroll is very attached to his guys, and I am just guessing here, but I think he maybe didn’t want to fire a bunch of dudes, or cut a few players that he is very close with and still believes in. This is where being in your seventies might impact proper decisions. You might feel less likely to want to overhaul things once again even if it is clearly needed.

Coaching at this level has got to be an exhausting practice. Mike Holmgren was a superb coach for many years, and he knew he was done much younger than Carroll is today. I think it is incredibly difficult to find sustained success such as Pete has had along with Belichick, Tomlin, and the sane Harbaugh brother. These dudes are coaching rarities.

This team has been underachieving, though, and it has been this way for many years now. They have become perpetually mediocre to good but not great. Something needed to give.

I think Jody Allen wants greatness again, and I think she probably wants a good younger coach to come in who will probably not be as attached to players on this roster. It is very possible she wants someone who will be more of a disciplinarian that maybe Pete has it in him to be at this juncture, and will push his coaches and players more in the details of the game.

Frankly, I think this is what this team needs. It kinda needs a fresh new kick in the pants, and this is what I have been feeling greatly this year.

That does not take anything away from who Pete Carroll is as a coach and leader. In my mind, this just means that all things come to their natural ends, and this was the time for the Carroll era to close, and as I wrote the other day after the win against the Cardinals, if his final game as coach of this team is a nail biting victory, it would be very fitting.

I will never forget this era, though, and all the wild ass shit that went down on the football fields. I will never forget Beast Quake, the Richard Sherman tip in the NFC Championship game against San Fran, the insanity that took place in the come from behind win against the Packers in the following NFC Championship, Michael Bennett riding the cop bike, the Kam Chancellor hits, all the Russell Wilson ridiculous Jedi shit, Geno beating Russ as a Bronco, the insane Jermaine Kearse catch against the Pats in the Super Bowl, all the wild Doug Baldwin grabs, and the Tyler Lockett ones, and that crazy touchdown pass Jon Ryan threw to a backup offensive tackle in that wild championship game against the Pack. This list could go on, and on, and on again.

Pete Carroll gave us all this stuff. He gave us a decade and a half of crazy ass adventure. It was fun. It was stressful. It was annoying at times, and exhilarating.

There is absolutely no debate in my mind who the greatest Seattle Sports icon is. It is Pete Carroll, and it is not even close.

And my brother was dead fucking wrong about him, and so were all of those loud blowhard radio personalities on KJR. I am not right about a lot of things, but I was spot on correct about Pete Carroll.

So please, Jody Allen. Build the Pete Carroll statue in front of Lumen Field. Hire us a good new coach, but build us that statue.

Seattle owes Pete Carroll everything. Period.

Go Hawks.

Seahawks Finish Season 9-8, Miss Playoffs, And Change Is Needed

Posted on January 8, 2024 by curtiseastwood

Watching this game against the Seahawks and Cardinals, I found myself caught up in bi polar emotional states. While this is true for many Seahawk games I view, this one felt very different. I felt hope that the Seahawks and Bears would pull off wins that would make Seattle playoff bound, but then I also felt a comfortable acceptance in losing when it looked like that was going to happen.

I cannot remember watching a season ending game with playoff implications on the line for the Seattle Seahawks, and ever feeling a smidgen of indifference to it in the waning moments. Last year, I needed them to be in the playoffs as the fended off the beaten up Rams, and had to wait to if the Lions would be the Packers. I had stakes then. This Sunday, my stakes were much smaller.

If Seattle had handled business against the Steelers last week, my mood probably would be been different, but having watched this Seattle getting hammered by the Steelers took too much of the wind out of my sail. I just didn’t have much left for this bitter interdivisional matchup against a bad Arizona Cardinals team.

Honestly, I didn’t think Seattle was going to win this one, and if Matt Prater had made two routine field goals, they would have lost. So, color me unimpressed Seattle avoided a losing record, too. It is a nice feather in the cap for the players who fought hard to say that they avoided a losing record, and it provides a better winning record to the legacy of Pete Carroll, but this has to be one of the worst nine win Seahawk teams I have ever watched.

I still see them as mediocre as mediocre can be, and the fact that a bunch of players were smoking cigars in the locker room afterwards, after missing the playoffs, leaves me questioning how strong the leadership is on this team. I mean, seriously. Why?

This leads me to the Pete Carroll question that everyone is asking about with reports that he is set to meet with Jody Allen in the next few days to discuss his future with this team. It was noted in these reports that Carroll will be entering the final year of his contract this year instead of 2025, as previously believed.

I am not in a predicting mood, but I would just say that if Jody Allen has felt the same frustration that I have felt this year with the defense, and inconsistencies with the offense, I wouldn’t be so sure that Carroll coming back in a lame duck year is going to be a given. It will be interesting to see what comes out of the next 72 hours.

In my opinion, Carroll needs to get himself a significantly better defensive coordinator, but if he is going to continue into a lame duck year with no guarantees of continuing in 2025, is that going to entice a solid DC to sign on here? I have big doubts about that.

Coaches want stability. It is an incredible grind, they spend hours away from family, and I think a big payoff is knowing they won’t be moving in twelve months across the country and uprooting family, again. A high in demand defensive coach is going to want to go where he thinks he will have a decent tenure. He will want stability for himself and his love ones who endure his absence.

That’s the rub with continuing with Carroll in 2024 with nothing guaranteed beyond it. We are could be stuck with Clint Hurtt again coaching a defense that is now 30th worst at stopping the run for two seasons in a row.

How does that make you feel? I wanted to puke as I wrote that.

Maybe he does move on from Hurtt, but who is he going to find to replace him in what could be his final year of coaching in 2024? A move away from Hurtt could ultimately be just a very lateral move, and then we would just have to keep our fingers crossed that the new guy is better.

Truthfully, if Carroll returns this year, I want new coordinators on both sides of the ball. The defense has been putrid with Hurtt running that ship, and is probably 90 percent the reason why this team did not make it into the playoffs, but I would also say that an offense that has Tyler Lockett, DK Metcalf, Jaxon Smith Ngijba, Ken Walker, Zach Charbonnet, Noah Fant, and Geno Smith should be more dynamic than it was in 2023. In fact, it should be significantly more dynamic.

Clint Hurtt’s run at DC as been maybe the worst I have ever seen in Seattle and I have religiously followed this team since 1983, but Shane Waldron hasn’t exactly lit my world on fire as an offensive play caller, either. Some will say that Geno isn’t dynamic enough, and if they want to make that argument, I will let them have their moment, but I just don’t think this offense had a Geno problem this year.

Offensively, I think they had a clear lack of identity problem. They were in the bottom in the league in rush attempts with a big offensive line, three quality tight ends, and two high quality running backs. They were bad on third downs often. They were sloppy way too often. When certain things would start to work, Waldron would abandon them for something else in the bag.

While this defense was gut wrenchingly bad, this offense was far too often hair pulling out frustrating. I think this team eeked out 9 wins with a lot of luck and by having just enough talent to not be truly god awful.

I think the problem with this team is mainly coaching. While I don’t think this roster is oozing in talent, this team had three pro bowlers on defense and eight pro bowl alternatives. In short, the league sees talent on this roster.

In fact, I think they had enough talent to get to eleven wins. I think they should have split the series with the LA Rams, and they should have been able to beat the very mediocre Steelers.

Geno Smith just set an NFL record for most come from behind wins in a season with this win in Phoenix. While his numbers are down from 2022 (he did miss two games), he still showed enough efficiency to be a more than capable veteran starter moving forward. Give him an offensive play caller who will make life easier for him with a stronger run game, and there is no reason why I would think he couldn’t have sustained success here for a while, if they continue to run with him. He’s got great options to work with in this offense, he’s smart, he’s accurate, and he’s a decent leader.

That’s not to say that I wouldn’t prefer this team to draft a quarterback high (I do), but it just means that they don’t need to throw a rookie into the fire right away. With Geno, they can ease the young gun into this offense, and make the transition happen when he is more ready.. if they get the scheme better hammered out.

With Waldron, after three seasons now, it still feels like a work in progress. This is why I am ready to move on. Year three with Waldron should have gone way better than it did.

So, I guess with that, I would say that if this team continues with Pete Carroll in a lame duck year, I don’t all together think it’s a great idea to spend pick 16 this Spring on a quarterback even should a guy like Michael Penix Junior be there. It pains me to write that because I have been all aboard the Michael Penix Junior to Seattle Bandwagon for months now, but I fear not having a longer termed answer at head coach and maybe a lame duck coordinator would just hamper his development.

Don’t get me wrong, if the team does draft Penix this Spring with Carroll, I would lose my noodle with excitement, but realistically, I kinda think taking the best available offensive or defensive lineman might be the better play, and then wait for the later rounds on a more developmental quarterback prospect. If Seattle moves away from Carroll, however, that changes this equation for me, significantly.

The guy who is set to be the next long term head coach should be the guy to ultimately pick the next franchise quarterback. That feels more proper. I don’t personally think it’s great when a new guy inherits a quarterback that he didn’t chose himself.

Look in Cleveland. Kevin Stefanski was hired to “fix” Baker Mayfield, and in his first year as head coach, they both did pretty well together, and led the Browns to the playoffs for the first time in over two decades. Then the next year, Baker gets injured, struggles to play through his injury, regresses, whines, and then is replaced by creepozoid Deshaun Watson. This year in Tampa, Baker has proven to be pretty good again, but he wasn’t Stefanski’s guy (I don’t know if Watson is either, but I digress, and you get my point, anyways).

Now look at Houston with newly hired DeMeco Ryans as their head coach, and them aggressively maneuvering in the draft to take CJ Stroud. They are playoff bound, and defensive minded Ryans and Stroud feel joined together for years to come. Houston, as big of a league wide laughing stock as they were, did it absolutely right with the bright young coach and quarterback coming in together. I think that sort of partnership matters for a franchise.

That kinda circles back to this meeting with Jody Allen that Pete is set to have. If she has fallen smitten with a few of these quarterbacks set to enter the draft, and so has General Manager John Schneider, maybe they sense it is time to move on from Pete. She might feel that way regardless, but if she feels like having a young bright talent at QB will up the price on an eventual sale of the team, that could really put Pete Carroll in the corner, especially if he’s not super down for that. There are reasons to think he wouldn’t be.

Carroll is unapologetic in his belief in Geno Smith, and Seattle frankly, could have drafted Will Levis twice last Spring, and no analyst would have batted an eye about it, if they did. Carroll chose not to even though Levis had all the physical traits you would think Seattle would crave for a young quarterback in this offense. Why would anyone think it would be different this Spring under Carroll should Penix or Bo Nix be available at pick 16?

It is going to be an interesting few days. I’m not totally certain how things will shake up, but however it goes, I think it is going to tell us a lot about the direction they move in free agency and the draft.

At either rate, I just know that change on this staff is deeply needed. Yes, they need to get stouter up front on defense and the offensive line, some upgrades at linebacker, but this staff did not get the job done on any level with this team this year. I think they coached this team into an underperforming season, and I am not the only one who likely feels this way.

Bobby Wagner watched these young fellas in the locker smoking stogies and celebrating, and he wasn’t into it. In fact, he said so much in his press conference, and then added that these younger players need to learn how to win. He also sounded like a player who is not necessarily going to be back with this team next Fall even though he said he intends to keep playing. Can he be blamed?

Dudes are allowed to act like clowns on this team too often. Jamal Adams behaved like a buffoon on multiple occasions. Players on defense looked like they quit last week against the Steelers with their entire season on the line. Perhaps things are just too much fun and games.

If the Legion Of Boom players missed the playoffs, I guarantee they wouldn’t be smoking cigars after their season finale closer just because they avoided a losing record. I don’t see Kam Chancellor or Richard Sherman doing that at all. Ditto for Michael Bennett and KJ Wright. Those were proud veteran pro bowlers and Super Bowl champs who knew what it took to win.

This young roster doesn’t know it yet, and I don’t know if they have the coaching staff to help them figure it out. If Chuck Knox or Mike Holmgren had see them lighting up cigars, I think both legendary Seahawk coaches would have blown their tops. In fact, I don’t think the players would have had the space to entertain such a notion in their minds. Carroll gives them such loose license.

Therefore, I think it is entirely reasonable to assume that with Pete Carroll, at age 72 now, has just spent so much time here, and is so close to the situation that he just cannot step far enough away to see it for what it has become. Seattle is a soft cultured club right now. They lack fire, and hunger, and toughness, and it shows. Smoking victory cigars after a meaningless win is proof of that.

Maybe it is just a reflection on Pete Carroll. He has been at this for a LONG TIME. He has had a ton of success and has made boat loads of money for himself. Maybe his hunger, and fight isn’t what it once was, and this is why things are what they now are, and I say this being one of his biggest supporters over the years.

Maybe it is time to just finally move on, just rip the bandaids off, and start fresh. Maybe this is what Jody Allen and her right hand man Bert Kolde are feeling.

If so, then I really am glad they got this win to close out the season. If Carroll has coached his last game in Seattle (big if), then it is proper that they win a nail biter at the end. That feels right.

Go Hawks.

12th Life

Intuitive takes on the Seattle Seahawks, Seattle area sports, and other cool stuff, with no analytics involved.

Tag Archives: seattle-seahawks

Observations From Training Camp Fuel My Seahawk Hopes And Dreams

The Underrated Beauty Of The Seattle Seahawk Quarterbacks

Seahawks Building Necessary Toughness Through The Draft, Finally

Assessing The State Of The 2024 Seattle Seahawks Prior To The NFL Draft

Quarterback: Healthy

Running Back: Strong

Wide Receiver: Elite

Tight End: Promising

Offensive Line: Gas Inducing

Defensive Line And Edge Rushers: Hopeful

Middle Linebacker: Interesting

Cornerback: Strong

Safety: Okay-ish

Final Thoughts

A Very Excellent Offseason Wish List For The 2024 Seattle Seahawks

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

Find the Quarterback Of The Future

Be aggressive fixing the offensive line

Bring back Noah Fant at tight end

Find a way to keep Tyler Lockett

Continue developing this roster from within

Final thoughts

With Mike Macdonald And Ryan Grubb, The Seahawks Are Set For Greatness

Seahawks Land Mike Macdonald As Their Head Coach And This Is Freaking Awesome

The Seattle Seahawks Are John Schneider’s Ship Now And What It Means Moving Forward

The Greatness Of Pete Carroll Deserves A Statue

Seahawks Finish Season 9-8, Miss Playoffs, And Change Is Needed