Tag Archives: L.J. Collier

History says Schneider should stick and pick

April 16, 2024 cc Leave a comment

The draft is next week, and John Schneider and his Seahawks have to figure out one big thing: Where are the ledges?

It’s the key to anything Schneider will do in this selection meeting. And he needs to tread carefully, lest he fall off the cliff again.

Schneider has not made a draft-day deal involving a first-round pick since 2019, but he will be tempted to do it this time after sending his second-rounder to the Giants for Leonard Williams and a third-rounder in the deal to get Sam Howell from Washington.

At 16, Schneider is sitting right in the crosshairs — and he knows it.

Continue reading →

The roster, Trades

Schneider finally addresses biggest offseason whiff

October 29, 2020 cc 2 Comments

Most observers are giving John Schneider major kudos for once again filling a big roster hole by taking advantage of another team’s dysfunction.

The trade for Carlos Dunlap – Schneider’s third October deal in four years — certainly was needed, and Schneider did well to get it done for a mere seventh-round pick and overpriced backup center B.J. Finney, as Cincinnati clearly was eager to get rid of Dunlap. (The GM would do better to add another pass rusher, too.)

But let’s not forget this is the continuation of an ongoing theme: The Seahawks were in this mess because Schneider created it – and then failed to fix it until now, maybe only for now.

Continue reading →

Week 2: New England

expect more thrillers like that win over Pats

September 21, 2020 cc 1 Comment

If the first two games are any indication, the Seahawks are going to play in a lot of shootouts this season – and probably win most of them.

Russell Wilson is off to his best start ever — with nine TD passes and one interception (thanks, Greg Olsen). Meanwhile, the defense, even with superstar Jamal Adams, is struggling every bit as much as it did in 2019, when almost every week (12 of 16 anyway) involved a thriller.

This 35-30 win over the Patriots was more of that brand – and the same kind of show Pete Carroll and Bill Belichick’s teams always put on when they meet.

Continue reading →

NFL draft, The roster

Cheap Hawks swapped Thomas & Clark for 3 pass rushers and a guard

May 13, 2020 cc 2 Comments

Once upon a time, the Seahawks had the NFL’s top-paid players (or close to it) at three defensive positions, along with the No. 2-paid quarterback.

In 2019, they made Russell Wilson and Bobby Wagner the league’s top-paid QB and middle linebacker — but they have not been interested in paying anyone else in that stratosphere since 2017, when they gave Kam Chancellor another top-three deal.

They didn’t want to pay Earl Thomas and Frank Clark in 2019, and they don’t want to pay Jadeveon Clowney this year.

Basically, they don’t want to pay elite pass rushers. So they used Thomas and Clark to draft a few. And, like it or not, they are counting on those swaps to work out.

Continue reading Cheap Hawks swapped Thomas & Clark for 3 pass rushers and a guard →

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 →

State of the team, Week 3: New Orleans

And Ansah makes three: Hawks will have all pass rushers finally

September 17, 2019 cc Leave a comment

Jadeveon Clowney and L.J. Collier have each made their debuts over the last two weeks. Now it’s Ziggy Ansah’s turn.

If it goes well, the Hawks might have the trio that, for this year anyway, is supposed to approximate the 2013 pass rush of Michael Bennett, Cliff Avril and Chris Clemons.

“We wanted to make sure everything was right,” Pete Carroll said of the long wait for Ansah. “He’s had three good weeks of work and he’s in really good shape. … He’ll play a considerable amount. He’s practiced hard enough to do that.

“That’s really going to be fun to see him out there, to see how we’re going to use him in the game plan. I’m really excited about that.”

Continue reading And Ansah makes three: Hawks will have all pass rushers finally →

State of the team, The roster, Week 2: At Pittsburgh

How (in)complete are the Hawks right now?

September 14, 2019 cc Leave a comment

Just how far from their best are the Seahawks?

Judging by the Week 2 league injury report, the Seahawks appear to be one of the more banged-up teams. They have six guys on the official game report (only the Chargers and Redskins have more), and they had 16 guys listed with injuries on the practice report Friday.

Almost every offensive lineman has some kind of ailment, and the Hawks are going to swap out two injured defensive starters this week, too.

Their most stable positions have been quarterback, running back (if you can believe it) and linebacker. Otherwise, they are in a state of flux everywhere else.

We previously said they are better almost everywhere, but right now we estimate they are only about two-thirds of what they eventually will be. And it might take a couple of months to find that final third — barring any major injuries.

Continue reading How (in)complete are the Hawks right now? →

Free agency, NFL draft, The roster, Trades

Hawks could have had Clark and Ansah, plus basically the same draft

May 10, 2019 cc 4 Comments

What if we told you the Seahawks could have had Frank Clark, Ziggy Ansah and pretty much all of the same draft picks (just a different pass rusher) and still have room for more, like they do now?

A lot of people are buying Seattle’s claim that the Clark trade to Kansas City enabled Seattle to turn four picks into 11, in what looks to some like an ingenious draft for the ages. Pete Carroll called the trade “the key to kick-start this thing.” And John Schneider said, “That draft choice with Frank definitely helped us.”

But the reality is: Clark became L.J. Collier, and Schneider did what he always planned to do with pick No. 21 — flipping it over and over until it became a six-player pancake. One had nothing to do with the other. And, as much as we love to see an aggressive move from Schneider, he didn’t have to trade Clark to do anything he has done since that deal.

Continue reading Hawks could have had Clark and Ansah, plus basically the same draft →

Free agency, The roster

Ansah’s a good bet, but Hawks need more

May 9, 2019 cc Leave a comment

One down, two to go.

The Seahawks needed three veteran defensive linemen. They got Ziggy Ansah, the best pass rusher available (if healthy), so now they need two more.

If healthy, Ansah will be a good investment — reportedly $9 million, with $3.75 million in incentives. The Seahawks obviously think he will be available for the full season. But he reportedly won’t be ready until mid-August, and some apparently think he might miss the first month of the season.

For that reason, the Hawks need to add another outside rusher to go with Ansah and the run-stuffing tackle they also need.

Continue reading Ansah’s a good bet, but Hawks need more →

Free agency, The roster

Like 2013, Hawks need three vet D-linemen

May 1, 2019 cc 2 Comments

Pete Carroll says this roster feels as deep as the ones in the Super Bowl years. But he and John Schneider know they have one major weakness still: Their defensive line.

The Seahawks are pretty much in the same spot with their defensive line that they were in 2013, and they need to do the same thing they did then.

In 2013, they had Chris Clemons coming off an ACL injury, so they needed pass rushers next to run stoppers Red Bryant and Brandon Mebane. John Schneider somehow managed to add both Cliff Avril and Michael Bennett. The GM also signed Tony McDaniel to start inside next to Mebane. The result: They were the No. 1 pass defense and the No. 7 unit vs. the run.

Now, with Avril, Bennett and Frank Clark all gone and another vacancy at tackle, Carroll and Schneider need another veteran trio. They have the cap space to do it (at least $22 million), and they need to use it.

Continue reading Like 2013, Hawks need three vet D-linemen →