NJHawk":mk3xxxag said:
Looking for something to feel good about going into off season but I'm having a hard time staying positive and I hate to use the rebuilding term when thinking about next year but.
Defence- looking slower and much older
Running game-we don't have one
Kicking- need a real kicker
Special teams- below average
O line- nothing there to build on
QB- amazing at times but lives off the scramble drill and will be less and less effectuve
Coaching- Out-coached on more than half our games
I think we have been exposed and our reputation is not enough anymore
I think you're being a bit too negative here. We still have an extremely talented team, and a good core of players to build around. This team, on paper was one that most pundits, and fans alike thought was going to be a SuperBowl bound team. We have the talent, it is a matter of retooling, and re-purposing our stars.
Our defense still has the potential to be very good, we just don't really have much in the way of schemes, and were dealt a bad hand this year. Really looked like the defense mailed it in this season, even before our guys started going down, right and left. For as much fire as Richards has -- I'm convinced he is one of the worst defensive coordinators out there at the moment. The comments about the line just free lancing was quite concerning. You never saw that kind of mishap from Dan Quinn, or even Gus Bradly. Richards is a great DB coach, but increasingly I'm feeling that he doesn't have the chops to be a defensive coordinator in this league. Players look a bit confused on defense at times, sometimes it feels like the person doing all of the leg work as far as DCing goes is Wagner.
As far as the players on defense, we still have a decent group. Wagner was a serious contender for defensive player of the year before he got injured. Jarren Reed, Nazir Jones, Jefferson, and Clark all look good, and can serve as our core in years to come. Some of them are still learning, but I'm quite confident they will at least be serviceable. Richardson is most likely gone, as is Avril. Bennett is getting long in the tooth, and Kam Chancellor is getting older, and injured more frequently. Both of these players are stop gaps at this point, replacements need to be found no later than two years from now. Due to Kam's play style, and penchant for getting injured, don't think he is going to be a great player past 32. I'm not sold on KJ Wright, not great in coverage and this year he didn't look very good. He is not bad, but I'm not exactly impressed with him either. Replacement level. Griffin had a great year, Thomas is still the best FS in football, and Sherman still looked good this season. Whether or not he needs to be replaced will be based on how his rehab goes.
On defense we still have a ton of talent to work with, not exactly a lot of depth, but things could be much worse. We need some more young D-Lineman, perhaps a value veteran to work into the fold, and another quality pass rusher. Our middle linebacker is an all pro, and our secondary, while not the legion of boom we all remember, still can be highly functional.
On offense our line needs some help. Duane Brown needs to be retained, that needs to be the first course of action. Our line immediate improved with our presence, and he is clearly the best left tackle since Walter Jones. He may be old, but I don't think we have a choice in this matter. He will be a stop-gap, but even if his play degrades a little bit, he is still miles ahead of any other tackle we have. Britt is one of the better centers in football, he has really honed his craft, and stepped up his game. Procic has some real promise, solid technique, and quick on his feet -- main issue here is he needs to get better leverage, and he has some serious conditioning issues. He is doesn't get any push in the run game, but has shown he is a capable pass blocker. Ifedi is hot garbage, he is on his last chance here. If he doesn't pull a Britt 360, or has a mediocre showing in training camp he is gone. He has struggled to do anything right, and he is easily baited into penalties.
On the skill position side of things we need to make resigning Richardson a priority. Lockett can't play his position, and without him we have nobody suited for the role he fills with this team. Lockett regressed this year, and looked as if he had lost a step. Still think he can be a decent slot receiver and return guy. Our offense does not play to his strengths, if he was on a team like New England I think he would be killing it in the Wes Welker role. As far as Jimmy Graham goes, he is probably gone. He looks checked out, and our staff has still not found a way to integrate him. Losing him will be a big blow to our offense, but I think it is inevitable that he is gone. Luke Wilson is serviceable, occasionally has lapses in the blocking game and sometimes has a case of the dropsies. I do believe he can be a mid-tier starting tight end though. Vannet is an unknown, we haven't seen much of him.
Our running back situation is kind of a mess. I would give Procise a chance to compete in training camp, I would not cut him outright, but my guess he is gone. Talented, but couldn't stay healthy if his life depended on it. Rawls is damaged goods, and also has trouble staying healthy, Lacy is bad. McKissic is a gadget player in the same vein as Sproles, we need to keep him around. Great third down back, and option in the passing game. Mike Davis is worth keeping, I would bring in someone to compete, but I was impressed with his skills. Carson also looked promising, but got injured early on. Lets see how his injury plays out.
Overall our team is in some need of retooling. I think we need to make it a priority to shift some of our resource allocation to offense, and start building around Russell Wilson. We really need to come up with a playmaker here to replace Graham's presence at wide receiver or TE, ideally a big bodied wide receiver/tight end. We need to bring in somebody at runningback, and we need some competition at RT, and both our guard spots, though I think Procic can be a good player in this league with some polishing and time in the weight room. We also need to think of a contingency for Brown, though at this point we should pay him whatever he ask for and look to snag his replacement sometime in the near future.
In order for this re-tooling to happen, we need a whole sale coaching change up. Our coordinators and line coach have demonstrated on many different occasions that they are not up for the task. Clark gave a little insight into this, when he talked about coaches not being held "accountable". How Carroll addresses this, or doesn't address this will decide his fate. Our players mentality is starting to look a little like the Jim Mora era. It's a sense of frustration, or just flat out apathy. I kind of get a sense that Pete Carroll is getting ready to retire from football all together. He looks beaten and worn out this season. He no longer is his happy go lucky self. I think he, himself is a bit checked out from the situation. That thousand yard stare he had today was off putting to say the least. I think between all of the big moves, the trades, and free agent signings, Carroll was looking to go on one last run. I really get the feeling that he is poised to exit on his own terms.
