You hear the phrase "flying under the radar" in sports enough to make you miss those Jimmy Johnson Extenze commercials. (Note: Please don't read the Chargers blurb.) Yet, I have to say that no team is ... flying ... uh ... is being ignored more than the Seahawks. Seattle has improved to 4-3 after starting the season with two straight losses. Front and center is Ken Norton's defense, which is fifth in points allowed per game, despite being sans Richard Sherman, Kam Chancellor and Michael Bennett. That's the same Norton whom the Raiders -- the Raiders -- didn't want. Cool.
Side note: Got a random call from John Schneider about my Eric Metcalf TBT feature from this past week. Schneider brought in Metcalf in 2001 for the then-struggling Redskins (1-5), without earning much praise from the sportswriter peanut gallery. The 12th-year pro promptly took a first-quarter punt 89 yards to the house. Washington went on a roll, winning four in a row after Metcalf joined and finishing 8-8. Moral of the story: Schneider and Pete Carroll know what they are doing