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Draft is over, Mini Camps and OTA’s are done,
Now some things to ponder…
Here are some of the things that I think we’ve addressed, and improved upon:
· Offensive line – the addition of Russell Okung, and signing of Ben Hamilton should be huge. Okung may not yet be a top 5 Tackle in the league, but he is both physically and mentally talented enough to achieve that status. Plus, just having consistency at the LT position should be huge. Hamilton is a proven LG, played under Gibbs system and should be there to pick up Okung’s missed assignments when they happen. Hopefully not too often.
· Defensive backfield – No secret the Hawks secondary allowed way too many big plays and TD’s last year. With the addition of Earl Thomas, Walter Thurmond III and Kam Chancellor, the Seahawks have improved upon what was an aging and underperforming secondary. Even though the above 3 are rookies, they address both needs at Safety and Corner. With the mix of hold over veterans Trufant, Wilson, Milloy and Babineaux the young guys should be able to contribute and hopefully help solidify the backfield.
o A side note – There have been reports the Atogwe is targeting Seattle as his top team. Even though there has been no reported interest from Seattle, this may not be such a bad idea. Atogwe is still young (28) and a very talented Safety with a nose for the ball. Signing him would help the Seahawks secondary tremendously. While the Seahawks drafted Earl Thomas to start at FS, he is still a rookie (just turned 21) and can benefit by learning from a proven vet like Atogwe. Plus, with his versatility Thomas can always fill in at CB, which the Seahawks can always use help at. Just a thought.
· Widereceiver – This wasn’t really an area of struggle last year, one of the few positives when compared to the other areas of horrendous struggle. The loss of Nate Burleson hurts the hawks a bit, because Matt loses the one guy who he had some chemistry and timing with due to playing together for the last 4 years. Hold over veterans include aging Houshmanzadeh, overpaid and underperforming Branch and unproven Butler. Drafting Golden Tate definitely boosts the Seahawks WR core, especially in the big play arena. Tate is a rookie though, and is expected to encounter some bumps. The low risk signings of the Williams “twins” believe or not seems to be paying off, especially Mike Williams who has lost a lot of weight (fat) and seems to be playing/practicing with a totally different approach to the game and life. He seems to have matured a lot, developed a strong work ethic and I’ve heard nothing but good things about him coming out of the VMAC. Hopefully in training camp, the vets and rookies can start to gel with Matt, and the Hawks can build a pretty solid WR core. The pieces are there, they just have to make it work.
· Quarterback – Hasselbeck is a proven winner, we know this. However he isn’t getting any younger, and in the last 2 years, playing behind a POS line has led to him getting hit and injured way too much. Hopefully with an “improved” line and Matt once again “healthy”, he can stay that way. When Hasselbeck starts all 16 games good things happen. With the addition of Whitehurst, while controversial, gives Seattle a REAL backup at QB instead of Senecca “WR turned QB experiment gone wrong” Wallace. I am not going to touch on what I think about Whitehurst’s potential, what we gave up for him or how much he’s getting paid, but if God forbid Matt does go down, I would be more comfortable with him under center over Wallace. Losman is also a decent back up, probably another case of “thrown into the starting job on a horrible team and now it’s ruined his career”. Well he doesn’t have to worry about starting, not anytime in the foreseeable future at least.
Now, things that I am worried about, and think should or might still be addressed:
· Defensive line (pass rush) – The Seahawks were decent against the run last year, minus a couple of HUGE embarrassments courtesy of Frank Gore, which were probably more the fault of the LB’s and DB’s than the D line. Now against the pass, that’s a whole different story. With an aging Kerney, Lions reject Redding, under achieving LoJack the Seahawks failed to generate a consistent pass rusher, which I suspect contributed to the poor play of the secondary. There were a few glimpses of potential by then Rookie Nick Reed, a few moments from LoJack and a couple sack forced fumbles by Curry early on. The Seahawks attempted to address the pass rusher problem by drafting big end EJ Wilson, and sack machine Dexter Davis. They also traded Darrell Tapp to the Eagles for DE Clemons and signed Canadian Football star Ricky Foley. While the Hawks added some young talent to the position, I am still worried the current lineup just won’t be able to generate that consist pressure that this team really needs.
· Runningback – This would’ve been up in the “improvement” section a few weeks ago prior to the release of LenDale White. Now the Seahawks are left with a washed up Julius Jones and duo of promising shifty shorter backs, who are very similar in size and running style. This leaves the Seahawks with a huge void, and that would be a power back. Forsett and Washington are both quick, Washington is fast, but both are 5’8” and in the 195-200lb range. Jones is a little bigger, but he is weak and does not run hard. Anytime he comes into contact with anyone who isn't a DB he just falls over as if running into a brick wall. White gave Seattle the size they needed, but apparently he had a bad work ethic and was not ready to be a Seahawk. I am okay with his release considering the Hawks didn’t give up much for him. But now we don’t have anyone to fill his shoes. There is still the possibility the Seahawks would go after Marshawn Lynch, but those talks haven’t blossomed into anything concrete beyond rumors. I think if the Hawks don’t address this issue, and go into the seasons with the current backs on the roster, they are going to struggle moving the rock…. Honestly, is any defensive coordinator going to be scared of JJ, Forsett or Washington going up the middle on a goal line play? Don’t think so.
Okay, I am done with my rant. Sorry if it’s all over the place, wrote this during different parts of the day, and wasn’t always on the same train of thought.
Please do chime in and discuss some of the stuff that was brought up. Please refrain from starting a completely different irrelevant topic that will just kill the thread….
Thanks!
numberoUNO
Now some things to ponder…
Here are some of the things that I think we’ve addressed, and improved upon:
· Offensive line – the addition of Russell Okung, and signing of Ben Hamilton should be huge. Okung may not yet be a top 5 Tackle in the league, but he is both physically and mentally talented enough to achieve that status. Plus, just having consistency at the LT position should be huge. Hamilton is a proven LG, played under Gibbs system and should be there to pick up Okung’s missed assignments when they happen. Hopefully not too often.
· Defensive backfield – No secret the Hawks secondary allowed way too many big plays and TD’s last year. With the addition of Earl Thomas, Walter Thurmond III and Kam Chancellor, the Seahawks have improved upon what was an aging and underperforming secondary. Even though the above 3 are rookies, they address both needs at Safety and Corner. With the mix of hold over veterans Trufant, Wilson, Milloy and Babineaux the young guys should be able to contribute and hopefully help solidify the backfield.
o A side note – There have been reports the Atogwe is targeting Seattle as his top team. Even though there has been no reported interest from Seattle, this may not be such a bad idea. Atogwe is still young (28) and a very talented Safety with a nose for the ball. Signing him would help the Seahawks secondary tremendously. While the Seahawks drafted Earl Thomas to start at FS, he is still a rookie (just turned 21) and can benefit by learning from a proven vet like Atogwe. Plus, with his versatility Thomas can always fill in at CB, which the Seahawks can always use help at. Just a thought.
· Widereceiver – This wasn’t really an area of struggle last year, one of the few positives when compared to the other areas of horrendous struggle. The loss of Nate Burleson hurts the hawks a bit, because Matt loses the one guy who he had some chemistry and timing with due to playing together for the last 4 years. Hold over veterans include aging Houshmanzadeh, overpaid and underperforming Branch and unproven Butler. Drafting Golden Tate definitely boosts the Seahawks WR core, especially in the big play arena. Tate is a rookie though, and is expected to encounter some bumps. The low risk signings of the Williams “twins” believe or not seems to be paying off, especially Mike Williams who has lost a lot of weight (fat) and seems to be playing/practicing with a totally different approach to the game and life. He seems to have matured a lot, developed a strong work ethic and I’ve heard nothing but good things about him coming out of the VMAC. Hopefully in training camp, the vets and rookies can start to gel with Matt, and the Hawks can build a pretty solid WR core. The pieces are there, they just have to make it work.
· Quarterback – Hasselbeck is a proven winner, we know this. However he isn’t getting any younger, and in the last 2 years, playing behind a POS line has led to him getting hit and injured way too much. Hopefully with an “improved” line and Matt once again “healthy”, he can stay that way. When Hasselbeck starts all 16 games good things happen. With the addition of Whitehurst, while controversial, gives Seattle a REAL backup at QB instead of Senecca “WR turned QB experiment gone wrong” Wallace. I am not going to touch on what I think about Whitehurst’s potential, what we gave up for him or how much he’s getting paid, but if God forbid Matt does go down, I would be more comfortable with him under center over Wallace. Losman is also a decent back up, probably another case of “thrown into the starting job on a horrible team and now it’s ruined his career”. Well he doesn’t have to worry about starting, not anytime in the foreseeable future at least.
Now, things that I am worried about, and think should or might still be addressed:
· Defensive line (pass rush) – The Seahawks were decent against the run last year, minus a couple of HUGE embarrassments courtesy of Frank Gore, which were probably more the fault of the LB’s and DB’s than the D line. Now against the pass, that’s a whole different story. With an aging Kerney, Lions reject Redding, under achieving LoJack the Seahawks failed to generate a consistent pass rusher, which I suspect contributed to the poor play of the secondary. There were a few glimpses of potential by then Rookie Nick Reed, a few moments from LoJack and a couple sack forced fumbles by Curry early on. The Seahawks attempted to address the pass rusher problem by drafting big end EJ Wilson, and sack machine Dexter Davis. They also traded Darrell Tapp to the Eagles for DE Clemons and signed Canadian Football star Ricky Foley. While the Hawks added some young talent to the position, I am still worried the current lineup just won’t be able to generate that consist pressure that this team really needs.
· Runningback – This would’ve been up in the “improvement” section a few weeks ago prior to the release of LenDale White. Now the Seahawks are left with a washed up Julius Jones and duo of promising shifty shorter backs, who are very similar in size and running style. This leaves the Seahawks with a huge void, and that would be a power back. Forsett and Washington are both quick, Washington is fast, but both are 5’8” and in the 195-200lb range. Jones is a little bigger, but he is weak and does not run hard. Anytime he comes into contact with anyone who isn't a DB he just falls over as if running into a brick wall. White gave Seattle the size they needed, but apparently he had a bad work ethic and was not ready to be a Seahawk. I am okay with his release considering the Hawks didn’t give up much for him. But now we don’t have anyone to fill his shoes. There is still the possibility the Seahawks would go after Marshawn Lynch, but those talks haven’t blossomed into anything concrete beyond rumors. I think if the Hawks don’t address this issue, and go into the seasons with the current backs on the roster, they are going to struggle moving the rock…. Honestly, is any defensive coordinator going to be scared of JJ, Forsett or Washington going up the middle on a goal line play? Don’t think so.
Okay, I am done with my rant. Sorry if it’s all over the place, wrote this during different parts of the day, and wasn’t always on the same train of thought.
Please do chime in and discuss some of the stuff that was brought up. Please refrain from starting a completely different irrelevant topic that will just kill the thread….
Thanks!
numberoUNO
