Now these are the Seahawks I'm used to watching! I'm not sure who the guys were in the 1st half, but the ones playing in the 2nd were definitely our Seattle Seahawks! They came in to the second half with their upbeat, fast-paced offensive tempo that defined them last year. Once they get into that rhythm it's tough to stop 'em. My thoughts...

• Look, they actually let Maurice Morris run the ball and he rushed for 74 yards. Admittedly, he's no Alexander, but the guy can still run and run well! Yes, I realize he fumbled in the red zone right after Tatupu's interception [with only minutes to go in the 4th quarter of a tight game], but the guy was a key player throughout the second half.
• Deion Branch. Need I say more? The guy has hands and can run like the wind. 2 touchdowns today and is already one of Hasselbeck's key recievers after only 2 games together.
• Lofa Tatupu broke Bulger's streak of 260+ passes without any interceptions! Here's a true story... Just 1 minute before Lofa's interception I went to my closet, pulled out my # 51 jersey and put it on hoping it would give the Hawks a bit more luck. I know, I know...I'm a geek. Here I am home alone watching the game and I put on a jersey, but still...it worked!
• Josh Brown comes through again. The double goal-post bounce was weird [laces out!], but otherwise Brown is a kicking machine.
• Our secondary coverage was still off, but with Bulger sacked 6 times [3 of which were 3 defenders on 6 offensive linemen!] our front line kept Bulger on his toes. Although it wasn't enough to really rattle him [he threw for 360 yards].
• Damn, I miss Steve Hutchinson on the left side of our O-line.
• Ken Hamlin is a good player, but he needs to control himself a bit more. He screwed Seattle by turning a QB sack and a 7 yard loss into a 15 yard penalty against the Hawks and 1st down for the Rams. Man, if I was Holmgren I could have strung him up for that one.

The Rams completely out-played the Hawks in the first half, no contest. Whatever Holmgren said to the Seattle players in the locker room during half time must have worked because they came out with fists flying! Hats off to Marc Bulger and Torry Holt for the 67 yard pass and touchdown. That was beautifully played. But then, so was Hasselbeck's 19 yard completion to Branch for the Hawks' third touchdown and of course Josh Brown's 54 yard field goal to win the game.

~tod

tags: seattle+seahawks

I respect determination and tenacity in a person. They are often the characteristics of people who succeed in life because they didn't let obstacles get in their way. Yesterday I received an email from someone named My-lan asking me for "a mention" of a site his company (Fanscape) is promoting. It was obviously a form-letter and AdRants had a field day with it, but I make it a policy to reply to all emails I receive from [what appear to be real] individuals.  So I did.

Needless to say, My-lan was quite persistent in his (her?) pursuit of my "mention" of their customer's site. I replied with a few questions to make sure there was a real person on the other end and he replied quickly and politely [for which he got bonus points]. So I feel that I owe My-lan something of a reward for being persistent, yet not obnoxiously so, in his pursuit of my "mention."

My-lin asked me to check out AT&T's new site, Home Turf (sports edition), so I did and here are my thoughts...

• It's basically MTV Cribs online. Honestly, MTV Cribs is a guilty pleasure of mine [the Gorillaz episode rocked], so I actually did enjoy seeing Roy Williams' huge aquarium [off da hook], although his shoe fetish is a but much!  I also liked LT's reaction to Deion's voicemail message [oh snap!].
• The site design is ok, nothing show-stopping though and anyone with a dial-up connection should avoid it like the plague.
• I didn't care for the long introduction that had huge text descriptions of how to "find the hidden links" and learn more about AT&T products. I realize I'm on an AT&T site, just give me the video and let me watch it.
• Deion Sanders does a decent job as the host, sometimes a bit over-the-top, but overall I enjoyed his enthusiasm and found it entertaining.
• I realize this is an AT&T thing, but Deion's blatant "AT&T Dish Network" this and "AT&T high-speed internet" that was annoying.
• Will I be back? Probably not. The promotional aspects of it were too over-the-top for me to enjoy on a regular basis. If they removed all of that from the video content then I would be more likely to return. It should be enough that the brand is plastered all over the site, it doesn't need to be pushed by Deion in the videos.

And a word of warning: tenacity and persistence can turn into obnoxiousness, so be careful not to take it too far...

~tod

Yes, I watched most [3/4] of Sunday's game against the Bears at Soldier Field. My only question...were those the same Seahawks I've been watching this season? Honestly, I think they had some imitators in there. Lofa? Hamlin? Trufant? Hasselbeck? You guys were really sipping mai-tai's on a beach in Acapulco, weren't ya?

Once again, let me say that I'm no football aficionado or analyst, but here's what I saw...

• No trust in Morris or Strong - Sure, Alexander is the king, but our other backs are good rushers. Give them some credit and get them the ball for crying out loud! When Hasselbeck gets more yards rushing than his fullback something is wrong. They only gave the ball to Strong and Morris 4 and 11 times, respectively, while Alexander typically gets 20+ attempts per game. Morris and Strong deliver...Strong had 5 carries for 33 yards against the Giants, Morris had 4 carries for 25 yards against the Cardinals and Strong had 3 carries for 30 yards in the same game. Compare that to Alexander's 26 carries for 89 yards against the Cardinals! Holmgren and Hasselbeck need to put some more trust in their other backs if we're going to make it through the rest of the season!
• No secondary coverage on defense - This is why I asked where the hell Lofa, Hamlin and Trufant were. Secondary coverage has been our strong point in the past because of our speed, but this time they were nowhere to be found. Zero interceptions and 17 completions for 232 passing yards by Grossman. Come on guys, I know you can do better than this...we've seen you shut down offenses with tight coverage and interceptions!
• No rhythm - Neither our offense or defense ever got into a rhythm. Period. I've played team sports and I know what it's like to be in a funk on the court [or field] and it's tough to break out of that. Unfortunately, this just happens sometimes.

Just as Holmgren said after the game, we have to give credit to the Bears. They executed very well both offensively and defensively. They were a freakin machine and it showed. Looking at the stats, they gained 362 yards compared to Seattle's 230 while completely shutting us out in the red zone. They sacked Hasselbeck 5 times and made two key interceptions that were converted into touchdowns. Hats off to the Bears...I think they are definitely the team to beat in the NFC this year. I just hope we get a rematch in the playoffs.

~tod

PS: In other NFL news...what the hell is wrong with Haynesworth? Just in case you didn't know, Albert Haynesworth [a tackle with the Tennessee Titans] knocked off Andre Gurode's [center with the Dallas Cowboys] helmet then kicked and stomped on his face while he was lying on the ground after a play. Gurode needed 30 stitches to repair the cuts from Albert's cleats [yes, he stomped on his unprotected face with cleats!]. This was no accident, but a deliberate act of violence towards someone who was vulnerable. The NFL has ruled a five-game suspension for Haynesworth which is the "longest for on-field behavior in NFL history" and will cost him about $190,000. Honestly, I don't give a flying-fuck about the NFL's harshest punishment ever or Haynesworth's subsequent apology. Apparently Haynesworth has quite a rap-sheet when it comes to his little temper [read this article for details]. I think that Gurode should file criminal charges and the NFL should ban him from playing any more. This kind of behavior has no place in sporting events and should not be tolerated...at all. Think about it, I doubt my employer or yours would just give us a slap-on-the-wrist if we were to do the same thing so why is it ok in the NFL?

It's often said that the best defense is a good offense, but in yesterday's game between the Seahawks and the Cardinals, I would have to say the reverse is true. Just look at the game statistics and they tell a story...

Some of the stats look very comparable and might leave you wondering how the game ended up the way it did:

• Kurt Warner had 231 passing yards versus Matt Hasslebeck's 221 and they each threw one touchdown.
• Hasselbeck threw two interceptions compared to Warner's one.
• Warner was sacked 5 times while Hasselbeck was sacked 3 [still too many though].
• Arizona converted 6 of 14 3rd downs while Seattle converted 6 of 13.
• The Cardinals had 11 penalties totalling 66 yards, but the Seahawks were penalized 7 times for 73 yards.

Meanwhile, looking at some more of the stats we begin to see the differences:

• The Hawks' defense held the Cardinals' running game to only 65 yards, of which Edgerrin James had 64. The Hawks rushed for 146 which isn't a huge amount, but is 81 yards and two touchdowns more than Arizona.
• Warner had 4 fumbles while Hasselbeck only had 1.
• The Seahawks gained a total of 339 yards, but the Cardinals only gained 244 yards during almost equal time of possession (31:53 to 28:07).

I'm no football analyst, but the statistics tell me that the Hawks won through their running game. And by watching the game yesterday, I also know that the Hawks won because of the defense's constant pressure...on Warner, on their wide receivers, on Edgerrin James and basically anyone that stood a chance of getting the ball. The Cardinals just couldn't get into a rythym, period. They would make one good play and then our defensive line would cause them to screw up the next two forcing a punt. Their lack of rythym also left them unable to take advantage of the opportunities thrown their way. Two interceptions, five dropped passes by Seattle, a blocked field goal, a 14 yard punt...all were little things that Arizona could have used to turn the tide of the game, but they didn't. Next week against the N.Y. Giants (1-1) should be interesting...

~tod

tags: seahawks, seattle+seahawks

Boy, oh boy...those last few minutes were a bit nerve wracking! The Seattle Times has a good [IMO] recap and opinion of yesterday's game against the Detroit Lions. It really was a battle between the two defensive teams because they both completely out-played their opposing offensive teams. I mean, think about it...Hasselbeck was sacked 5 times. FIVE times! And the Hawks still won 9-6. I hope this is a good predictor of the season to come.

~tod

tags: seahawks seattle+seahawks