... They pull me back out! So that's NOT Al Pacino's legendary quote from Godfather 3, but it describes my apathetic state of mind towards our beloved, schizophrenic Seattle Seahawks at the moment. I wanted so badly to believe that this team would rise to the occasion and solidify their position as a dominant team in the NFL with a sound, commanding performance in St. Louis. What I got instead was the will to drink shots of Jameson and chain smoke a pack of P-Funks like I was this kid...
Gotta love that leather jacket and the guitar. Giacomini better watch out, a few years with Tom Cable and this kid could be a revelation! Back to the game.. Things started off so promising though. I think that's what makes Sunday's result more painful. The opening drive was a masterpiece. Russell looked poised and electrifying, the receivers looked crisp getting out of their breaks, the line was mauling the Rams, and Marshawn was just bein Marshawn. What it do. I literally stood there watching and thinking "maybe they are that damn legit?" Last Friday I cautiously warned about a young, hungry, upstart Rams team that was tired of getting beat by the Big Bad Seahawks. I went in to this game thinking "the Hawks should win but I know better than to expect it." I'm not gonna cry 'Same Ole Seahawks' but this is the type of game we've come to expect from the team over the years. I wanted to be shocked and outraged by this game, but I couldn't. This possibility was always in the back of my head, and I know for sure I'm not alone, and it just sucks for all of us that it came to fruition.
Don't get me wrong, I still believe this is a great football team in the making. I'm just starting to wonder if we're going to ever see that potential fully realized this season or if I jumped the gun a bit with my expectations for this team. Week after week we're seeing the same trends without much in the way of progression. Russell still isn't stepping up in the pocket, but I have the utmost faith in him above all else to progress as the season goes along. The penalties continue to be infuriating and always seem to come at the most inopportune moments. The pass protection still leaves an awful lot to be desired. The defense still looks lost on 3rd downs, same goes for the offense actually and the offense still can't get it done in the red zone or during crunch time, as much as I hate to admit that. Don't think I forgot one other major issue that needs addressing.. Darrell Bevell's play calling has been a train wreck and it's getting worse.
I'm gonna echo the sentiments of thousands of 'Hawks fans right now when I say that the cute play calling has got to go. For all the talk about being a physical, hard-nosed defense with a just-as-tough running game, we don't seem to depend on the running game nearly as much as we should. The Seahawks utterly dominated the Rams on the ground on Sunday and should have been allowed to dominate even more. They had proven that they had no answer for Marshawn and Turbin and the coaching staff failed to fully exploit that. The 3rd and 1 Fake FB Dive-HB Toss play was obviously the most painful to watch. 3rd and 1 and looking to grab complete control of the game early and we don't bludgeon them some more with Marshawn straight up the gut? After that play, I began to lose hope. It looked all too typical.
The fake field goal was equally roshambo-ish and was just as tough to stomach. Jeff Fisher strikes again. At least we can say that the 'Hawks won't be the first team or the last to ever fall victim to Jeff Fisher and his bag of tricks. Pete tried to call for time, but the "professional" refs are back so that means they somehow missed Petey C running on to the field trying to get the call. Don't worry America, you got what you wanted. The scabs are gone and it'll be the same teams getting screwed every week thanks to the confirmation bias of men like "senior official" Mike Carey. Good times.
I liked the onside kick call and it almost went our way. If it had, it would have been a huge boost for the team starting the 2nd half. If it fails, which it did, you still have to have faith in your top-ranked defense to still hold them to 3, at most. I also liked how it showed Pete wanted to get even with Fisher, which was fun to watch. I know some people are upset about him letting emotions get the better of him but it's a game and that's why we watch. I would've loved to see Carroll's face had the 'Hawks recovered the onsider. That would've been MAGIC!
So we all know how things ended up afterwards so I won't continue to rehash the rest of the game's jacked up events. All in all, I felt that the team played well but again held themselves back. Looking back to my expectations prior to the season, I realize that I may have overlooked the youth and lack of experience on the roster. With a quarter of the season in the books, I think it's obvious that this is still very much a work in progress. The potential for dominance is there, and maybe just maybe we'll see it on a consistent basis at some point this season. It's obvious that a few things need to occur in order for that to happen.
1) Russell Wilson has to hang in there. He's not getting much help or separation from his receivers. His pass protection continues to erode around him at key times. He needs to do a better job of stepping up in the pocket and not feeling pressure too early, but I think he played well on Sunday. His picks were all on some "fluky" type stuff and for the most part he showed improvement from the Monday Night game. His game is not flawless but the play calling is seriously hindering his ability to make big plays, in my opinion.
2) Somebody's got to get open, consistently. Doug Baldwin's season to this point has been a disappointment due to injuries and you can see how it has affected the Seahawks offense. A healthy, productive Baldwin could open up the entire passing game, in my opinion, so it's important that Doug get going. I like what I've seen out of Sidney but the opportunities for him so far just haven't been there. I'd like to see them try and force the issue and air it out to Sid to let him start making some plays on the ball in the air in one-on-one situations.
3) The Seafence! has to start getting off the field on 3rd downs. Gus Bradley's got to start designing some ways for the defense to manufacture some heat on the road and on 3rd downs. Time and time again, each time more predictable than the last, we're watching the D get no heat on 3rd and longs and we're watching quarterback after quarterback carve us up and keep drives going.
4) Keep pounding the rock! I loved what I saw from Turbin, he looked incredible and like the perfect compliment for Marshawn that we dreamed of. Where's Leon? I've been saying this for years now so I've given up hope that it'll ever happen.. but I'd love it if Leon could get 5 to 10 touches per game out of the backfield either as a runner or as a receiver. With the passing game in shambles, you'd think we'd use our tight ends and running backs more in the passing game but I've seen no ability from Bevell to adapt to the situation. I keep thinking of the Raiders in 2010 with Cable and Hue Jackson (any chance of him ever coaching up in Seattle?) and how our offense should strive to emulate that game plan. I'm confident that Wilson could pull a "Jason Campbell" and that the running game could destroy teams will to play by the 3rd quarter. Wish it would happen.
5) The same way I'm feeling about giving up hope on Leon ever getting meaningful touches is how I'm starting to feel about the penalty situation. It just never seems to go away and I'm getting accustomed to the feeling that we might just have to learn how to win while committing mass amounts of penalties. Breno, I love ya tough guy, but let's try and reel it in a little will ya?
I'll keep it at that for now. Right now, we're watching a team that is still growing. It's important that we keep that in mind. Some times it takes a while to click. I'm still confident in the players and I'm still confident in most of the coaching staff. I believe that most of the problems will get worked out. However, I'm not quite as confident as I once was. A bit of doubt or realism has crept in, and I'm usually one of the most optimistic diehards you'll ever meet. All in all, this was a pretty fluky (kudos to the Rams though, they definitely deserved the W and kudos to Greg 'The Leg' Zuerlein for being an absolute beast) loss so I don't think we should go in to panic mode, but I think this game showed a lot of key areas where the Seahawks will need marked improvement if they are to fight for a playoff spot. 0-2 in the division hurts for sure, but it's not something they can't come back from. You get the feeling that the rest of this season is going to be very "week to week." Will we get Jekyll or will we get Hyde? All I can tell you is, buckle up!
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