Frank Clark

[Chapow]

Honestly I don't see the O-line as that big of a concern this season. I liked what we saw from Britt last year and he should only improve. Sweezy has developed into a very good guard. LJP as we know is a pretty decent center, Alvin Bailey should make a good LG next to Okung, and should provide decent backup at LT should Okung go down. I like our depth there, too, even with so many rookies knocking about. Cable has built an o-line that is perfect for the offense we like to run, which is run-first, use TEs to block, and let Russell improvise and make plays. It's gotten us to the playoffs in each of the last 3 years including back-to-back Superbowls, one of which we dominated, the other we lost on the final play - and the offense still did rather well in that game, IMO.

All of this hand-wringing that we do every years because of the o-line is silly. Could it be better? Of course, but what area of the team would you like to weaken in exchange for a better pass-protecting o-line?

Nice post, I agree with pretty much all of this.

I suspect they will continue to get the job done while looking pretty damn good at run blocking and fair to mediocre at pass protection.

I also suspect that there will be multiple threads after every game completely over exaggerating how bad the O-line is, while ignoring the run blocking and focusing on pass protection only, and proclaiming that "ZOMG, This line is totes going to get Russell KILLED! Literally!!!!".

I mean, if there's one thing the last couple of years have proven, it's that there's no way we could ever get to or win a Super Bowl without an elite O-line, right?

 

[jblaze]

I'm really excited about Clark, he seems like a total hit. I think our DL will be one of our strengths this year with a lot of depth as long as we don't get a bunch of injuries. Irvin is going to have a monster year this year also because he wants paid.

The OL is a bit concerning considering we're plugging in so many without significant experience but Okung will be balling looking for a new contract and Britt looks miles ahead of last year. Cable seems genuinely excited this year and has called the group the best he's had. I think we'll be ok at tackle, interior line will be rough early but should be good for years after some rough patches early. I think Nowak wins the center position once he learned the protections/calls a bit more. I also think you'll see Sokoli at LG before the end of the year. Nowak/Sokoli seem more like the athletic, get to the second level nasty OL types Cable wants now.

It's going to be another exciting year. Our window is wide open right now and will probably be for the next 2-3 years, gotta hit on a couple more SB's!!!

 

[titan3131]

Frank clark is a Mbennett lite.

The difference is that Bennett has talent with lttle measurables.

Where as Clark has WORLD CLASS meaurables, andfresh maliable talent. Under the tutilige of Bane,avril, + bennett he will be all pro by season 3. BOOK IT.

 

[hawknation2015]

At this stage, Clark is a much better run stopper than he is a pass rusher. This was something I noticed from his tape. He needs to do a better job of using his speed and pass rushing moves to quickly disengage from blockers. Britt got the better of Clark during the scrimmage and that is because Britt tends to do better against rushers who rely on power over speed.

 

[Bigpumpkin]

Frank clark is a Mbennett lite.

The difference is that Bennett has talent with lttle measurables.

Where as Clark has WORLD CLASS meaurables, andfresh maliable talent. Under the tutilige of Bane,avril, + bennett he will be all pro by season 3. BOOK IT.

Let's not "count our chickens before they hatch"! How many times have we seen a fellow in Camp who looks like the "Second Coming", then falls flat during the Preseason games? I agree that he has some promise, but Friday is only a couple of days away.

 

[MizzouHawkGal]

[tweet]https://twitter.com/caplannfl/status/630754596168814592[/tweet]

Never had a doubt. Dude was a clear top 10 pick if not higher just like our too short quarterback (Foles is tall, I guess that's why the Rams just gave him ANOTHER 25M?) that some insist we just overpaid for.

You should listen to what other fans say in real time like myself when we're talking about the Seahawks before you believe the spin, just a hint.

 

[olyfan63]

Frank Clark is going to be a bust in this league.
Hey, who the hell put that sig down there?

Frank Clark will be like... a Bruce Irvin with more football smarts. And more overall smarts in not repeatedly tweeting dumb things.

 

[SoulfishHawk]

Why is it that some people care about someone being excited about a player? :roll:

Reminds me of Glum from the old cartoon. Nothing wrong with being stoked about a player, or thinking they'll be great. Shoot, many thought Aaron Curry was gonna' be a stud, stuff happens. Some guys just don't pan out.
But assuming a guy will be a bust, or telling other people how to feel and/or be a fan? No thanks.

 

[HawKnPeppa]

Good news, but I always take "HE'S AMAZING!" training camp news with a grain of salt.

Every year every coach across the league gushes about their players in camp, so I keep my excitement over Clark and our O-linemen who Cable said Saturday "is the best group of lineman he's ever had" until we see these guys in action.

I know the feeling. The hype from TC and pre-season is just that...hype. This year's level seems too good to be true with the comments about depth and such. I will say that Pete's assessments of players come true more often than with past Seahawks coaches. If you listen to him closely enough, he still tempers many of his evaluations, and is rarely effusive with praise unless the player is a proven vet. If you listen to Cable's eternal excitement about the OL the uninitiated might think we have nothing to worry about.... Yeah, we all saw how Sweezy's first season went!

The Center situation seems tenuous at best. We have Lemapedia, who is weak at the point of attack, but knows all of the assignments. Then you have his closest competitor in Nowak, who is strong and athletic, but is not quite up-to-speed with assignments (I'd guess way behind is a more accurate description). Chris Spencer anyone?

Best to be cautiously optimistic. Still, I don't find the same creeping doubts I had with previous regimes when it comes to being positive about the team overall.

Quite the enigma for us older fans. A constant struggle with the 'same old Seahawks' mentality from yesterday -vs- what Pete has brought us.

 

[Attyla the Hawk]

I love the hype. It sure beats the alternative.

Nothing wrong at all with rampant homerism. It's fun. And in the end, that's what this sport is all about.

 

[SalishHawkFan]

I want to know if he is impressive because he is that good or is it because our offensive line is weak. If a rookie is dominating our offensive line in practice I am kind of worried as a Seahawks fan.

Yet another fan worried about the offensive line getting dominated... IN PRACTICE... When will it stop?

When the offensive line shows it can block.

 

[Sac]

Defensive Rookie of the Year.

Book it.

 

[Hasselbeck]

If the OL we drafted develop into decent players.. this draft class could be surreal between Clark and Lockett.

 

[HansGruber]

Frank Clark looked awesome in person. He was manhandling the starters. They started putting two blockers on him early from what I could see in the stands. Lockett was electric too. Looks like we might have a very good draft

 

[Sterling Archer]

Clark is looking like the real deal and that is VERY exciting considering this position has been one of the weakest draft wise thus far in the PCJS era.

This rookie class in general is looking exciting. The last 2 drafts have been a bit underwhelming either due to injury, circumstance or just otherwise sucking. This team needs another 2010-2012 level draft to continue its success.

 

[HansGruber]

Clark is looking like the real deal and that is VERY exciting considering this position has been one of the weakest draft wise thus far in the PCJS era.

This rookie class in general is looking exciting. The last 2 drafts have been a bit underwhelming either due to injury, circumstance or just otherwise sucking. This team needs another 2010-2012 level draft to continue its success.

Based on Lockett and Clark alone, it's looking like a damn good draft. They were both on another level

 

[titan3131]

Captain of the clark hype train since day one, send me 10 $ paypal and you can jump on-board.

 

[Sac]

 

[Chawker]

I'm impressed ! :0190l:

 

[Overseasfan]

I trusted him to be a solid back up for Bennett but if he continues playing this way he will be much more than that.