Hawks sign Julian Love (Safety)

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GGotskill

GGotskill

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Not really judging and if we all waited to see the whole picture on everything thing I don't think this forum or any forum would exist.


Oh, I am not saying you can't post about it. Just saying, the final picture makes a lot more sense than a snapshot during the process.
 

getnasty

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Oh, I am not saying you can't post about it. Just saying, the final picture makes a lot more sense than a snapshot during the process.
Got it. Love seems like one of those dudes that just make a team better. Will definitely be interesting to see how they use all of them.
 

bileever

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I was ambivalent about this signing at first, but now I like it more. First, it gives us flexibility with Adams' injury situation being unclear and in case Ryan Neal ends up with an offer we don't want to match. It also makes sense given the three-safety configuration that the Seahawks have been using.

I also like that he was a captain with the Giants, and it's good to get leaders. It also weakens a conference opponent. The Giants apparently offered Love more money, but he chose to go with the Seahawks, which is interesting:


Losing a mainstay of your defense, signing Daniel Jones for $160 million and an above average linebacker for $40 million seems like a questionable start to the off-season for the Giants.
 

Jville

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Versatility ...........

This defensive back signing is yet another example of the emphasis placed on finding players who can play more than one position.
 

Yxes1122

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John and Pete are acting like they did in the early 2010s. Just adding talent to the roster wherever they can. They've spoken about improving the front 7 and they have, but I think there is also a philosophy of just admitting the roster isn't on a contending tier yet.

So if Julian Love can be had for 2 years $12M as insurance for Neal, Diggs, Adams, do it. Because Josh Jones struggled on the field. And if he's the 4th safety on the depth chart because Adams, Diggs and Neal stay healthy and play up to their talent, that's good too.

At this point, Seattle should continue it's roster churn. Adding good players at any position if they want to come in and compete. I also think it's telling that they are prioritizing sub-30 year old FAs. Which is more akin to the 2010/2011 strategy of churning the roster in an effort to find future starters.

(As opposed to the post 2013-2019 strategy of trying to preserve a window by filling specific needs.)
 

Chevy

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I was ambivalent about this signing at first, but now I like it more. First, it gives us flexibility with Adams' injury situation being unclear and in case Ryan Neal ends up with an offer we don't want to match. It also makes sense given the three-safety configuration that the Seahawks have been using.

I also like that he was a captain with the Giants, and it's good to get leaders. It also weakens a conference opponent. The Giants apparently offered Love more money, but he chose to go with the Seahawks, which is interesting:


Losing a mainstay of your defense, signing Daniel Jones for $160 million and an above average linebacker for $40 million seems like a questionable start to the off-season for the Giants.
I had the same thought at first.

Bringing in a player that has been a team captain is a bonus for sure. Love = team captain, Jarran Reed = alpha dog, and Dre Jones = good locker room guy...and they are all are productive proven players. These 3 will help bring our defense, along with new drafted players, to be a top-10 defense.
 

Own The West

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Diggs and Adams are in jeopardy of getting cut and/or having their contracts torn up and re-signed at significant savings to the team.

P&J are kicking some a$$ this year in FA.
I'm guessing they could both be cap casualties next year.
Diggs $4.1M dead cap ($21.7M this year)
Adams $14.2M dead cap ($23.9M this year)
 

idkaname

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I was ambivalent about this signing at first, but now I like it more. First, it gives us flexibility with Adams' injury situation being unclear and in case Ryan Neal ends up with an offer we don't want to match. It also makes sense given the three-safety configuration that the Seahawks have been using.

I also like that he was a captain with the Giants, and it's good to get leaders. It also weakens a conference opponent. The Giants apparently offered Love more money, but he chose to go with the Seahawks, which is interesting:


Losing a mainstay of your defense, signing Daniel Jones for $160 million and an above average linebacker for $40 million seems like a questionable start to the off-season for the Giants.
Hi, Giants fan here...was curious to see the reaction of Hawk fans regarding love.

I would tamper expectations...

Love is a frustrating player to me...he's limited in physical ability (always late on the play)

Great tackler but borderline awful in pass coverage...allowing 70%+ completions and 97+ passer rating the last 3 years.

The Captain moniker was not warranted. He's a pretty quiet guy and isn't "great" at anything...but is a above average tackler.

He gets so many tackles because he can't ever get his hand on the ball, and drops picks like he has no hands, literally. Lastly, pray during crunch time/last second drives because he always gives up plays at the WORST times.

Overall I'd give him a C (average) and wouldn't take him back...for free. Again, he's not the worst player but he's really an undersized LB with some Lbs being faster and more athletic...his best trait is he has be healthy so there's that going for him.

I was confused why seattle signed him as they have 3 safeties already better than him...but if they are going to cut Adams it makes sense...but don't expect half the ability of Adams.

Lastly, the Giants won't miss him...he was outplayed by a 5th rd rookie and a UDFA we signed off the jets PS in coverage..

If you think I'm just being a salty fan...look at his pass numbers but heed my warning and GL in 2023!
 

SoulfishHawk

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Nah, I'm looking forward to seeing him play. This is dot net, he'll get blasted the first time he misses a tackle on here.
I'll let my eyes do the judging.
 

Fade

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In preparation for a designated post June 1 cut of JA?

Probably.

If not, Seahawks will have ~20% of their cap tied into the safety position.
Well, Safety is a very valuable position and they are very hard to find, so…

Might as well add another one as they don't have enough invested in the Safety position as it is.


Jokes aside, I think this move is more about him playing at Nickel.

NB signing. Not an Adams replacement.
 

A-Dog

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I have some thoughts here.

First - some measurables on Love:
Height: 5-10 3/4
Weight: 195
Arms: 31 3/4
Hands: 9
40: 4.50
10-yd: 1.59
20-yd: 2.57
SS: 4.10
3-Cone: 6.72
Vert: 36
Broad: 10-1
Bench: 14

He's not built in the mold of a traditional SS. Yes, the Seahawks have gone to more 2-high where the deep safeties don't have such defined roles like in the Cover-3 era with Kam and Earl. But both Adams and Neal are significantly bigger. If he's a hedge on Adams/Diggs if they were to be cut at some point for salary cap reasons, I would guess Diggs before Adams, with Neal being the hedge for Adams. Also, while we tagged Neal we don't know yet if he's definitely going to be back next year.

I think most likely he's going to be playing nickel. Bryant had an up-and-down year at nickel but he might be better suited to outside corner despite his shorter arms. Love's got good SS and 3-Cone times which are physical traits that traditional slot corners need because they don't have the sidelines to help them and they need to be able to change directions well. He's also known to be a good tackler. For comparison, Bryant ran a 4.33 SS, 7.31 3-Cone, 4.48 40 with a 1.56 10-yd split. Not sure where Tre Brown fits in, but I think generally speaking there will be great competition for LCB and Nickel in training camp, and there's plenty of depth in case of injury.

I think the big picture is this: The Seahawks want to commit more to three down linemen (3-4/3-3-5) more often than not. It was effective against the run but not so much against the pass. When they went to the 2-4-5 (to improve the pass one would assume) rush the run defense was terrible. Based on them stacking DB talent and not going as hard into the ILB market as expected considering Brooks is injured and Barton left, I'm going to guess that more often than not it will be a 3-3-5. To do that and still be able to defend the run, it's better if that extra DB is a good run defender rather than a corner like Justin Coleman, who was the epitome of the traditional nickel CB (blazing fast 3.98 SS and 6.61 3-Cone) but a serious liability in run defense.

So if they are going with the 3-3-5 using a big nickel, wouldn't Adams be the most likely candidate given his special talents around the LOS? I think that depends on the opponent and the offensive alignment. If it's more run-heavy like 22 or 12 personnel it probably means Adams plays closer to the LOS (or more traditional 3-4). If it's 11 or 10 then it should probably be Love (or dime). This is why Love's versatility is so key - he can play nickel against WRs but can also play deep. And the defense will have to guess because of that versatility. Also I think it should be said that Adams has that same versatility, he's just bigger and better (when healthy).

Lastly, for people (looking at you, Seahawks Twitter) who are upset about a) the changes on the D-Line, or b) signing Bobby instead or retaining Barton, I think one of the key things the Seahawks are doing is to try sign players who are effective against both run and pass. Sure, Woods and Poona played well in bear fronts against the run, but if the Seahawks are going to commit more to having 3 linemen they have to contribute against both the run and the pass. That tracks with the signings of Jones and Reed. Lots of people love Poona but he's never been a consistent impact player with his pass rush, regardless of where he's been played. Woods is a space-eating run stuffer. Conversely, Quinton Jefferson is a solid pass rusher but a liability against the run. The key here is versatility. The same goes for the LBs actually - the OLBs need to be able to cover and the ILBs need to be a blitzing threat (which is why I think Bobby could fit rather well). All of this makes things harder on the playcaller and the QB.
 
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