As per request I will be posting a reoccurring weekly post-game thread for everyone on .NET to post their thoughts (ruminations) about the game.
The story of this game for me was watching the Ravens play aggressive man coverage nearly the entire game, and the Seahawks did not have an answer for it. The Seahawks WRs/TEs looked very pedestrian and over-matched throughout, aside from some Russell Wilson to Tyler Lockett magic, here and there. They need to get a big time player at TE, as the Dissly hole is cavernous. Also disappointed that I didn't see any rub routes, man-beaters to take advantage. They pretty much played into the Ravens hands, asking guys like Jaron Brown to win one on one.
A stark contrast was Seattle's defense, playing the opposite style. They were sitting back in their zone and making great plays on the ball most of the game. So both styles can work. The coverage was on point mostly, and I came away pleased with the improvement that is being made. Their plan for defending Lamar was baffling though. Too many times they had defenders rushing aggressively up field with no edge contain.
Pro Tip: You might want to stay in front of Lamr and play contain, because you aren't going to catch him from behind. Lamar had free running lanes essentially whenever he wanted. The Seahawks defense is also still getting eaten up by TE/RB screens, if they keep putting out bad film, teams are going to keep exploiting it.
The young DBs looked really good with Flowers having his best game, and Blair showing why he can be a long term starter, I believe eventually at SS.
The Pick 6: Russell Wilson's fault. 85% on him.
But I would like to discuss Jaron Brown's role on the play. Jaron Brown stood there flat footed in cement shoes. Did not comeback to the ball, didn't shield the defender with his body, and allowed Peters to run right in front of him for the easy pick, while he stood there just watching. Embarrassing. The commentators also called his TD drop embarrassing as well. I can't argue with them.
Pete the Gambler. Going for a 50+ yard FG in bad weather, when it is lower %, than going for it on 4th and 2-or-3. What Pete seems to think are the safe plays, are actually have the lower % chance of working. He is consistently taking these gambles, and he would be wise to start meeting with his analytics people more often.
John Harbaugh went for it when he had the chance and was the backbreaking swing that changed the game.
This is a fascinating thing to watch, as the math nerds are winning, and analytics are becoming a bigger part of the game as the years go by. The teams that continue to ignore it, are going to find themselves playing catch up with the rest of the league.
Random Player notes:
Blair / Flowers / Griffin: The Seahawks a quietly building a nice, young secondary. If they can get an ET clone, and an upgrade at Nickel they will be in business.
DK right now doesn't have the hands yet to be a feature WR. Those 50/50 balls feel like 10/90.
Clowney is still ace against the run, but plays too high, and doesn't posses the bend to ever be a double digit sack guy. For those wondering why he isn't a double digit sack guy. He is what he is. A destructive force against the run that will get you 5-8 sacks. The trade was still totally worth it.
Is Bobby Wagner no longer elite? I think it is mainly due to scheme change, but also eyeball test wise, he looks significantly slower.
The young LBers need to start seeing the field more in general, to speed up their development, or at the very least see what they have.
Jamarco Jones, appeared to continue to play well, I will fallback and wait for the PFF grades though to see how the O-Line did in total.
Final Thoughts:
I thought the 12s really brought it in this game, and had their best outing bringing the noise. But unfortunately Seattle has played their worst football of the year in 3 of 4 home games, and need to bring their road energy home.
In the big picture of things this loss isn't a big deal. AFC opponent. Some times when you lose you really win, lessons need to be learned the hard way sometimes. I expect the Seahawks to start looking for a trade to improve their offensive weapons even more aggressively now after this loss. They need to, otherwise teams are going to continue to takeaway Lockett as best they can, and have someone else try and beat them.
The story of this game for me was watching the Ravens play aggressive man coverage nearly the entire game, and the Seahawks did not have an answer for it. The Seahawks WRs/TEs looked very pedestrian and over-matched throughout, aside from some Russell Wilson to Tyler Lockett magic, here and there. They need to get a big time player at TE, as the Dissly hole is cavernous. Also disappointed that I didn't see any rub routes, man-beaters to take advantage. They pretty much played into the Ravens hands, asking guys like Jaron Brown to win one on one.
A stark contrast was Seattle's defense, playing the opposite style. They were sitting back in their zone and making great plays on the ball most of the game. So both styles can work. The coverage was on point mostly, and I came away pleased with the improvement that is being made. Their plan for defending Lamar was baffling though. Too many times they had defenders rushing aggressively up field with no edge contain.
Pro Tip: You might want to stay in front of Lamr and play contain, because you aren't going to catch him from behind. Lamar had free running lanes essentially whenever he wanted. The Seahawks defense is also still getting eaten up by TE/RB screens, if they keep putting out bad film, teams are going to keep exploiting it.
The young DBs looked really good with Flowers having his best game, and Blair showing why he can be a long term starter, I believe eventually at SS.
The Pick 6: Russell Wilson's fault. 85% on him.
But I would like to discuss Jaron Brown's role on the play. Jaron Brown stood there flat footed in cement shoes. Did not comeback to the ball, didn't shield the defender with his body, and allowed Peters to run right in front of him for the easy pick, while he stood there just watching. Embarrassing. The commentators also called his TD drop embarrassing as well. I can't argue with them.
Pete the Gambler. Going for a 50+ yard FG in bad weather, when it is lower %, than going for it on 4th and 2-or-3. What Pete seems to think are the safe plays, are actually have the lower % chance of working. He is consistently taking these gambles, and he would be wise to start meeting with his analytics people more often.
John Harbaugh went for it when he had the chance and was the backbreaking swing that changed the game.
This is a fascinating thing to watch, as the math nerds are winning, and analytics are becoming a bigger part of the game as the years go by. The teams that continue to ignore it, are going to find themselves playing catch up with the rest of the league.
Random Player notes:
Blair / Flowers / Griffin: The Seahawks a quietly building a nice, young secondary. If they can get an ET clone, and an upgrade at Nickel they will be in business.
DK right now doesn't have the hands yet to be a feature WR. Those 50/50 balls feel like 10/90.
Clowney is still ace against the run, but plays too high, and doesn't posses the bend to ever be a double digit sack guy. For those wondering why he isn't a double digit sack guy. He is what he is. A destructive force against the run that will get you 5-8 sacks. The trade was still totally worth it.
Is Bobby Wagner no longer elite? I think it is mainly due to scheme change, but also eyeball test wise, he looks significantly slower.
The young LBers need to start seeing the field more in general, to speed up their development, or at the very least see what they have.
Jamarco Jones, appeared to continue to play well, I will fallback and wait for the PFF grades though to see how the O-Line did in total.
Final Thoughts:
I thought the 12s really brought it in this game, and had their best outing bringing the noise. But unfortunately Seattle has played their worst football of the year in 3 of 4 home games, and need to bring their road energy home.
In the big picture of things this loss isn't a big deal. AFC opponent. Some times when you lose you really win, lessons need to be learned the hard way sometimes. I expect the Seahawks to start looking for a trade to improve their offensive weapons even more aggressively now after this loss. They need to, otherwise teams are going to continue to takeaway Lockett as best they can, and have someone else try and beat them.