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Injury report, State of the team, Week 14: At Baltimore

Lynch appears out for final three games

December 14, 2015 cc Leave a comment

Lynch stretching Anyone hoping Marshawn Lynch will be back before the season finale in Arizona had better rethink that idea. In fact, it appears the Seahawks might be lucky to have Lynch back for the playoffs.

Pete Carroll said Monday he doesn’t know whether Lynch, who had abdominal surgery Nov. 25, will return before the playoffs.

“He went through a big surgery. He’s got a lot to get through, and he’s got to get past that, whatever impact that’s had,” Carroll said. “He’s got to get back into shape and get going. … He hasn’t been able to go yet very hard. He’s going to have to work through that and get himself going again and come back and show that he’s back and ready to go.”

Asked about the timeframe, Carroll said, “I don’t know. We won’t know until the work starts happening.”

Continue reading Lynch appears out for final three games →

State of the team, Week 14: At Baltimore

Wilson’s streaking & Rawls is out, but Hawks are still a running team

December 13, 2015 cc Leave a comment

Rawls and Wilson vs. Ravens It’s becoming harder and harder for the Seahawks to remain a running team.

With Thomas Rawls suffering a season-ending broken ankle in Baltimore and Marshawn Lynch unlikely to return until the playoffs — if then — this offense is all Russell Wilson’s now. But the Seahawks, who came into the game as the NFL’s leading rushing team, clearly are determined to keep running it.

Wilson continued to chew up depleted NFL defenses, throwing five more touchdown passes in a 35-6 win in Baltimore, giving him 16 TD passes and no interceptions in the last four games against San Francisco, Pittsburgh, Minnesota and Baltimore. He is the third player to do that in a season, joining Tom Brady (2007) and Peyton Manning (2013).

Wilson also has the 28th four-game streak with three TD passes since 1960; there have been seven streaks of at least five games with three TDs (per Pro Football Reference).

On top of that, Wilson is the first player to have at least three passing TDs and no interceptions while completing 70 percent in four straight games, according to Elias Sports Bureau.

The Seahawks might seem to have a bit of an identity crisis, but don’t be fooled by Wilson’s gaudy numbers: This is still a running team, and they will have to figure out how to keep it such.

Continue reading Wilson’s streaking & Rawls is out, but Hawks are still a running team →

CHAWK LINES, Week 14: At Baltimore

December 13, 2015 cc Leave a comment

CHAWK LINES -- Seahawks at Ravens

Jimmy Clausen will start for the Ravens — putting him in rare company in NFL history.

Jordan Hill and Demarcus Dobbs will sit out again today.

Former Seahawks WR Chris Matthews has been promoted to Baltimore’s active roster from practice squad for today’s game.

Despite a seemingly lopsided matchup vs. the Ravens, the Seahawks have plenty of motivation.

Russell Wilson’s dominance in the pocket has been crucial to the Seahawks’ offensive resurgence.

Pete Carroll, Darrell Bevell and Tom Cable explain the unorthodox way they run the offense.

Cable’s faith in the revamped offensive line has been rewarded during this offensive surge.

The Seahawks are still a run-first offense and will lean on Thomas Rawls.

Defensive back DeShawn Shead is the latest to claw his way into the Seahawks’ starting lineup.

Marshawn Lynch and Jimmy Graham are back in the Seahawks’ facility for recoveries.

CHAWK LINES, Week 14: At Baltimore

December 10, 2015 cc Leave a comment

CHAWK LINES -- Seahawks at Ravens

Darrell Bevell said he is not pursuing the BYU job even though the school is interested in him. He said he is intent on helping the Seahawks reach a third straight Super Bowl.

Anthony McCoy is back with the Seahawks, replacing short-timer Chase Coffman.

Marshawn Lynch was back at VMAC on Wednesday, but Pete Carroll said Monday that Lynch is a “few weeks” away from being able to play. Sure sounds like Lynch could end up on IR.

Doug Baldwin is having his best statistical season and could end up as Seattle’s first 1,000-yard receiver since 2007.

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Contracts, Franchise history, Free agency, Trades

Big-money acquisitions haven’t paid off

December 9, 2015 cc 2 Comments

Percy Harvin and Sidney Rice during a minicamp in June (AP) Now you know why John Schneider doesn’t pay big money in free agency very
often: It usually
isn’t worth it.

The release of Cary Williams this week was the latest example. It was the second straight year the Seahawks have gotten rid of a highly paid veteran addition during the season — and they probably set a record with this one, dumping Williams just 12 games into a three-year, $18 million contract.

A year ago, the Seahawks traded Percy Harvin — the pouting malcontent who for a time had poisoned the Seattle locker room.

Since he took over in 2010, Schneider has acquired nine big-contract veterans — defined as making $5 million a year or more — and six of them have not been worth it.

Continue reading Big-money acquisitions haven’t paid off →

Contracts, State of the team, The roster

Hawks are no longer desperate at cornerback

December 8, 2015 cc Leave a comment

Going into last offseason, the Seahawks were suddenly uncommonly thin at cornerback — and that, in a nutshell, explains why they wasted $7 million on Cary Williams and ended up losing Tony McDaniel.

After the Super Bowl, Richard Sherman, Jeremy Lane and Tharold Simon were all facing recovery from injuries of varying severity. On top of that, Byron Maxwell was getting ready to sign a blockbuster contract with another team, which turned out to be the Eagles.

That left young Marcus Burley as the only healthy cornerback and DeShawn Shead as a largely untested emergency option who had more experience at safety. So, the Seahawks covered themselves by signing two veteran corners — Williams and Will Blackmon. And then they drafted Tye Smith in the fifth round.

Blackmon once again did not make the roster, and Williams struggled so badly that he was benched three weeks ago, made inactive the past two games and released Monday.

Pete Carroll and John Schneider have never been afraid to admit mistakes and move on from them — e.g., Percy Harvin last year — and that’s basically what they did here.

But they did it because they have plenty of talent at the position, and the future is bright.

Continue reading Hawks are no longer desperate at cornerback →

State of the team, Week 13: At Minnesota

Only question now: Can Hawks beat Cardinals & Panthers?

December 6, 2015 cc Leave a comment

Wilson dives for TD vs Vikings Three weeks ago, after Seattle lost a shootout against Arizona, the big question was not whether the Seahawks would win the NFC West but whether they would even rally to make the playoffs.

Two weeks ago, the Seahawks put together their best offensive game of the season, blowing out San Francisco 29-13, and the question was whether they could do it again against better opponents, Pittsburgh and Minnesota.

Well, they answered both questions emphatically, putting up 77 points in two wins while seizing control of their playoff destiny, and there are no more questions about the offense or the playoffs.

The only question now is: Can the Seahawks do this against Arizona and Carolina — the teams they will need to beat to get to the Super Bowl?

“I think this has been a few weeks that we’ve been feeling like we’re feeling,” Pete Carroll said. “Our confidence, sticking with our style, just the basic principles of what we expect and standards that we’re setting, everybody is really in line right now. This is that feeling that you’re looking for. We have a chance.”

Continue reading Only question now: Can Hawks beat Cardinals & Panthers? →

CHAWK LINES, Week 13: At Minnesota

December 3, 2015 cc Leave a comment

chawk lines -- Vikings

Pete Carroll told NFL Network this game in Minnesota will show whether the Seahawks really have turned the corner.

Can the Seahawks replicate the 1998 49ers, 2001 Patriots and 2011 Giants — all 6-5 teams that won the Super Bowl?

Despite throwing the fewest passes in the league, Russell Wilson is on pace for almost 4,000 yards.

Tom Cable said the offense is helping Wilson much more: “He’s a special quarterback, and when you do it right for him …”

Gregg Bell says the Seahawks’ offensive line has been the key to the Seahawks’ season “U-turn.”

The Seahawks hopefully learned a lesson from the failed Drew Nowak experiment.

Doug Baldwin leads NFL receivers over the last three weeks — perhaps inspired by Marshawn Lynch’s comment that the offense had looked “unfamiliar.”

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NFL draft, Trades, Week 13: At Minnesota

Schneider helped build this Vikings team

December 2, 2015 cc Leave a comment

John Schneider drafting When Minnesota GM Rick Spielman sees John Schneider this weekend in Minneapolis, he will probably give him a big hug and kiss.

After all, Schneider has helped Spielman build his team into the NFC North leader. Schneider has handed Spielman his quarterback, a starting cornerback and a backup running back over the last three years. Oh, and he also relieved Spielman of a massive locker room headache.

Continue reading Schneider helped build this Vikings team →