What about Jimmy Graham?
That is the question many are asking as the Seahawks embark on the most important offseason of John Schneider’s tenure (or at least since they went quarterback hunting in 2012).
It’s preposterous to think the Seahawks would cut Graham, who just rallied from a severe knee injury to set team records for receptions and yards by a tight end. And it doesn’t sound like the Seahawks will be interested in trading him either.
A year ago, the Seahawks’ obvious priority was to build an almost entirely new offensive line. They ended up with three first-time starters, a fourth in a new position and a fifth who was only in his second year at his spot.
Everyone hoped against hope that bunch of neophytes would not be this Super Bowl contender’s undoing. But, along with a few key injuries, it was.
Despite the apparent lack of progress, Pete Carroll thinks they have set a foundation and the continuity will help the group improve even if the club does nothing to add to the unit. He also made it clear they do not plan to spend much money on the line.
While many fans are calling loudly for the Seahawks to buy an expensive cup o’ Joe to jolt their left tackle spot, the simple fact is the Seahawks chose to go decaffeinated on the offensive line, and they are very unlikely to brew a new pot now.
In other words, don’t expect them to mess up their 2017 salary cap and draft by trading for Joe Thomas or Joe Staley.
Instead, expect them to see whether undrafted rookie George Fant can become the next Jason Peters — now. It took Peters, also an undrafted college tight end, three years to become a standout left tackle in the NFL. The Seahawks would settle for half the accomplishment in a third the time.
Continue reading Hawks will hope Fant can turn into the next Jason Peters
A big reason the Seahawks were able to get Marshawn Lynch in 2010 is C.J. Spiller, so it’s somewhat ironic that the guy who helped Seattle get Beast Mode now steps into the same backfield.
Spiller was the ninth overall pick by Buffalo in 2010, joining Lynch and Fred Jackson in a suddenly – and surprisingly — stacked Bills backfield. John Schneider, in his first year running the Hawks alongside Pete Carroll, tried several times to acquire Lynch that year – finally getting the Bills to part with him in October.
While Lynch went on to star for the Hawks for most of the next six seasons, Spiller ended up a part-time player behind Jackson in 2010 and 2011 before breaking out in 2012, with 1,244 yards (6 per carry), 43 catches and eight total touchdowns. He hasn’t done much since, though, as injuries have knocked him around.
The Hawks obviously are hoping that won’t be a problem as he steps in as the third-down back.
Continue reading Spiller helped Hawks get Lynch, now follows him
The Seahawks’ offensive line has endured a couple of rough games against stellar defensive fronts so far, and Bradley Sowell has been the most consistent problem player.
While we can expect Germain Ifedi’s eventual return to steady the right guard spot and Mark Glowinski and Justin Britt to continue to improve, left tackle is the one spot where there seems to be no help on the horizon. The Hawks are basically playing without a true left tackle this season.
Granted, Sowell will not have to go against great defensive lines like Miami’s or the Rams’ every week. And the coaches probably are counting on him holding his own against less stellar players than Robert Quinn.
But, in the wake of the slow-footed Sowell’s horrendous start to the season — three flags, one sack, one blocked field goal allowed, numerous pressures and hits surrendered — a lot of Seahawks fans are wondering once again whether John Schneider would make a deal for Cleveland All-Pro Joe Thomas.
The answer, like it was in the offseason, almost surely is no.
John Schneider has made at least one trade in the preseason in each of his six years in Seattle, so it’s no surprise to hear he is trying to make another this year.
Schneider reportedly is shopping Patrick Lewis, who apparently has lost the battle for the backup center spot to rookie Joey Hunt.
Plenty of teams need offensive line help, and Schneider surely could find one interested in a player who has started 13 games over the past two years. Lewis’ salary is $1.67 million, which could be a hindrance to a trade. Lewis, a former undrafted free agent, probably wouldn’t bring any more than a late pick.
Continue reading No surprise Schneider is shopping Lewis (or others)
As the Seahawks prepare to cut from 90 to 75 players and then play a game two days later and then cut to 53 two days after that, Pete Carroll said his team is ahead of where it was last year.
“It’s just felt very forward moving,” he said. “The whole time we’ve just been working and growing and dealing with stuff to come together as a team. The learning process and the teachable moments, everybody is in. It’s really been a terrific camp. It’s been a fantastic offseason and a terrific camp of growing.”
That’s a big contrast to the last two years. In 2014, the Seahawks were dealing with Marshawn Lynch rumors and the Percy Harvin headache. Then, last summer, Kam Chancellor messed with team chemistry when he held out into September.
“We’re trying to grow as a team and start this season in a more connected level than we have been in the past years,” Carroll said. “We’ve had a couple distractions that are difficult and challenging and we’ve learned from it and we’ve handled it, but not as well as we would have liked. It’s just felt like we’re ahead of that pace this season.
“We’ll see how it goes,” he added. “You never know until you start playing, but we’re looking forward to that.”
The Seahawks won’t start playing for real until Sept. 11, and they have a bunch of roster decisions to make in the interim — starting Tuesday.
Here’s a look at the roster heading into those cuts:
The dress rehearsal has arrived.
The Seahawks will play their starters for three quarters against the Cowboys tonight, and their first priority will be for Russell Wilson and the offense to finally finish a drive.
So far, Wilson and company have been shut out this preseason.
“We’re just giving too many situations away, making it too difficult to keep the kind of rhythm that we like,” Pete Carroll said. “I like to see us play a lot sharper and see where that leads us. Does that allow us to move the football and score some points like we like to? I would bet it will.”
Wilson was sacked four times by Minnesota, and two of them were his fault.
“I put those on me,” Wilson said. “We just need to do a better job of that. It’s a collective effort, but we’re doing a great job. I’m really excited about what we have, especially up front with what those guys are doing. They give me plenty of time, which is a great thing.
“There are a couple of times when you need to throw it away; that’s my competitive side — that will never change. I’m not just going to give up on plays.”
But he said he understands he needs to save plays from becoming negatives, not turning a second-and-seven into a third-and-13. “So that’s really the simple focus. It’s pretty simple and that’s the way I look at it.”
As for tonight, Wilson said, “We want to play great football across the board. We want to be in attack mode, we want to stay on the field. We’ve had some great drives; we just haven’t put it in the end zone as much as we wanted to. We’re going to do that and we’re excited about that.”
This game will feature the long-awaited Seahawk debuts of J’Marcus Webb and C.J. Prosise, along with the return of Will Tukuafu and the 2016 debuts of Kam Chancellor and Jordan Hill.
Here’s a look at the roster status heading into the Dallas game:
Some of the age-old bugaboos showed up in the home opener as the Seahawks committed penalties, gave up sacks and surrendered big chunks of yardage in the short passing game.
They committed 12 infractions, costing them 111 yards. It’s to be expected in preseason games, with lots of young guys shuttling in and out, so not a real big deal. And let’s remember: The Hawks led the league in flags in both Super Bowl seasons.
Sacks were a big problem early last year, with Wilson being taken down more than four times a game through the first eight. On Thursday, the Vikings got him four times — mostly due to him holding the ball too long or getting caught by blitzes.
Wilson took the blame for two of the sacks, and Pete Carroll said the offense did not react to Wilson’s blitz pickup call on another.
On defense, the Hawks ran into the same problem that has plagued them for most of Carroll’s tenure: short passes. Veteran QB Shaun Hill picked them apart with his running backs and tight ends in the first half, hitting 11 of 17 passes for 127 yards and leading the Vikings to a touchdown.
Here’s a look at what else we saw, by position:
Continue reading Old bugaboos return, plus positional observations
The Seahawks got off to a good start in their preseason opener in Kansas City, receiving some solid performances from the No. 1 offensive line and many rookies — namely undrafted quarterback Trevone Boykin, safety Tyvis Powell and wide receiver Tanner McEvoy.
Now they have to keep it going tonight against the Minnesota Vikings.
A lot has been said about this Seahawks squad being as deep as — perhaps deeper than — the 90-man group the Hawks brought to camp in the 2013 Super Bowl season.
This week, Russell Wilson called this “the most competitive team and talented team” the Hawks have had. Pete Carroll agreed.
