General not yet done but probably season ending loss thoughts

mistaowen

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"Lessons learned" feels like an appropriate phrase to describe this coaching staff's first year as the Seahawks' brain trust. There was plenty of good, plenty of bad, and plenty to grow from. Good teams steal the close games they lost and they simply aren't there yet. And that's okay, assuming they learn from this. Today encompassed all of it.

I would assume significant roster churn happens this offseason - cutting BOTH starting linebackers mid-season made it clear he isn’t willing to accept mediocre play. Seeing Woolen benched to start the game and then getting caught flat-footed on a deep shot to Justin Jefferson in such a critical moment (even if Love was also late) makes me think Woolen won’t be getting a big paycheck from us next year. Players who aren’t fully committed don’t fit the locker room culture MM is trying to build. Listen to how he talks about Spoon and Big Cat—that’s the core; that’s the mentality he wants.

Defensively - Mike MacDonald is an excellent in-game adjuster. Compare 3rd and 4th quarters versus the final 5–6 years of Pete’s defense, where we'd watch offenses put up 500 yards every god damn week. It's clear he put training wheels on his playbook, likely due to 1) the roster lacking key pieces (so far) and 2) this being year one for the staff. The run fits, designs, and schemes are much more simplified compared to what he attempted early on. The concepts he calls for clear passing downs are terrific. The way they generate pressure from creative looks without sending more than five rushers is something I’ve wanted to see from this defense for years. I’ve always been envious of the Rex Ryan Jets and the Ravens defenses, which disguise their calls at the LOS and completely change what they are actually in mid-snap. If the Seahawks can add a few more studs in the front seven and ideally upgrade the cornerback position, you just know he will bring some crazy shit next year.

He has also admitted this year has been a huge learning experience for him, learning how to run an entire organization, not just one side of the ball. I believe he’ll take this offseason in stride and we’ll see a very confident head coach next year.

Offensively - they have way more questions heading into next season. Geno Smith is statistically a top-10/15 quarterback but continues to make the same 3–4 poor decisions per game that plagued him early in his career. Sam Howell clearly isn’t ready, this is a weak quarterback draft class, and the team doesn’t seem inclined to mortgage the future on a massive trade. My guess is that Geno comes back next year, but the team will need to seriously consider its long-term plans at quarterback.

I liked the hiring of Ryan Grubb at the start of the season, and for the most part, he’s done a decent job as a first-time NFL play-caller. That said, games like today are becoming a pattern rather than an anomaly—he flat-out refuses to commit to the run game for some reason. I think he gets another season with a short leash and a clear mandate for improvement.

Improving the interior offensive line is an absolute necessity next year. Without significant investment or improvement in that unit, Schneider’s seat should be warm. All the blowouts this year have come against teams with excellent offensive lines that physically dominate the Seahawks. It’s been 8–10 years since Schneider fielded an above average offensive line, and for the most part, this has been a bottom-three unit in the league. That cannot continue going forward.

On the bright side, JSN's emergence as a #1 receiver has been great to watch. He is unguardable over the middle. DK Metcalf is clearly playing through an injury, and I wouldn’t be surprised if he requires offseason surgery. Props to him for battling through it, but his burst has been noticeably lacking since he went out earlier this year. Unfortunately, it’s probably the end of the road for Tyler Lockett. I don’t see how they justify his salary for a WR3 at this stage. If this is his final year, hang his jersey in the rafters.

Season is still alive, albeit on life support, but I think there's plenty to be excited about going into next year.
 

nanomoz

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I have doubted Grubb would get another season for a few weeks. After today, I think it's more likely he "agrees it's best for both parties that he move on" immediately after the season.

But I like your perspective. We (the people who went into the season with a more patient outlook) have seen some of the stuff we wanted to see. And we need to remember that Mcdonald is really, really young. There was always going to be some growing pains.
 

HawkRiderFan

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I am some comparison's will be done to Pete's first year. But late's face it, it took a lot of things breaking right for that mediocre 7-9 team to win the division and get in, even if we got Beastquake a week later.

I disagree 100% with anyone (and I see the comments) questioning the MacDonald hire after 1 year
 

sutz

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Nice to hear a voice of reason after a tough loss to a top team. GB made us question their heart and dedication. Sunday answered many of those questions for me. I saw a team that fought hard and fell short to one of the best teams in the league.

I won't even bother reading most of the posts today and over the next few days, especially from a few posters whose attitude I'm familiar with. What would be the point? This season was always about the future, less about the present.

I agree with most of what the OP said. Some things might be fixable in the off season, maybe not all. Rome wasn't burned down in a single day. ;)
 

SoulfishHawk

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Lining up off sides on defense, negating a sack. Unacceptable. Huge sack ruined by a facemask. Unacceptable. 2 bad picks, again. Unacceptable.
11 penalties AT HOME. Unacceptable. Pretty much ignoring the running game, again. Unacceptable. Hawks gave that one away. Hell of an effort but still need to play a hell of a lot more disciplined as a whole.
 

Scout

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Offensively - they have way more questions heading into next season. Geno Smith is statistically a top-10/15 quarterback but continues to make the same 3–4 poor decisions per game that plagued him early in his career. Sam Howell clearly isn’t ready, this is a weak quarterback draft class, and the team doesn’t seem inclined to mortgage the future on a massive trade. My guess is that Geno comes back next year, but the team will need to seriously consider its long-term plans at quarterback.

I agree 100% with this. We will see what JS decides to do with Mac at the Qb position.
 

Wolfiegrrl

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I think I would prefer to not make the playoffs this year. Draft position, extra time for JS and MM to evaluate this coaching staff and players, those are some nice benefits.

As for players, anyone who doesn't have a team first mentality with the humility to admit your mistakes needs to be gone. I'm looking at Geno and Riq at the top of that list. If your Head Coach can admit fault, so can you! Geno's the first to pat himself on the back "don't write back" when thi gs are great, but won't take blame for miscommunication.

That last play, it looked to me like DK was trying to make more space between the defenders. Yet Geno blindly throws to a spot. Who else was open, Geno? Did you even look? The fact that my brother and I called the INT once we got the ball back is just stupidity. Please JS, move on from this guy.
 

Ozzy

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Nice to hear a voice of reason after a tough loss to a top team. GB made us question their heart and dedication. Sunday answered many of those questions for me. I saw a team that fought hard and fell short to one of the best teams in the league.

I won't even bother reading most of the posts today and over the next few days, especially from a few posters whose attitude I'm familiar with. What would be the point? This season was always about the future, less about the present.

I agree with most of what the OP said. Some things might be fixable in the off season, maybe not all. Rome wasn't burned down in a single day. ;)

I think with a couple of crucial decisions to be made this team can be very good as early as next year. It's going to be an interesting off season but there is a path where this team is a contender as early as next year.
 
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mistaowen

mistaowen

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I think with a couple of crucial decisions to be made this team can be very good as early as next year. It's going to be an interesting off season but there is a path where this team is a contender as early as next year.

That's really my thought as well. There's been a few blowouts and the obvious issue has been physicality at the LOS. The games that haven't felt close you can see how easily they were bullied. That's why I'm confident they'll address the trenches this offseason, #1 thing he mentioned when hired was how WE have to be the bullies. The other close losses came down to inexperience and a couple individuals having poor games in terrible moments. Good teams steal the close ones, they just aren't there yet. Getting an AVERAGE offensive line will do wonders for this team.

Get tougher at the LOS (on both sides, more so IOL so we can actually run the god damn ball), knock this draft and FA period out of the park, let go of some of the more expensive underperformers, and get camp competition get going. They really should be right in the thick of it.

We also need to remember they're eating ~$30 million in cap space just to get rid of Jamal and Quandre this year. That lack of money really hamstrung bigger additions, though the guys JS did get really haven't panned out. So hopefully some of the obvious cap adjustments (Dremont restructure, Fant restructure or cut, Jenkins cut, Lockett restructure or retire) gives them a lot more financial wiggle room in 2025.
 

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