"And then the offense basically stalled for most of the season after that. " - this is in reference to 2023. I'd like to add some context here
The offense in 2023 did stall out for a little while after the Detroit game. That is, until Pete Carrol sat down Shane Waldron before the Dallas game and said "Hey, our offensive line is terrible, get the ball out quicker". Geno Smith went from the high 2 seconds from snap to throw to one of the quickest in the league (under 2.5 seconds).
The result? Geno Smith was the second most efficient QB over the last month of 2023. From week 13 on he was second in EPA/play behind Purdy. Above Josh Allen, Patrick Mahomes and Lamar Jackson etc.
So, we are now talking about Geno not being 2 games into this streak. He is actually 6 games into the streak. At Dallas, at Tennessee, Pitt, at Arizona, Denver, at Patriots.
I want Geno to be great in the fourth quarter and overtime. It would be nice if he stacked some hood quarters together but it seems the our Seahawks like drama!
Not Seahawk related but has anyone else watched Dylan Raiola? He is a freshman quarterback at Nebraska. He is 3 and 0 but the meat of the schedule coming up.
I enjoyed reading about the ‘You gotta pay BIG for a BIG-TIME QB!’
How many times have we heard since Geno took over: "You need a franchise QB". This is a typical comment uttered throughout the NFL with absolutely no meaning. You do not need a franchise QB, you need a QB that is better than the contract you pay them. Great examples in the article.
I was thinking about something the article mentioned. Had we gone down the anti-Geno route, popularized by many but we can take Rob Staton as the example. How many QBs are better than Geno Smith that have been drafted since 2022?
Kenny Pickett
Desmond Ridder
Malik Willis
Matt Corral
Bailey Zappe
Sam Howell
Brock Purdy
Bryce Young
C.J. Stroud
Anthony Richardson
Will Levis
Hendon Hooker
Jake Haener
Stetson Bennett
Dorian Thompson-Robinson
CALEB WILLIAMS, USC
DRAKE MAYE, NORTH CAROLINA
JAYDEN DANIELS, LSU
J.J. MCCARTHY, MICHIGAN
BO NIX, OREGON
MICHAEL PENIX JR., WASHINGTON
SPENCER RATTLER, SOUTH CAROLINA
MICHAEL PRATT, TULANE
That is something like 25 QBs and there is probably only 2 that can compete with Geno (Stroud/Purdy).
Also, I think there has always been a huge difference between what fans think of the Seahawks QBs (Geno/Lock) and what the Seahawks think of their QBs.
... plus we haven't had to pay him big money for mediocre performance, ala Lawrence, Mayfield, Carr, Watson, etc. We can keep building around him and put someone else into a great situation if he decides to leave for a big bag. As much as I hate to say it, it's the 49ers model, too. But, maybe it was our model 1st with Russ.
Do you remember those contract battles with Russ? I think those took years off of JS' life. They were so long and drawn out and contentious. But also, I remember distinctly thinking back then = pay Russ whatever it takes.
I have changed.
I really hope that the team continues to improve this year and be good. If that happens, I think Geno will be extended and I just hope that it does not become contentious (I don't think it will but who knows)
JS seems to be a level-headed grounded type dude (I chose "dude" intentionally). He has proven to be self-aware and caring of others. He has also showed that he meshes business into that framework while keeping it emotionally separate. My point is that I don't think he takes anything personally, and contentiousness is a one-way street for the player(s) who choose to react that way. He isn't flappable, he is fair; and, if anyone else gets offended, I am glad he is the guy negotiating for the team because it won't phase him. I trust he'll make the best decision for the organization and try to do the same for players. Now, he may agonize over some decisions about people he (we) love, but he won't be swayed from his mission by emotional ploys, public or private. He will empathize, but make the right call.
Schneider was right to pay the 27- and 30-year old Russell. That player was one of the best QBs in the league. He carried a club marred by five years of botched Day 2 drafts. BTW, Russell’s third contract was negotiated relatively quickly.
Yeah man, they always went down to the wire. I'm glad JS saw the writing on the wall and fleeced the shit out of Denver. I'll admit I was shocked and bummed at the time but now it'll go down as one of the greatest Seahawks front office moves of all time.
I'm just waiting for the QB contract bubble to pop. They have to level off sometime because the salary cap can't go up indefinitely (not gonna be any billion dollar contracts) and you still gotta pay the rest of the team.
I'd like to see how much, on average, the salary cap goes up each year and how much, also on average, the QB salary goes up. There's gotta be a point coming where teams say "no, fuck this and fuck you, you ain't getting 750 million for three years no matter how good you are."
I dunno, Mayfield seems to be hitting his stride, starting last season and into this one. And kind of hard to consider Carr's recent performances at least as "mediocre." But Lawrence, and especially Watson, are...underperforming.
True. New Orleans has been absolutely humming on offense, in the 1st 2 games of their new OC's tenure. Tampa, too (see what I did there), to a lesser extent but longer time if we consider 2nd half of last year. Even though they have performed well, I think I still trust Geno more. But that's my opinion. I have always said he had some mental lapses with boneheaded plays. Mayfield and Carr have had entire seasons of substandard performance to compare their recent success to.
Re: the question of which win was better, Pats '24 or Lions '23...
The Pats was against an all-around better defense with a history of being a quality unit. Even if there were questions coming into the season, they have played well. Detroit was known to have a porous defense last year and historically. Geno had pressure to keep up with Det's high scoring offense, but I have to say that the Pats win was definitively a better win and performance by Geno vs. the pressure of playing a respected defensive team that is used to having to keep them in games.
I think I would take the Lions game. It was coming off, what was perceived to be at the time or still is, a horrible loss at home to the Rams. The temperature on the season was ratcheted up and we were around 6-point underdogs in Detroit. Geno crushed it. It seems like whenever his back is against it and the fire burns hotter, whether in game or season, he does even better.
- investing as much as Seattle has in its DL will improve the run defense (know you already discussed the run defense but there was this theory that all the money and 1st draft pick spent on the DL would stop the run)
- LB is the weak spot on the defense and if someone gets hurt, it will REALLY be the weak spot
- RB’s are a dime a dozen and you should neither waste a high draft pick nor spend a lot of money on the position. Seattle was a moron spending high picks on Walker III and Charbonneau
Re the RBs, Walker was worth a second-round pick because he has game-changing talent. Charbonnet is a dime-a-dozen plodder with no first step and no ability to cut; there’s no justification for taking that player over plug-and-play guard O’Cyrus Torrence, especially given the state of Seattle’s interior OL.
Walker struggles to stay healthy. Not sure Charbonnet was the right back-up to draft. He shows glimpses, but it's pretty clear he's not the kind of RB who makes something out of nothing. And last Sunday, he was given nothing by his OL. As MacDonald said, they provided no push, and no lanes.
Sure, but none of that makes Charbonnet any more talented. That pick has been shaping up as a blown chance to fix a gaping hole in the OL for some time, now.
An Athletic writer posted part of the reason the whiners lost is because they had to travel east, Minneapolis, to play Vikes. Yep poor team. Just read, Kupp going to IR. Could cause issues for Stafford. On other hand, Colby may be the guy we had hoped to see in Seattle.
I'm still of the belief that the Rams season last year was a mirage. The only teams they beat with a winning record were the Colts, the Seahawks (sigh) and the Week 18 49ers. They weren't good last year and I don't think they're good this year.
And I'm pretty excited about how the Super Bowl loser's curse is working out for the Niners. CMC out until who knows when, guys holding out for bigger bucks, getting it and then underperforming. I can hardly wait for Shanahan to lose the locker room.
Really hard not be bullish on the Grubb offense after watching it for two years at Washington and a two games with the Seahawks. Interested to hear the offensive players’ thoughts on how it compares to past systems.
Yeah, he's not going to be in Seattle for much longer at this rate. UW got him, Alabama wanted him, the Seahawks got him, someone will come for him if this continues (and the Seahawks aren't even scoring a lot of points yet)
We need to make Grubb co-Coach so he is untouchable. In fact, that would make a nice change to the rules. Allow for one non coach to be untouchable for x number of years? They'd never go for it. I'm going through the stages of grief as I write.
Waldron has got to be feeling some heat at this point. I saw a 3 receiver screen last week where the target was Cole Kmet with a couple of wideouts blocking for him. It predictably went nowhere. WTF is that sort of play design?
There is something to the argument that “I have confidence is where this team is going and don’t want to walk away from being an OC in a good situation to head coach in a bad one.”
I've surveyed the internet regarding the last game and SSJ's take on Geno is the least complimentary of all. That's OK. Others point out he has done as well as he did this Sunday without any running game at all and with 5-8 drops, depending on who you listen to. I counted a minimum of 5. When I thought back on the game, I also could not remember a single throw into a dangerous window. Or to a ghost player. Drops are a normal part of every teams WR room, but less so for the Hawks. DK drops contested catches, but Lockett is Mr. Hands, and JSN is close behind him. Fant, not so much. 5 drops was too many, but Geno didn't blink.
Others point out Geno was under considerable pressure for much of the game, but still managed to march down the field twice for the win. It's not proof of any future performance, but nothing is. I think the BEST IS YET TO COME, LOL.
I would argue that the Grubb offense has been more tested than the McDaniel defense so far. Both the Steelers and the Bengals scored less against the Broncos and Pats, by exactly half (23 vs 46 by the Seahawks combined against those two opponents). The defense, meanwhile, held those teams to a combined 40, compared to the total of 16+6 our opponents scored against other defenses. OK, the safeties and field position hurt against Denver, but still, Pittsburgh held them to 6.
Lots of game factors affect scoring, of course. But early days, Grubb’s offense appears to be beating tough defenses (even w/o a running game), while our promising defense has kept us in games against mediocre offenses.
Don’t get me wrong, I am really psyched about our defense. I just think the true tests are yet to come. This week, it’s our first look at a Shanahan offense - will be fun. Current line Seahawks -5.5.
I think Denver is finding out why Auburn made no effort to keep him. Either the Bears really suck or Caleb Williams is not NFL ready. Or both. I still can't tell where the Hawks stands until they play some better teams but 2 and 0 looks good.
Fant and Bradford need to go. Any chance of trading both for one decent guard?
One thing that I truly believe in and if it was done in this game, the Hawks win in regulation! Always take the points until you're in the 4th quarter and other decisions to win must be made. If they take the three on their first drive of the 2nd half they win in regulation !
I think the jury is still out on the run defense. I didn't see an effort problem. MacDonald said he got them in some bad looks, and there were some leverage issues on a few of those plays. And, the biggest run came on a play that Mafe had the back dead to rights in the backfield. Turned a 7 yard loss into a 45 yard gain.
The NFL is hard. If you take one thing away, chances are you are underleveraged in another area. Then it's just a question of how much your opponent can exploit what you leave for them. If Seattle would have scored on that 3rd quarter drive, instead of turning the ball over on downs, I think the Pats would have been less inclined to stick with the run, down by 2 scores. Playing with the lead is the easiest way to get a team to play to our strengths.
The Geno discussions exhaust me. He threw 44 of 44 on-target throws on Sunday. Not one bad throw in the ENTIRE GAME! We can ignore that though, since apparently he has to do that 17 straight games plus 3 playoff games to be considered good enough to win with. Whatever. And lets not forget his protection is far from elite.
The Trevor Lawrence contract was an enormous mistake by the Jaguars. Below average (I'm being kind) for elite money. Now that's something worthy of getting ones knickers in a knot. We're paying average money for elite QB play. That's good, isn't it? Sure, things may change later in the year. But there is nothing wrong with recognizing excellent QB play while it's happening. Is there?
And he played it correctly by staying on his outside shoulder for the tackle and preventing him from getting outside. It would have been great for him to make the tackle, but he blew up that play and the other defenders failed to clean it up.
I think the Geno discussion is fascinating. Why do people not recognize elite QB play when they see it? I have theories but it is incredible to go through this time period in real time.
Additionally, I have really been enjoying the Geno years. Russ was fun and nothing was more exciting than when we saw him at midfield take a ten step drop, juke a couple defenders and throw a rainbow down the field. But ... I also enjoy pocket passers who are efficient and surgical in their approach.
Noah Fant is like an uber-talented tennis player who has trouble concentrating: He’ll make some tantalizing plays but never be as good as he could be. Even so, I’m not on the “they should have kept Parkinson” train—the talent difference is too great. At the end of the day, Colby’s ceiling is Fant’s floor.
Re Geno, if we’re going to discount DK’s day because of the busted play, it seems to me that we have to apply the same standard to Geno. Even given the drops, he threw an awful lot of short passes and wasn’t particularly successful on the deep balls. I wish he had more of an intermediate game—they have the skill players to support that. On the other hand, Geno never lost his cool, and there’s a lot to be said for that.
Re QB, I personally applaud Schneider for not overpaying mid-level passers. There’s no point in having a capable (but no more than that) guy whose salary makes it impossible to build a roster around him. But I have no doubt that Schneider would happily pay a top-tier QB if he could get one.
Disagree on Colby. Fant's ceiling is recieving tight end. Colby's ceiling is complete TE. Colby also has more upside as a red zone threat because of his build and his duality as a threat to block or catch a TD.
Also think Geno taking the short pass behind a shaky OL is the right move. Let's see some Sautoa Laumea for Laken Tomlinson, and Haynes for Bradford this week.
We shouldn’t discount DK or Geno due to the busted play. The offense is designed to confuse defenses and when that happens they need to successfully exploit the confusion. DK’s speed and Geno’s accuracy allowed that to happen. DK had the 4th most receiving yards this weekend (only 6 behind the leader). 2 of the 3 ahead of him had longer receptions than his longest so should we also discount their days? DK not only had a long TD reception, but was a clutch possession receiver this week. He was 10 of 14 for 129 yards and a TD! I’ll take that any day of the week from any of our receivers and we were close to that with two of them.
As for Charbonnet, perhaps picking a guard would have been better, but- he has a receiving and rushing TD already this season, he was 5 for 5 on receptions yesterday plus made a couple of great blocks in protection. He’s not as explosive as K9, but without his contribution the Hawks might be 0-2 and not 2-0. As Chuck Knox used to say, “football players make football plays” and Charbs is a football player who seems to have a knack for making a play when needed. Need a wheel route 30 yard TD, ok got it. Need a 1 yard rushing TD, done.
No team has great players at every position, the league is designed that way. So far this year’s Hawk front office and coaching staff appear to have assembled a reasonably talented group and then put them in positions to succeed. All caveats about opponents noted, but 2-0 is the best result possible so far and they did it. Let’s hope that train keeps on chugging along!
I agree completely about Geno. He just had a great game! And he had one great quarter vs Denver, and two terrible quarters.
If Geno can stack 4-5 games together where he has at least 3 great quarters in each game, then I will join the GenOptimist camp.
What we have seen *so far* is fully consistent with his history though, so time will tell.
"And then the offense basically stalled for most of the season after that. " - this is in reference to 2023. I'd like to add some context here
The offense in 2023 did stall out for a little while after the Detroit game. That is, until Pete Carrol sat down Shane Waldron before the Dallas game and said "Hey, our offensive line is terrible, get the ball out quicker". Geno Smith went from the high 2 seconds from snap to throw to one of the quickest in the league (under 2.5 seconds).
The result? Geno Smith was the second most efficient QB over the last month of 2023. From week 13 on he was second in EPA/play behind Purdy. Above Josh Allen, Patrick Mahomes and Lamar Jackson etc.
So, we are now talking about Geno not being 2 games into this streak. He is actually 6 games into the streak. At Dallas, at Tennessee, Pitt, at Arizona, Denver, at Patriots.
Will it continue? Yes ... I believe it will.
Very predictable response Mike McD 😁. Love it, and I hope your belief comes true.
I want Geno to be great in the fourth quarter and overtime. It would be nice if he stacked some hood quarters together but it seems the our Seahawks like drama!
Not Seahawk related but has anyone else watched Dylan Raiola? He is a freshman quarterback at Nebraska. He is 3 and 0 but the meat of the schedule coming up.
“Good” not hood! Damn fingers!
The QBs in 2026 and 2027 could really be something.
Yes and a certain quarterback at Texas.
I enjoyed reading about the ‘You gotta pay BIG for a BIG-TIME QB!’
How many times have we heard since Geno took over: "You need a franchise QB". This is a typical comment uttered throughout the NFL with absolutely no meaning. You do not need a franchise QB, you need a QB that is better than the contract you pay them. Great examples in the article.
I was thinking about something the article mentioned. Had we gone down the anti-Geno route, popularized by many but we can take Rob Staton as the example. How many QBs are better than Geno Smith that have been drafted since 2022?
Kenny Pickett
Desmond Ridder
Malik Willis
Matt Corral
Bailey Zappe
Sam Howell
Brock Purdy
Bryce Young
C.J. Stroud
Anthony Richardson
Will Levis
Hendon Hooker
Jake Haener
Stetson Bennett
Dorian Thompson-Robinson
CALEB WILLIAMS, USC
DRAKE MAYE, NORTH CAROLINA
JAYDEN DANIELS, LSU
J.J. MCCARTHY, MICHIGAN
BO NIX, OREGON
MICHAEL PENIX JR., WASHINGTON
SPENCER RATTLER, SOUTH CAROLINA
MICHAEL PRATT, TULANE
That is something like 25 QBs and there is probably only 2 that can compete with Geno (Stroud/Purdy).
Also, I think there has always been a huge difference between what fans think of the Seahawks QBs (Geno/Lock) and what the Seahawks think of their QBs.
I will stick with JS when it comes to QBs.
... plus we haven't had to pay him big money for mediocre performance, ala Lawrence, Mayfield, Carr, Watson, etc. We can keep building around him and put someone else into a great situation if he decides to leave for a big bag. As much as I hate to say it, it's the 49ers model, too. But, maybe it was our model 1st with Russ.
Do you remember those contract battles with Russ? I think those took years off of JS' life. They were so long and drawn out and contentious. But also, I remember distinctly thinking back then = pay Russ whatever it takes.
I have changed.
I really hope that the team continues to improve this year and be good. If that happens, I think Geno will be extended and I just hope that it does not become contentious (I don't think it will but who knows)
JS seems to be a level-headed grounded type dude (I chose "dude" intentionally). He has proven to be self-aware and caring of others. He has also showed that he meshes business into that framework while keeping it emotionally separate. My point is that I don't think he takes anything personally, and contentiousness is a one-way street for the player(s) who choose to react that way. He isn't flappable, he is fair; and, if anyone else gets offended, I am glad he is the guy negotiating for the team because it won't phase him. I trust he'll make the best decision for the organization and try to do the same for players. Now, he may agonize over some decisions about people he (we) love, but he won't be swayed from his mission by emotional ploys, public or private. He will empathize, but make the right call.
I remember them, and I think he learned and grew as a result, too. It happened once, but not (never?) again.
It's interesting to me to think maybe you, JS, and I all changed similarly during those times. Maybe a lot more of us, too.
Schneider was right to pay the 27- and 30-year old Russell. That player was one of the best QBs in the league. He carried a club marred by five years of botched Day 2 drafts. BTW, Russell’s third contract was negotiated relatively quickly.
Yeah man, they always went down to the wire. I'm glad JS saw the writing on the wall and fleeced the shit out of Denver. I'll admit I was shocked and bummed at the time but now it'll go down as one of the greatest Seahawks front office moves of all time.
I'm just waiting for the QB contract bubble to pop. They have to level off sometime because the salary cap can't go up indefinitely (not gonna be any billion dollar contracts) and you still gotta pay the rest of the team.
I'd like to see how much, on average, the salary cap goes up each year and how much, also on average, the QB salary goes up. There's gotta be a point coming where teams say "no, fuck this and fuck you, you ain't getting 750 million for three years no matter how good you are."
I dunno, Mayfield seems to be hitting his stride, starting last season and into this one. And kind of hard to consider Carr's recent performances at least as "mediocre." But Lawrence, and especially Watson, are...underperforming.
True. New Orleans has been absolutely humming on offense, in the 1st 2 games of their new OC's tenure. Tampa, too (see what I did there), to a lesser extent but longer time if we consider 2nd half of last year. Even though they have performed well, I think I still trust Geno more. But that's my opinion. I have always said he had some mental lapses with boneheaded plays. Mayfield and Carr have had entire seasons of substandard performance to compare their recent success to.
All IMHO
Re: the question of which win was better, Pats '24 or Lions '23...
The Pats was against an all-around better defense with a history of being a quality unit. Even if there were questions coming into the season, they have played well. Detroit was known to have a porous defense last year and historically. Geno had pressure to keep up with Det's high scoring offense, but I have to say that the Pats win was definitively a better win and performance by Geno vs. the pressure of playing a respected defensive team that is used to having to keep them in games.
Those are some good points.
I think I would take the Lions game. It was coming off, what was perceived to be at the time or still is, a horrible loss at home to the Rams. The temperature on the season was ratcheted up and we were around 6-point underdogs in Detroit. Geno crushed it. It seems like whenever his back is against it and the fire burns hotter, whether in game or season, he does even better.
Rumors and narratives to debunk:
- investing as much as Seattle has in its DL will improve the run defense (know you already discussed the run defense but there was this theory that all the money and 1st draft pick spent on the DL would stop the run)
- LB is the weak spot on the defense and if someone gets hurt, it will REALLY be the weak spot
- RB’s are a dime a dozen and you should neither waste a high draft pick nor spend a lot of money on the position. Seattle was a moron spending high picks on Walker III and Charbonneau
Definitely those are narratives to keep an eye on!
Re the RBs, Walker was worth a second-round pick because he has game-changing talent. Charbonnet is a dime-a-dozen plodder with no first step and no ability to cut; there’s no justification for taking that player over plug-and-play guard O’Cyrus Torrence, especially given the state of Seattle’s interior OL.
Walker struggles to stay healthy. Not sure Charbonnet was the right back-up to draft. He shows glimpses, but it's pretty clear he's not the kind of RB who makes something out of nothing. And last Sunday, he was given nothing by his OL. As MacDonald said, they provided no push, and no lanes.
Sure, but none of that makes Charbonnet any more talented. That pick has been shaping up as a blown chance to fix a gaping hole in the OL for some time, now.
An Athletic writer posted part of the reason the whiners lost is because they had to travel east, Minneapolis, to play Vikes. Yep poor team. Just read, Kupp going to IR. Could cause issues for Stafford. On other hand, Colby may be the guy we had hoped to see in Seattle.
Rams are in shambles.
Or is it Shrambles?
I'm still of the belief that the Rams season last year was a mirage. The only teams they beat with a winning record were the Colts, the Seahawks (sigh) and the Week 18 49ers. They weren't good last year and I don't think they're good this year.
And I'm pretty excited about how the Super Bowl loser's curse is working out for the Niners. CMC out until who knows when, guys holding out for bigger bucks, getting it and then underperforming. I can hardly wait for Shanahan to lose the locker room.
Really hard not be bullish on the Grubb offense after watching it for two years at Washington and a two games with the Seahawks. Interested to hear the offensive players’ thoughts on how it compares to past systems.
Yeah, he's not going to be in Seattle for much longer at this rate. UW got him, Alabama wanted him, the Seahawks got him, someone will come for him if this continues (and the Seahawks aren't even scoring a lot of points yet)
We need to make Grubb co-Coach so he is untouchable. In fact, that would make a nice change to the rules. Allow for one non coach to be untouchable for x number of years? They'd never go for it. I'm going through the stages of grief as I write.
Meanwhile, in Chicago…
Waldron has got to be feeling some heat at this point. I saw a 3 receiver screen last week where the target was Cole Kmet with a couple of wideouts blocking for him. It predictably went nowhere. WTF is that sort of play design?
Responding to your last sentence, it’s the type of play design we saw too much of in Seattle the past few years.
Or maybe he will pull a Ben Johnson and want to stay in Seattle while we build “something special”
There is something to the argument that “I have confidence is where this team is going and don’t want to walk away from being an OC in a good situation to head coach in a bad one.”
I've surveyed the internet regarding the last game and SSJ's take on Geno is the least complimentary of all. That's OK. Others point out he has done as well as he did this Sunday without any running game at all and with 5-8 drops, depending on who you listen to. I counted a minimum of 5. When I thought back on the game, I also could not remember a single throw into a dangerous window. Or to a ghost player. Drops are a normal part of every teams WR room, but less so for the Hawks. DK drops contested catches, but Lockett is Mr. Hands, and JSN is close behind him. Fant, not so much. 5 drops was too many, but Geno didn't blink.
Others point out Geno was under considerable pressure for much of the game, but still managed to march down the field twice for the win. It's not proof of any future performance, but nothing is. I think the BEST IS YET TO COME, LOL.
I would argue that the Grubb offense has been more tested than the McDaniel defense so far. Both the Steelers and the Bengals scored less against the Broncos and Pats, by exactly half (23 vs 46 by the Seahawks combined against those two opponents). The defense, meanwhile, held those teams to a combined 40, compared to the total of 16+6 our opponents scored against other defenses. OK, the safeties and field position hurt against Denver, but still, Pittsburgh held them to 6.
Lots of game factors affect scoring, of course. But early days, Grubb’s offense appears to be beating tough defenses (even w/o a running game), while our promising defense has kept us in games against mediocre offenses.
Don’t get me wrong, I am really psyched about our defense. I just think the true tests are yet to come. This week, it’s our first look at a Shanahan offense - will be fun. Current line Seahawks -5.5.
I think Denver is finding out why Auburn made no effort to keep him. Either the Bears really suck or Caleb Williams is not NFL ready. Or both. I still can't tell where the Hawks stands until they play some better teams but 2 and 0 looks good.
Fant and Bradford need to go. Any chance of trading both for one decent guard?
One thing that I truly believe in and if it was done in this game, the Hawks win in regulation! Always take the points until you're in the 4th quarter and other decisions to win must be made. If they take the three on their first drive of the 2nd half they win in regulation !
I think all the 4th down decisions were sound, just the playcall on the Charbonnet run was bad.
All entitled to our own opinions ,But I disagree- Should have kicked the FG at the beginning of the 2nd half!
Ok. Who had the six QBs highlighted in the QB Efficiency chart as the top 6 most efficient QBs to start the season? Anyone? Anyone?
Bueller? Bueller?
C'mon! Didn't we all?? 🙄😂
Derek Carr for MVP!!!
I think the jury is still out on the run defense. I didn't see an effort problem. MacDonald said he got them in some bad looks, and there were some leverage issues on a few of those plays. And, the biggest run came on a play that Mafe had the back dead to rights in the backfield. Turned a 7 yard loss into a 45 yard gain.
The NFL is hard. If you take one thing away, chances are you are underleveraged in another area. Then it's just a question of how much your opponent can exploit what you leave for them. If Seattle would have scored on that 3rd quarter drive, instead of turning the ball over on downs, I think the Pats would have been less inclined to stick with the run, down by 2 scores. Playing with the lead is the easiest way to get a team to play to our strengths.
The Geno discussions exhaust me. He threw 44 of 44 on-target throws on Sunday. Not one bad throw in the ENTIRE GAME! We can ignore that though, since apparently he has to do that 17 straight games plus 3 playoff games to be considered good enough to win with. Whatever. And lets not forget his protection is far from elite.
The Trevor Lawrence contract was an enormous mistake by the Jaguars. Below average (I'm being kind) for elite money. Now that's something worthy of getting ones knickers in a knot. We're paying average money for elite QB play. That's good, isn't it? Sure, things may change later in the year. But there is nothing wrong with recognizing excellent QB play while it's happening. Is there?
In fairness to Mafe, Gibson ran right through ten other players, at least a couple of whom missed tackles.
And he played it correctly by staying on his outside shoulder for the tackle and preventing him from getting outside. It would have been great for him to make the tackle, but he blew up that play and the other defenders failed to clean it up.
I think the Geno discussion is fascinating. Why do people not recognize elite QB play when they see it? I have theories but it is incredible to go through this time period in real time.
Additionally, I have really been enjoying the Geno years. Russ was fun and nothing was more exciting than when we saw him at midfield take a ten step drop, juke a couple defenders and throw a rainbow down the field. But ... I also enjoy pocket passers who are efficient and surgical in their approach.
Noah Fant is like an uber-talented tennis player who has trouble concentrating: He’ll make some tantalizing plays but never be as good as he could be. Even so, I’m not on the “they should have kept Parkinson” train—the talent difference is too great. At the end of the day, Colby’s ceiling is Fant’s floor.
Re Geno, if we’re going to discount DK’s day because of the busted play, it seems to me that we have to apply the same standard to Geno. Even given the drops, he threw an awful lot of short passes and wasn’t particularly successful on the deep balls. I wish he had more of an intermediate game—they have the skill players to support that. On the other hand, Geno never lost his cool, and there’s a lot to be said for that.
Re QB, I personally applaud Schneider for not overpaying mid-level passers. There’s no point in having a capable (but no more than that) guy whose salary makes it impossible to build a roster around him. But I have no doubt that Schneider would happily pay a top-tier QB if he could get one.
Disagree on Colby. Fant's ceiling is recieving tight end. Colby's ceiling is complete TE. Colby also has more upside as a red zone threat because of his build and his duality as a threat to block or catch a TD.
Also think Geno taking the short pass behind a shaky OL is the right move. Let's see some Sautoa Laumea for Laken Tomlinson, and Haynes for Bradford this week.
We shouldn’t discount DK or Geno due to the busted play. The offense is designed to confuse defenses and when that happens they need to successfully exploit the confusion. DK’s speed and Geno’s accuracy allowed that to happen. DK had the 4th most receiving yards this weekend (only 6 behind the leader). 2 of the 3 ahead of him had longer receptions than his longest so should we also discount their days? DK not only had a long TD reception, but was a clutch possession receiver this week. He was 10 of 14 for 129 yards and a TD! I’ll take that any day of the week from any of our receivers and we were close to that with two of them.
As for Charbonnet, perhaps picking a guard would have been better, but- he has a receiving and rushing TD already this season, he was 5 for 5 on receptions yesterday plus made a couple of great blocks in protection. He’s not as explosive as K9, but without his contribution the Hawks might be 0-2 and not 2-0. As Chuck Knox used to say, “football players make football plays” and Charbs is a football player who seems to have a knack for making a play when needed. Need a wheel route 30 yard TD, ok got it. Need a 1 yard rushing TD, done.
No team has great players at every position, the league is designed that way. So far this year’s Hawk front office and coaching staff appear to have assembled a reasonably talented group and then put them in positions to succeed. All caveats about opponents noted, but 2-0 is the best result possible so far and they did it. Let’s hope that train keeps on chugging along!