MontanaHawk05
Well-known member
- Joined
- May 1, 2009
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1. One step back, two steps forward. That seemed to be the theme for a lot of players against the Chiefs. They'd make a big boo-boo, then follow it up with three big plays. It's hard not to let that get into your head and define a play. Morgan, Daniels, Coyle, KPL, Michael, Rawls, and Martin all seemed to fall into that category. Still not surprising. Remember, Week 3 is where we get a good look at pseudo-starting offenses.
2. The starting linebackers. If you're wondering why Seattle handed the linebacking corps such big contract extensions this summer, the Chiefs game should ease your worries. Bobby Wagner and KJ Wright might both be amongst the most valuable players at their position. KJ is one of the most physical AND smartest OLB's around...he's an ace at sniffing out play designs and shoring up the edge on run plays. Wagner...enough said. They're the Avengers that Ruskell was trying to assemble but couldn't...and because of the stars around them, they gain far more worth than what is normally a somewhat fungible position.
3. The backup linebackers. We also have promise at this position. Despite a wobble or two, Kevin Pierre-Louis continues to make a case for a starting job, while Brock Coyle and Mike Morgan still keep big hits up their sleeve.
4. The other linebacker. What's up with Bruce Irvin? Hasn't made a peep yet. I guess it's his regular-season form and alternating disappearing acts with game-clinching sacks. Could be worse.
5. Graham be Grahamin'. He's already a nice safety net for Wilson at the very least. He and potentially Chris Matthews could transform this team in the red zone. Giddy. (It is now trite to point out how trite oneself is for saying Graham is good.)
6. Tyler Lockett can play receiver. Lockett had a couple of nice bread-and-butter catches along with his deep strike from RJ Archer. He demonstrated that he's not afraid of big physical safeties on that seam route. His blocking on special teams didn't spring him for a long return, but I guess he can't be Jesus every week. The route was bold, but that's an exception to...
7. Darell Bevell's typically timid offense. He continues to operate on simplistic and tentative-feeling route concepts. I realize it's the preseason, but it's not like he's ever shown anything different in his career, either. Way too much to the flats and sidelines, not enough downfield. We don't have enough of a YAC weapon to justify all those swing passes. I still hold out hope, however, that perhaps this has been a matter of personnel limitations. Because that can change. Graham has had some darts thrown his way, and Matthews, and now Lockett, and it may be that Wilson simply trusts them more than....
8. Kearse. Graham, Matthews, Lockett, and Jason Avant demonstrated why Kearse might end up on the outside looking in; no matter how hard Kearse's targets may have been to catch, the other receivers simply don't need the excuses at the end of the day. That sideline pass was catchable, and I say that because Seattle practices those throws all the time. Wilson has carried us to two Super Bowls on the back of such dramatic bullets. He doesn't miss them easily, and my eyes told me he didn't miss those either. Kearse is hovering at about the sixth best WR in the organization right now, although he is ahead of...
9. BJ Daniels. I still don't have a lot of optimism for this guy. He has a ton of heart, which is probably why he's here. But that muff and drop didn't help him. He does have chemistry with...
10. RJ Archer. Don't sleep on this guy. He has the occasional accuracy-faceplant and doesn't have a deep ball to suck, but he did lead an impressive drive against decent KC depth. That throw to Lockett was a thing of beauty, but even better was a completion to BJ Daniels. Sensed the rush, shrugged off a reaching hand, CLIMBED THE POCKET (Wilson, were you watching that?) and slinged it to Daniels, who had a nice juke of his own to pick up extra yards. It's promising when a #3 QB can build a little chemistry with specific receivers despite limited practice reps.
11. Offensive line report. The lack of run holes was the biggest worry here for me. Pass protection was much improved against a better defensive line, though admittedly KC wasn't blitzing like Denver. Gilliam's length helps bail him out at right tackle, a quality Justin Britt doesn't enjoy. Britt did seem more comfortable at guard, though reports conflict on him and on Drew Nowak (they'll always conflict). Showing up so well after only a week of practice might net this lineup another appearance. OK, offensive line report is over, now you can skip the rest.
12. That ref likes being on TV. I'm hard-pressed to remember a ref with slower, more deliberate speech and hand movements on the field. You're not getting paid by the facetime, dude.
13. Defensive technique. If you're one of the 9,768 individuals who thought their "midseason form" joke about penalties was unique and clever, it wasn't. But it wasn't wrong, either. Okung had one of his classic "Ok, we're in the red zone, let's torpedo the drive now" moments. The two roughing the passer penalties were ticky-tack in the extreme, the sort that Seattle's defense will usually accept in trade for getting into the QB's head. As for the tackling...that was awful, Kris Richards. Get on your defense about wrapping up. You're revered throughout the NFL for wrapping up, not Brian Russell-style "Ole!" tackling.
14. DB competition. Last week it was Tye Smith, this week it was DeShawn Shead's turn to turn heads. A couple nice passes defensed - at CB, natch. Ronald Martin and Dion Bailey keep blowing up whatever's in front of them, but it's hard to judge safety play. They still seem to be out of position a lot.
15. Defensive line. On a relatively quiet day for the DL, T.Y. McGill continues to quietly shine. I finally caught a glimpse of him against the Chiefs and holy roly poly, that dude could play bubble soccer without the bubble. I also feel Cassius Marsh should be a little more noticeable, though he had nice hustle in backend pursuit to finish a running play. Meanwhile, MEBANE!!!
16. Alex Smith still sucks. Seriously, what is Andy Reid thinking? He could fill the whole roster with Pro Bowlers and that team's ceiling is still ten games. Can't make reads, can't throw deep, can't...do anything interesting. I would seriously be looking at Chase Daniels right now if I were them.
17. RB competition. The definitive word at RB remains...that there is no definitive word. Nobody is stepping up and claiming ground. Frankly all four RBs not named Marshawn Lynch are equally squishy to me when all is said and done. Christine Michael, however, does seem to be improving at pass protection - enthusiastically so, having knocked a Chief out of the game.
Until next week...
2. The starting linebackers. If you're wondering why Seattle handed the linebacking corps such big contract extensions this summer, the Chiefs game should ease your worries. Bobby Wagner and KJ Wright might both be amongst the most valuable players at their position. KJ is one of the most physical AND smartest OLB's around...he's an ace at sniffing out play designs and shoring up the edge on run plays. Wagner...enough said. They're the Avengers that Ruskell was trying to assemble but couldn't...and because of the stars around them, they gain far more worth than what is normally a somewhat fungible position.
3. The backup linebackers. We also have promise at this position. Despite a wobble or two, Kevin Pierre-Louis continues to make a case for a starting job, while Brock Coyle and Mike Morgan still keep big hits up their sleeve.
4. The other linebacker. What's up with Bruce Irvin? Hasn't made a peep yet. I guess it's his regular-season form and alternating disappearing acts with game-clinching sacks. Could be worse.
5. Graham be Grahamin'. He's already a nice safety net for Wilson at the very least. He and potentially Chris Matthews could transform this team in the red zone. Giddy. (It is now trite to point out how trite oneself is for saying Graham is good.)
6. Tyler Lockett can play receiver. Lockett had a couple of nice bread-and-butter catches along with his deep strike from RJ Archer. He demonstrated that he's not afraid of big physical safeties on that seam route. His blocking on special teams didn't spring him for a long return, but I guess he can't be Jesus every week. The route was bold, but that's an exception to...
7. Darell Bevell's typically timid offense. He continues to operate on simplistic and tentative-feeling route concepts. I realize it's the preseason, but it's not like he's ever shown anything different in his career, either. Way too much to the flats and sidelines, not enough downfield. We don't have enough of a YAC weapon to justify all those swing passes. I still hold out hope, however, that perhaps this has been a matter of personnel limitations. Because that can change. Graham has had some darts thrown his way, and Matthews, and now Lockett, and it may be that Wilson simply trusts them more than....
8. Kearse. Graham, Matthews, Lockett, and Jason Avant demonstrated why Kearse might end up on the outside looking in; no matter how hard Kearse's targets may have been to catch, the other receivers simply don't need the excuses at the end of the day. That sideline pass was catchable, and I say that because Seattle practices those throws all the time. Wilson has carried us to two Super Bowls on the back of such dramatic bullets. He doesn't miss them easily, and my eyes told me he didn't miss those either. Kearse is hovering at about the sixth best WR in the organization right now, although he is ahead of...
9. BJ Daniels. I still don't have a lot of optimism for this guy. He has a ton of heart, which is probably why he's here. But that muff and drop didn't help him. He does have chemistry with...
10. RJ Archer. Don't sleep on this guy. He has the occasional accuracy-faceplant and doesn't have a deep ball to suck, but he did lead an impressive drive against decent KC depth. That throw to Lockett was a thing of beauty, but even better was a completion to BJ Daniels. Sensed the rush, shrugged off a reaching hand, CLIMBED THE POCKET (Wilson, were you watching that?) and slinged it to Daniels, who had a nice juke of his own to pick up extra yards. It's promising when a #3 QB can build a little chemistry with specific receivers despite limited practice reps.
11. Offensive line report. The lack of run holes was the biggest worry here for me. Pass protection was much improved against a better defensive line, though admittedly KC wasn't blitzing like Denver. Gilliam's length helps bail him out at right tackle, a quality Justin Britt doesn't enjoy. Britt did seem more comfortable at guard, though reports conflict on him and on Drew Nowak (they'll always conflict). Showing up so well after only a week of practice might net this lineup another appearance. OK, offensive line report is over, now you can skip the rest.
12. That ref likes being on TV. I'm hard-pressed to remember a ref with slower, more deliberate speech and hand movements on the field. You're not getting paid by the facetime, dude.
13. Defensive technique. If you're one of the 9,768 individuals who thought their "midseason form" joke about penalties was unique and clever, it wasn't. But it wasn't wrong, either. Okung had one of his classic "Ok, we're in the red zone, let's torpedo the drive now" moments. The two roughing the passer penalties were ticky-tack in the extreme, the sort that Seattle's defense will usually accept in trade for getting into the QB's head. As for the tackling...that was awful, Kris Richards. Get on your defense about wrapping up. You're revered throughout the NFL for wrapping up, not Brian Russell-style "Ole!" tackling.
14. DB competition. Last week it was Tye Smith, this week it was DeShawn Shead's turn to turn heads. A couple nice passes defensed - at CB, natch. Ronald Martin and Dion Bailey keep blowing up whatever's in front of them, but it's hard to judge safety play. They still seem to be out of position a lot.
15. Defensive line. On a relatively quiet day for the DL, T.Y. McGill continues to quietly shine. I finally caught a glimpse of him against the Chiefs and holy roly poly, that dude could play bubble soccer without the bubble. I also feel Cassius Marsh should be a little more noticeable, though he had nice hustle in backend pursuit to finish a running play. Meanwhile, MEBANE!!!
16. Alex Smith still sucks. Seriously, what is Andy Reid thinking? He could fill the whole roster with Pro Bowlers and that team's ceiling is still ten games. Can't make reads, can't throw deep, can't...do anything interesting. I would seriously be looking at Chase Daniels right now if I were them.
17. RB competition. The definitive word at RB remains...that there is no definitive word. Nobody is stepping up and claiming ground. Frankly all four RBs not named Marshawn Lynch are equally squishy to me when all is said and done. Christine Michael, however, does seem to be improving at pass protection - enthusiastically so, having knocked a Chief out of the game.
Until next week...
