Countdown to 49ers starts in Cleveland

October 11, 2019 cc Leave a comment

The Seahawks were supposed to be watching the Browns on Monday night — their homework for this week — but it was pretty hard to miss the team that dominated Baker Mayfield and company.

“That night was San Francisco’s night,” Pete Carroll said of the 49ers’ 31-3 win. “It didn’t matter what happened, really. The ball kept coming their way and they kept making the plays. They looked great.”

The Hawks play at Cleveland this week, but in a month they will be facing the 49ers in what figures to be a major Monday night showdown — impacting both the division and conference races.

Continue reading Countdown to 49ers starts in Cleveland →

CHAWK LINES, Week 6: At Cleveland

October 9, 2019 cc 1 Comment

CHAWK LINES -- Hawks at Browns Pete Carroll thinks he finally knows how to put together his pass-rush puzzle.

Jadeveon Clowney: “Once we start clicking on all cylinders, I think we’re going to make a big push at the right time.”

Carroll expects L.J. Collier “to show you … in the next few weeks that he’s going to be able to figure into what’s happening.”

Tyler Lockett is poetry on and off the field.

Continue reading →

Week 5: L.A. Rams

Fortunately 4-1, Seahawks are ‘still growing’

October 4, 2019 cc 3 Comments

“We’re still climbing. The best is yet to come.” — Shaquill Griffin

The Seahawks are 4-1, despite still not playing their best game — and that’s how we know they’re Super Bowl contenders.

Their lucky 30-29 win over the Rams had a lot of good in it: Russell Wilson’s near perfection, Tyler Lockett’s toe-tapping magic, Chris Carson’s winning efforts and more. But the Hawks still were unable to lock up the win on their own merits — the Rams had to lose it on a missed field goal.

Of course, the Rams would have been lucky to win themselves since Jason Myers missed a first-half field goal that meant the Rams did not need to overcome a four-point deficit at the end.

The Hawks lost two close shootouts to the Rams last season, and now they have won one against the Super Bowl runners-up — proving these teams remain evenly matched. That Sunday night game in Week 14 will be huge.

By that time, though, the Seahawks should have found their defensive groove and be a complete contender.

Continue reading Fortunately 4-1, Seahawks are ‘still growing’ →

Week 5: L.A. Rams

Home playoff game on the line vs. Rams

October 2, 2019 cc 1 Comment

How big is Seattle’s game against the Rams? Probably the difference between a home playoff game and a road trip — and certainly a major factor in the race for home field in the NFC playoffs.

This is the second straight year the Seahawks have hosted the Rams in Seattle in Week 5 after playing at Arizona in Week 4. Last year, the 33-31 home loss to the Rams was the difference between 10 wins and 11. If the Hawks had flipped that game and beaten the 49ers in Week 15 (rather than lose in OT), they would have been at 12 wins and won the division thanks to a better conference record than the Rams. That would have made them the NFC’s third seed, hosting the Eagles in the wild-card round instead of going to Dallas.

And while we are doing what-ifs: If the Hawks had beaten the Saints in Week 3 this year, rather than handing the win to New Orleans, they would be going for 5-0 and early control of the NFC this week. Instead, they are just trying to stay in the mix in both the division and conference while flipping the script on a Rams team that has beaten them three straight times and won the division the past two years.

Continue reading Home playoff game on the line vs. Rams →