Sorry we lost Penny in FA. Philly didn't pay him much. Maybe he'll stay healthy and make a difference. for the price, it wasn't much risk. It's surprising that Penny was so durable in college and not in pros. We might go after Bijan in the draft though, have gone after an RB almost every year. Hope we go after John Michael Schmitz for C, maybe Njigba for WR3. Appreciate the content, good reading.
Eskridge is a wild card. Is he a slightly tragic case of injuries, if not chronic lack of durability? Athletically gifted but for whatever reason(s) a bust? A player who is finally going to bloom as an actual WR3, punt or kick returner (and primo gadget play star) now, on the way to being a WR2? I guess the next camp will determine that. But the apparent talent is too much to ignore.
I honestly think those violent head shots he took really messed him up; one of them gave him a concussion he had to see a vision specialist for according to Pete and I believe he missed the rest of the season. I'd like to think his first year didn't really happen from a development standpoint so for me this is his make or break year and if he is off the field as much as last year I think he's kaput.
That’s the most ridiculous hat I think I’ve ever seen that wasn’t a gimmick. I laugh every time I see that picture. If I had any interest in sticking around Twitter I would follow that guy just for his cap space joke.
My goal for Kenneth is to get enough paid subscribers that he can afford to run political style attack ads on TV against anyone he wants, for the smallest slights, whether real or perceived.
Interesting how the Seahawks wanted to re-sign Penny and even offered more money but he wanted a change of scenery and to "change my narrative". I really hope he succeeds!
Godwin Igwebuike is (was) an Exclusive Rights Free Agent, meaning all the Seahawks had to do was offer him the league minimum and they'd have secured his services (or he'd have been watching from the stands in 2023 since no other team would have been able to sign him).
At first, I thought it was strange that we didn't tender him but now I'm thinking it's part of the 'culture' - i.e., I think maybe we told him to go test the market and let us match any offer(s) he receives. I mean, if that's NOT happened then the choice to not retain him boggles my mind and might go down as JSPC's worst decision of the year.
Thanks for the consistency in uour analytical approach, Kenneth. Sports media is an industry dominated by glib hot takes by national, rather than local professionals, but you're dedicated to a more regimented, informed, and consistent analytical approach that makes your articles well worth a read.
Seaside Joe is a Seahawks journalism must for any dedicated fan.
Congrats on getting to 400 paid subscribers. Not enough income to make it full time but you're getting there. Given the cost of living in this region, I'm thinking paid memberships would need to triple to do this full time with a degree of comfort. At 2X, you might be able to barely make ends meet. Hopefully, however, you'll get to something more like 10X in time. Five bucks a month for this much content is a very fair deal.
I've been wondering if Seattle might still take Carter at 5. I had thought so until we heard the reports about him coming to his pro day overweight and out of shape. He may be a future hall of famer but he's starting to seem more and more like a flake. At this point, I'm thinking Seattle should go with someone else or trade down. Flaming out with the #5 pick would make McDowell seem like a speed bump. This would be more like introducing your brand new Ferrari to a brick wall at high speed.
Thank you! Yes, I'm thinking about the same on the subscribers, Parallax.
I am holding off on making too many comments on Carter because I am doing a lot of research into him and I just don't think it would be fair to generalize the situation. As far as conditioning, it would be interesting for a player to be that good in college if he's not even in the best shape yet. Would it be easier to teach a quarterback how to "quarterback" or to get a player a nutritionist and a good mentor?
That's a good point. Hadn't thought of it that way. But he was gassed. Since he didn't play that way, he must have been in better shape during the season. It's concerning, character-wise, that he wasn't at his best for pro day. Says something about either maturity or perspective.
In some ways it would be easier if Carter was out of reach and we’d be saved the agony, but it looks like he’s going to be right there at 5. And I am completely non-plussed as to what the right decision for the team would be - but the coward in me says it’s better to pass than risk bro g forever known as the team that picked the 2023 version of Jamarcus Russell.
If the draft were today and Carter was available, Seattle would take him because he and Anderson are likely the only two front-seven players in the draft with a good chance of having an impact as a rookie.
Hard to say. If he busts it would be a huge setback. A lot will depend on the research they've done and will probably continue to do between now and draft day. Unless they've completed their research and have decided one way or the other.
I don't want to get ahead of myself, and I can't be the person who says, "Well, I know for sure that Jalen Carter will be better!" Maybe he won't be. But based on my limited research thus far, I don't think Carter really realized that he could be a pro football player until a few years ago. He's a three-sport athlete who preferred basketball and then it was like "Dude, you could be a great football player." So he goes to Georgia, he starts to learn from the likes of Jordan Davis and Devonte Wyatt that he needs to up his conditioning, and then he openly admits, "Yeah, that's what I need to get better at." Wouldn't it be more worrisome if he acted like he didn't need to get more conditioned and improve his workouts? He's actually working on getting better. Then there's the matter of not having to be in as good of a shape at Georgia because everybody on that D is going to get less time on the field than they would in a different system.
His pro day and not testing, maybe he's not in good shape. I can't say. But with all that's going on, who knows? At the end of the day, I think an NFL team is going to convince themselves in the top-8 (at the lowest) that it's better to get 5 years to work with Jalen Carter than to stress about whatever has been going in the last 3 months. The film that I've seen doesn't lie, he's advanced and if he's doing that not in good shape, I can see why people make the warren sapp (who is a mentor) comparisons.
The moment you say Sapp, it's hard not to get excited about the possibility of adding him to our D. High ceiling, low floor. Scary pick but the other side of fear is excitement. Kind of like dating a cute but crazy woman, it's something that promises to be a wild ride.
So did Ray Lewis, Randy Moss, Warren Sapp, Montez Sweat, etc.etc. This is not an endorsement, it's not saying that character concerns don't become issues sometimes, it's just repeating what you said yourself: Time will tell.
Frankly, it could be the dumbest thing ever if Jalen Carter simply goes to the Lions and in 3 years is the best player out of the draft like many were calling him two weeks ago. I would be a little shocked if Dan Campbell didn't think, "Yes, that's my kind of football player" and believe that he can mold him and get his head right. GM Brad Holmes simply wants the best college football players. Raiders, Falcons, Bears, and Eagles after that. I can't imagine that Carter is going outside of the top-10 and if by some chance he makes it to the team that just went to the Super Bowl and needs a player just like him, that could be so stupid.
Fair point on Moss, Sapp, etc.. You mention tape doesn’t lie. I’ve watched games and not so much individual reps so am admittedly looking at a partial picture (and am not a scout). But it’s odd to me how good he could look in the LSU game and average he could look in the OSU game. There are guys who are labeled as “taking plays off” but when it’s full games I have to wonder if they aren’t just getting beat. And the best predictor of future behavior is past behavior. If (and I don’t know that he is) Jalen Carter is a knucklehead, money and fame don’t tend to help that. I’m sure the teams have talked to all 30 (or whatever allowed number it is) of his teammates, coaches etc about his character and know a lot more than we do. But the picture we’ve been shown is awfully scary to me. As much as I wouldn’t want to pass on a hall of fame talent, I also wouldn’t want to waste a #5 pick on a guy who never gets it together. I think it was Scot McCloughan who said when you bring in a few bad character players, it’s easy for that to become the whole locker room. Glad I don’t have to make that decision. I struggle with mock drafts when he’s there at 5!
I must've missed something somewhere — lately you've been throwing a lot of shade at Rob Staton. Is that just playing, or did you two have a genuine falling out?
Totally fair question, Scott, and I appreciate that you asked because I'm sure a lot of other writers would just get defensive. I've known Rob for over 10 years and certainly promoted his website as much as I have in that amount of time because I respect him. I don't comment over there so I can't speak from personal experience, I just know that I've had a ton of people comment here that it's not easy to share their opinions over there. And just as I welcome any criticism of the work here, surely I think it's fair to give a balanced review of the Seahawks content that many fans are reading, which sometimes may include criticisms. I don't think it makes sense to go, "Well, only talk about me if you're complimenting me." I write about the Seahawks and sometimes that writing has to combat narratives from other Seahawks websites. Having the support of the community frees me up to make sure I'm doing right by Seahawks fans as much as possible and I'm grateful for that. I don't get any messages, "Hey, why did you compliment and share Seahawks draft blog??" which happens often, only when I say, "I disagree with this" does it seem to ruffle Rob's feathers.
But again, I appreciate you asking and I understand why you would.
I'm guessing this ruffling of feathers is happening on Twitter...? I just haven't seen it (Twitter is a dumpster fire in a cesspool patrolled by slime-oozing mutants), ergo my lack of context. Thanks for the thoughtful response.
Having read every article I’ve only seen light ribbing at worst from Ken. It’s weird but it’s mostly the fans of two Seahawk sports writers who get into it on Twitter. It’s not typical that a sportswriter includes other sportswriters in their work. And when his articles quote old tweets from these guys being so sure of something that never happened, it surely rubs them wrong. But it never reads to me as ridicule. It usually ties up to a greater point. Ken, Rob, Ben Baldwin, Matty F Brown and more go way back. Pretty sure Ken gave a few of them their first writing jobs.
Hey Chuck, to be clear: I don't think "throwing shade" is the same thing as "ridicule". And I certainly didn't intend to imply that Ken has been ridiculing Rob or his SeahawksDraftBlog. Lately I've just noticed a few variants on "here you get THIS, which is better than what you get OVER THERE", so I just wanted to get some context. I hope that's clarifying.
I thought your original comment was fair, and perhaps could have worded my response better. I see it more as using the quote tweets to prove points like, “we tend to stick to our opinion even when it gets disproven” and such. I’d see it more as shade throwing if Ken didn’t post his own. And a big part of the narrative here on Seaside Joe is that none of us know the future and are all of us are often wrong. I think a lot of how these articles read to us is colored by what we expect the agenda is going in. I’ll be the first to say that minus the context I tend to read them in, you could post many examples that look like pure shade. And I completely understand how both readers of the other blogs and their writers feel offended.
I think PC/JS are doing a really good job hyping up Seattle as a franchise trending in the right direction. No secret the league as a whole highly rated the '22 Draft, then showing the work improvement on Geno to make the Playoffs, whilst still carrying good draft capital. Why would these guys not want to come here?! And thus far i feel each deal has only built and built on that, giving the team cap flexibility this year and next, showing clear intent to compete and return to the playoffs, and an obvious established coaching plan and scheme set.
I think a few of those names will still return, there's just no rush from either the team or players. All setting nicely to again let the draft come to JS/PC. All setting nicely to have room to move in case of a good trade opportunity, or a late release. Keep the buzz going, keep setting this team to become a juggernaut in 2024. Big "A" grade thus far for the off-season as a whole.
Igwebuike is a no brainer to re-sign. I have always liked Poona. I think he might fit better and get more $ from another team, but I wish he could stay. You must love Irvin as a true Hawk, but his time is up and younger players must take precedence. He’ll land somewhere by the trade deadline. Maybe re-sign Muse but he needs to compete in camp.
Igwebuike was an ERFA and we could have kept him simply by tendering him an offer at the league minimum (like we did with Michael Jackson, Myles Adams, and Jon Rhattigan). I'm surprised we didn't but Mr. Schneider has been full of surprises so far and I'm assuming he's good for a few more.
What hurt me the most was Homer. Penny indeed needed a change of scenery, and I’m happy for him, and I hope he balls out. Maybe he may come back later like Reed did. I take the middle stance on Barton, he wasn’t as good as his hype-men wanted to believe, but especially not as bad as us angry fans said he was on a weekly basis. Homer, though, should be a first ballot special teams hall of famer, if such a thing existed. Before 2022, he was the best blocker on the team under 30. Scratch that, he was the best blocker not named Duane Brown. He was good taking outlet passes too.
As for Julian Love, he’s very flexible like Adams, but his flexibility is closer to Diggs and Neal. He can play box, deep, and nickel. Nino was a nickel converted into safety (who plays both in the box and deep, though he stayed deep most of the time with the Hawks). He helps depth at many positions and is a great leader and special teamer.
I like Homer too, but the cap hit to keep him would have been $1.75M. This just wasn’t in the cards. Also, my take is that PCJS would really like to draft a Robert Turbin type who can spell Walker for an entire possession rather than just play in certain situations.
I’m going to miss Travis Homer. No tears shed over losing Barton but I didn’t hate him. We were spoiled for a long time with lb play that was consistently somewhere between solid and elite.
I think the age, athleticism, and run stopping abilities of Reed and Dre Jones make the pair the better choice over Poona, QJeff, and Shelby Harris. AND they are probably better pass rushers, too. I like the direction JS is taking us, but that has been his M.O. IMO. They have really addressed key spots, so far, that will be an improvement over last year even if, like you said above, they get no help from the draft. So, they can afford to take shots on guys who may be higher risk like Jalen Carter, or a guy who might hit enough to relegate one of the FA guys to a smaller role. A++ for the job done, so far.
That said, I give them an A+ for their tenure, so far, too. I have never been more proud to be a 12. JSPC have really built a "program" like PC has said since he arrived. It is one that makes players want to come to and stay in. They treat people well, and that is important to me for my support.
Penny being healthy is the biggest "if" I have seen in a long while, but I think the depth at RB he provided is the biggest loss so far
Penny needed to leave. He only has one chance left, and it's amazing he is still the running threat he ever was and not diminished from his injuries. This latest one may have diminished him and even if he is ready to get paid for running doesn't mean he will avoid small injuries like he did the last time during his first year back. So, for the Seahawks' sake, I wanted him back, but I figure Pete told him to leave for his own sake. A new start. No bad mojo around.
That's why I chose Muse. I want him back to see if he can put up some more 85 PFF grades for pass defense.
As for Geno, his contract was an A+++. You needed more categories for A. Because compared to just an A for Geno, none of the other contracts came close, and grading on a curve C would be the best grade I would give, but grading on a curve SUCKS. So I gave A's to the entire off season so far.
Same here. It would have cost $2.627M to use the least-expensive RFA tender on him and I can understand why JSPC didn't see that as a good choice. My guess is that he'll test the market and then come back and sign a 2/$4M deal with us (give or take a little bit)
Sorry we lost Penny in FA. Philly didn't pay him much. Maybe he'll stay healthy and make a difference. for the price, it wasn't much risk. It's surprising that Penny was so durable in college and not in pros. We might go after Bijan in the draft though, have gone after an RB almost every year. Hope we go after John Michael Schmitz for C, maybe Njigba for WR3. Appreciate the content, good reading.
I heard this is a good class at center. I reckon PCJS can and will wait till day 3 and it'll be fine.
Eskridge is a wild card. Is he a slightly tragic case of injuries, if not chronic lack of durability? Athletically gifted but for whatever reason(s) a bust? A player who is finally going to bloom as an actual WR3, punt or kick returner (and primo gadget play star) now, on the way to being a WR2? I guess the next camp will determine that. But the apparent talent is too much to ignore.
I honestly think those violent head shots he took really messed him up; one of them gave him a concussion he had to see a vision specialist for according to Pete and I believe he missed the rest of the season. I'd like to think his first year didn't really happen from a development standpoint so for me this is his make or break year and if he is off the field as much as last year I think he's kaput.
Even with the injuries, Eskridge has had his chances. He’s just not that good.
That’s the most ridiculous hat I think I’ve ever seen that wasn’t a gimmick. I laugh every time I see that picture. If I had any interest in sticking around Twitter I would follow that guy just for his cap space joke.
My goal for Kenneth is to get enough paid subscribers that he can afford to run political style attack ads on TV against anyone he wants, for the smallest slights, whether real or perceived.
You can do it Kenneth!
You are definitely picking up what I'm trying to put down, Greg!
Interesting how the Seahawks wanted to re-sign Penny and even offered more money but he wanted a change of scenery and to "change my narrative". I really hope he succeeds!
https://twitter.com/bcondotta/status/1636928101849657346?t=NagIRc1cF0wz4WqDIBvdmw&s=19
I like Penny but did we need another K-9 style back? I think we will pick up a short yardage back somewhere in the bottom of the draft.
Godwin Igwebuike is (was) an Exclusive Rights Free Agent, meaning all the Seahawks had to do was offer him the league minimum and they'd have secured his services (or he'd have been watching from the stands in 2023 since no other team would have been able to sign him).
At first, I thought it was strange that we didn't tender him but now I'm thinking it's part of the 'culture' - i.e., I think maybe we told him to go test the market and let us match any offer(s) he receives. I mean, if that's NOT happened then the choice to not retain him boggles my mind and might go down as JSPC's worst decision of the year.
Surely he will be asked about that in his preseason presser. I’m somewhat shocked.
Spotrac says Jarran Reed's contract is 2/$10.8M but they don't have the year-by-year breakdown listed yet. Ian Rapoport, via Twitter, said it's a MAX of $10.8M (https://twitter.com/RapSheet/status/1635773914025451520).
Thanks for the consistency in uour analytical approach, Kenneth. Sports media is an industry dominated by glib hot takes by national, rather than local professionals, but you're dedicated to a more regimented, informed, and consistent analytical approach that makes your articles well worth a read.
Seaside Joe is a Seahawks journalism must for any dedicated fan.
Thank you, Bret! Going to do my best to keep raising the bar.
Congrats on getting to 400 paid subscribers. Not enough income to make it full time but you're getting there. Given the cost of living in this region, I'm thinking paid memberships would need to triple to do this full time with a degree of comfort. At 2X, you might be able to barely make ends meet. Hopefully, however, you'll get to something more like 10X in time. Five bucks a month for this much content is a very fair deal.
I've been wondering if Seattle might still take Carter at 5. I had thought so until we heard the reports about him coming to his pro day overweight and out of shape. He may be a future hall of famer but he's starting to seem more and more like a flake. At this point, I'm thinking Seattle should go with someone else or trade down. Flaming out with the #5 pick would make McDowell seem like a speed bump. This would be more like introducing your brand new Ferrari to a brick wall at high speed.
Thank you! Yes, I'm thinking about the same on the subscribers, Parallax.
I am holding off on making too many comments on Carter because I am doing a lot of research into him and I just don't think it would be fair to generalize the situation. As far as conditioning, it would be interesting for a player to be that good in college if he's not even in the best shape yet. Would it be easier to teach a quarterback how to "quarterback" or to get a player a nutritionist and a good mentor?
That's a good point. Hadn't thought of it that way. But he was gassed. Since he didn't play that way, he must have been in better shape during the season. It's concerning, character-wise, that he wasn't at his best for pro day. Says something about either maturity or perspective.
In some ways it would be easier if Carter was out of reach and we’d be saved the agony, but it looks like he’s going to be right there at 5. And I am completely non-plussed as to what the right decision for the team would be - but the coward in me says it’s better to pass than risk bro g forever known as the team that picked the 2023 version of Jamarcus Russell.
If you can, listen to Paul Moyer on the most recent episode of Wyman/Stelton.
Same here. It’s going to be tough to pass on him if Anderson is gone.
If the draft were today and Carter was available, Seattle would take him because he and Anderson are likely the only two front-seven players in the draft with a good chance of having an impact as a rookie.
Hard to say. If he busts it would be a huge setback. A lot will depend on the research they've done and will probably continue to do between now and draft day. Unless they've completed their research and have decided one way or the other.
I don't want to get ahead of myself, and I can't be the person who says, "Well, I know for sure that Jalen Carter will be better!" Maybe he won't be. But based on my limited research thus far, I don't think Carter really realized that he could be a pro football player until a few years ago. He's a three-sport athlete who preferred basketball and then it was like "Dude, you could be a great football player." So he goes to Georgia, he starts to learn from the likes of Jordan Davis and Devonte Wyatt that he needs to up his conditioning, and then he openly admits, "Yeah, that's what I need to get better at." Wouldn't it be more worrisome if he acted like he didn't need to get more conditioned and improve his workouts? He's actually working on getting better. Then there's the matter of not having to be in as good of a shape at Georgia because everybody on that D is going to get less time on the field than they would in a different system.
His pro day and not testing, maybe he's not in good shape. I can't say. But with all that's going on, who knows? At the end of the day, I think an NFL team is going to convince themselves in the top-8 (at the lowest) that it's better to get 5 years to work with Jalen Carter than to stress about whatever has been going in the last 3 months. The film that I've seen doesn't lie, he's advanced and if he's doing that not in good shape, I can see why people make the warren sapp (who is a mentor) comparisons.
The moment you say Sapp, it's hard not to get excited about the possibility of adding him to our D. High ceiling, low floor. Scary pick but the other side of fear is excitement. Kind of like dating a cute but crazy woman, it's something that promises to be a wild ride.
I’m with you. I badly don’t want Jalen Carter. Time will tell, but he screams character risk.
So did Ray Lewis, Randy Moss, Warren Sapp, Montez Sweat, etc.etc. This is not an endorsement, it's not saying that character concerns don't become issues sometimes, it's just repeating what you said yourself: Time will tell.
Frankly, it could be the dumbest thing ever if Jalen Carter simply goes to the Lions and in 3 years is the best player out of the draft like many were calling him two weeks ago. I would be a little shocked if Dan Campbell didn't think, "Yes, that's my kind of football player" and believe that he can mold him and get his head right. GM Brad Holmes simply wants the best college football players. Raiders, Falcons, Bears, and Eagles after that. I can't imagine that Carter is going outside of the top-10 and if by some chance he makes it to the team that just went to the Super Bowl and needs a player just like him, that could be so stupid.
Fair point on Moss, Sapp, etc.. You mention tape doesn’t lie. I’ve watched games and not so much individual reps so am admittedly looking at a partial picture (and am not a scout). But it’s odd to me how good he could look in the LSU game and average he could look in the OSU game. There are guys who are labeled as “taking plays off” but when it’s full games I have to wonder if they aren’t just getting beat. And the best predictor of future behavior is past behavior. If (and I don’t know that he is) Jalen Carter is a knucklehead, money and fame don’t tend to help that. I’m sure the teams have talked to all 30 (or whatever allowed number it is) of his teammates, coaches etc about his character and know a lot more than we do. But the picture we’ve been shown is awfully scary to me. As much as I wouldn’t want to pass on a hall of fame talent, I also wouldn’t want to waste a #5 pick on a guy who never gets it together. I think it was Scot McCloughan who said when you bring in a few bad character players, it’s easy for that to become the whole locker room. Glad I don’t have to make that decision. I struggle with mock drafts when he’s there at 5!
I must've missed something somewhere — lately you've been throwing a lot of shade at Rob Staton. Is that just playing, or did you two have a genuine falling out?
Totally fair question, Scott, and I appreciate that you asked because I'm sure a lot of other writers would just get defensive. I've known Rob for over 10 years and certainly promoted his website as much as I have in that amount of time because I respect him. I don't comment over there so I can't speak from personal experience, I just know that I've had a ton of people comment here that it's not easy to share their opinions over there. And just as I welcome any criticism of the work here, surely I think it's fair to give a balanced review of the Seahawks content that many fans are reading, which sometimes may include criticisms. I don't think it makes sense to go, "Well, only talk about me if you're complimenting me." I write about the Seahawks and sometimes that writing has to combat narratives from other Seahawks websites. Having the support of the community frees me up to make sure I'm doing right by Seahawks fans as much as possible and I'm grateful for that. I don't get any messages, "Hey, why did you compliment and share Seahawks draft blog??" which happens often, only when I say, "I disagree with this" does it seem to ruffle Rob's feathers.
But again, I appreciate you asking and I understand why you would.
I'm guessing this ruffling of feathers is happening on Twitter...? I just haven't seen it (Twitter is a dumpster fire in a cesspool patrolled by slime-oozing mutants), ergo my lack of context. Thanks for the thoughtful response.
Having read every article I’ve only seen light ribbing at worst from Ken. It’s weird but it’s mostly the fans of two Seahawk sports writers who get into it on Twitter. It’s not typical that a sportswriter includes other sportswriters in their work. And when his articles quote old tweets from these guys being so sure of something that never happened, it surely rubs them wrong. But it never reads to me as ridicule. It usually ties up to a greater point. Ken, Rob, Ben Baldwin, Matty F Brown and more go way back. Pretty sure Ken gave a few of them their first writing jobs.
Hey Chuck, to be clear: I don't think "throwing shade" is the same thing as "ridicule". And I certainly didn't intend to imply that Ken has been ridiculing Rob or his SeahawksDraftBlog. Lately I've just noticed a few variants on "here you get THIS, which is better than what you get OVER THERE", so I just wanted to get some context. I hope that's clarifying.
I thought your original comment was fair, and perhaps could have worded my response better. I see it more as using the quote tweets to prove points like, “we tend to stick to our opinion even when it gets disproven” and such. I’d see it more as shade throwing if Ken didn’t post his own. And a big part of the narrative here on Seaside Joe is that none of us know the future and are all of us are often wrong. I think a lot of how these articles read to us is colored by what we expect the agenda is going in. I’ll be the first to say that minus the context I tend to read them in, you could post many examples that look like pure shade. And I completely understand how both readers of the other blogs and their writers feel offended.
But that was Ken’s question to answer. And if there’s more to it, I apologize.
I think PC/JS are doing a really good job hyping up Seattle as a franchise trending in the right direction. No secret the league as a whole highly rated the '22 Draft, then showing the work improvement on Geno to make the Playoffs, whilst still carrying good draft capital. Why would these guys not want to come here?! And thus far i feel each deal has only built and built on that, giving the team cap flexibility this year and next, showing clear intent to compete and return to the playoffs, and an obvious established coaching plan and scheme set.
I think a few of those names will still return, there's just no rush from either the team or players. All setting nicely to again let the draft come to JS/PC. All setting nicely to have room to move in case of a good trade opportunity, or a late release. Keep the buzz going, keep setting this team to become a juggernaut in 2024. Big "A" grade thus far for the off-season as a whole.
Igwebuike is a no brainer to re-sign. I have always liked Poona. I think he might fit better and get more $ from another team, but I wish he could stay. You must love Irvin as a true Hawk, but his time is up and younger players must take precedence. He’ll land somewhere by the trade deadline. Maybe re-sign Muse but he needs to compete in camp.
Igwebuike should be back soon, I hope.
Igwebuike was an ERFA and we could have kept him simply by tendering him an offer at the league minimum (like we did with Michael Jackson, Myles Adams, and Jon Rhattigan). I'm surprised we didn't but Mr. Schneider has been full of surprises so far and I'm assuming he's good for a few more.
What hurt me the most was Homer. Penny indeed needed a change of scenery, and I’m happy for him, and I hope he balls out. Maybe he may come back later like Reed did. I take the middle stance on Barton, he wasn’t as good as his hype-men wanted to believe, but especially not as bad as us angry fans said he was on a weekly basis. Homer, though, should be a first ballot special teams hall of famer, if such a thing existed. Before 2022, he was the best blocker on the team under 30. Scratch that, he was the best blocker not named Duane Brown. He was good taking outlet passes too.
As for Julian Love, he’s very flexible like Adams, but his flexibility is closer to Diggs and Neal. He can play box, deep, and nickel. Nino was a nickel converted into safety (who plays both in the box and deep, though he stayed deep most of the time with the Hawks). He helps depth at many positions and is a great leader and special teamer.
I like Homer too, but the cap hit to keep him would have been $1.75M. This just wasn’t in the cards. Also, my take is that PCJS would really like to draft a Robert Turbin type who can spell Walker for an entire possession rather than just play in certain situations.
Think Seahawks will have to draft another day 3 RB.
I’m going to miss Travis Homer. No tears shed over losing Barton but I didn’t hate him. We were spoiled for a long time with lb play that was consistently somewhere between solid and elite.
I think the age, athleticism, and run stopping abilities of Reed and Dre Jones make the pair the better choice over Poona, QJeff, and Shelby Harris. AND they are probably better pass rushers, too. I like the direction JS is taking us, but that has been his M.O. IMO. They have really addressed key spots, so far, that will be an improvement over last year even if, like you said above, they get no help from the draft. So, they can afford to take shots on guys who may be higher risk like Jalen Carter, or a guy who might hit enough to relegate one of the FA guys to a smaller role. A++ for the job done, so far.
That said, I give them an A+ for their tenure, so far, too. I have never been more proud to be a 12. JSPC have really built a "program" like PC has said since he arrived. It is one that makes players want to come to and stay in. They treat people well, and that is important to me for my support.
Penny being healthy is the biggest "if" I have seen in a long while, but I think the depth at RB he provided is the biggest loss so far
Yes, it's a great tenure, Shaymus!
Penny needed to leave. He only has one chance left, and it's amazing he is still the running threat he ever was and not diminished from his injuries. This latest one may have diminished him and even if he is ready to get paid for running doesn't mean he will avoid small injuries like he did the last time during his first year back. So, for the Seahawks' sake, I wanted him back, but I figure Pete told him to leave for his own sake. A new start. No bad mojo around.
That's why I chose Muse. I want him back to see if he can put up some more 85 PFF grades for pass defense.
As for Geno, his contract was an A+++. You needed more categories for A. Because compared to just an A for Geno, none of the other contracts came close, and grading on a curve C would be the best grade I would give, but grading on a curve SUCKS. So I gave A's to the entire off season so far.
Yeah, Geno's contract is unbelievable.
I believe Muse can still return. I expect hm to actually.
Same here. It would have cost $2.627M to use the least-expensive RFA tender on him and I can understand why JSPC didn't see that as a good choice. My guess is that he'll test the market and then come back and sign a 2/$4M deal with us (give or take a little bit)
I agree about Geno's contract. I don't think there's any way it could have been better.