Game 14: Bears vs Seahawks

[Danny Darko]

VS.



Playoffs... huh? If... maybe... possibly
This will be another game vs a wounded opponent, although this one has a dangerous defense and a better record. The Seahawks must win out to sniff the playoffs, which amazingly is possible and presumably much better at this point than going middle of the pack in the draft (well past Griffin III or Barkley). So bring it on. The cold, the hamstrung O-line vs monsters of the midway, the saga of Tararis, the skittle,.... the playoff run?


Injury update:



Seahawks-

later for that


Bears

later for that

Things to Watch:

1. Containing Hester
...or Washington? In close weird games either of these two guys could be the great decider.

2. Sacks galore?
If so, I actually like the Seahawks chances. Tarvaris is adept at getting hammered.

3. Skttles ftw
Marshawn has now garnished national attention and seems to thrive on it. He came into Seahawks' lives with a game in Chicago and did well, he's on a rampage, and I expect this to be a game he get's both pumped and Jacked.


Predictions-
Seattle 13 Bears 14

[Bulltalk]

I've heard a few analysts say that this Tarvaris Jackson's game to win for us, that we'll need a little more out of him than merely not-losing-the-game for us. That seems about right to me.

Now, will he step up for us in such a way? I don't know, but I still have to bet against him as a difference-maker in a game.

Bears win a close game, methinks.

[Sweezo]

Wow...Chancellor with a vicious [yet clean] hit that causes a fumble, recovered by Thomas. For all the changes the Seahawks have made, it wasn't that long ago that I viewed the Seahawks' defensive backfield as a weakness. Now they're pretty solid across the field and no strangers to making game changing plays. And they do it without the Seahawks having that much of a pass rush!

Seriously, just get the 'Hawks a QB and a pass rushing OLB and this team will be on its way.

[Sweezo]

3. Skttles ftw
Marshawn has now garnished national attention and seems to thrive on it. He came into Seahawks' lives with a game in Chicago and did well, he's on a rampage, and I expect this to be a game he get's both pumped and Jacked.

Like Bulltalk, I think this is Jackson's game to win to lose if. The Bears should just focus on stopping the run and seeing if Jackson can beat them.

I think the 'Hawks take this one anyway.

[Sweezo]

Leon Washington as a goal line back? WTF?

[Sweezo]

I've heard a few analysts say that this Tarvaris Jackson's game to win for us, that we'll need a little more out of him than merely not-losing-the-game for us. That seems about right to me.

Now, will he step up for us in such a way? I don't know, but I still have to bet against him as a difference-maker in a game.

Well, he just sat and danced in his own endzone, letting Peppers come in, slip, get up off the ground, and swat the ball out of Jackson's hand for a Bears' TD. But at least we get the ball right back and get to try again!

[asdf1223]

KJ Wright time! John Schneider please sign a lifetime extension.

[Sweezo]

I love watching Red Bryant run with the football. What a fantastic year he is having.

[asdf1223]

I love watching Red Bryant run with the football. What a fantastic year he is having.

FA next year as well. I hope he stays.

[asdf1223]

Tarvaris is the new Rex Grossman. Good Tarvaris and bad Tarvaris in the same game. Great on 3rd down. Atleast one WTF play every game.

[TTown]

DAMN, the lions came back and won. an oakland win would have really helped us out.

fun game to watch, two defensive scores and that kam/thomas forced fumble/recovery sure got us off on the right foot.

i agree with sweezo, we're a qb and a good version of aaron curry away from having something really special brewing. time to go all-in and get our qb by any means necessary in the draft. two years ago, we had holes all over the field and packaging picks together to move up was a dangerous proposition. but we've filled them so well with a couple of superb drafts i'm not afraid to give up anything (within reason) to get a guy we're sure is 'the' guy.

we're young, talented, and exciting to watch. fun time to be a seahawk.

[Sweezo]

time to go all-in and get our qb by any means necessary in the draft. two years ago, we had holes all over the field and packaging picks together to move up was a dangerous proposition. but we've filled them so well with a couple of superb drafts i'm not afraid to give up anything (within reason) to get a guy we're sure is 'the' guy.

Agreed. The offseason checklist certainly seems to be developing. Besides a QB and pass rusher, there's a couple other thoughts:

[1] Our offensive line has problems with consistency but has performed well enough despite the loss of three talented young starters. If Okung/Moffitt/Carpenter get healthy, we have some options next year. That said, a young replacement for Gallery [or Unger] wouldn't be a bad idea.

[2] Browner and Sherman can start at CB. They're not perfect, and need to work on the penalties, but they're still solid. WTIII doesn't quite have the size that either of the other two CBs do, but he has very good ball skills and may be a great fit as a nickel back.

[3] We've got to keep our own. Lynch is a free agent. Bryant's a free agent. Those guys have flourished this year and mean as much to the team as the team means to them. They're both good fits and we can't let them get away.

[4] Find something better at back-up TE. Miller's solid as a blocker and we see a lot of two TE sets. Morrah and McCoy find themselves int he mix quite a bit. However, McCoy has hands of stone. I don't know that the market for Carlson will be that strong since his numbers had been trending downward and he's missed a season due to injury, so maybe we can keep him. He wouldn't be the starter but he'd probably see plenty of opportunities.

Earlier in the year I was advocating the Seahawks taking a CB or RB in the earlier rounds of the draft [after getting a QB] but now I don't know that it's necessary. The 'Hawks can feel free to go for best available talent at several different positions provided they get a QB and another pass rush threat.

Personally, I love the idea of drafting LaMichael James in the middle of the draft [round-3-4?] to pair him with Lynch. James doesn't run a particularly fast 40 but his game tape is all anyone needs to see if he's fast enough to make it in the NFL. And he can catch a pass and do something with it. I don't know that Forsett seems to fit all that well into what the 'Hawks like to do.

[Bulltalk]

I agree that our positional draft needs are thankfully getting winnowed down with each passing week. I'm fine with our secondary. Tinker with it in the later rounds, or through FAcy, but I see no need at all to expend any of our first four or five picks on it, even if there seems to be talent there when our time comes to choose in such rounds.

I feel almost exactly the same about our offensive line. The replacements have been playing remarkably well, and we've got Okung, Moffit, and Carpenter returning next year. If we can keep the best 7-8 of these guys around next year, we might actually have a little depth in this area heading into next year.

Our linebacking corp could possibly be shored up, but this doesn't seem to be a dire need in the off-season, more of a tinkering thing, late rounds, FAcy.

As for running back, it's all about re-signing Lynch, which seems all but a no-brainer at this point. Outside of that, it would be real nice to have a true and effective change-of-pace RB to team up with Lynch, a real quick and shifty type of back, one, preferably, who had a good set of hands so that he could be used as a quality check-down receiver out of the backfield. Yes, a guy like James would certainly fit that bill. I'm sure there are a bunch of such types that could be culled in the mid-to-later rounds for this purpose. Schneider has proved himself to be quite adept at finding such talent in the later rounds.

As for our overall receiving corp...I have been both disappointed and surprised this year. How can you not be surprised by Baldwin? How can you not be cautiously encouraged by Tate of late? These two guys pretty much set us at the "slot" receiving position next year. On the other side, how can you not be disappointed by the injury plagued Rice, the no-show of Williams, and the sheer bafflement of what we thought was going to be a real strength for us before the year started, the TE position? Does Carlson come back into play next year for us? Do we try to retain him? I don't know. Will our front office actually expend a top pick on a receiver in the draft next spring who might fall to us, and somewhat overlook our need for a QB?

As for our DL, we could use a a real quality DT, but it does seem clear that a pass rushing DE stands out as one of our true draft needs.

All in all, it looks like this to me now for the coming off-season in terms of need...

1) A QB of the future




2) A pass rushing DE


3) An outside WR
4) A change-of-pace RB to complement a re-signed Lynch

...or something thereabouts. Outside of a pass-rusher, most of our top needs seem to be centered on the skill-positions on offense, methinks.

I honestly believe it's all going to be about how aggressive PC/Schneider choose pursue a QB of the future this off-season. It's all going to be about how they choose to use/invest what resources we have available to us in shoring up this need. If they are not aggressive in pursuing quality in this area (deep breaths Bulltalk), and choose to only draft a QB who represents "value" in either the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, even 4th round, then we can potentially shore up these other positional needs if we pick wisely/skillfully.

If they are aggressive in pursuing a real top prospect QB in the draft, are willing to expend resources to get him, then the game changes for us in this way.

Things seem kind of clear to me in this way now.

[Sweezo]

On the other side, how can you not be disappointed by the injury plagued Rice, the no-show of Williams, and the sheer bafflement of what we thought was going to be a real strength for us before the year started, the TE position?

I put a large amount of that on Tarvaris' shoulders. Jackson has certain things he likes to do as a QB, and fitting an accurate pass into a covered WR isn't one of them. I would bet that Williams' tape this year [in terms of route running] would probably be very similar to last years. Hass was willing to throw that pass to Williams and let him use his size to get it. Jackson avoids turnovers at all costs and simply won't make that choice.

BMW has looked slower and less consistent, but I still think he has some value if used correctly.

As for our DL, we could use a a real quality DT, but it does seem clear that a pass rushing DE stands out as one of our true draft needs.

A rotating pass-rushing DT paired next to Mebane wouldn't be a bad idea, but Branch does a pretty good job clogging up the running lanes.

1) A QB of the future

Now, it might just be a question of the price to pay. Which is better: Using this year's 2nd round pick on Tannehill, or this year's #1 + next year's #1 on Barkley or RGIII? Whether that is an option or not is completely unknown, but quite frankly I'd rather overpay and feel like we got 'the' guy we need instead of getting someone that is available in the second round with good reason.

I know PC/JS like to hoard draft picks, but they also don't seem to mind moving them to get something they want [like Whitehurst, even if he sucks]. I know the USC connection is overblown, but Carroll certainly has shown a willingness to expend resources to get players he's recruited and knows well [even if they never went to USC]. Certainly he is familiar with RGIII and Barkley's strengths and knows many of those strengths fit what he wants in a QB.

3) An outside WR

Good if we can get it, but get a QB who can throw an accurate pass and I don't know if it matters. Rice is a great WR if he's healthy. BMW can be effective if the ball gets to him where he can catch it. Tate's short but can makes plays in traffic and runs like a RB. Butler's got speed, and Obomanu seems to find ways to get open. I really want to see Lockette active one of these last two weeks with BMW out to see what he can do...that speed/size combo doesn't come around very often. So long as he shows that he knows more about the game/route-running than Jordan Kent, he may deserve to be in the mix next year.