We should be prepared for another game, like it was against the Titans, in which our opponent is playing four-down football most of the time. It's going to be tough on our defense, especially in the second half if we're playing with a lead. Bijan seems like the only guy that might keep Atlanta's offense competitive. I think laying off the blitzes is a good game plan.
Jets game. Atlanta fumbles punt inside 5 yard line, Jets recover. Jets get 52 yard pass touchdown. Atlanta gives up 83 yard kick off return. Massive errors. Jets QB second leading rusher, 8 for 44. Jets QB was sacked 2 but in general it looked like he had lots of time to pass. They beat the Bills, close games against Colts and the Pats, best 2 defenses they have played.
"Bijan Robinson gives Falcons fans someone to root for even when they’re struggling to believe in the team." Mariners fans totally agree with this sentiment.
These are my selections for the 5 most important players:
Players 1-3: Emmanwori, Thomas and Jones. I selected these 3 players for the same reason you selected Thomas. I think Robinson is going to get his yards and these 3 will be integral to limiting the damage. I also think they will be important in corralling Pitts and the Falcons underwhelming receivers in the middle of the field.
Player 4: Shaheed. I again selected Shaheed for the same reason you selected him. It is time he shows his value beyond special teams and gadget plays.
Players 5 & 6: Walker and Charbonnet: Okay, I cheated and selected a 6th player. :-) The Falcons look vulnerable against the run and I expect our dynamic duo to have big games.
I think Darnold is going to have a good game and JSN will eat as well. I also think our DL will make Cousins uncomfortable which could result in an interception or 2.
If these teams were buildings, the Seahawks would be a well constructed bank featuring professionally crafted portraits of their top performing employees. The Falcons would be late-in-the-game Jenga. Their rebuild process enters phase one on Monday morning.
Right on! Getting Shaheed up to speed will only add to a plethora of talented pass catchers in FOUR different position rooms (included our FB's...not sure if Abe has good hands though)!
Robbie Smash hasn't been noticed much since he returned from injury. It would be great for him to have a few ridiculous blocks and open up some big runs this week.
I do like the players you’ve selected. I call this Sam Darnold’s get right game. I have him going over 250+ yards and throwing three TDs. One to JSN (who gets 125+ of those 250+) One to Shaheed of 40 + yards, and maybe one to Barner or K9, although I’d like K9 to get his TD in an explosive run, rather than pass. I am calling for the defense to hold the Falcons to 10 or fewer points, and base this on no turnovers by the offense. Emmanwori picks off a pass for Pitts, and Spoon reads and explodes on a pass to Robinson, picking Cousins off a second time. I see 4 plus sacks of Cousins as the game will spiral out of control early. I am not counting on Pearce being out, but I am counting on a big game by our OTs, negating the outside pressure. The interior DL injuries should make it a little easier for them to hold up and allow Darnold his get right game.
Seahawks 38 Falcons 9 - I know I’ve tried hard to avoid predictions, but this game is one I’m sure MM has done everything he could to make sure we don’t see a Giants game repeat of last year that cost up a spot in the playoffs.
For me the difference is being optimistic and positive tends to lead to being happier than negative and pessimistic. Reading about the turnout in OTAs and seeing the team in the first open practice at the VMAC from an optimistic point of view lead me to hope that the possibility of a very successful season was possible. So I enjoyed everything from the get go. The negative people say the RAMS are better, they have better players, coaches, etc… They look at Darnold in LA and say there you go, it’s over for the Hawks. I looked at how he played after the 1st quarter, and especially how he showed up in the 4th quarter. To me, he didn’t fold, he fought. I have no idea of EPA and DVOA, but the biggest play the Rams had in that game was their final punt. 50% of the time Seattle had for that last drive was spent getting from the 1 yard line to just past the 20 yard line. The first play we got to the 4 for 2nd and 7 with the clock running. We needed to use a short gainer to get the 1st down after that. Then the next 1st down to get past the 20. 1/2 of the time we haha left was spent getting to where we would have been had the ball gone into the end zone for a touchback. A slight change in the bounce angle and instead of kicking a 61 yard FG, we’re kicking a 35 yard FG. Oh and no one talks about how stymied Stafford was. They only had to move the ball 28 yards to score 14 points. Stafford had all of 130 yards passing for the whole game and only 6 yards passing in the final 14:30 of the 4th quarter. But the entire national press crowned the Rams king of the NFC and the Super Bowl team. I call BS. We get Sundell and Horton back for the Rams, and Darnold gets his get right game tomorrow, the Rams will soonn be in our rearview mirror.
I’m with ya in that Drake Thomas doesn’t really LOOK the part, but dang, he sure sounds good. When he puts a hit on an opponent, we hear it loud and clear through the broadcast. He’s become quite the “thumper”. Mo Drake please.
I love having an underrated and under appreciated QB. Reminds me of the early RW years and the last three years with Geno that were great to me. The Russell Wilson MVP talk years weren’t my favorite as I like the more rounded teams like this year and the legion of boom years.
I think SD has a great shot to win a SB this year and the next 3 years.
Then he can throw a ring on one specific finger and show the world. Even tho he would never do that. Too humble.
We should be prepared for another game, like it was against the Titans, in which our opponent is playing four-down football most of the time. It's going to be tough on our defense, especially in the second half if we're playing with a lead. Bijan seems like the only guy that might keep Atlanta's offense competitive. I think laying off the blitzes is a good game plan.
From what I have seen, the Jets tackled like a recent Pete team and still beat Atlanta.
Jets game. Atlanta fumbles punt inside 5 yard line, Jets recover. Jets get 52 yard pass touchdown. Atlanta gives up 83 yard kick off return. Massive errors. Jets QB second leading rusher, 8 for 44. Jets QB was sacked 2 but in general it looked like he had lots of time to pass. They beat the Bills, close games against Colts and the Pats, best 2 defenses they have played.
"Bijan Robinson gives Falcons fans someone to root for even when they’re struggling to believe in the team." Mariners fans totally agree with this sentiment.
There is a lot of truth here... Felix came to mind for me.
Of course, in '92 I tuned into the Hawks just for Tez.
SSJ, thanks for the article.
These are my selections for the 5 most important players:
Players 1-3: Emmanwori, Thomas and Jones. I selected these 3 players for the same reason you selected Thomas. I think Robinson is going to get his yards and these 3 will be integral to limiting the damage. I also think they will be important in corralling Pitts and the Falcons underwhelming receivers in the middle of the field.
Player 4: Shaheed. I again selected Shaheed for the same reason you selected him. It is time he shows his value beyond special teams and gadget plays.
Players 5 & 6: Walker and Charbonnet: Okay, I cheated and selected a 6th player. :-) The Falcons look vulnerable against the run and I expect our dynamic duo to have big games.
I think Darnold is going to have a good game and JSN will eat as well. I also think our DL will make Cousins uncomfortable which could result in an interception or 2.
T-minus 5 games to the number 1 seed. Let's go!
If these teams were buildings, the Seahawks would be a well constructed bank featuring professionally crafted portraits of their top performing employees. The Falcons would be late-in-the-game Jenga. Their rebuild process enters phase one on Monday morning.
Yes, the Hawks would be Fort Knox.
Right on! Getting Shaheed up to speed will only add to a plethora of talented pass catchers in FOUR different position rooms (included our FB's...not sure if Abe has good hands though)!
I would love to see Outz as a receiver/rusher just to add another dimension to our offense.
Robbie Smash hasn't been noticed much since he returned from injury. It would be great for him to have a few ridiculous blocks and open up some big runs this week.
I do like the players you’ve selected. I call this Sam Darnold’s get right game. I have him going over 250+ yards and throwing three TDs. One to JSN (who gets 125+ of those 250+) One to Shaheed of 40 + yards, and maybe one to Barner or K9, although I’d like K9 to get his TD in an explosive run, rather than pass. I am calling for the defense to hold the Falcons to 10 or fewer points, and base this on no turnovers by the offense. Emmanwori picks off a pass for Pitts, and Spoon reads and explodes on a pass to Robinson, picking Cousins off a second time. I see 4 plus sacks of Cousins as the game will spiral out of control early. I am not counting on Pearce being out, but I am counting on a big game by our OTs, negating the outside pressure. The interior DL injuries should make it a little easier for them to hold up and allow Darnold his get right game.
Seahawks 38 Falcons 9 - I know I’ve tried hard to avoid predictions, but this game is one I’m sure MM has done everything he could to make sure we don’t see a Giants game repeat of last year that cost up a spot in the playoffs.
Amazing foresight! Not perfect, but awfully close.
I have noticed that optimists are more popular than pessimists, and if only for that reason, optimists is the way to go.
For me the difference is being optimistic and positive tends to lead to being happier than negative and pessimistic. Reading about the turnout in OTAs and seeing the team in the first open practice at the VMAC from an optimistic point of view lead me to hope that the possibility of a very successful season was possible. So I enjoyed everything from the get go. The negative people say the RAMS are better, they have better players, coaches, etc… They look at Darnold in LA and say there you go, it’s over for the Hawks. I looked at how he played after the 1st quarter, and especially how he showed up in the 4th quarter. To me, he didn’t fold, he fought. I have no idea of EPA and DVOA, but the biggest play the Rams had in that game was their final punt. 50% of the time Seattle had for that last drive was spent getting from the 1 yard line to just past the 20 yard line. The first play we got to the 4 for 2nd and 7 with the clock running. We needed to use a short gainer to get the 1st down after that. Then the next 1st down to get past the 20. 1/2 of the time we haha left was spent getting to where we would have been had the ball gone into the end zone for a touchback. A slight change in the bounce angle and instead of kicking a 61 yard FG, we’re kicking a 35 yard FG. Oh and no one talks about how stymied Stafford was. They only had to move the ball 28 yards to score 14 points. Stafford had all of 130 yards passing for the whole game and only 6 yards passing in the final 14:30 of the 4th quarter. But the entire national press crowned the Rams king of the NFC and the Super Bowl team. I call BS. We get Sundell and Horton back for the Rams, and Darnold gets his get right game tomorrow, the Rams will soonn be in our rearview mirror.
To feel even better, don’t miss yesterday’s Hawkblogger morning podcast.
I’m with ya in that Drake Thomas doesn’t really LOOK the part, but dang, he sure sounds good. When he puts a hit on an opponent, we hear it loud and clear through the broadcast. He’s become quite the “thumper”. Mo Drake please.
Yeah, he doesn't look like a NFL iLB, but close your eyes and he sounds like one. :)
“Love the Drake” - Seinfeld
I commented yesterday that Kirk Cousins had an ACL tear but it was actually an Achilles tear. Seaside Joe set me straight. Thank you SSJ!
May the 12s be with you and Go Seahawks!
I love having an underrated and under appreciated QB. Reminds me of the early RW years and the last three years with Geno that were great to me. The Russell Wilson MVP talk years weren’t my favorite as I like the more rounded teams like this year and the legion of boom years.
I think SD has a great shot to win a SB this year and the next 3 years.
Then he can throw a ring on one specific finger and show the world. Even tho he would never do that. Too humble.
Go hawks.
Darnold's humbleness is one of the traits I most appreciate in him. We won't see him mugging for the camera or bringing drama to the team.
Yeah … this region just embraced Cal Raleigh … an incredible superstar who is humble.
Hopefully the same happens with SD, who I agree, very humble it seems like.
Great comparison. Love Cal!