Seahawks News Thread

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savage

savage

OG
#321
Feb 14, 2004
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#321
Rams running back Steven Jackson is an elite player, a team leader and someone who commands respect throughout the NFL.

It's significant when someone of his stature calls out another player.

Jackson, speaking during his weekly show on 101 ESPN St. Louis, had harsh words for Seahawks rookie linebacker Aaron Curry. The two clashed during the regular-season opener at Seattle. The NFL fined Curry for going after Rams rookie Jason Smith's knee, the first of several fines against Curry early in the season. Jackson and Curry clashed again Sunday.

"Some guys don’t know how to be pros and I feel he has not learned that yet," Jackson told 101 ESPN St. Louis. "Someone is over there not teaching him what it means to be a pro. It’s all right to jaw jack but unnecessary hits and taking shots at guys that are defenseless, or going after guys because they are high-profile guys and he is trying to make a name for himself, it’s not professional."

Jackson said he made it clear to Curry that he would not back down.

"You don’t get your name based on that because you’re going after another high-profile guy," Jackson said. "You get your name and your status because of your work and your play in it. I’m just sitting there jaw-jacking a guy and letting him know that I’m not backing down. It’s obvious I’m injured, it’s obvious that I haven’t practiced all week and if we want to go head-to-head for 60 or 70 plays in a row, I’m willing to do so. I’m not going to back down. I’m going to let him know there’s a whole another monster, a whole another level in the NFL and this is not Wake Forest or the ACC."

The Seahawks selected Curry from Wake Forest with the fourth overall choice. Jackson shot down the idea that Curry was trying to play a certain way to fulfill his high draft status.

"I don’t see our rookie, No. 2 pick overall, going out and doing that," Jackson said of Smith. "It's easier to make a name in other ways than going out there jaw-jacking and trying to draw attention to yourself. It’s a professional game and this is a livelihood and I don’t intentionally go out there and trying to -- I’m a pro about it. I would hope that he learns that."

We'll probably hear Curry's side of the story when players become available for interviews Wednesday.

http://espn.go.com/blog/nfcwest/post/_/id/10071/rams-jackson-calls-out-seahawks-curry
 
savage

savage

OG
#323
Feb 14, 2004
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#323
Seahawks notes: Curry shows more spice

After Seattle Seahawks rookie linebacker Aaron Curry admitted last he'd been bottling up his emotions in recent weeks, the team's first-round draft pick was back to playing more aggressively Sunday in his team's 27-17 victory at St. Louis.

Seahawks coach Jim Mora said Monday that some of Curry's activity could be attributed to an increased man-to-man defensive scheme employed against the Rams.

Reducing Curry's zone responsibilities freed him up to think less and just flow to the ball, particularly in passing situations.

"Sometimes if you bring him, if you rush him, if you put him on a straight-line course, that is another thing that helps him play well and fast and with certainty," Mora said.

Curry wound up with five tackles -- his most in the past five weeks -- and an increased presence in helping rattle Rams quarterback Kyle Boller.

That's a welcome sight for the Seahawks, who have taken Curry off the field in nickel-pass packages in the past few weeks in order to lighten his load. But his speed and athleticism figure to make him a natural pass rusher in the future and that ultimately will be a big part of his game.

http://blog.seattlepi.com/football/archives/186767.asp
 
OG_Carl_Weather

OG_Carl_Weather

Sicc OG
#324
Sep 17, 2005
2,128
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#324
So whats the deal wit Julius Jones? Are the fans callin for Forsett to start no matter what? Fuckin Julius Jones, it used to annoy me when Cowboys fans talked shit bout him. But maybe he really does suck.
 
savage

savage

OG
#327
Feb 14, 2004
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#327
The status of leading rusher Julius Jones for Sunday’s game will be determined as the week progresses, Mora said. Jones, who bruised a lung against the Cardinals two weeks ago, was not able to play against the Rams because he was “still experiencing tenderness to the touch and pain,” as Mora put it.

“I don’t know where he’ll be this week, right now,” Mora said. “Hopefully, he’ll be ready to play. But I can’t say with any certainty that that will be the case.”
 
savage

savage

OG
#328
Feb 14, 2004
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#328
Mora says Julius Jones still Seattle's top RB

SEATTLE -- Everyone thinks the Seahawks have found a new lead running back in Justin Forsett.

Everyone except Jim Mora.

"No, Julius is our starter. He's our starting running back," Seattle's coach said Monday, adding that he hasn't even thought about demoting Julius Jones while he remains pained by a bruised lung.

Forsett has emerged as a diminutive dynamo while Jones, signed to replace Shaun Alexander as Seattle's No. 1 rusher before last season, has been out.

The 5-foot-8 Forsett, drafted in the seventh round out of California in 2008, ran for 123 yards three weeks ago at Arizona. Sunday at St. Louis, the 24-year-old filled in again for Jones and romped for 130 yards on 22 carries with two touchdowns - all career highs - as the Seahawks won their first road game in seven tries.

Forsett had 123 yards total through seven games before Jones got hurt and was coughing up blood Nov. 15 at Arizona.

Yet Mora said Jones will not lose his job because of injury.

That's even though the 28-year-old Jones has one 100-yard game this season, way back in the opener against the Rams. Jones is also gaining just 3.7 yards per carry to Forsett's 5.7 and has two touchdowns rushing to Forsett's four.

The Seahawks moved up two spots to 28th in the league after Forsett's performance on Sunday. Mora says he's sticking with Jones even though Seattle (4-7) probably ought to use the season's final five games to determine whether the club needs to draft a running back early in April's draft.

"If he's fully healthy, and he's had a full week of practice, and everybody feels comfortable that he would be able to bear the workload that he would have to handle to be effective, then he would start," Mora said of Jones' status for Sunday's home game against San Francisco (5-6).

"But that being said, Justin's earned the right to carry the ball. ... So we're going to make sure he gets touches."

Mora said he expects Jones to be able to practice this week - though he noted Jones also practiced last week before telling trainers before Sunday's game he was "still feeling tenderness to the touch, pain."

"I believe he will be ready, but I can't say with 100-percent certainty," Mora said.

Seattle's Sunday was a revelation for a team that set a franchise low with just 4 yards on 13 rushes the previous week against Minnesota. The Seahawks romped for a season-high 170 on 31 carries in St. Louis.

Then again, it was against the 1-10 Rams. Seattle's previous season high in rushing came against them, and four of the Seahawks' eight wins in the last two seasons have come against St. Louis.

Even banged up quarterback Matt Hasselbeck ran on the Rams. The 34-year-old with broken ribs, a tender back and sore shoulder improvised in the third quarter, keeping the ball on a naked bootleg for 19 yards before running out of bounds to avoid the only defender who came near him.

"There's some gray area in this offense," Hasselbeck joked. "That was my Mike Vick moment, (except) I got 15 yards downfield and I didn't know what else to do."

Mora, Vick's coach with the Atlanta Falcons from 2004-06, laughed over Hasselbeck calling Sunday's surprise his "Vick moment."

"He did? He used those words?" Mora said. "I was not going to use those words."

Seattle's only injury news was that Cory Redding is the latest to have a concussion. The big defensive lineman will have to pass a series of tests throughout the week to have any chance of playing Sunday.

Starting cornerback Marcus Trufant and Josh Wilson recently returned from concussions. Left tackle Brandon Frye had his season end on Oct. 13 because of a head and neck injury.

http://www.seattlepi.com/football/2020ap_fbn_seahawks_discovery.html
 
savage

savage

OG
#331
Feb 14, 2004
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#331
QWEST QUEST

Mike Singletary, the 49ers coach and Hall of Fame linebacker, downplayed the atmosphere at Qwest Field during a conference call interview.

“Not really,” he said when asked if the club was taking any measures during practice this week to prepare for the din generated by the crowd. “We just have to make sure that we’re well prepared and ready to go when we get there.”

But tight end Vernon Davis had this to say: “Every time I play up there and leave your stadium, I can’t hear. It’s so loud. And that’s what you want. That’s a good thing, because it’s hard for an offense to get off the ball when they can’t hear.”
 
savage

savage

OG
#332
Feb 14, 2004
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#332
Seahawks GM Tim Ruskell to resign

By Danny O'Neil

Seattle Times staff reporter

Tim Ruskell began his tenure as Seahawks president and general manager with the franchise's first Super Bowl appearance.

It is expected to end at a news conference this morning at the team's headquarters with the Seahawks 4-7 and likely to miss the playoffs for a second consecutive season.

A league source indicated late Wednesday evening that a decision was reached on Ruskell's future. The team subsequently announced a news conference will be held at 10 a.m. in which Ruskell is expected to announce his resignation.

His tenure began with the most successful window of playoff success in franchise history as the Seahawks won four playoff games from 2005 to 2007, more than in the franchise's first 29 years combined.

But Seattle has gone 8-19 since the 2008 season began, the franchise's worst record over any 27-game span since the early 1990s, which included the 2-14 season of 1992.

On Sunday, Pro Football Weekly reported Ruskell had been told he would not be re-signed after the season. Ruskell had recently sought an extension to his contract or resolution to his future, and with no commitment forthcoming, he will walk away.

Ruskell was hired by the Seahawks in 2005 from Atlanta, where he worked as assistant GM under Rich McKay, then Falcons president and GM. Ruskell had previously worked in Tampa Bay from 1987 to 2003, beginning as a regional scout and ascending to director of player personnel for the Bucs.

Ruskell replaced Bob Whitsitt atop the Seahawks' football operations, and he came to the team with a reputation for having a scout's eyes for defensive talent.

Ruskell showed that in his first year in Seattle. He overhauled the defense, acquiring five new starters, including middle linebacker Lofa Tatupu, a second-round pick who made the Pro Bowl each of his first four seasons with the team.

That first season was the high point of his tenure, though, and Tatupu remains the only one of Ruskell's draft picks who reached the Pro Bowl for the Seahawks.

In 2006, Seattle lost All-Pro guard Steve Hutchinson for no compensation and re-signed running back Shaun Alexander to a large contract only to cut him two years later. Alexander was the first of a string of running backs signed and subsequently released by Seattle, followed by T.J. Duckett and Edgerrin James.

The Seahawks relied on a number of free-agent acquisitions in Ruskell's tenure. Some paid immediate dividends, such as defensive end Patrick Kerney, who had 14 ½ sacks in 2007 after being signed from Atlanta. He was named runner-up for the league's defensive player of the year that season.

Others did not. Not only did Seattle sign wide receiver Deion Branch to a big-budget free-agent contract in 2006, but it traded a first-round pick for the right to do so. Branch's receptions have declined in each season he has been in Seattle.

As a result of the reliance on free agency, Seattle ranks among the oldest third of the league's teams.

His departure creates an opening atop the Seahawks' football operations, and speculation will turn immediately to Mike Holmgren, who coached the Seahawks for 10 years. He has expressed a desire to return to the NFL after taking this year off, and it is believed Seattle would be his first choice.

Once Ruskell's departure becomes official, it will become more clear where Holmgren fits into the franchise's framework for the future, though it should be noted the league's hiring protocol for a vacancy like this would require the franchise to interview at least one minority candidate.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/seahawks/2010410253_ruskell03.html
 
savage

savage

OG
#336
Feb 14, 2004
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#336
Well it's official now.

RENTON, Wash. (AP)—Tim Ruskell has resigned as president and general manager of the Seattle Seahawks.

Ruskell announced his resignation Thursday, weeks before his five-year contract with the team ends.

The team’s ownership gave Ruskell full authority to shape the franchise soon after he arrived before the 2005 season. Seattle made its only Super Bowl that season.

Since then, he has presided over decisions including failed top draft choices, expensive free-agent busts—and the awkward ouster of popular coach and former GM Mike Holmgren at the end of his contract this past January.

Ruskell brought in his own coach for 2009, Jim Mora. The 4-7 Seahawks are on their way to a second straight season without a playoff berth.
 
savage

savage

OG
#337
Feb 14, 2004
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#337
I didn't expect a GM change until after the season ended, and was hoping Holmgren might replace Ruskell. Now that it happened during the season, I wonder if Holmgren is still an option?
 
savage

savage

OG
#340
Feb 14, 2004
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#340
Ruskell resignation: 'We didn't win enough games'


Seahawks CEO Tod Leiweke (left) and general manager Tim Ruskell discuss the circumstancess surrounding Ruskell's departure with five weeks left on his contract. (AP photo/Ted S. Warren)

Seattle Seahawks general manager and president Tim Ruskell lost his job Thursday, but not his dry sense of humor.

Sitting beside Seahawks CEO Tod Leiweke at a press conference announcing Ruskell's immediate departure with five weeks left on his contract, Ruskell noted the rebuilding process with a new head coach and coordinators "didn't happen quickly enough" to satisfy ownership or fans.

He also made wry reference to the one failure fans will never forget, his decision to not issue a franchise tag on All-Pro left guard Steve Hutchinson that opened the door to his departure to Minnesota.

"I was talking to my wife the other day," Ruskell said, "and I said, 'Let's look at that will again. It says burial, but let's go for cremation so they won't be able to write, 'Here lies the man that lost Hutch.'"

Leiweke talked of his strong friendship and admiration for Ruskell, but said "it's time for the Seahawks to look for a new leader."

The reasoning?

"Quite simply, we didn't win enough games," Leiweke said.

Faced with increasing questions over his future, Ruskell pressed ownership this week on whether they would be willing to extend his contract after this season. When told no, he chose to step down immediately.


Ruskell said he'll leave with no bitterness, just strong memories of the people he worked with and the experiences gained in nearly five years atop the Seahawks' front office.

Leiweke said Rushton Webster, the team's director of player personnel, will serve as interim general manager for the rest of the season. The organization will immediately begin talking to people and analyzing its own operation before making a decision on a a permanent replacement.

Asked directly about Mike Holmgren, he said: "I'm just not going to go there. I'm not going to talk about that today. I will tell you this. There's going to a process. We're going to a do a thorough audit of this football team and we're going to be very, very careful going forward to ensure we find just the right person to lead the organization."

Both Leiweke and Ruskell talked of the achievements in the past five years, including the franchise's only Super Bowl appearance in his first season as GM and two subsequent playoff appearances.

But the losing over the last two years weighed heavily on Ruskell's status.

"This is a tough business," Leiweke said. "Ownership has exacting standards, not just for Tim but everybody else in this organization. Clearly injuries were a significant factor in our 4-12 season, but at the end of the day we were 4-12. There were then increased pressures and expectations put on this season and to this point, we haven't met those expectations. Period."

Leiweke listed Ruskell's top achievements as helping bring an NFC Championship to Seattle, bringing the vision and then overseeing the construction of the team's new VMAC training facility in Renton and recruiting Jim Mora as the head coach to replace Holmgren.

Leiweke said he remains fully behind Mora and his new coaching staff and doesn't see any change there, no matter who becomes general manager.

"All the reasons Tim brought Jim Mora here still apply today," he said.

Ruskell would have liked a chance to see his newest plan through, saying "we were building it brick by brick and that's the way to build championships."

But he took pictures with Leiweke in the VMAC lobby before entering his final press conference and said he'd move forward with no regrets of his time in Seattle.

"The good outweighs the bad, big time," he said.

Ruskell also said he had a good relationship with Holmgren, enjoying his opportunity to work with one of the NFL's greatest coaches, and said the decision to replace the former coach came only after Holmgren told management in December of 2007 that he would be moving on either that year or the next.

He said Holmgren never indicated any change of mind once his retirement was announced.

As for the decision to name Mora the "head coach in waiting" while Holmgren was still in charge, he said that move was made after other teams -- notably the Washington Redskins -- asked permission to talk to Mora.

"I would do it again," he said of that move. "That was a smooth transition."

How smooth Ruskell's replacement process goes remains to be seen. Leiweke will spearhead the process, but he indicated the team's owner -- facing chemotherapy treatments in his current fight with cancer -- also carries an interest in what the Seahawks are doing.

"I work for a man, Mr. Paul Allen, who has exacting standards," Leiweke said. "It's also his opinion that this is a unique and special franchise and with it comes expectations. So bottom line, we didn't win enough games."

Here's the history of the Seahawks' GM/president duties:

John Thompson 1975-1981
Mike McCormack 1982-1988
Tom Flores 1989-1993
David Behring (president only) 1993-95
Bob Whitsitt 1995-1998
Mike Holmgren 1999-2004
Tim Ruskell 2005-2009

http://blog.seattlepi.com/football/archives/187085.asp
 
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