Feed the Hawk
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Now don't get me wrong here, I love Pete as a coach and think he would have eventually found great success in the NFL. I was made a believer following the 2010 game in Seattle vs. Baltimore.
But riddle me this....
-Without stealing Russ in the 2012 draft, we would have been looking at Matt Flynn as our starting quarterback.
-Russ had 5 game winning drives in 2012. 5! - How many do we actually think Flynn could have had?
-Pete went 7-9 his first two seasons.
-In 2012 we went 11-5, but at least two of those wins were 99% on the shoulders of Russ - Chicago and New England (not to mention the miracle vs. Green Bay)
- In 2012 a 9-7 finish would have likely left us out of the playoffs.
- That would likely would have made 2013 as a make or break year for Pete, and with the NFC West as tough as it was, and Flynn>Russ at the helm, there's a good chance we miss out on playoffs again... where would that have left Pete? On the hot seat to say the least.
Now I know Pete is responsible for developing our world class defense, but he's never really been seen as an offensive wizard. It takes a special (and cerebral!) QB for Pete to feel comfortable going beyond a play-it-safe, ball-control style offense. We had a pretty stagnant offense for 2010 and 2011 and even half of 2012. Russ allowed us to go over the top. WIthout him I feel that perhaps we might not be nearly as successful, and only viewed as a defensive team with a lot of heart. But defense alone doesn't get you to the top. In 2011 the Steelers were by far the best defense in the league, but only finished with an 8-8 record. Without Russ I think we may have seen the Seahawks hover around .500 for the last couple years as we continued searching for a true franchise QB (sorry Flynn). And, if that was the case, I think Pete would definitely be anxious about his job security.
So on the eve of our 2014 title defense, what say ye Hawks fans? Did Russ save Pete's job?
But riddle me this....
-Without stealing Russ in the 2012 draft, we would have been looking at Matt Flynn as our starting quarterback.
-Russ had 5 game winning drives in 2012. 5! - How many do we actually think Flynn could have had?
-Pete went 7-9 his first two seasons.
-In 2012 we went 11-5, but at least two of those wins were 99% on the shoulders of Russ - Chicago and New England (not to mention the miracle vs. Green Bay)
- In 2012 a 9-7 finish would have likely left us out of the playoffs.
- That would likely would have made 2013 as a make or break year for Pete, and with the NFC West as tough as it was, and Flynn>Russ at the helm, there's a good chance we miss out on playoffs again... where would that have left Pete? On the hot seat to say the least.
Now I know Pete is responsible for developing our world class defense, but he's never really been seen as an offensive wizard. It takes a special (and cerebral!) QB for Pete to feel comfortable going beyond a play-it-safe, ball-control style offense. We had a pretty stagnant offense for 2010 and 2011 and even half of 2012. Russ allowed us to go over the top. WIthout him I feel that perhaps we might not be nearly as successful, and only viewed as a defensive team with a lot of heart. But defense alone doesn't get you to the top. In 2011 the Steelers were by far the best defense in the league, but only finished with an 8-8 record. Without Russ I think we may have seen the Seahawks hover around .500 for the last couple years as we continued searching for a true franchise QB (sorry Flynn). And, if that was the case, I think Pete would definitely be anxious about his job security.
So on the eve of our 2014 title defense, what say ye Hawks fans? Did Russ save Pete's job?