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savage

savage

OG
#841
Feb 14, 2004
16,667
4,746
113
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#841
Wrotto returning to help bolster offensive line

Veteran offensive lineman Mansfield Wrotto, released by the Seahawks a week ago after filling in at left tackle for the injured Russell Okung, is returning to the team now to help out with another injury issue.

With right guard Max Unger sidelined with a foot injury that will sideline him at least this week against Denver, the team brought Wrotto back on Tuesday.

The word was first leaked by wide receiver Mike Williams on his Twitter account and has since been confirmed by Danny O'Neil at the Seattle Times.

Wrotto's addition, plus the return of suspended linebacker Leroy Hill, means the Seahawks will have to release two players to make room on the 53-man roster, but the club has not yet officially announced Wrotto's signing or any subsequent moves.

Wrotto played guard his first three seasons with Seattle and only switched to tackle this preseason when the Seahawks were shorthanded at that spot.

The Seahawks are off Tuesday, so we won't know until Wednesday when Pete Carroll conducts his next press conference exactly what the plans are with Wrotto.

The team figures to have several options at right guard, including recently acquired Stacy Andrews or veteran Ben Hamilton, who has been backing up at left guard and center.

The Seahawks also signed former Packer guard Evan Dietrich-Smith last week.

But obviously there are concerns about the depth at that position since left guard Mike Gibson hurt his back during Sunday's 31-6 victory over San Francisco and was replaced by Hamilton.

Carroll said Gibson was fine on Monday, but the signing of Wrotto would indicate some possible concern.

http://blog.seattlepi.com/football/archives/221309.asp
 
savage

savage

OG
#842
Feb 14, 2004
16,667
4,746
113
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#842
Unger out for the season

A toe injury in Sunday’s season opener has ended the season for Seahawks’ right guard Max Unger, the team’s second-round draft choice last year when he was a 16-game starter as a rookie.
Max Unger’s second season with the Seahawks lasted one game.
The team placed its starting right guard on injured reserve Tuesday after Unger damaged the big toe on his left foot in Sunday’s season opener against the San Francisco 49ers.

To fill Unger’s roster spot, guard Mansfield Wrotto was re-signed. Wrotto had been released Sept. 5, despite starting the final two preseason games at left tackle for injured first-round draft choice Russell Okung.

In other moves, cornerback Kennard Cox was released to clear a roster spot for linebacker Leroy Hill, who returns from his one-game suspension; and cornerback Cord Parks was signed to the practice squad to replace Ross Weaver, who was released.

The loss of Unger, a second-round draft choice last year, is just the latest hit for an offensive line that also was ravaged by injuries the past two seasons.

The coaches have options to replace Unger, a 16-game starter as a rookie. Ben Hamilton could be inserted into the lineup, either at right guard or at left guard with Mike Gibson moving to the right side; Sean Locklear could slide over from right tackle, where he could be replaced by Stacy Andrews; or Wrotto could step in.

Then there’s Chester Pitts, who was inactive for the opener and is coming off microfracture knee surgery. Coach Pete Carroll had said that if Pitts could play, it would be at left tackle. But that was before Unger went down.

Tyler Polumbus, who joined the team two weeks ago, is starting at left tackle for Okung.

Last season, injuries forced the Seahawks to use seven different starting combinations on the line – including four players at left tackle and three each at left guard and center. In 2008, it was eight different starting combos – including four players at right guard and three at left tackle.

What direction the team goes to replace Unger won’t be known until Wednesday, when coach Pete Carroll meets with the media at noon.

“We have to do some switching and changing to move some stuff around,” Carroll said Monday. “We’ll have to figure that out in the next day or so.”

http://www.seahawks.com/news/articl...e-season/4aa28f91-7e48-42bc-a651-def9055e169d
 
savage

savage

OG
#848
Feb 14, 2004
16,667
4,746
113
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#848
He sacrificed his big toe for the W, so yes lol

He's a damn good o-lineman, and we may not have the best depth in o-line, but I'm confident in whichever moves the FO makes to better this situation.
 
savage

savage

OG
#850
Feb 14, 2004
16,667
4,746
113
41
#850
The best of Hasselbeck: On communication, Carroll and more

As he does every week during the season, Seahawks quarterback Matt Hasselbeck talked with the media on Thursday. Among the topics this week was the issue of head-set communication between quarterback and coach, given the problems San Francisco's Alex Smith had last week in Qwest Field.

Smith said the coaches weren't always getting plays into him in time, since head-set communication is cut off with 15 seconds left on the play clock.

Hasselbeck talked about that challenge, how he (once) called his own play instead of one sent in and a multitude of other topics.

Here are the highlights:

How difficult is that communication process and do people understand how rushed things can be in that situation?: "That is important. And it is tough. Every referee has a different timing. Some guys are a little quicker than others. That's never really been a huge issue with us because I don't like to sit in the huddle a long time. When I break the huddle, I try to get those guys to hustle to the line of scrimmage.

"But you see some teams where they're taking their time, they break the huddle and guys are sort of jogging or walking to their spots. That leaves you very little room for error at the line of scrimmage. The coach-quarterback communication shuts off at 15 seconds to begin with. There absolutely have been times in the past when the play has cut off and what I've done is have a plan beforehand, what would I call in every situation. What do I know that we are good at. That happened actually in a game this year."

Does he try to anticipate the coach's call in case of a system failure?: "What I do is go to a safe call. It actually happened in Minnesota. We were backed up in a situation, I never got a play in my headset. Sometimes those things just don't work. The technology on them is about the same as it was when I was a ballboy, so it's not a perfect science. It's hit or miss.

"So you have to have a play in mind. I picked a running play, it got us about 2 yards. It wasn't that good of a play, but at least it wasn't a penalty or a disaster."

Has he ever pretended he just didn't hear a called play?: "I did that once. I think it might have been like a 10-yard completion. But what I failed to realize was the other quarterbacks on the sideline have the headset (too), so you've got to get in unison on that one."

The Seahawks have only beaten two teams on the road other than the Rams since 2007. Will they approach this week's game in Denver any differently?: "Well, we haven't beat that many teams in general over the last two years. That stat doesn't really surprise me that much. But we're not doing that much different.

"Pete came in and his philosophy is a little different than those in the past. We're not talking about it, we're not doing any different. We're just normal practice just like we've had. It's not something we're focused on."

What does Carroll say about road preparations?: "We kind of talked about it once this year. We talked about it on the road at Minnesota in the preseason. We did what we had to do, but the lesson after that game was it wasn't a big deal.

"In the past, people made a big deal of it, but Pete was like, 'I'm not going to do that. It's not a big deal. You did it today and the Metrodome is the second-loudest stadium in the league and it was no big deal.' So there you go. That's what he said."

You said last week you weren't paying attention to the offensive line, they'd take care of their business. Were you actually able to do that with the continuing changes in front of you?: "I've got enough to worry about. I actually didn't know during the game that Gibson or Max got hurt. Really the key is just communication and a lot of that is just myself and the center.

"I really put it on him to communicate with everybody else. I've been fortunate. Robbie Tobeck and I had a great relationship and he was a great leader of that group. And Chris Spencer has done a nice job as well. I'm putting my trust in him to get everybody right. And there have been moving parts, but they did a great job last week."

Carroll said your 1-yard TD run was a product of the offseason conditioning. Was he kidding?: "I think he was dead serious. He really believes in his guys and his program, Coach Carlisle and those guys, and how they trained us this offseason. They kind of trained us for the OTAs and minicamps so the workouts were very similar to practice. He says all the time that practice is where we make us, where we make who we're going to be. So I just think that's a continuation of the conditioning level you get at practice."

Are you faster than last year, when Patrick Willis broke your ribs in a similar goal-line run?: "I don't know. I'm faster to my left. ... I know it was definitely a point of emphasis on our team to get bigger, stronger, faster. That was one thing that was glaring when Pete came in. He looked at the film and said I want you to get bigger, stronger and faster.

"The first month he was here, people would ask, 'What's Pete like? What's Pete like?' And the honest answer was, 'I don't know. I've really been with Carlisle and his crew.' But the message they were getting us to buy into was exactly Pete's message.

"We learned the three rules from them in between rest while we were running that hill outside or pulling a sled or pushing a big wooden I don't know what, something heavy. It was changing our mindset and changing physically how we were."

How different is the conditioning now?: "The stuff we're doing isn't different than the stuff we did with past strength and conditioning staffs, really. Those guys are very good, too. The emphasis really came from the head coach in, 'Hey, the offseason I want you guys to get bigger, stronger, faster and me and my coaches will coach you up on Xs and Os when the time is right.' Instead of, 'OK, let's go Xs and Os right away and you guys get your lift or run in on the side.'

"The emphasis was definitely flipped. We'll see. You'll only really know in November and December how that worked out."

What do you see from Denver's defense?: "They've just had one real game, so that's mostly what we have to go by. But they're really experienced in the secondary. That's the thing that sticks out with me. They're probably the most experienced secondary in the league and they have great players like Brian Dawkins and Champ Bailey. So it'll be a challenge for us."

http://blog.seattlepi.com/football/archives/221631.asp
 
savage

savage

OG
#851
Feb 14, 2004
16,667
4,746
113
41
#851
Thoughts on Seahawks' 31-14 loss to Broncos

Random thoughts on the Seahawks' 31-14 loss at Denver on Sunday:


Defensive pressure disappears: My biggest question heading into this game was whether Seattle's defense could back up the impressive showing from last week's home opener. Without the 12th Man noise advantage, how strong was this group?

Unfortunately, the answer wasn't good. Even against an injury-ravaged Broncos' offensive line, the Seahawks mounted almost no pressure against Kyle Orton and paid the price as he ripped them up for 307 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

The positive news? Seattle's run defense appears legit, holding Denver to 70 yards on 35 carries or just 2.0 yards a crack.

But without the crowd-noise factor, the pass rush disappeared. And that was the Achilles' heel everyone feared coming into this season.

The way to counter that, of course, is to blitz more and get more creative defensively. The Seahawks didn't seem to take many chances Sunday and Orton picked them apart.


Top Pot delivers: Golden Tate deserves to play. Bottom line. Period.

This game would have played out much differently if Walter Thurmond hadn't muffed Denver's first punt and handed the Broncos a 7-0 lead just moments after Seattle's offense had blown a golden opportunity to score itself.

That 14-point swing was too much to overcome on the road. Tate replaced Thurmond and returned two points for 82 yards, including a 63-yard beauty the first time he touched the ball.

He also caught a 52-yard pass on his first reception in the NFL after being inactive last week.

That would be 134 yards on three touches of the football, or precisely the kind of playmaking ability everyone talked about all training camp.

OK, apparently he isn't the best route runner yet. But he is the most elusive, gifted athlete on the offense. Play him.


Missing in action: Where was Mike Williams in this game? Why not more Leon Washington out of the backfield? Just as with Tate, this team needs to get the most out of its playmakers.

Credit the Broncos for keeping Seattle off the field with 37:27 time of possession, largely because of 14-of-20 on third-down conversion (after the 49ers were 1-of-15 a week earlier).

But when Seattle does have the ball, why waste carries with Julius Jones? Justin Forsett and Washington clearly have more burst. Forsett got just eight carries for 44 yards. He looked good early, but never got into the flow after the first quarter.

Washington scarcely played until garbage time.

Williams had a thigh injury this week that might have limited his effectiveness, but that didn't explain why -- on a critical fourth-and-2 at Denver's 20 with 2:20 left in the third quarter -- the Seahawks attempted a deep shot to Deion Branch in the back of the end zone against Pro Bowl corner Champ Bailey.

Trailing 24-7 at the time, that was about as low-percentage of a play as you could come up with. The Seahawks came out in a two wide-receiver formation and didn't give Matt Hasselbeck many options or themselves much of a chance.

Was that Michael Vick?: Not sure it means much, but in the last six years Hasselbeck had run for two touchdowns. Two games into this season, he's run for two TDs.

Probably more significant is the fact that no Seattle running back has yet run for a score, though Forsett had one called back Sunday by a Sean Locklear holding penalty.


Pick-ing them apart: The more significant stat for Hasselbeck was three interceptions. Seattle won't win games when that happens.

No, I'm not calling for Charlie Whitehurst, but that is 13 picks by Hasselbeck in his last five games. Not a good trend.


NFC Worst: Not really sure what we know yet about this Seahawks' club. They thumped San Francisco at home, got thumped by Denver on the road.

The San Diego Chargers come to Qwest next week on the heels of a 38-13 home victory over Jacksonville. Phillip Rivers will have a field day unless Seattle pressures him, which may be possible with the homefield advantage.

One thing we do know, the NFC West is indeed up for grabs. Arizona got drilled 41-7 at Atlanta to fall to 1-1.

The Rams dropped to 0-2 with a 16-14 loss at Oakland.

The 49ers must beat defending champion New Orleans on Monday night to avoid an 0-2 start and things already are shaky with coach Mike Singletary.

So the Seahawks at 1-1 look as good as anybody in the division, for what that's worth, even in the wake of Sunday's lopsided loss.

http://blog.seattlepi.com/football/archives/221900.asp
 
savage

savage

OG
#854
Feb 14, 2004
16,667
4,746
113
41
#854
Golden Tate forcing his way into Seahawks' plans

Turns out, if you average 44.7 yards every time you touch the football, people notice.

So it is that Seahawks rookie Golden Tate figures to see increasing time in the coming weeks after his eye-opening playmaking debut in a limited role Sunday at Denver.

Coach Pete Carroll announced Monday that Tate would be his regular punt returner now after he breaking off runs of 63 and 19 on his two chances against the Broncos.

"We can't afford to take him out of there," Carroll said.

Toss in a 52-yard reception on his first NFL catch as a wide receiver and the rookie clearly made his case for a bigger piece of playing time after being inactive a week earlier, unable to crack the 45-man game day roster in the season opener.

"He's just made it hard for us not to have him active and not to have him out on the field," quarterback Matt Hasselbeck said.

He got no argument from Carroll, who said the second-round draft pick out of Notre Dame would be more involved going forward.

"Absolutely," said Carroll. "We've loved what he's done so far. If you noticed in preseason, every time he's in there we're throwing the ball to him and doing stuff with him. It's really an interesting factor for us if we can get this thing really going because he's a very special player."

Tate's situation has been a little confusing to this point. His playmaking ability jumped out at anyone watching the offseason workouts and early training camp practices and the expectation was he'd be pushed to the fore quickly by Carroll in his pronounced youth movement.

Instead, as camp progressed, Tate's role regressed. He got very little playing time with the first unit in preseason games, the coaches saying he needed to work more on route-running precision.

And when it was time to name the 45 active players for the season opener, Tate was left off the list. The rookie admitted to being surprised by that move, but vowed to work hard to make sure it never happened again.

He made the 45-man active list Sunday in Denver, but even then the Seahawks trotted rookie cornerback Walter Thurmond out as their return man for the Broncos' first punt.

Only after Thurmond muffed that kick in a crucial, game-changing play in the first quarter did Tate get his shot. His first opportunity was a dodge-and-dart 63-yard return, followed by a similarly electric 52-yard catch.

Carroll said he'd wanted to give Thurmond an opportunity to contribute, but Tate's skill as "a great catcher" and his elusiveness and decision-making ability made him "a guy we need to keep back there."

As for his receiving role, the bald fellow throwing the ball seems just fine with having the rookie worked into the game plan.

"It's been my experience when you show up in practice, you get plays in games," Hasselbeck said. "When you show up in games, you continue to get more plays in the games.

"And he didn't have that many plays, but even the go-route, or the short go-route that we threw to him on the left-hand side, that was just sort of a 'Hey, you know what? He just made a play, let's see if he can make another one.' And that's kind of what happens.

"The week before it was Mike Williams and then he got hurt, so we weren't sure if he was going to be there, so we tried to find some extra offense and put in a couple plays for Golden and he took advantage. So last week he had a few. He might have a few more this week."

Carroll sounded almost apologetic about Tate's inactive status a week earlier, saying he didn't "want anybody to misread what happened" and that it simply wasn't time yet for the youngster.

Now that he got his shot?

"He took advantage of it," Carroll said. "Bang, he's on there. So I'm really thrilled about him being part of it. I really trust this kid.

"While he doesn't have all of the background and all of the stuff together as good as he will in days ahead, he is such an instinctive competitive kid that he's going to make things happen. So I'm really excited about what he'll be able to do as we get going here."



http://blog.seattlepi.com/football/archives/222057.asp
 
savage

savage

OG
#860
Feb 14, 2004
16,667
4,746
113
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#860
Seahawks making progress, even if it didn't show in final score at Denver

The 17-point loss in Denver was the latest in Seattle's list of double-digit defeats on the road, 13 and counting now since the 2008 season began.

But there was a bright side to Sunday's 31-14 loss in Denver.

A couple, actually, and you don't need rose-colored glasses nor a magnifying glass to see them. Just a willingness to disregard the ball for a few plays and look at the men built like refrigerators who wage a battle of strength and attrition over four quarters.

Seattle's offensive and defensive lines did better than hold up at the line of scrimmage in Denver. They controlled it. This wasn't another instance of Seattle getting flattened like roadkill.

Maybe that's because Denver started two rookies on the offensive line and its defense features a relatively anonymous front seven. Or maybe — just maybe — it was a sign of progress for a team bullied so often the past two seasons.

The Seahawks' running game that has operated at a crawl for more than a year now showed improvement and the rush defense that held firm against San Francisco was even more formidable against Denver.

Sunday's defeat should not be confused with the beatings Seattle was subjected to last season when the Seahawks suffered through their two lowest game rushing totals in franchise history.

Seattle ran for 109 yards against the Broncos, and while that is well short of extraordinary, it does constitute improvement, something rarely seen on the ground the past four seasons.

Seattle is one of four teams in the league that has not had a 1,000-yard rusher in any of the previous four seasons. Detroit, New England and Tampa Bay are the others.

That might not change this season. Not with the way Seattle rotates its backs. Justin Forsett is the starter, but Julius Jones and Leon Washington have been getting carries, too, and Michael Robinson has been productive in his limited opportunities.

Now, don't get carried away and pronounce the ground game healed. The Seahawks are No. 20 in the league in rushing yards after two weeks, and both of their rushing touchdowns have been scored by quarterback Matt Hasselbeck, who had not scored any the previous four seasons.

"Now that he's a runner, too, we've decided that we're going to install some other aspects of the offense to accentuate that," coach Pete Carroll joked.

Just like Michael Vick in Philadelphia, right?

"We have watched Philadelphia tape here today," Carroll said.

So how about it, Hasselbeck?

"I don't think you should continue to look for that," he said. "That's not something I know how to duplicate."

The rushing defense, however, looks like something Seattle can begin to count on. In Week 1, the Seahawks held the 49ers' Frank Gore to 38 yards rushing. This past week, the Broncos averaged fewer than 2 yards per carry.

"We're seeing that we can play the line of scrimmage very well," Carroll said. "We're very stout, very consistent from the start of the game to the end of the game."

It's not a total surprise. The Seahawks allowed only two opposing players to gain 100 yards on the ground last season.

After moving Red Bryant to defensive end, the Seahawks have three starting defensive linemen who weigh more than 320 pounds, and they have two games that show that this is a defense capable of digging its heels in and trading body blows between the tackles.

There was a big improvement Sunday. It just didn't show up in the final score.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/seahawks/2012959505_hawk22.html?syndication=rss
 
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