Official Seahawks vs Bengals POST Game Thread

[jshawaii22]

In a few short months the ex-coach of the Trojans will have gone through rehab and be looking for a job... maybe with his ex-head coach?

[NorthHawk]

I hear Joe Philbin is available.
Coming from GB, he might bring a different aspect.

[obiken]

How about Chip, he will be available??? Naw he will go after USC.

[RiverDog]

In a few short months the ex-coach of the Trojans will have gone through rehab and be looking for a job... maybe with his ex-head coach?

Not only no, but HELL NO! Sark has a looooong way to go to curb his addiction. It's not like getting over a cold or the flu. The only thing I'd hire him to do for us would be as a scout. I don't want him anywhere near our team.

But I don't think we'll have to worry about it. Pete has had multiple opportunities to bring in former players/cronies from his USC days and has resisted the urge.

[THX-1138]

I don't always post, but when I do it's usually reactionary and without merit.

That was a tough game to watch. Full disclosure: Before it was even a tie ball game I tuned out and went outside with an 8 pound splitting maul and went at the wood pile with murderous intent. Cincy was driving and had just gotten in FG range and I went all Bill Paxton: "Game over, dude!"

I was FB chatting with a buddy in Vegas and said after they got the lead that they needed to keep their boots on the Bengals' necks. After that Wags scoops up the fumble and I said to him, "Like that!"

And then they let up. I will never understand it. Momentum is such a fragile thing to come by on the road. The Seahawks had it and then completely threw water on their fire. Now we have to hope for 3-3 and another Come To Jesus team meeting and another improbable run and the Cards to be forced to start their practice squad QB after Palmer get's hurt. We all are aware of the monumental head scratchers associated with this team: The O line made up of guys who have never played the position (seriously, this is the highest level of football known to God and Man and we have converted D guys. What the actual F?) One of the greatest red zone threats in the game that we TRADED OUR PRO BOWL CENTER FOR (albeit one that played just 6 games last year) and WE STILL DON'T KNOW HOW TO GET HIM THE BALL!!! And a schizo OC who has been able to dial up genius plays but more often than not seems to want to get all cutesy and clever or conservative and run the clock out with OVER AN ENTIRE QUARTER LEFT IN THE GAME.
Sorry about the caps but I was actually yelling while typing so it seemed appropriate.

[Hawk Sista]

I feel your pain, brother. I scared the dog half to death and made a miserable afternoon for myself over it. And as you point out, there was no reason for it. We could, with maybe two or three different plays this season, be 4 and 1. But we ain't. And you are right, we won't be facing Ryan Lindley for the marbles this year. The time for a CTJ (what we at the office call a come to Jesus meeting) is now!

Keep the faith - GO HAWKS

[SalmonBB]

...or conservative and run the clock out with OVER AN ENTIRE QUARTER LEFT IN THE GAME.

Well said.

GO SEAHAWKS!!!

[obiken]

The sad reality is that the only game the Hawks wouldn't or couldn't have won is GB in GB. The rest are a combo of bad penalties, play, coaching and Bad Luck.

[Hawktawk]

The sad reality is that the only game the Hawks wouldn't or couldn't have won is GB in GB. The rest are a combo of bad penalties, play, coaching and Bad Luck.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^True that. I wouldn't even take the GB game off the table frankly. Seattle had a 7 point lead well into the second half. They were at midfield of a tie game and driving when Wilsons screen pass got one handed out of the air by a D linemen. Then the GB TD and then the Jackson fumble and the wheels were gone. But that was a winnable game for most of the last 3 seasons. This year not so much.

[Hawk Sista]

I agree. We could be 5 - 0 as we had a lead in GB in the 4th quarter too. Which is cause, I think, for some measure of optimism. Things have not gone well for us out of the gate and we are but a handful of mistakes away from winning those games. I think we have the personnel to start winning. At the same time, though - if we are honest - we need to realize that it is just damned hard to win football games no matter the opponent. In the same way that we could be 4&1 right now and tied for 1st place in the NFCW, we could have (with one or two things going differently in several games) missed the playoffs altogether in both of the last two years.

[NorthHawk]

I'm beginning to think that the loss of Dan Quinn and Ken Norton was a bigger factor than we have discussed.
Both are obviously excellent coaches and the loss of that type of talent can have rippling effects throughout the Defense (and entire team) for a time.

[kalibane]

Kris Richard being rookie coordinator is going to mean growing pains here or there. That doesn't mean our defense is lost without Quinn or Norton. Richard has had some very good situational play calling this year, timing of his blitzes and such.

This is kind of thing I would characterize as over reaction. I think it makes about as much sense as saying "Byron Maxwell must have been the most important player in the secondary, because our defense isn't as dominant as it was last year." We've had years to evaluate Bevell, Cable, and the core players of the team. A much bigger body of work to critique.

Dan Quinn is a very good coach so it's not surprising that the transition hasn't been seamless. And can you even contextualize exactly what it was that Norton did for the Seahawks that's not being done now? Maybe this year is a step back but that doesn't mean the window is closed or the front office made some mistake that's beyond repair. When other organizations are picking your roster and coaching staff clean this stuff tends to happen.

[NorthHawk]

Nobody said the window was closed.
My statement:
"Both are obviously excellent coaches and the loss of that type of talent can have rippling effects throughout the Defense (and entire team) for a time."

Note the end of the sentence.

That the Defense won with others at the helm and now getting what is probably a slightly different message (all coaches and teachers are received differently even if they are teaching the same basic thing). It could be the transition that's taking a little time.
We know the talent on the field is as good as it was, so something else might be missing or different.
Norton was extremely high energy, I don't know if Barrow and Lofa are the same. Even though Norton coached the LB's, that energy can travel through the entire team.
One of the things that I think I've seen is a different energy level or sense of urgency on both sides of the ball.

[kalibane]

Yes Norton is high energy but 1. You are just speculating that players responded better to high energy. 2. You are also just speculating, by your own admission, that Barrow and/or Lofa may not bring the same energy.

See what I'm getting at? You see a difference in performance but you're really just grasping to explain it with no actual evidence.

[NorthHawk]

Yes Norton is high energy but 1. You are just speculating that players responded better to high energy. 2. You are also just speculating, by your own admission, that Barrow and/or Lofa may not bring the same energy.

See what I'm getting at? You see a difference in performance but you're really just grasping to explain it with no actual evidence.

Of course it's speculation.
That's what most of these threads contain.
The fact is we lost 2 very good coaches that the players went to 2 Super Bowls with. That HAS to have some type of impact. It can't not, but I can't quantify what it is, just speculate.

Why do you think the Defense isn't playing as well as it has in the past?
Oh, and back it up with facts.

[burrrton]

Why do you think the Defense isn't playing as well as it has in the past?
Oh, and back it up with facts

Easy:

1. Maxwell's replacement is either still mastering the system or simply not as good as Max was.
2. Arguably our most key player on D is essentially 3 weeks into training camp.

Ups and downs year in year out are natural, but I have trouble believing this defense won't play up to its potential again.

[Hawk Sista]

Again, as is the case with winning or losing a game, there is no one answer. There is such a thin margin for error and usually it is not the just the O, D, ST, penalties, mental errors, or coaching - it is a little bit of all of it and just enough to lose in OT twice - on the road to good clubs. I'm sure the absence of DQ and Norton has had an impact. Wagner and KJ's worst game as Seahawks was absolutely the first one against the Rams. Was it DQ being gone, Kam out, Norton, Maxie, or what? I believe that the answer is yes to all of it.

[politicalfootball]

The Bengals are a top tier team who I am sure we would beat further along in the season.