jlaff35
New member
This is an article I wrote for our blog, hawksontap.com, but wanted to share it here for my friends at .net. I know it's been a crazy season so far, and I believe our best football is in front of us. Get strapped in for a crazy 4th quarter of the season! If you want to read the article in it's best format, head to my blog where there are pictures, etc. But if not, enjoy it here!
In a game that both teams surely had circled back when the schedule came out, only one of them showed up on Thursday Night in Santa Clara. For the second time in five days, the defending champion Seahawks rendered a division foe completely lifeless, much in the way a boa constrictor squeezes the life out of it’s prey every time it takes a breath. The Hawks defense is back in a big way, actually performing better recently than last year’s legendary group. Sure the Cardinals are in first place and have had a great season, but make no mistake…….the Niners are the Hawks chief rival, and until that beast is completely slain, will remain so. The thing that is so great to see, is that the Hawks star players always show up and play great games versus the Niners, while their star players play some of their worst games, and are generally invisible. At this point, it is fair to say that the Hawks own the Niners, and with round 2 of this showdown set for week 15 at Century Link field, we will prove that case even further. Let’s take a look at some of the standout performances from the latest chapter in the NFL’s best rivalry.
The Good
Darrell Bevell - I am probably his harshest critic, so it’s only fair that I give him credit when it’s due. He seems to be catering the game plan to Russell Wilson’s strengths, and it’s paying off as Wilson has gone over 200 yards passing in both the last two games against two of the NFL’s best defenses after a four game stretch of under 200 yards passing. I still hate, and always will, using shotgun formation/read option from the 1 yard line on first and goal. Absolutely brutal that we couldn’t score after Tony Moeaki’s huge catch and run. The good news is that in the second half, we went away from the shotgun and started running Lynch out of I formation (I contend that this is where Lynch is at his most effective), which really helped out play action pass game. The timing on play action passes works so much better from under center than from out of shotgun, as the receiver has a little more time to create separation when the quarterback is under center and has to take an extra second or so to get back to his launch point. This is something not mentioned very often, but to me it’s painfully obvious.
Marshawn Lynch – all this guy does is play his heart out and leave his blood and guts on the field. The day that Lynch is not a Hawk, is a day TunaHawk will probably shed a tear or two. Nobody else encapsulates the attitude, toughness, tenacity, and heart of the Hawks like Lynch does. It’s not a coincidence that once Lynch became a Hawk, we started to go from division winner at 7-9 NFL punch line, to eventual Super Bowl champs with legitimate chances to repeat. The Niners never give up 100 yard rushers, yet Marshawn gashes them for over 100 almost every single time he plays them. To be a great team, you need your best players to play their best in the biggest games, and with Lynch that’s exactly what you get.
Richard Sherman - yet another instance of seeing your best players play their best in the biggest games, Sherman never misses a chance to make life hell for his former college coach Jim Harbaugh. After all the trash the Niners talked about Sherman all offseason, saying he wasn’t that great, that he’s afraid of their receivers and they can’t wait to exploit it, etc, they sure fell flat on Thursday. And now Sherman has all new material to blast the Niners with after picking off Kaepernick twice, and believe me, he’s blasting them! He’s already called their fans “mediocre” and mocked the Niners sideline during the game, telling them “if you guys throw it my way, i’ll end the game” just prior to his game icing 2nd interception. So glad Sherm is a Hawk!
Midfield Turkey Feast – how humiliating it must be to be a Niner fan today. Shiny new stadium, engineered to try to emulate Century Link acoustics, second highest profile game only to the Super Bowl, and the Hawks end up dominating from start to finish and cap off the night with Sherman and Wilson breaking bread with Michelle Tafoya on the 50 yard line of your home turf. Hahaha this is an image that will be used over and over again in the trash talk feuds between these fanbases. This is worse than Terrell Owens racing to midfield and slamming the ball on the Dallas star when he was a Niner. Well played Hawks, well played. Oh, and how much better are Hawk fans than Niner fans? Of all the TV’s that were on in Seattle area, 74% of them were tuned to the Hawks game (ummm, what the heck were the other 26% watching?) and only about 49% of all households in San Francisco were tuned to the game. Perhaps even their fans are sick of the whole Kaepernick/Harbaugh douche fest?
The Entire Defense – too hard to single them all out. Bobby Wagner was everywhere. Earl Thomas was flying around and hitting everything in sight. Kam Chancellor is back to being his intimidating self. Whatever the heck Earl Thomas said to our defensive line at practice that almost caused a brawl, it’s working, as Cliff Avril and Michael Bennett are making life hell for opposing QB’s lately. Jordan Hill playing surprisingly well in place of Brandon Mebane. Bruce Irvin just being an athletic freak, and really stepping up his work in the run game. KJ Wright being rock solid, as per usual. It’s clear now that this team is going to as far as the defense will take them, and if the last two games are any indication, that destination is University of Phoenix Stadium in February. Two straight games of only allowing a measly FG, and holding the hated Niners, who were at full strength in their own stadium to only 164 yards, is insane. After starting the season as a middle of the road defense, the Hawks have reclaimed the #1 defense title both in stats and league perception.
The Bad
Penalties – this is getting crazy. It’s like every play there has to be a flag thrown. The NFL really needs to address this in the offseason, as it’s really bringing down the entertainment value of their product, unless their goal is to make celebrities out of Ed Hochuli, Jeff Tripplette, Gene Steratore, and company. What a fricking joke. Hawks have now been called for 102 penalties on the year, while their opponents have only been called for 51. It’s to the point now where I’m actually shocked when I see a flag go against the other team. Granted, many of these flags are self induced false starts and offsides, and we have to clean that up. I really think it reflects poorly on our coaching staff to have a team this undisciplined and getting flagged so many times for the same things over and over. Come on Pete, get this fixed.
The Ugly
Red Zone Offense – “warm up the kicker” is becoming not just a saying, it’s becoming a way of life. I’m starting to wonder if we would ever score if not for the short fields afforded us by our defense. Not really sure where to place the blame. Penalties have been a killer. Wilson surely must take some of the blame. Bevell as well. Not scoring on 1st and goal from the 1 inch line is about as bad as it gets. Someday very soon, we’re going to play in a game in which we need touchdowns, not field goals. We must hope and pray that we have this issue figured out by then. Here’s a hint: When it’s first and goal at the one, there is no excuse for not bringing in the heavy package, lining up in I formation, and giving Lynch 3 straight tries to pound it in, and a 4th if necessary. There’s no way any defense, not even the Hawks own defense, could stop Lynch four times in a row from the 1. Sometimes we just try to get too cute and outthink ourselves as an offense, when basic Seahawk football would do.
Looking forward to this weekend after having our huge win in the bag already. A couple of games to really keep an eye on this weekend are Patriots vs Packers and Cardinals vs Falcons. In the last 5 days I’ve gone from hoping to squeeze into the playoffs, to thinking we will win the division and have a shot at home field advantage. If the Patriots can beat the Packers, and then both the Hawks and Packers win out, the Hawks would get the #1 seed thanks to our head to head win over them in Week 1. Of course, we still need the Cards to lose, and an early 10am game on the east coast may be just the right elixir for that! No, the Falcons are not a very good team, but they are in first place and still have everything to play for, and it’s not hard to see them beating the Cards in this situation. A Cardinal loss to the Falcons puts the Hawks in control of their own destiny for the NFC West title, with a huge game looming in Phoenix in week 16. Enjoy the long weekend, knowing that so much was won on Thursday night, yet there’s still more greatness that could happen on Sunday!
In a game that both teams surely had circled back when the schedule came out, only one of them showed up on Thursday Night in Santa Clara. For the second time in five days, the defending champion Seahawks rendered a division foe completely lifeless, much in the way a boa constrictor squeezes the life out of it’s prey every time it takes a breath. The Hawks defense is back in a big way, actually performing better recently than last year’s legendary group. Sure the Cardinals are in first place and have had a great season, but make no mistake…….the Niners are the Hawks chief rival, and until that beast is completely slain, will remain so. The thing that is so great to see, is that the Hawks star players always show up and play great games versus the Niners, while their star players play some of their worst games, and are generally invisible. At this point, it is fair to say that the Hawks own the Niners, and with round 2 of this showdown set for week 15 at Century Link field, we will prove that case even further. Let’s take a look at some of the standout performances from the latest chapter in the NFL’s best rivalry.
The Good
Darrell Bevell - I am probably his harshest critic, so it’s only fair that I give him credit when it’s due. He seems to be catering the game plan to Russell Wilson’s strengths, and it’s paying off as Wilson has gone over 200 yards passing in both the last two games against two of the NFL’s best defenses after a four game stretch of under 200 yards passing. I still hate, and always will, using shotgun formation/read option from the 1 yard line on first and goal. Absolutely brutal that we couldn’t score after Tony Moeaki’s huge catch and run. The good news is that in the second half, we went away from the shotgun and started running Lynch out of I formation (I contend that this is where Lynch is at his most effective), which really helped out play action pass game. The timing on play action passes works so much better from under center than from out of shotgun, as the receiver has a little more time to create separation when the quarterback is under center and has to take an extra second or so to get back to his launch point. This is something not mentioned very often, but to me it’s painfully obvious.
Marshawn Lynch – all this guy does is play his heart out and leave his blood and guts on the field. The day that Lynch is not a Hawk, is a day TunaHawk will probably shed a tear or two. Nobody else encapsulates the attitude, toughness, tenacity, and heart of the Hawks like Lynch does. It’s not a coincidence that once Lynch became a Hawk, we started to go from division winner at 7-9 NFL punch line, to eventual Super Bowl champs with legitimate chances to repeat. The Niners never give up 100 yard rushers, yet Marshawn gashes them for over 100 almost every single time he plays them. To be a great team, you need your best players to play their best in the biggest games, and with Lynch that’s exactly what you get.
Richard Sherman - yet another instance of seeing your best players play their best in the biggest games, Sherman never misses a chance to make life hell for his former college coach Jim Harbaugh. After all the trash the Niners talked about Sherman all offseason, saying he wasn’t that great, that he’s afraid of their receivers and they can’t wait to exploit it, etc, they sure fell flat on Thursday. And now Sherman has all new material to blast the Niners with after picking off Kaepernick twice, and believe me, he’s blasting them! He’s already called their fans “mediocre” and mocked the Niners sideline during the game, telling them “if you guys throw it my way, i’ll end the game” just prior to his game icing 2nd interception. So glad Sherm is a Hawk!
Midfield Turkey Feast – how humiliating it must be to be a Niner fan today. Shiny new stadium, engineered to try to emulate Century Link acoustics, second highest profile game only to the Super Bowl, and the Hawks end up dominating from start to finish and cap off the night with Sherman and Wilson breaking bread with Michelle Tafoya on the 50 yard line of your home turf. Hahaha this is an image that will be used over and over again in the trash talk feuds between these fanbases. This is worse than Terrell Owens racing to midfield and slamming the ball on the Dallas star when he was a Niner. Well played Hawks, well played. Oh, and how much better are Hawk fans than Niner fans? Of all the TV’s that were on in Seattle area, 74% of them were tuned to the Hawks game (ummm, what the heck were the other 26% watching?) and only about 49% of all households in San Francisco were tuned to the game. Perhaps even their fans are sick of the whole Kaepernick/Harbaugh douche fest?
The Entire Defense – too hard to single them all out. Bobby Wagner was everywhere. Earl Thomas was flying around and hitting everything in sight. Kam Chancellor is back to being his intimidating self. Whatever the heck Earl Thomas said to our defensive line at practice that almost caused a brawl, it’s working, as Cliff Avril and Michael Bennett are making life hell for opposing QB’s lately. Jordan Hill playing surprisingly well in place of Brandon Mebane. Bruce Irvin just being an athletic freak, and really stepping up his work in the run game. KJ Wright being rock solid, as per usual. It’s clear now that this team is going to as far as the defense will take them, and if the last two games are any indication, that destination is University of Phoenix Stadium in February. Two straight games of only allowing a measly FG, and holding the hated Niners, who were at full strength in their own stadium to only 164 yards, is insane. After starting the season as a middle of the road defense, the Hawks have reclaimed the #1 defense title both in stats and league perception.
The Bad
Penalties – this is getting crazy. It’s like every play there has to be a flag thrown. The NFL really needs to address this in the offseason, as it’s really bringing down the entertainment value of their product, unless their goal is to make celebrities out of Ed Hochuli, Jeff Tripplette, Gene Steratore, and company. What a fricking joke. Hawks have now been called for 102 penalties on the year, while their opponents have only been called for 51. It’s to the point now where I’m actually shocked when I see a flag go against the other team. Granted, many of these flags are self induced false starts and offsides, and we have to clean that up. I really think it reflects poorly on our coaching staff to have a team this undisciplined and getting flagged so many times for the same things over and over. Come on Pete, get this fixed.
The Ugly
Red Zone Offense – “warm up the kicker” is becoming not just a saying, it’s becoming a way of life. I’m starting to wonder if we would ever score if not for the short fields afforded us by our defense. Not really sure where to place the blame. Penalties have been a killer. Wilson surely must take some of the blame. Bevell as well. Not scoring on 1st and goal from the 1 inch line is about as bad as it gets. Someday very soon, we’re going to play in a game in which we need touchdowns, not field goals. We must hope and pray that we have this issue figured out by then. Here’s a hint: When it’s first and goal at the one, there is no excuse for not bringing in the heavy package, lining up in I formation, and giving Lynch 3 straight tries to pound it in, and a 4th if necessary. There’s no way any defense, not even the Hawks own defense, could stop Lynch four times in a row from the 1. Sometimes we just try to get too cute and outthink ourselves as an offense, when basic Seahawk football would do.
Looking forward to this weekend after having our huge win in the bag already. A couple of games to really keep an eye on this weekend are Patriots vs Packers and Cardinals vs Falcons. In the last 5 days I’ve gone from hoping to squeeze into the playoffs, to thinking we will win the division and have a shot at home field advantage. If the Patriots can beat the Packers, and then both the Hawks and Packers win out, the Hawks would get the #1 seed thanks to our head to head win over them in Week 1. Of course, we still need the Cards to lose, and an early 10am game on the east coast may be just the right elixir for that! No, the Falcons are not a very good team, but they are in first place and still have everything to play for, and it’s not hard to see them beating the Cards in this situation. A Cardinal loss to the Falcons puts the Hawks in control of their own destiny for the NFC West title, with a huge game looming in Phoenix in week 16. Enjoy the long weekend, knowing that so much was won on Thursday night, yet there’s still more greatness that could happen on Sunday!
