Random Synaptic Spark

[SalishHawkFan]

Someone on Kips Farewell Cruel World thread suggested we each contribute a single random thought. I think that's a great idea. Each of us post something on this thread about one aspect of the game. A single play, perhaps, or how we did in a certain aspect of the game. Anyways, here's mine:

The oline is hurting Lynch too.

The Colts - per Football Outsiders - have the 28th ranked rush defense in the league. We put up TWO 100 yard rushers (Lynch and Wilson) against them. But in the second half, Lynch disappeared. 5 carries. Some say the Colts awesome 28th ranked rush defense made halftime adjustments and shut him down. Some say the coaches abandoned the run. I find the latter more believable personally. Here's why:

Through 5 games Lynch only ranks 18th in DYAR. That's his gross production. But worse, he ranks 20th in DVOA. That's how well he is doing per play. And even more troubling, his effective yards are less than his actual yards, meaning he's doing worse than his basic stats would lead you to believe. Finally - and most telling of all - his success rate is actually his lowest ranked stat. He's just 23rd in the league in success rate. That measures a players consistency. How much of that is Lynch's fault? Most of it is the lines fault. The oline has a power ranking of 28th in the league. So Lynch is doing better than the oline would allow an average replacement player. In second level yards and open field yards, the running game ranks 13th and 10th respectively. That's due to Lynch being Beast Mode.

But he's not getting to the second level consistently.

Turbin is even worse. Much worse.

Only one lineman is doing his job at getting our guys a running lane. Carp. The Hawks are ranked 10th in the NFL when running off the left guard. Either end is horrid, netting @ 2.5 ypc.

Carroll abandoned his run first philosophy in the second half. Why? Because he's a realist. Lynch isn't going to break many big plays and with that oline, the Hawks can't sustain a drive. That's why they are 25th in the league in TD/FG at 1.08. Meaning if they score, it's 50/50 they'll kick a FG or get a TD. Considering that they have the second best starting field position in the league, that's a horrendous stat.

Remember, this is just one Random Thought of the Colts game. The idea is that each person put down their own Random Thought on another aspect of the game as they saw it. Anybody got film of one of those bogus non-calls?

 

[HawkWow]

Not arguing with you, but Turbin's not getting many reps. Behind this shambled line, and without the benefit of rhythm, I don't expect much from him. He looked good last year and I can't imagine a second year, lightly used RB, digressing. I'm sure it happens, but I want another look at him when the line is a bit more in place.

 

[Pandion Haliaetus]

Random Thought: Offensive Superiority

I saw an offense without Rusell Okung, Max Unger, Breno Giacomini, and Zach Miller. Starting a rookie late 5th round TE, and a late 7th round 21 year old rookie RT, and a sub-par tackle who is playing like a rookie nobody. With the only other options is a 21 year old undrafted rookie, Alvin Bailey or a 22 year old undrafted rookie Caylin Hauptmann. Seahawks O-Line is bad and that's not including the hot and cold but sometimes dominant OGs.

We all know this. 2008-2011 highlight Seahawks teams with bad O-Lines and what it does to being competitive in scoring points and keeping your Defense off the field.

I saw an offense that scored 2 TDs, 4 FGs, had 1 FG blocked, 1 missed opportunity to score at the end of the first half that resulted in O points. In the most optimal of scenarios that's 42 points left on the board plus the 2 TDs its 56 points plus the punt block depending how you see it, its 58 or 63 points at best. Seahawks scored 28 and left 35 points go into missed opportunity heaven,. To win the game Seahawks only needed to convert just 1 of those TD opportunities.

Yet, I still saw an offense on the road, in another 10 am start, against a top 10 defense, in their house, bringing in a solid crowd and you got the feeling this was a big game for the Colts. It was that type of atmosphere for the crowd, they were excited to the least.

Yet this Seahawks Offense that struggled last week @ Houston, and in week 1 @ Carolina... down 67% of their O-line, some of their best and most important players, scored 26 Offensive Team Points and left about another 30 offensive team points on the board due to error, miscommunication, and poor execution amongst other factors.

This offense is on the brink of destruction as it continue to get healthier as well as continue to iron out the execution mistakes , miscommunication errors, or just simple missed plays that squandered numerous opportunities to put away the game.

With Harvin coming back, with Lynch beast modin and Wilson running angry and with purpose this offense is going to be tough to handle just like it was in the last half of the season.

 

[SalishHawkFan]

His consistently ratings don't have a large sample size, that's true, but they're pretty bad. I wasn't implying he's a bust, just that he's doing much worse than Lynch and that's more of a tribute to how well Lynch is performing behind this line. We all know how good Marshawn Lynch is. What he's done with so little is highlighted by how poorly his backup has done. I think it proves my point that it's the line, not the RB, who's to blame for Carroll abandoning the run in the second half last Sunday.

 

[kigenzun]

My random synaptic spark contribution generally involves making JR Sweezy a bone crushing fullback/H-back.

By inserting Bailey at right guard next to Bowie at right tackle, (&/or vice versa) and letting these two bond together over time, we could theoretically solidify and finally consistent-tize the right side of the line...

Marshawn could follow his lead blocker again, Sweezy wouldn't have to pass block, Russell wouldn't have to run for his life on every play... there would be a harmonizing effect in Mudville across the board IMO.

Due to salary cap contraints in 2014 both McQ and Breno are likely goners, so lets embrace something along the lines of:
OKUNG, CARPENTER, UNGER, BAILEY, BOWIE up front, and let The Sweeze do what he does best: run block. As a bone crushing full back...
i.e. being Marshawn Lynch's personal body "Guard".

ps Since this would also allow our TE's to actually run pass routes, by essentially having 6 lineman + Marshawn in to block on 1st and 2nd down play action fakes, it could, in theory, open up passes downfield as well.
:th2thumbs:

 

[TwistedHusky]

At some point, halfway through the season, you have to acknowledge what our line is.

Maybe it will get better, but if we stumble it will be because we haven't gotten stability and continuity at one of the most important aspects of fielding a winning team.

Most people with any football knowledge, even the absolute laity, know how pivotal having an effective offensive line can be. But with the Seahawks, suddenly because "Russell is so good!" or "Lynch is one of the best runningbacks in the league!" this no longer holds true? Sure....

We have a very good team. Exceptional at almost every position.

The problem is that people cannot stay healthy. Sure injuries are part of football and good teams overcome adversity, but if you check the past you will find some great teams that got left out because key players were out at key times. So the idea that great teams overcome adversity is probably flipped. Someone that would have come in 1st comes in later, and the thus the one that would have come in 2nd comes in first.

Until we get our line back we have no idea what kind of team we are. We can only guess. And we can hope that our QB is not injured by then, or hasn't gotten so disrupted by the lack of protection that he picked up bad habits.

We need a healthy and effective Oline. You can absolutely state that with our guys healthy we probably beat Indy, and Houston is not such a mess.

At this point Harvin barely matters, what matters more is whether we get Okung back in time and the rest of our linemen can get enough time to gel at their real positions. Judging Sweezy for a position he isn't really supposed to play in the first place hardly seems fair.

 

[HawKnPeppa]

At some point, halfway through the season, you have to acknowledge what our line is.

Maybe it will get better, but if we stumble it will be because we haven't gotten stability and continuity at one of the most important aspects of fielding a winning team.

Most people with any football knowledge, even the absolute laity, know how pivotal having an effective offensive line can be. But with the Seahawks, suddenly because "Russell is so good!" or "Lynch is one of the best runningbacks in the league!" this no longer holds true? Sure....

We have a very good team. Exceptional at almost every position.

The problem is that people cannot stay healthy. Sure injuries are part of football and good teams overcome adversity, but if you check the past you will find some great teams that got left out because key players were out at key times. So the idea that great teams overcome adversity is probably flipped. Someone that would have come in 1st comes in later, and the thus the one that would have come in 2nd comes in first.

Until we get our line back we have no idea what kind of team we are. We can only guess. And we can hope that our QB is not injured by then, or hasn't gotten so disrupted by the lack of protection that he picked up bad habits.

We need a healthy and effective Oline. You can absolutely state that with our guys healthy we probably beat Indy, and Houston is not such a mess.

At this point Harvin barely matters, what matters more is whether we get Okung back in time and the rest of our linemen can get enough time to gel at their real positions. Judging Sweezy for a position he isn't really supposed to play in the first place hardly seems fair.

Ahhh, a post that is grounded in reality. There might be hope after-all. I remember watching games with my Gramps when I was in grade school and blabbering on about how one QB was 'better' than another when I actually had no idea. He'd always answer with something along the lines of, 'you know they all have and arm; they just need time to throw.' Perhaps that's oversimplified, but the basic reasoning remains as sound as it was back then. Routes still need time to develop no matter who's behind center, and even screens need proper blocking. Then we come to run blocking that's consistent enough to setup PA. We just don't have that now, so nobody commits to defending the run. We occasionally break a big run when we're lucky enough to catch them selling out to bring pressure.

Forget were I saw it, but I read an article at a fantasy football site that was attempting to carefully explain how having a good offensive line can increase the fantasy points from your running back. I feel a great many bashers that have shown up recently are the audience he was trying to reach.

 

[SilkMonkey]

The game made it clear that I have no idea what PI is anymore. I used to think it was blatant push offs or holding a guy down, but the Colts 2 pt conversion at the end and the Sidney rice comeback with the ref watching seems to indicate otherwise.

The playcalling was super spotty- I'm not sure why Marshawn had 5 carries in the second half. The Colts didn't have any answers for it when we were driving on them. Dance with the one who brought you, and hand the ball to the guy who is moving the chains.

I thought Jeron Johnson had the touchdown; but once it was called a safety, there was no way it was going to change. The replay was inconclusive, kind of like the Reggie Wayne catch in the 4th. One stands and one gets changed- neither seemed to be definitive on replay.

Almost every time Russell is forced out of pocket (not on a designed bootleg) I started yelling GET RID OF IT....and every time he picked up yardage and first downs it seemed. I should yell at the tv more often.

Sweezy was mauling guys on run blocking down the field, but his downfield blocking on a pass play was bad. I remember being told to stay at the LOS until you see the ball come past you (passed or carried by QB). Easy to correct, but frustrating.

We need Unger back- there were at least 2-3 plays where a delayed blitz resulted in A gap pressure. Some might be on Sweezy, some might be on Carp and some might be on Lem. Doesn't matter, an all-pro center will give you the best possible shot at getting the mental stuff right.

 

[Hawks46]

My random synaptic spark contribution generally involves making JR Sweezy a bone crushing fullback/H-back.

By inserting Bailey at right guard next to Bowie at right tackle, (&/or vice versa) and letting these two bond together over time, we could theoretically solidify and finally consistent-tize the right side of the line...

Marshawn could follow his lead blocker again, Sweezy wouldn't have to pass block, Russell wouldn't have to run for his life on every play... there would be a harmonizing effect in Mudville across the board IMO.

Due to salary cap contraints in 2014 both McQ and Breno are likely goners, so lets embrace something along the lines of:
OKUNG, CARPENTER, UNGER, BAILEY, BOWIE up front, and let The Sweeze do what he does best: run block. As a bone crushing full back...
i.e. being Marshawn Lynch's personal body "Guard".

ps Since this would also allow our TE's to actually run pass routes, by essentially having 6 lineman + Marshawn in to block on 1st and 2nd down play action fakes, it could, in theory, open up passes downfield as well.
:th2thumbs:

I want to see Sweezy catch a pass out in the flat !

 

[scutterhawk]

At some point, halfway through the season, you have to acknowledge what our line is.

Maybe it will get better, but if we stumble it will be because we haven't gotten stability and continuity at one of the most important aspects of fielding a winning team.

Most people with any football knowledge, even the absolute laity, know how pivotal having an effective offensive line can be. But with the Seahawks, suddenly because "Russell is so good!" or "Lynch is one of the best runningbacks in the league!" this no longer holds true? Sure....

We have a very good team. Exceptional at almost every position.

The problem is that people cannot stay healthy. Sure injuries are part of football and good teams overcome adversity, but if you check the past you will find some great teams that got left out because key players were out at key times. So the idea that great teams overcome adversity is probably flipped. Someone that would have come in 1st comes in later, and the thus the one that would have come in 2nd comes in first.

Until we get our line back we have no idea what kind of team we are. We can only guess. And we can hope that our QB is not injured by then, or hasn't gotten so disrupted by the lack of protection that he picked up bad habits.

We need a healthy and effective Oline. You can absolutely state that with our guys healthy we probably beat Indy, and Houston is not such a mess.

At this point Harvin barely matters, what matters more is whether we get Okung back in time and the rest of our linemen can get enough time to gel at their real positions. Judging Sweezy for a position he isn't really supposed to play in the first place hardly seems fair.

Didn't Sweezy get a bunch of playing time last Year?
Sweezy has all the physical tools, and attitude to do the job, so how much time is it going to take for him not to be a liability?
Having played Defense, and worked hard at attacking an Offensive Lineman, shouldn't he also be able to understand how to counter such attacks?
I'm asking, not knocking, and surly not professing that I have an absolute answer, so those who are way more adept could shed some light on me.

 

[The Dirty Truth]

At some point, halfway through the season, you have to acknowledge what our line is.

Maybe it will get better, but if we stumble it will be because we haven't gotten stability and continuity at one of the most important aspects of fielding a winning team.

Most people with any football knowledge, even the absolute laity, know how pivotal having an effective offensive line can be. But with the Seahawks, suddenly because "Russell is so good!" or "Lynch is one of the best runningbacks in the league!" this no longer holds true? Sure....

We have a very good team. Exceptional at almost every position.

The problem is that people cannot stay healthy. Sure injuries are part of football and good teams overcome adversity, but if you check the past you will find some great teams that got left out because key players were out at key times. So the idea that great teams overcome adversity is probably flipped. Someone that would have come in 1st comes in later, and the thus the one that would have come in 2nd comes in first.

Until we get our line back we have no idea what kind of team we are. We can only guess. And we can hope that our QB is not injured by then, or hasn't gotten so disrupted by the lack of protection that he picked up bad habits.

We need a healthy and effective Oline. You can absolutely state that with our guys healthy we probably beat Indy, and Houston is not such a mess.

At this point Harvin barely matters, what matters more is whether we get Okung back in time and the rest of our linemen can get enough time to gel at their real positions. Judging Sweezy for a position he isn't really supposed to play in the first place hardly seems fair.

Didn't Sweezy get a bunch of playing time last Year?
Sweezy has all the physical tools, and attitude to do the job, so how much time is it going to take for him not to be a liability?
Having played Defense, and worked hard at attacking an Offensive Lineman, shouldn't he also be able to understand how to counter such attacks?
I'm asking, not knocking, and surly not professing that I have an absolute answer, so those who are way more adept could shed some light on me.

Sweezy isn't a liability. In fact he the best run blocking OL on the roster. He is also light years ahead of where he was last year in pass protection. We have to remember that Sweezy has only been playing OL for 2 years (about 16 games). I have said it before and I will say it again, in the next year or so Sweezy will be the best OL on the team. I cant really figure out why he is the whipping boy around here. Bowie was also a 7th round pick and when he screws up everyone runs to defend him. When Sweezy screws up he is the worst player to ever put on a Seahawks jersey. In general I think the OL takes a lot of undue criticism around here anyway.

 

[SalishHawkFan]

FO's stats would say Carpenter is by far the best run blocking OL on the roster. However, this is where stats don't tell the whole story. Carpenter lacks lateral movement. He's fat and slow. Sweezy so far this season could teach classes on cut blocking, etc. Sweezy gets over to the left side to help out. Carp doesn't help Sweezy at all. Sweezy, otoh, is getting blown back on many plays, Carp, not so much. Alone, Carp gets better push, but his inability to cross block severely limits our offensive options. Sweezy, without help from Carp, isn't getting the job done and Carp isn't good enough to help Sweezy. And these two are our remaining starters.

At the moment, the entire oline needs overhauled. However, once Okung, Giaco and Unger return, we'll be able to see if the line is good enough. I think, personally, once they're healthy we need to start looking for replacements for both Carp and Sweezy. I wouldn't mind seeing McQ take Carps spot ASAP. Then Sweezy can get the help he needs and I think that helps mask Sweezy's weakness well enough where his strength in cut blocking is worth keeping him.

But I'm no expert and Cable is. So we'll see what they decide to do and whatever that is, I'll be happy. I just can't wait for the oline to get healthy.

The one thing that concerns me most, however, is Mr. Glass Okung. He's missed almost as many games in his short tenure at LT than all the LT's in the previous 28 years combined. Come next years draft, it would be wise to find another LT.

 

[sc85sis]

My random synaptic spark contribution generally involves making JR Sweezy a bone crushing fullback/H-back.

By inserting Bailey at right guard next to Bowie at right tackle, (&/or vice versa) and letting these two bond together over time, we could theoretically solidify and finally consistent-tize the right side of the line...

Marshawn could follow his lead blocker again, Sweezy wouldn't have to pass block, Russell wouldn't have to run for his life on every play... there would be a harmonizing effect in Mudville across the board IMO.

Due to salary cap contraints in 2014 both McQ and Breno are likely goners, so lets embrace something along the lines of:
OKUNG, CARPENTER, UNGER, BAILEY, BOWIE up front, and let The Sweeze do what he does best: run block. As a bone crushing full back...
i.e. being Marshawn Lynch's personal body "Guard".

ps Since this would also allow our TE's to actually run pass routes, by essentially having 6 lineman + Marshawn in to block on 1st and 2nd down play action fakes, it could, in theory, open up passes downfield as well.
:th2thumbs:

I want to see Sweezy catch a pass out in the flat !

Maybe they should just declare Sweezy an eligible receiver before every play.