January 28, 2015 cc 1 Comment

Since Tuesday was Beast Mode Media Day, we’ll lead with a few on him:

Marshawn Lynch’s father is in prison for burglary, but his “Papa,” Leron Lynch, talked to USA Today about the mercurial running back.

The Seahawks love saying great things about Lynch, and they did so again to Seahawks.com.

If you don’t mind commercialism and Kenny “My nerdy, nonsensical shtick makes me funny, right?” Mayne, check out Lynch in a Progressive ad.

If you care about Lynch’s pointless interview sessions (we don’t), My Northwest ranked them.

The Legion of Boom talks about its old-school motivation tactics.

Coincidence (not irony): Losses to the Chiefs turned around the seasons of both the Patriots and Seahawks.

USA Today offers a pretty good analysis of the Super Bowl matchups, but the writer picks the wrong winner because he underestimates Russell Wilson’s passing ability.

Super Bowl XLIX, X's & O's

Super Bowl matchup: Browner’s a target, too

January 27, 2015 cc Leave a comment

Right after the
Patriots won the AFC title game, Brandon Browner told reporters he had envisioned meeting his former Seattle teammates in the Super Bowl.

Now he apparently wants to hurt them — or maybe not. Either way, he might want to be more concerned about what the Hawks are going to do against him.

Continue reading Super Bowl matchup: Browner’s a target, too →

Super Bowl XLIX

This Super Bowl is for independent thinkers & ‘Karate Kid’ fans

January 27, 2015 cc Leave a comment

If you are an independent thinker — not subject to the whims of societal group think, peer pressure, corporate “yes manning” and pack journalism — you have to love this Super Bowl matchup.

If you’re not afraid to go against the grain, you have to love the way Bill Belichick and Pete Carroll sand the floor, creating smooth bases for their football teams. You have to love how they wax on about their brand of football, which no other coaches can hold a candle to. And you have to love how they paint the D-fence with exacting brush strokes.

Yeah, Mr. Belichick and Mr. Carroll do it the Mr. Miyagi way: They’re confident, creative, flexible, fundamental, defensive, quietly defiant — and perfectly unapologetic about the way they run their teams.

These two senseis have dominated football for 15 years, and how appropriate that they finally get to match up in the biggest game of the year.

Continue reading This Super Bowl is for independent thinkers & ‘Karate Kid’ fans →

Contracts, State of the team

Schneider: Hawks are better prepared for free agency this year

January 24, 2015 cc Leave a comment

John Schneider and his staff apparently messed up in free agency last year, thanks to the Super Bowl, and they aren’t letting it happen again.

That was the most significant message imparted Friday by the general manager, who shed no new light on the team’s position with Marshawn Lynch or Russell Wilson but indicated the team was not prepared enough for free agency in 2014.

Schneider seemed to indicate his staff underestimated the value of some of their free agents last offseason — Golden Tate and Clinton McDonald come to mind (although the Hawks will get compensatory draft picks for those two).

To avoid getting caught with their pants down this year, Schneider has already met with his pro personnel guys — Trent Kirchner and Dan Morgan — and they have a better bead on the market for their 15 unrestricted free agents.

Continue reading Schneider: Hawks are better prepared for free agency this year →

CHAWK LINES, Super Bowl XLIX

January 23, 2015 cc Leave a comment

Am I grasping this correctly? The NFL apparently is mad at both the #Patriots and #Seahawks for the way they allegedly handled their balls.

— Chris Cluff (@CHawk_Talk) January 23, 2015

The Seahawks are a young bunch and their immaturity occasionally shows in big ways. Take Marshawn Lynch’s crotch grabbing and Doug Baldwin’s rant.

Baldwin’s bluster was almost exactly what Richard Sherman did a year ago in the NFC title game; and, just like Sherman, Baldwin regretted taking away from his team’s big victory.

Lynch was fined $20,000 for another adolescent touchdown move, and then the crotchety NFL thought Chris Matthews did the same thing while congratulating Lynch and erroneously fined him, too.

Someone in the NFL offices is blind, obviously.

Continue reading →

Playoffs: Green Bay, X's & O's

Did the Hawks really need that onside kick?

January 22, 2015 cc Leave a comment

Now that we all know the Seahawks’ onside kick was legal — like there should have been any question — let’s answer this question: Should the Seahawks have done it?

Seattle came up with several long-odds plays to beat the Packers in the NFC title game, but did the Seahawks actually make it too hard on themselves at the end?

Did they really need an onside kick, two-point conversion and overtime? Wouldn’t they have had at least the same chance of winning if they had kicked the ball deep after Russell Wilson’s touchdown run?

Continue reading Did the Hawks really need that onside kick? →

Coaches, Super Bowl XLIX

Dan Quinn’s swan song — and then what?

January 20, 2015 cc Leave a comment

The Seattle defense apparently will have some added incentive to put forth a stellar Super Bowl performance on Feb. 1: Sending coordinator Dan Quinn to Atlanta with a win.

The Falcons interviewed Quinn for a second time Monday in what reportedly was more of a formality as they already have decided to hire him. They reportedly had hoped to bring him out to Atlanta this week to announce the hiring, but his Seattle defense shut down Aaron Rodgers and the Packers for most of the game Sunday, giving Russell Wilson and Jermaine Kearse a chance to redeem themselves and send the Hawks back to the Super Bowl.

The Falcons reportedly already are securing Quinn’s staff — starting with offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan — and likely will name him their coach the day after the Super Bowl.

Seahawks coach Pete Carroll knows all of this, of course, and is not concerned a bit about losing Quinn or about it being a distraction leading up to the Super Bowl.

Continue reading Dan Quinn’s swan song — and then what? →

Contracts, Playoffs: Green Bay

He’s quiet, but Lynch sure generates a lot of noise

January 19, 2015 cc Leave a comment

For a guy as quiet as he is, Marshawn Lynch sure does make a lot of noise.

And he made a lot of it over the weekend.

It all started with a report Friday that he was going to wear $1,100 gold-plated cleats against the Packers, followed by a report Sunday morning that the NFL would not let him play if he did so.

As it turned out, he played in shoes that had blue and green tops and gold soles. And he made a lot of noise with them, running for a team playoff-record 157 yards and a touchdown in the 28-22 comeback win that vaulted Seattle into the Super Bowl for the second straight year.

It remains to be seen whether the No Fun League fines Lynch for the gold shoe bottoms — or for another crotch grab while scoring. Not sure why he insists on doing that — it’s such a teenage maneuver. But, hey, if Lynch wants to be a dick, that’s his choice.

Speaking of choices, another report Sunday indicated that the Hawks now are leaning toward keeping Lynch.

Continue reading He’s quiet, but Lynch sure generates a lot of noise →

Super Bowl XLIX

Super Bowl XLIX: The proving ground

January 19, 2015 cc Leave a comment

Super Bowl XLIX — with the matchup many of us projected before the season started — will be a proving ground in so many ways for both the Seahawks and the Patriots.

Going against the man who succeeded him in New England, Pete Carroll will have a chance to prove he is every bit the coaching genius that Bill Belichick — long the NFL’s best coach — is. What better way to do it than head to head?

Continue reading Super Bowl XLIX: The proving ground →

Playoffs: Green Bay

The hallmarks of that win: Redemption, trust and resilience

January 19, 2015 cc 1 Comment

Redemption, resilience, trust, teamwork.

Other than a trip to the Super Bowl, those were the themes of the Seahawks’ historic comeback win over the Green Bay Packers, 28-22 in overtime, on Sunday.

For much of the game, Russell Wilson, Jermaine Kearse and Doug Baldwin were the Three Stooges — taking turns poking each other in the eyes, hitting each other in the head and tripping over each other.

Wilson threw four interceptions — all on passes intended for Kearse, who had two go off his hands — and Baldwin fumbled on a kick return and dropped two passes himself.

But all three redeemed themselves on the winning drive in overtime — Wilson hitting Baldwin twice for 45 yards and then finding Kearse for the winning 35-yard touchdown.

After the game, Wilson and Kearse were overcome with emotion after their rollercoaster day.

Continue reading The hallmarks of that win: Redemption, trust and resilience →