Tag Archives: Jimmy Graham

September 18, 2015 cc Leave a comment

In good news for the Seahawks, Packers OT Bryan Bulaga will miss the game with a knee injury suffered Thursday.

Earl Thomas and Richard Sherman both said poor communication led to all of the big plays by the Rams. They also both call it easily fixable.

Communication was the biggest focus this week, per Bob Condotta.

Sherman and Michael Bennett — Seattle’s two most outspoken and controversial players — both chimed in about the Black Lives Matter movement.

Larry Stone points out what we have noticed: Sherman has mellowed out from attention-getting trash talker to thoughtful social commenter.

Bob Condotta of the Times says Jimmy Graham’s debut could be a nice preview of things to come.

Graham apparently stayed in to block 36.9 percent of the time vs. the Rams. Last year with the Saints, he blocked 30.5 percent of the time.

Marshawn Lynch’s mom made it clear she was not speaking for Lynch when she called for Darrell Bevell to be fired.

Marcus Trufant reflects on playing his entire football career in the state of Washington.

State of the team, Week 1: At St. Louis

Nothing in that loss was surprising, and there’s no reason to worry

September 13, 2015 cc 2 Comments

Nothing about Seattle’s season-opening loss in St. Louis should have surprised anyone. And no one should be worried that the Seahawks can’t make the Super Bowl again — even if they lose in Green Bay next week, too.

As expected Sunday, Seattle’s reworked offensive line struggled against one of the NFL’s very best defensive lines, the secondary gave up some big plays and special teams made a big gaffe — all leading to a 34-31 overtime loss.

None of that should have shocked anyone. The only surprise was that the score was as high as it was in an opener featuring two stud defenses. (Of course, Tyler Lockett and Tavon Austin each returned a punt for a touchdown to beef up the score.)

Continue reading Nothing in that loss was surprising, and there’s no reason to worry →

CHAWK LINES, Week 1: At St. Louis

September 12, 2015 cc Leave a comment

Seattle’s reshaped offensive line faces a Ram-tough challenge in the opener.

Rob Rang offers three key matchups, and two of them are up front.

An insider’s look at the Rams, plus the matchup in a nutshell.

Earl Thomas tries to bait the Rams into throwing his way.

Why is it no surprise that Tharold Simon suddenly appeared on the injury report?

There will be plenty of room at Edward Jones Dome for Seahawks fans on Sunday as the Rams apparently are losing support amid owner Stan Kroenke’s attempt to move the team to L.A.

Linebacker Nick Moody was signed to the practice squad — for now. Mike Morgan might return next week; so, if the Hawks are considering adding Moody to the 53-man roster, the top candidates for release appear to be David King, Kristjan Sokoli, Will Tukuafu and Steven Terrell.

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Preseason

Mixed results from offense, secondary as front seven dominates

August 21, 2015 cc Leave a comment

The Seahawks entered their second preseason game with a lot of questions on the offensive line and secondary and came out with some mixed answers in a 14-13 loss to the Chiefs in Kansas City.

They also showed what Jimmy Graham will do for them, saw more from Tyler Lockett and got another great game from their No. 1 front seven on defense.

With Justin Britt moving from right tackle to left guard and Garry Gilliam stepping in at right tackle, the offensive line performed much better than it had in the opener vs. Denver, which got seven sacks.

Wilson was not sacked as he completed 9 of 15 passes for 78 yards. But the first offense really struggled again to run the ball and could not get into the end zone. Robert Turbin ran for a mere four yards on six carries, and Christine Michael ran for 27 on 10 attempts (and also busted a running play by going the wrong way). It wasn’t any better than the first game, when the Seahawks totaled just 89 yards on 24 attempts.

Pete Carroll said he liked the pass protection but added, “We’re not running the ball as well as we would like at this time. … That might change once No. 24 (Marshawn Lynch) gets in there.”

He said the offensive line “did not get the movement we need.” He also confirmed that free-agent guard Evan Mathis is coming to Seattle for a physical Saturday.

Continue reading Mixed results from offense, secondary as front seven dominates →

State of the team, Training camp

Training camp status report: Offense

August 13, 2015 cc Leave a comment

The Seahawks open the preseason against the Denver Broncos on Friday in Seattle. Here is our breakdown of the
offense, what we will be watching in the first game and our updated roster projections:

QUARTERBACK
Veterans: Russell Wilson, Tarvaris Jackson, R.J. Archer

Wilson’s No. 1 goal in camp has been to develop and refine his rapport with Jimmy Graham.

“Chemistry has been more than I could ever imagine,” Graham said after the scrimmage Aug. 8. “For example, today in the scrimmage we had one we didn’t connect on; so, after practice, we did it about four or five times. And that is how we’re going to do it each and every day. Anything we’re iffy about we’re going to get it after practice. The season is right here; and, when those big moments come, I want that connection to be right.”

Earlier this week, Pete Carroll said, “They’re not there yet. It’s just going to take time. The intricacies of the things that they’re trying to do together go way deep, so it’s going to take them a lot of time. … Both of them are really determined to get this thing figured out. They’re doing great, but there’s more room for them to make up.”

By all reports, Archer has been off target in most practices — putting to rest any thoughts that he might challenge Jackson, who still puts up a great deep ball.

The Hawks have their eyes open for other QBs — they reportedly worked out Jake Waters, who was Tyler Lockett’s QB at Kansas State.

What to watch: Wilson to Graham, of course.

Projected (2): Wilson, Jackson

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CHAWK LINES, Training camp

August 13, 2015 cc Leave a comment

Some observations from a stormy Day 11 of camp from those who were there (and other features):

Bob Condotta of The Times recounts Keavon Milton’s journey to possible No. 1 left guard.

The Seahawks don’t know how many tight ends they are going to keep: three or four? Does Will Tukuafu count?

Speaking of tight ends, Anthony McCoy feels “normal” after Achilles injuries cost him the past two seasons.

Mohammed Seisay continues to make plays even as he adjusts to the playbook and pace of practice: “I’m going to get real comfortable and start making a lot more plays.”

Richard Sherman had the day off, and he spent it talking to cover-2 guru Monte Kiffin.

Pete Carroll told KJR-AM that the Hawks catered to Percy Harvin’s talents last year, “to our detriment somewhat,” but Darrell Bevell said they don’t have to change for Jimmy Graham: “We can just plug him in.”

Field Gulls interviewed Doug McNeil about his circuitous journey to the Seahawks and his change of positions.

Peyton Manning is not expected to play Friday when the Broncos visit the Seahawks.

CHAWK LINES, Training camp

August 9, 2015 cc Leave a comment

Some observations from the scrimmage on Day 8 of camp from those who were there (and other features):

In his Facebook camp notes, Doug Baldwin says second-year safety Dion Bailey has impressed him.

Dave Boling of The News Tribune says it’s just more of the same for the chaotic offensive line. He includes this telling stat: Under Pete Carroll, the Seahawks have started 23 linemen in five years; the Colts and Chargers lead the way at 25.

The Seattle Times guys wrote about receivers Chris Matthews and Kasen Williams, among other observations.

Danny O’Neil of 710 ESPN was impressed by Jimmy Graham and also noted the ongoing shuffling along the offensive line.

Hawk Blogger Brian Nemhauser thinks Drew Nowak is the favorite to start at center.

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CHAWK LINES, Training camp

August 4, 2015 cc Leave a comment

Some observations from Day 4 of camp from those who were there:

Per The Seattle Times, Kristjan Sokoli is now practicing at left guard. That narrows the competition at center to three guys and gives Alvin Bailey another thing to think about as he attempts to nail down the LG spot.

Lemuel Jeanpierre is the leader for the center spot, according to Gregg Bell of The News Tribune, and Tom Cable says it should be decided soon.

Robert Turbin’s surgically repaired hip seems fine; he showed great burst in his return to practice, per Seahawks.com.

Jimmy Graham is loving his first camp in Seattle, Seahawks.com reports.

Seahawks.com passed along three key points from Kris Richard.

On 710 ESPN, Pete Carroll said Graham has impressed him more than anyone. He also talked about the future of his team, tough decisions such as cutting Tony McDaniel, Kam Chancellor’s holdout and the roster battles in this camp.

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State of the team, The roster

‘This is a team that’s built for the future’

June 11, 2015 cc Leave a comment

“This is a team that’s built for the future. … We’re in the middle of this. This is not like the end. This is just the middle of this.” — Pete Carroll to 710 ESPN after blowing the Super Bowl in February.

The Seahawks’ contract impasse with Russell Wilson has many wondering how much longer he will be the team’s quarterback and, in a related consideration, how long the Hawks’ Super Bowl window will remain open.

But Pete Carroll’s comments from February remain just as germane today, despite the apparent lack of progress on Wilson’s deal: This team is right in the middle of its Super Bowl window.

The team controls Wilson’s contract for at least three more seasons, which happens to match the duration of the deals of some of the team’s best players: Marshawn Lynch, Jimmy Graham, Kam Chancellor, Michael Bennett. Signed through 2018 are Cliff Avril, K.J. Wright, Earl Thomas and Richard Sherman.

Sure, Lynch could walk at any time if he feels the Call of Duty to do something else. And Bennett might not be with the team beyond this year if he continues to sit inside the VMAC whining about his contract while his teammates practice.

But, with the team now talking to Bobby Wagner about a new deal, we should be able to add the linebacker to the list of long-term Seahawks at some point this year.

Add the team’s young receivers (Paul Richardson, Tyler Lockett, Kevin Norwood) and some of the other additions from the last two drafts, and the Hawks have a solid core through at least 2017.

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CHAWK LINES

June 7, 2015 cc Leave a comment

While not working out with teammates in Seattle, Bruce Irvin apparently still would like to play in Seattle past this year.

John Clayton thinks Russell Wilson will sign a four-year deal worth up to $87 million, with up to $49 million guaranteed, by the time training camp starts in late July.

Contract analyst Joel Corry thinks the Hawks could get away with a $25 million signing bonus for Wilson. Seems light, considering they need to pay him at least $31 million this year. (Just mute the video of that goober Doug Gottlieb.)

Tom Cable and Rocky Seto got very detailed at the Seahawks Town Hall on Wednesday, discussing O-line technique and the Hawk tackle.

Kam Chancellor talked about the effect his knee injury had on him in the Super Bowl and how happy he is he didn’t have to undergo any kind of surgery this offseason.

Jimmy Graham talked to Clayton about his excitement to be playing with Wilson and the Hawks. In a little revisionist history, the high-scoring tight end joked the red zone was named after him due to his red hair.

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