At a Glance: Seattle Seahawks Running Back Outlook

When in doubt turn to your Cadillac to drive you all over the place, and in this case all over your apposing defense. What that means is when your quarterback sucks, turn to your running back to lead the way.

Many teams have found success on the offensive side of the football by having a better rushing attack then an arial attack.

Teams like the St Louis Rams with Steven Jackson, the Tennessee Titans with Chris Johnson, the Oakland Raiders with Darren McFadden/Justin Vargas and many others are proof that this works.  

Now we turn our attention to the Seattle Seahawks’ running backs headlined by former Dallas Cowboy Julius Jones, brother of New York Jets running back Thomas Jones.

Let’s take a look at the Seahawks plethora of running backs, who will be the starter and who will be the hidden player to watch.

Starting Running back Julius Jones

Julius Jones is now the official Seahawks starting running back heading into training camp. With the loss of Maurice Morris to Detroit, that was the only competition he had.

Now Jones, last season started off great with back to back 100 plus yard games against the St Louis Rams and SF 49ers.

After that, old-time Mike doesn’t like players he doesn’t know or like that well so Maurice Morris took over as the Seahawks starting running back position.

That is no more with Jim Mora Jr. as the new head coach and Greg Knapp, the new offensive coordinator who is a run first type of coordinator and has never ranked less that 10th overall in NFL for rushing.

There is a great possibility that Jones can rush for over 1,500 yards this season because of Knapp and that would really open up the passing game for Matt Hasselbeck.

The backup battering ram TJ Duckett

In 2008 the Seahawks could never get short yardage conversions and they made it their priority to sign a great short yardage back. They did so in signing TJ Duckett.

Boy did he turn out great. Duckett led the Seahawks in rushing touchdowns with eight and had over 400 plus yards rushing.

Coming into the 2009 training camp with a new look facial hair and a great attitude Duckett will have a great chance to be even better than he was last season.

Duckett will always be the running back on third and short or fourth and short, along with a goal line stand.

With that being said, Duckett would be a nice bench player for a fantasy team and have him as your second or third running back.

So you think you can run-Justin Forsett and Devin Moore

Justin Forsett and Devin Moore round out the Seahawks backfield. Both players have a combine two years NFL experience.

Moore is a rookie and was signed as an undrafted free agent and Forsett was a late round pick out of California last season.

Forsett has shown flashes of talent, but having been released by the Seahawks, signed with the Colts and then resigned with the Seahawks shows he has a ways to go.

Both players can benefit from Greg Knapp if they hit the books in the class room and show some cajones on the field they both can stick around.

Neither of them will have an ounce of fantasy value unless Jones and Duckett go down and even if they do they still don’t have any fantasy value.

 

 

At a Glance: Seattle Seahawks Quarterback Outlook

The NFL is a quarterback driven league for any team, even if your defense is better than your offense. Even this offseason, teams continue to show that the NFL is a QB-driven league. Jay Cutler in Chicago, Brett Favre in Minnesota, Mark Sanchez in New York etc.

Now we take a look at the Seattle Seahawks quarterbacks, headlined by elite, when healthy, Matt Hasselbeck. Followed by Seneca Wallace and rookie Mike Teel.

Lets take a look at the Seahawks three QB’s and what should you expect from them this season including my first fantasy advice.

 

Starting Quarterback: Matt Hasselbeck

Hasselbeck, elite quarterback in the huddle, when he is in the huddle and for Matt the last few years, that has been a looming problem.

Two out of the last three seasons Matt has missed a decent amount of time, 2009 being the most he’s missed.

However, the one season, 2008, when he played all 16 games, Matt lead the Seahawks to the playoffs and earned himself a trip to the Pro Bowl.

Now you could make a strong case for Hasselbeck being the best QB in Seahawks history. Mainly because he led the Seahawks to their only Super Bowl and led them to four straight NFC West titles and five straight playoff appearances.

Both of which ended last season.

Heading into training camp on Aug. 3, Hasselbeck will be 100 percent healthy and will have a plethora of talented receiving options including new WR TJ Houshmandzadeh and Deon Butler.

 

Fantasy Value

If Hasselbeck can stay healthy for an entire 16 game season he will have great value as a mid-round selection. But the new problem or change for Hasselbeck is that new offensive coordinator Greg Knapp is a run-first coach and will do wonders with Julius Jones as will be explained in my next article.

But the gamble will be if Julius gets 20+ carries and Matt gets 35+ throws a game your talking 55+ plays. If I recall, Brett Favre had one game in which he threw 55 passes and the Jets had like 42+ against the Arizona Cardinals.

Now can Matt and Julius have that great of an offense?

How well the Hawks play defense on any give week will likely determine who is getting the load.

I project Hasselbeck to throw 32 TD passed. 10 to TJ Houshmandzadeh, 10 to John Carlson, seven to Deion Branch and five to Nate Burleson.

I also project the Seahawks to go deep in the playoffs this season, but the key to their entire team is the ability to stay healthy. We will have to wait and see.

 

Seneca Wallace—Possible Wild Cat

Wallace is probably the best backup/spot starting QB in Seahawks history. Due to Matt’s recent injuries the last few years Wallace has had to step in and fill the void.

This was Seneca’s best season in a long time throwing 1,532 yards, 11 touchdowns and only three interceptions in what was really eight games.

Now is Wallace a future Hasselbeck?

No.

The Seahawks have two first-round picks next season and with Colt McCoy fitting the Seahawks draft motto of coming from a big time school and being a four-year starter the Hawks could surely go try to make a move in his direction.

However, if Hasselbeck does go down again this season, it will likely be the end for Hasselbeck. As for Wallace, he’s just buying time but realisitcly he could get them seven to nine wins depending on how many games he played.

Could Wallace be used for the wild cat if the Seahawks decide to do so? Probably, but don’t look for Wallace to be the knight inshining armor.

Mike Teel—Rookie/Soon To be Long-Time NFL Backup

Mike Teel was a seventh-round selection of the Seahawks in the 2009 NFL draft out of Rutgers University.

Teel is currently the third string QB on the depth chart and probably will remain there because when the 2010 NFL draft comes along and Seattle has the change to select Sam Bradford or McCoy they are going to forget about Teel. Bradford and McCoy both know how to lead a team and would be great for the Seahawks.

Teel has no fantasy value and even if Wallace and Hasselbeck go down…Well he still doesn’t have any fantasy value.

NOTE: Next article will talk about the RB position and the fantasy value of Julius Jones

Fourth and Short: Three Seahawks On Defense Who Have To Step Up

I wrote an article regarding three Seahawks who need to have a big year on the offensive side of the football. Now I’m doing the same on the defensive side of the ball.

So lets get started.

1) All three starting LB’s (Aaron Curry, Lofa Tatupu, and Leroy Hill)—The Seahawks’ front office has invested a lot into their top trio of linebackers. Now, they’re looking for these linebackers to lead this Seahawks defense.

Tatupu, who signed a new six-year $42 million deal last year, had an extremely off season. In his first four seasons in the NFL, Tatupu made the Pro Bowl and recorded over 100 tackles each year.

This season Tatupu failed to make the Pro Bowl, and failed to record 100 tackles. The Seahawks will be looking for a huge year from Tatupu, to show that he deserved his huge contract. I except Tatupu to lead this defense and the great trio of LB’s.

Hill signed a new six-year $38 million contract, instead of signing elsewhere or accepting the one-year franchise tag. Leroy Hill is not the Tatupu or Curry type of player, who is a game breaker.

He’s still developing into a top LB, and this season he’s really going to have to take more than just another step—he’s going to have to get to the top, and I think with Curry and Tatupu along side its very possible that he can.

But just like Tatupu, Hill’s going to have to prove he’s worth his contract.

As a rookie, fourth overall pick Aaron Curry wont be asked to lead this defense, but he definitely will be expected to have at least over 100 tackles and really make a mark on this defense.

I think Curry also has a great shot at the Defensive Rookie Of the Year award because I can’t really find any other rookie that has an opportunity like Curry does; he’ll be a great site to watch come the training camp and the regular season.

2) Ken Lucas—Yes, Lucas just signed this year, and he’s a great CB, but because of the lack of a good CB opposite of Trufant, they are really going to hope that Lucas can be the player he was when he used to be in Seattle.

I think Lucas can do a great job provided that he stays healthy, like everyone else, and he can also teach Wilson and Jennings a thing or to. Lucas and Trufant should be a great combination this season.

3) The rest of the Seahawks defense—My first two were specific players. Now, everyone else is equal. The rest of the defense mainly includes Cory Redding, Patrick Kerney, Colin Cole and who ever winds up being Brian Russell’s replacement, whether that be rookie Courtney Greene, C.J Wallace, or Kelly Jennings.

Basically, what the rest of the defense has to do is stay healthy for the entire season, step up and prove themselves, and take advantage and learn from Jim Mora and Gus Bradley, and finally, buy into what they are doing.

Following this advice will really pay off for the Seahawks.

 

 

Deon Butler: Seahawks No Name Player to Watch in 2009

Continuing the series of no-name Seahawks players that fans should watch out for, we have the team’s 2009 third round pick, WR Deon Butler.

Why do I consider Deon Butler to be a no name player? Let’s take a look at those reasons.

1) All rookies drafted outside the top 10 in the first round are to be considered a no name. For one, they haven’t played a snap in the NFL.

Second of all, if you fall out of the top 10, let alone all the way down to the third round, you are considered a no name player.

All rookies are usually considered no named because the coach still has you wear a piece of tape that has your name on it, in front of your helmet.

2) Deon Butler finds himself amongst a plethora of talented Seattle WRs. With the likes of T.J Houshmandzadeh, Deion Branch, Nate Burleson, and others, Butler is really not well known—and it doesn’t help that he’s a rookie.

Now in college at Penn State, Deon Butler was not a no name wide receiver. He broke former Seattle Seahawks and Penn State WR Bobby Engram’s receiving record.

Having been a great receiver at Penn State, breaking the record of Bobby         Engram—who was and still is considered to be one of the greatest slot WRs for the Seattle Seahawks.

Butler has a lot to live up to coming into is first NFL season.

 

So how can Deon Butler make himself a “name player”?

Well, he is going to have to do three things:

1) Take advantage of opportunities

Last season the Seahawks were desecrated by injuries across the roster and mainly at WR.

If either Deion Branch, Nate Burleson, or T.J. goes down due to injury, Butler is going to have to step up into which ever role becomes open—and do great.

 

2) Do whatever it takes

If the coaching staff asks you do to KR/PR, you do it and do it well. If the coaches ask you to be the No. 1 WR, you do it and succeed in that position. Whatever Jim Mora says, you follow through with success.

 

3) L-L-W: Listen, Learn, Watch.

Most likely, Butler is going to be the No. 4 WR behind T.J, Branch, and Burleson.

So in that case, during practice and during the games, Deon needs to have his butt on that white line, watching everything that TJ, Deion, and Nate do to better himself.

Then, he needs to use what they teach him on the field.

If Deon Butler can do those three things, then he will have to problem making a name for himself in the Seahawks organization and in the NFL.

 

 

Is Prophecy Near Fulfillment? Brett Favre Very Close to Signing with Vikings

Is the fulfillment of prophecy upon us? It must be, because the Brett Favre-Minnesota Vikings saga is reaching the closing moments.

One of the greatest QBs in NFL history—and surely one of the most talked about players in the NFL this offseason—is one flick of the wrist away from becoming a Minnesota Viking.

Over the last two months Favre had been nursing a biceps injury. Then on June 8, Favre decided to have surgery to fix the torn biceps tendon in his throwing shoulder.

Then, on July 5, Favre wanted to talk things over with highly recommended sports doctor, Dr. James Andrews, who said Favre was doing great.

So much for doctor-patient confidentiality, because after Andrews and Favre met, “the doc” came out with a statement saying that Favre wanted to play for Minnesota, which really put the icing on the cake for Favre to become a Viking.

Now the main question is, what is it going to cost in terms of salary for the Vikings? Last season Favre made $12 million—will it cost the same for the Vikings?

My guess is that Favre signs either Friday or over the weekend. I don’t see this playing out much longer now that it’s really just a flick of the wrist away for Favre to become a Minnesota Viking.

Well, thank god it’s very close to ending, because it’s taken four months when it really should have taken four minutes.

Good luck to you in Minnesota, Favre. Now the NFC North probably has the best QB division with Jay Cutler in Chicago, Aaron Rodgers in GB, Matthew Stafford in Detroit, and now Favre in Minnesota. No defense needed in the North—just QBs.

The Jim Mora Jr. Coaching Style: The Players Coach and Uptempo

In 2007-08, the Seattle Seahawks hired former Atlanta Falcons head coach Jim Mora Jr. as the teams secondary coach and assistant head coach. At the time, Mora’s Atlanta Falcons were 7-9. The last two seasons they finished 8-8 (2005) and 11-5 (2004).

Mora, who was fired on New Year’s Eve, was only three years removed from his trip to the NFC West Championship game. 21 days later, the Seahawks hired him as the secondary coach and as the assistant head coach.

Last offseason, the Seahawks and Tim Ruskell learned that this would be Mike Holmgren’s last season in the Seahawks organization and as the head coach. So the hunt was on to find a new one, but it didn’t take very long.

It was Jim Mora Jr., he was tabbed as the “head coach in waiting,” which you don’t see in the NFL—mostly in the college ranks. He also kept his job as the secondary coach.

Now Holmgren was the dictator kind of coach, where as, Jim Mora Jr. is more of a player’s coach, which is a lot better.

What it means to be a player’s coach is that you connect with each and every player you have under your control. You make all of your players feel comfortable and feel like they are welcome.

And when you hear Jim Mora talk in press conferences with the Seahawks, he always says that we are getting a great man, a great player, a great friend, and a great human being.

Now the kind of on-the-field kind of coach Mora is, is that he’s very up-tempo. If you ever go out and watch the season OTA’s or their upcoming mini-camps it’s very up-tempo.

Tony Ventrella even pointed out that the players and all of the coaches were running Gasser’s after practice, something the Seahawks haven’t had since before Holmgren was here, and the players don’t have a problem with it.

As Matt Hasselbeck put it, “there really isn’t an offseason anymore.”

Jim Mora brought in a few new coaches, including offensive coordinator Greg Knapp, who is a run-first coach and has never had a team finish less than 10th in rushing—that includes the Oakland Raiders.

He also brought in former Tampa Bucs LB coach Gus Bradley to be the Hawks DC. Bradley and Mora will run the Tampa Two, which is what former Bucs DC Monte Kiffin ran in Tampa. The other coaches that were brought in were Robert Prince, WR coach, Tim Lewis, secondary coach, and Dan Quinn, DL coach and new assistant HC.

John Marshall, the former Seahawks DC, is now in Oakland and Gil Haskell is no longer with the club.

This new style of coaching, from not only Mora but the entire staff, is great for the Seahawks players and the coaches because they get some added exercise.

Roger Goodell and Jim Mora Jr. Climb Mount Rainier

 

Over 14,000 feet. One group. Two days.

Now, its all over.

Seattle Seahawks’ head coach Jim Mora Jr. and NFL commissioner Roger Goodell completed the goal of climbing Mount Rainier at 9:15 am, Wednesday.

Mora Jr. brought up the idea of doing something great to commissioner Goodell a few weeks back, and so they settled on climbing Mount Rainier for charity.

Mora Jr., along with Goodell and a few other Seahawks front office members, then started the trek to climb Mount Rainier.

All of the group members involved in the trek except one made it to the summit, including Mora Jr. and Goodell.

The climb raised a total of $380,000.

Mora Jr. proved that he can make it to the top of a 14,411-foot volcano. Is that a sign that he can lead the Seahawks too?

 

If I Owned the Seattle Seahawks…

I decided it was time to share my complete look on the Seattle Seahawks organization. The Seahawks are currently owned my Paul Allen, also owner of the Portland Trailblazers and much more.

The Seahawks current front office is stacked as such with GM Tim Ruskell leading the way. Now what is interesting about the Seahawks front office is that a lot of their FO reps also work for Seahawks partner Seattle Sounders FC and for Tim Leiweke he is the CEO of Vulcan Sports and Entertainment (VSE) and the Seattle Sounders FC.

So the man has a lot ingrained in the Seahawks and Sounders FC organization.

So if I ran the Seattle Seahawks organization, and what I mean by that is owning the Seattle Seahawks (filling Paul Allen’s spot) what would I do with the Seattle Seahawks organization as a whole and also being the Seahawks GM replacing Tim Ruskell.

What would I change, what would I keep the same, and what personal, contract and commercial/partnerships off the field I would make. Let’s take a look at that.

Business and off the field partnerships:

The Seahawks currently have partnerships with Seattle soda company Jones Soda as the main soda company at Quest Field, instead of the normal Pepsi, Coke Cola, like the other 31 NFL teams do.

The Seahawks are the only team that does not have either Pepsi or Coke Cola as their exclusive soda choice at the stadium. Jones Soda has pictures of predominant Seahawks players on the cover of the bottle such as Lofa Tatupu, Deion Branch, Matt Hasselbeck, Walter Jones and others.

If anyone wants more information on Jones Soda here is the link. http://www.jonessoda.com/

As it stands right now, and for the future of the Seattle Seahawks organization I would keep Jones Soda as the exclusive soda company for Quest Field and the Seahawks, instead of Pepsi or Coke Cola.

Free agency and trades: 

Now onto the on the field business. We move to the remaining free agents and possible trades that I would make if I ran the Seattle Seahawks organization.

Some key remaining free agents are Michael Boulware, Derrick Brooks, Plaxico Burress, and others. With the current Seahawks roster, here are some cuts and signings I would make.

Release: Brian Russell

Sign: Michael Boulware (one year, $850K) and Plaxico Burress (one year, $5 million incentive laden contract)

Trades: Deion Branch to Tampa Bay Bucs for second round pick in 2010.

Coaching Staff:

Well I love every single new coach on the staff and will not fire, or bring in any new coaches.

Former Players, Numbers that need to be retired:

The Seattle Seahawks have two numbers that are retired. Twelve (12th man) and 80 (Steve Largent).

Now the Seahawks have a lot of players that are in their Ring of Honor. I believe, if I ran the Seattle Seahawks that those players should have their jersey number retired.

Those players would be Jim Zorn (10), Cortez Kennedy (96), and Curt Warner (28), to start out with. Starting this season, the first three home games I would have each player raise the 12th man flag, then have their jersey hung on the rafters’ right afterwards.

So to rap it all up IF I owned the Seattle Seahawks organization, and be the Seahawks GM these are some of the moves that I would make from a Business off the field stand point and from a profession and business on the field stand point. 

Also showing respect to the former players by retiring their numbers. So this is what I would do but feel free to add your views.  

Colin Cole: Seahawks No Name Players to Watch In 2009

Continuing the series of no-name Seahawks players that fans should watch out for takes us to 2009 free agent signing DT Colin Cole.

So why do I consider Colin Cole a no name player, no matter the team he’s on. Well there are three reasons for that and lets go over those three.

1. According to WalterFootball.com free agency ratings (1-5 stars) Colin Cole was listed as a 1 1/2 star player. Cole was listed lower on their player ranking than Tank Johnson and Rocky Bernard but overall Cole could be the better player.

2. Last season Cole played all 16 games for the Green Bay Packers, but never started a game and now Cole is currently the starting number two DT next to Brandon Mebane who will start at the one.

So Cole can make a name for himself by solidifying that No. 2 spot and being a great run-stuffer which is what he’s signed to do at 330 lbs.

3. Much like reason two, Colin Cole has only played a full 16 game season twice in his career so coming over from Green Bay he is really a no name player and has to earn that name this season in Seattle and by solitifying the starting DT job he can become a name player.

Colin Cole’s career stats: 126 total tackles, 3.5 sacks, 84 solo tackles and one forced  fumble.

That pretty much sums up that Colin Cole is a no name player and honestly has been a no name player his entire five year career to date.

For Cole to make a name for himself he should have at least 40-50 tackles considering he had 30 in 2008 and he wasnt a starter. So Cole has the chance to make a name for himself but will he produce and earn his five year $21 million dollar contract.

Lawrence Jackson: Seahawks No-Name Player to Watch in 2009

Continuing the series of no-name Seahawks players that fans should watch out for takes us to 2008 first-round pick Lawrence Jackson.

Jackson had an “OK” season in 2008, but not exactly the type of season he could have had. Now that Jackson is in his second season in the NFL, Seahawk fans and the coaching staff are going to need Jackson to make a name for himself.

Jackson is one of many talented defensive ends on the Seahawks line, along with Patrick Kerney, Darryl Tapp, and Cory Redding.

In training camp and during the preseason, Jackson is going to have to bust his tail off to get the starting right end job over Redding, Tapp, and others, because Kerney is going to be the starting left end.

Now, Jackson doesn’t need to have a Pro Bowl season to make a name for himself, but having 30-40 tackles and 5-8 sacks would fit right in on the Seahawks’ defensive line.  

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