Quarterback controversy leaves folks sleepless in Seattle

By Kshell

The Seattle Seahawks recent 19-13 loss to the St.Louis Rams has caused a quarterback controversy. Rookie quarterback Russell Wilson struggled as he threw three interceptions in the loss to the Rams. For the fourth straight week Wilson has thrown for under 200 yards as well. The Seahawks currently have the #1 rushing attack in the NFL, the #2 defense and are just 2-2 because their passing offense ranks last. For third year head coach Pete Carroll is facing an uncomfortable quaterback controversy. Sitting behind Wilson is Matt Flynn who the Seahawks had signed to be their starting quarterback. Due to Wilson's preseason play and perhaps Flynn's sore elbow Carroll decided to go with Wilson to start this year. Now in this following post I'll go over what each quarterback brings to the table while also acknowledging each quarterbacks flaws. I also talk about how the play calling regardless of who is quarterback must improve. As well as I bring up another quarterback controversy that almost sank a franchise quarterback and his third year head coach.

Russell Wilson the current starting quarterback is struggling this year. He is 60-100(60.0%) passing for 594 yards(5.9 YPA) with four touchdowns and four interceptions. His quarterback rating is 73.5 and has 80 yards rushing. Wilson has been hurt by poor wide receiver play and terrible play calling by Darrell Bevell. Wilson brings good intangibles to the table and appears to be the future in Seattle. However, he gets flushed too much when he faces a blitz and can't seem to locate his men down field. His size is hurting him and thus the Seahawks. He has a good running game as Marshawn Lynch this year has ran for 423 yards(4.6 YPC) in four games with two touchdown. He is supported by a great defense which constantly gives him good field position yet the Seahawks are averaging just 17.5 points per game. It's not all Wilson's fault but as quarterback he must shoulder some of the blame.

Matt Flynn was brought in to start for the Seahawks as he signed a 3 year 19 million dollar deal this offseason. During this preseason Flynn was 28-39(71.8%) passing for 204 yards(5.2 YPA) with one touchdown and one interception. His rating was 81.6 and he was hurt by a costly Terrell Owens dropped touchdown against Denver. He has proven he can play well in the NFL too as he had one big breakout game last season against the Detroit Lions where he was 31-44(70.5%) passing for 480 yards(10.9 YPA) with six touchdowns to just one interception. Flynn's rating for the game was 136.4 as he beat out Bart Starr, Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers for most passing yards and touchdowns in a single game for Packers history.

The knock of Flynn is he has only started two games in his NFL career. He was a backup in college for three years and a backup in Green Bay for four seasons. Another knock on Flynn is that he isn't mobile so Wilson who avoids a lot of sacks might see Flynn get sacked. Flynn also had a better supporting cast in his tune up games with Green Bay than he will in Seattle. Flynn currently has a "sore elbow" which is still debatable if true or not. However it was sore enough for him to miss a preseason start which allowed Wilson to start to begin with. The main knock against Flynn is that nobody outside of Seattle wanted him this past offseason. Mike Holmgren of the Cleveland Browns passed on him to draft Brandon Weeden. His old offensive coordinator in Green Bay Joe Philbin became the head coach for the Miami Dolphins who needed a quarterback. The Dolphins passed on Flynn as well which should be a red flag. Bottom line is regardless of who Carroll chooses the play calling must improve as both quarterbacks are inexperienced right now.

In 2001 then third year head coach Mike Holmgren brought in Matt Hasselbeck to his starting quarterback of the future. Hasselbeck was completely unproven as he had only attempted 29 passes in his career prior to being traded to Seattle. The Baltimore Ravens had just released super bowl winning quarterback Trent Dilfer to back up Hasselbeck. That is where the problems began as the Seahawks hada playoff roster that year but Hasselbeck simply wasn't ready. The Seahawks had gone 9-7 that year but were 5-7 in Hasselbeck's starts while going 4-0 in Dilfers.

Hasselbeck that year was 176-321(54.8%) passing for 2,023 yards(6.3 YPA) with seven touchdowns to eight interceptions with a quarterback rating of 70.9. While Dilfer was 73-122(59.8%) passing for 1,014 yards(8.3 YPA) with seven touchdowns to four interceptions good for a quarterback rating of 92.0. The Seahawks missed the playoffs by one game losing two close games when Hasselbeck had started. Holmgren benched Hasselbeck to end the year and the city had turned on Hasselbeck as the franchise decided to go with Dilfer. Hasselbeck was public enemy #1 in Seattle as the sports were doing well with the Mariners winning 116 games and the Huskies coming off of a Rose Bowl championship season.

The following season Dilfer was named starting quarterback. He would immediately get hurt in the first preseason game(first game at Seahawks stadium) and Hasselbeck would come in to a shower of boo's. The fans wanted Dilfer and wanted Hasselbeck gone. Holmgren now in year four was running on thin ice with this franchise as well as he was only 24-24 after three seasons. His decision to go with Hasselbeck cost the Seahawks the playoffs in 2001 and the fans didn't forgive either guy.

Well in 2002 in the middle of the season Dilfer got hurt so the franchise had no choice but to go with Hasselbeck. Hasselbeck played well down the stretch as the Seahawks went from 4-9 to 7-9 saving Holmgren's job. The following year Hasselbeck was the guy but whenever he struggled you still had that small contingent of fans yelling at the games "put in Dilfer". Hasselbeck would lead the Seahawks to the playoffs in 2003 and 2004. When the Seahawks traded Dilfer after 2004 the quarterback controversy was forever gone. Hasselbeck could relax and led the franchise to the Super Bowl in 2005. His jersey was the most popular jersey in the city as he was the most popular athlete in the city. Holmgren of course ended up winning four straight division titles from 2004-07. I feel like fans forgot that chapter in the Holmgren/Hasselbeck era of Seattle sports.

I think Carroll should make the switch to Flynn. He was brought in to start at quarterback and played well enough in preseason to not lose his job. I think Flynn can handle the pressure better than Wilson as he can see downfield more. He proved on his deep pass to Terrell Owens he can crank up a deep throw. I also fear Wilson is headed towards the Hasselbeck path of 2001-02 where the fans start to turn on him. This team has the #2 defense and #1 rushing attack. This is a playoff team and this fan base is starving for wins. I would hate for Wilson's career to be ruined before it even begins. Hasselbeck got lucky in that Dilfer was injured or who knows how his career in Seattle turns out? You can't expect that to happen again. I think you go with Flynn and see what he can bring to the table as Wilson learns. I'm not writing off Wilson but he is a rookie and I felt when he was drafted he'd compete with Flynn for the job in the second year not his first year.

Regardless of who is the quarterback this entire offense needs to improve. Doesn't matter if Flynn starts over Wilson if they continue to get stupid penalties that kills drives, dropping passes or not running Lynch on third and shorts. I'd also like to see the offense throw short safe passes on first down to get the quarterback in rhythm, The Seahawks face a four game stretch where they will be underdogs in all four games and a coach who is 16-20 right now can't afford to drop to 2-6 in year three. I think Flynn gives you the best chance right now while also helping your future with Wilson developing behind him. I don't want the city to turn on Wilson as that is my fear after this game. I also think Flynn could make a few more plays than Wilson which given that the Seahawks two losses were both close that could be enough. This is a difficult decision for Carroll who has yet to find a quarterback since getting rid of Matt Hasselbeck. Either way whoever the quarterback is the Seahawks must help him out or it won't matter who the quarterback is.

Rookie Baldwin has big day in Seahawks stunning 36-25 upset win over Giants

By Kshell

The Seattle Seahawks(2-3) stunned the New York Giants(3-2) in the medowlands 36-25. Seahawks defense recorded a safety, a pick six while forcing five turnovers during the game. Seahawks no huddle offense continued to work this week as the Giants were on their heels entire first half. Marshawn Lynch had his best game of the season rushing for 98 yards with a touchdown. Tarvaris Jackson started the game off red hot then was injured as his backup Charlie Whitehurst threw the game winning touchdown pass in the fourth quarter. The Seahawks will now have a quarterback controversy. While the main star in this game was rookie wide receiver Doug Baldwin who had eight receptions for 136 yards with the game winning touchdown. For the Seahawks season to matter this was a must win. Now the Seahawks will head into their bye week at 2-3 and kicking themselves for losing last week 30-28 at home. The Seahawks won a game on the road which nobody expected them to do. This was the first win in the Eastern time zone for the Seahawks since 2007. This was an all around great team win for Pete Carroll and his Seahawks. The Seahawks the last six quarters actually look like a playoff football team.

The Seahawks did something against the Giants they hadn't done the previous four games which is score in the first quarter. In fact the Seahawks continued their no huddle attack which worked so well in the second half against the Falcons. The Seahawks began their drive from their 20 yard line which they let Tarvaris Jackson come out throwing. Jackson began the game with a completion to Ben Obomanu for a gain of nine yards. Jackson hit Lynch for a gain of 17 yards. Jackson hit Obomanu again for a gain of 11 yards to the Giants 43 yard line. After a four yard run by Justin Forsett to the Giants 39 yard line Jackson completed yet another pass to Sidney Rice for a gain of 16 yards. The Giants committed a 12 yard penalty helmet to helmet giving the Seahawks the ball on the 11 yard line. After an incomplete pass Jackson finished off the drive with an 11 yard touchdown pass to Obomanu to give the Seahawks an early 7-0 lead. For the Seahawks that was the first time all season long they had scored in the first quarter as the no huddle confused the Giants defense. Jackson was five for six passing on the drive for 64 yards including the touchdown.

The Giants were led by their quarterback Eli Manning who would respond to the Seahawks score with a score of his own. The drive began with a short run by Manning then a 13 yard run by Ahmad Bradshaw which he followed up with a five yard run. Manning hit Mario Manningham for a gain of 17 yards to the Seahawks 43 yard line. Manning hit Jake Ballard for a big gain of 28 yards to the Seahawks 15 yard line. After a short three yard run by Victor Cruz, Manning finally finished off the drive with a 12 yard strike to his tight end Ballard to tie up the game at 7-7. For the drive Manning was three for three passing for 57 yards with a touchdown. The Giants made that drive look pretty easy on the Seahawks secondary as it appeared Manning was poise to have a big day. He would have a big day yardage wise but far as being productive not as much as many expected.

What would happen next was a crazy swing of momentum trading places for both teams. After a Seahawks punt the Giants had the ball on their own 14 yard line. Facing a third and seven from the 17 yard line Manning was sacked by Chris Clemons which Manning fumbled. The ball was recovered by Earl Thomas on the Giants 11 yard line. After an incomplete pass the Seahawks gave the ball to Marshawn Lynch who fumbled the ball right back to the Giants. The Seahawks defense would three and out the Giants after the missed opportunity to take over on the Giants 48 line. Lynch would make up for his mistake as he busted his longest run of the season. Lynch ran for 47 yards down to the Giants one yard line showing a rare burst of speed. Lynch rushed for his second touchdown of the season with a one yard plunge to give the Seahawks a 14-7 lead on the road.

The Seahawks defense continued to dominate the Giants forcing them to punt on the following possession. The Seahawks took over from their own 13 yard line up 14-7 in the second quarter. Facing a third and seven from the 16 yard line Jackson hit Doug Baldwin for a gain of 21 yards. Jackson hit Baldwin again for a gain of 25 yards to the Giants 38 yard line. Lynch followed that up with a run of 13 yards to the Giants 25 yard line. Lynch then had a six yard rush to the 19 and after a first down run by Forsett was called back due to holding. Second and 14 Jackson hit Obomanu for a gain of six to set up third and eight from the Giants 23 yard line. Jackson hit Obomanu again for a gain of seven yards to set up fourth and one from the 16. Carroll decided to go for it as Jackson ran for two yards on a quarterback keeper to the 14 yard line. Jackson hit Obomanu again for seven yards to the seven yard line. On second and three fullback Michael Robinson ran for two yards to the Giants five yard line. Facing a third and one Robinson ran again for a gain of three yards to the two yard line. Robinson who had one carry all season would receive another carry going for a yard but fumbled on the two yard line so the Seahawks came up empty. Later in the game Earl Thomas intercepted Manning to the 50 yard line but the Seahawks offfense couldn't take advantage of the mistake.

The Seahawks would have the ball at midfield with under two minutes left in the half up 14-7. Jackson hit Leon Washington for a gain of six yards but after getting sacked was facing a crucial third and five. Jackson instead of throwing the ball away lobbed the ball down the sidelines to be picked off. Giants had the ball on their own 41 yard line 51 seconds left in the half. Manning would begin the drive hitting Hakeem Nicks for a gain of 12 yards. With 29 seconds left he hit Manningham for a gain of 10 yards to the Seahawks 37 yard line. Manning then hit Nicks for a gain of 18 yards to the Seahawks 19 yard line. Manning finished off the drive hitting Nicks on a fade pass burning Walter Thurmond who is filling in for Marcus Trufant. Despite dominating the first half the Giants had tied the game up at 14-14 heading into the second half.

The third quarter began with both teams trading off punts. The Seahawks took over on their own 29 yard line which saw Tarvaris Jackson rush for a gain of 11 yards to their own 40 yard line. In the process Jackson was injured and had to leave the game. Jackson wouldn't return and was replaced by Charlie Whitehurst. After a short run and a penalty Whitehurst hit Baldwin for a gain of seven yards to set up a third and eight. Then the Seahawks had another false start setting up a third and 13 which Whitehurst hit Baldwin for a gain of 10 yards. Punting from their own 47 yard line John Ryan pinned the Giants on their own five yard line. The Giants from their five yard line tried a stretch play to backup runningback Ware which was blown up by Anthony Hargrove. Hargrove tackled him in the endzone for a safety to give the Seahawks a 16-14 lead.


With 2:13 left in the third quarter the Seahawks took over with the ball on their own 34 yard line. On second down Whitehurst hit Rice for a gain of nine yards setting up a huge third and one from the 43 yard line. Whitehurst hit Rice over the middle with a bullet for a gain of 11 to the Giants 46 yard line. After an incomplete pass the Seahawks then turned to Lynch who busted an 18 yard run to the Giants 28 yard line. After back to back runs by Lynch set up third and five from the 23 yard line. Whitehurst was then sacked by former Seahawks safety Deon Grant pushing the Seahawks all the way back to the Giants 33 yard line. That set up a 51 yard attempt by Steve Hauschka who missed the game winning kick last week badly. This week Hauschka drilled the 51 yarder with ease. In fact he made it look so easy that looking back maybe Carroll knew what he was doing by asking Hauschka to attempt the game winning kick from 61 yards out. In the fourth quarter with now their backup quarterback on the road the Seahawks were leading 19-14 over the Giants. The fourth quarter would be a wild quarter with plenty of momentum changing plays for both sides. What happened next for the Giants is the type of play that normally would have broke the Seahawks spirits instead they kept playing through it.

What happened next to the Seahawks was a rather unfortunate play that at the time looked like turned the game for the worse. Facing a second and 18 from their own 27 yard line Manning hit Victor Cruz for a gain of five yards setting up a big third and 13 from the 32 yard line. Manning would roll to his right then throw the ball up for grabs. Seahawks safety Kam Chancellor tipped the ball in mid air while cornerback Richard Sherman went for the ball. Cruz caught the ball with one hand then rumbled for a 68 yard touchdown score to give the Giants 20-19 lead. Since the Giants were up by just one point they decided to go for two. Manning saw the Seahawks defense was weak up the middle so he audibled to a running play to Bradshaw up the middle. The Giants led 22-19 with 11 minutes left in the game.

After the Giants defense stuffed the Seahawks offense their offense took over up three points. The Giants then looked like the Giants of old which has hurt them in the past with a costly turnover. Facing a third and seven Manning would hit the hero Cruz for a gain of five yards only for Cruz to fumble the ball. Chancellor recovered the ball on the Giants 25 yard line to give the Seahawks new life. Whitehurst couldn't take advantage of the great field possession as the Seahawks didn't even advance the ball a single yard. Hauschka would tie the game up with a 43 yard field goal at 22-22 with 10:15 left in the game. The Giants would go on a long five and a half minute drive starting from their own 20 yard line. Bradshaw began the drive with two runs of 12 yards to their own 32 yard line. Manning would then hit a 17 yard pass to the 49 yard line. Manning hit tight end Ballard for a gain of 32 yards as he was dragging defenders down to the Seahawks 19 yard line. After a Bradshaw run of nine yards then a short rush the Giants had first and goal from the seven yard line. That is when the Seahawks defense would get tough and hold the Giants to a field goal. The Seahawks were trailing 25-22 with less than five mintues to go for Whitehurst needed a field goal for the tie and a touchdown for the win.

Whitehurst would create a quarterback controversy with this drive starting on his own 20 yard line. Whitehurst began the drive hitting Baldwin for a gain of 22 yards to their own 42 yard line. After an incomplete pass and a short three yard run by Washington the Seahawks were facing a huge third and seven from their own 45 yard line with 4:03 left in the game. Whitehurst hit Baldwin for a gain of eight yards for the first down. Whitehurst then hit Anthony McCoy down the middle for a gain of 20 yards to the Giants 27 yard line with a little over three minutes left. After a rush of no gain for Lynch is when Whitehurst would hit his biggest pass of his career. Whitehurst had a hard count which caused the Giants to jump offsides. Thinking the play was over most of the Giants defenders quit on the  play which Whitehurst saw a wide open Baldwin to his left. Whitehurst hit Baldwin for the go ahead touchdown to give the Seahawks a 29-25 lead with 2:37 left in the game. On the drive Whitehurst was four for five passing for 77 yards with the go ahead score. Whitehurst who to that point hadn't played very well will create a controversy for sure. More importantly for the Seahawks they had to stop Manning who was shredding their secondary with 2:37 left in the game up just four points.

Manning had one last drive left in him to scare Seahawks fans. Manning began the drive hitting Bradshaw for what should have been a two yard gain but Aaron Curry missed the tackle. Bradshaw would turn that into a gain of 15 yards to their own 35 yard line. Right before the two minute warning Manning would hit Cruz again for another huge play which went for 41 yards to the Seahawks 24 yard line. The Giants had to score a touchdown but time was no longer a problem for them. Manning then hit Cruz for a gain of 19 yards to the Seahawks five yard line with 1:27 left in the game. After a five yard penalty the Giants had the ball on the Seahawks 10 yard line. Manning hit Cruz who originally slipped on his route, then attempted another one handed catch. As he was going to the ground the ball slipped off his one hand as Brandon Browner snatched the ball. Browner then made his way up the right sidelines for a 94 yard interception touchdown return to give the Seahawks a commanding 36-25 lead with a little over a minute left in the game. That return was the longest interception return in Seahawks franchise history. The game would end as Manning was driving the Giants then would thrown another interception to Chancellor at the Seahawks 42 yard line. The Seahawks pulled off by far the biggest upset of the weekend winning their first road game on the east coast since 2007.

The Seahawks won this game on the road despite allowing a career high 420 yards passing to Eli Manning. Manning finished the game 24-39(61.5%) for 420 yards(10.8 YPA) with three touchdown passes but three interceptions with a fumble too. Victor Cruz had eight receptions for 161 yards with a touchdown but a costly fumble. The Seahawks defense caused five turnovers and a safety. The Seahawks had two quarterbacks play well today. First starter Tarvaris Jackson was 15-22(68.2%) for 166 yards(7.5 YPA) with a touchdown and an interception. Charlie Whitehurst off the bench was 11-19(57.9%) for 149 yards(7.8 YPA) with the game winning touchdown. Both quarterbacks benefitted from a breakout game by Baldwin who had eight receptions for 136 yards with a touchdown. Ben Obomanu also had six receptions for 51 yards with a touchdown. Rice had four receptions for 38 yards. The Seahawks also saw Marshawn Lynch have his best game of the year. Lynch rushed for 98 yards(8.2 YPC) on 12 carries with a touchdown. Lynch also caught four passes for 33 yards which proved to be his best all around game. The Seahawks safety play was great as well with Thomas and Chancellor each recovering a fumble then also intercepting a pass.

All in all, the Seahawks needed this win very badly as they improve to 2-3. The Seahawks have officially ended all "Suck for Luck" talk which will make some fans happy while other fans will be upset. The Seahawks offense actually played pretty well due to the no-huddle offense as both quarterbacks played pretty well while Lynch had his second best game as a Seahawk. The receivers made some plays which was nice to see that if Rice doesn't make any plays then nobody can. The defense despite giving up so many passing yards caused turnovers which is what defenses are all about in today's game. Overall, this was a huge win for the Seahawks this season as they are trying to defend their NFC west championship. Carroll showed with that win plus the Saints win last year he can beat his opponent despite not having as much talent as the other team. Carroll showed he is a top tier coach and hopefully the wins will start following him.

Observations:

- We have a quarterback controversy in Seattle due to Whitehurst hitting the game winning pass. Like last year with the win over the Rams I'm going to stick with the starter. I felt Jackson out played him and dating back to last week Jackson has played well in the no huddle offense Jackson threw for 166 yards completing 68.2% of his passes in the process. While Whitehurst threw for 149 yards while completing 57.9% of his passes in the process.

I think I'll trust Carroll's player evaluation over mine. Carroll has seen these guys in practice every day plus in the film room. Jackson started off slow but is looking pretty decent especially in the no huddle offense. Whitehurst looked a lot better than he did during anytime last season. Are either of these quarterbacks going to take the Seahawks to the promise land? No. I do like the fact that the quarterbacks both of them when asked performed well. I do like how both seem to have improved quite a bit over last season.

- Doug Baldwin has been a terrific pick up for the Seahawks. Baldwin was an undrafted receiver out of Stanford who made the team. For the season Baldwin has had 20 receptions for 330 yards(16.5 YPC) with two touchdowns already. That puts Baldwin on pace to catch 64 passes for 1,065 yards with 6.5 touchdowns. Those are great rookie numbers let alone a guy who was undrafted coming out of college. Considering second round pick Golden Tate still is taking forever to adjust to this offense that is impressive.

Baldwin had a breakout game with eight receptions for 136 yards with a touchdown. He caught the winning touchdown pass and was constantly catching big passes. This is the third week out of five games Baldwin has led the team in receiving yards for that particular game. The Seahawks might have found a gem in Baldwin like they did last season with Mike Williams.

- Marshawn Lynch finally had the type of game Seahawks fans have been waiting for. Lynch ran for 98 yards on just 12 carries with a touchdown. Lynch also caught four passes out of the backfield. Lynch did have a costly redzone fumble but he rebounded nicely with a long 47 yard run. Lynch actually showed a burst of speed for once which I haven't seen him do all season long. This was easily Lynch's best game of the season given the amount of yards he had, the yards per carry, the amount of receptions and even the touchdown. Going forward this is what the Seahawks need from Lynch if they have any chance of being a playoff team this year. Lynch needs to factor into the passing game more often in my opinion so when he does get shut down he is still a productive member to the team.

- This was an impressive win for Carroll and his group. He saw his best corner Marcus Trufant miss this game and second best receiver Mike Williams miss the game. His starting quarterback(Tarvaris Jackson) went down in the middle of the game as well. This was a team who gave the Seahawks their most embarassing loss of the season last year when the Seahawks lost 41-7 at home to the Giants. For Carroll to have his team rebound from that tough home loss to Falcons and win on the east coast was very impressive. I don't know if Carroll is the best president in the NFL but I do know the man can coach up talent as well as anyone in the NFL. Carroll didn't buy into the top 10 draft talk like he didn't last year. Carroll is trying his best to win this year because in the NFL you can't afford to tank a season or you could be out of a job very quickly.

In conclusion, this was a must win for the Seahawks and they responded well. Carroll has this team believing even though their fanbase(me) isn't quite yet believing. The Seahawks will now head into the bye week at 2-3 then take on the Cleveland Browns whose team president is Mike Holmgren. The Seahawks had a great game from their offense, defense and special teams. This was a total team effort and they had several opportunities to get down on themselves which they didn't. The Seahawks defeated a good team on the road and maybe as the season goes on this young team can play better together. The Seahawks showed sunday they are far from being dead in this NFC West playoff picture which Carroll has his team believing they can repeat as division champions.

comPETE?

By Kshell


This week the Seattle Seahawks(0-2) will finally play at home for the first time in the 2011 regular season. The Seahawks enter the second season of the Pete Carroll regime with little to no hope in their season opener. The reason for the lack of enthusiasm surrounding the Seahawks home opener is due to the Seahawks lack of offense. Last week the Seahawks were shutout 24-0 to the Pittsburgh Steelers while the previous week they lost 33-17 to the San Francisco 49ers. The Seahawks didn't look very good in the preseason either as their first string offense scored just three points against the opposing teams first string defense. This week Carroll is benching fourth pick overall in the 2009 draft Aaron Curry has he has been a complete bust for the Seahawks. For Carroll he is always preaching competition yet when it comes to one situation which has all the fans very confused. For whatever reason Carroll recently spoke highly of quarterback Tarvaris Jackson. He isn't opening up the quarterback position up for competition despite Jackson being an unproven quarterback. So that begs the question how can you claim you are about competition when the most important position on the team isn't about competition?

The decision to blindly support Tarvaris Jackson is a confusing one indeed. At first glance Jackson doesn't have bad numbers as he is completing 62.1% of his passes with only one interception in 66 pass attempts. Then when you dig deeper you see Jackson has only two touchdown passes with 356 yards passing. He is averaging 5.4 YPA and has been sacked 10 times for 68 yards. So in 76 called passing plays the Seahawks have just  288 yards(3.8 YPA) which is pathetic. The Seahawks have only 16 first downs through the air which shows that Jackson can't complete a pass longer than five yards. Jackson was shaky in Minnesota and was outplayed by Charlie Whitehurst in the preseason. For a man who preaches competition the fans in Seattle are left wondering what Carroll is thinking. Does Carroll have enough faith in his job that he can afford to tank a season for Andrew Luck? Something must be happening that the fans aren't seeing. The decision to not even have Jackson compete for the starting job seems ludacris. When the Seahawks signed Jackson he was immediately named the starting quarterback despite being benched for Gus Ferrotte in Minnesota. Jackson was a backup quarterback the last two seasons in Minnesota. I think that was Carroll's first mistake was not letting Charlie Whitehurst even compete for the starting job. The fact that mr.competition just handed the job to basically an unproven quarterback has the fans in Seattle left wondering if Carroll truly knows what he is doing.

What makes the move to stick with Jackson even more confusing is the fact that Whitehurst was Carroll's hand picked quarterback to take over for Matt Hasselbeck. Whitehurst didn't come cheap either as the Seahawks traded back in the second round 20 spots and then gave up their third round draft pick this season. Last year Whitehurst completed 57.6% of his passes for two touchdowns to three interceptions. His YPA was pretty low at 5.1 while being sacked just five times in 99 pass attempts. Whitehurst did play terrific in the Seahawks NFC West clinching win over the Rams a game in which was the only time he prepared as the starting quarterback all week long. Whitehurst was 20-36(61.1%) of his passes for 192 yards with a touchdown and no interceptions. Whitehurst also ran for 30 yards while not being sacked once not to mention outplayed Jackson in the preseason. Whitehurst isn't the answer long term for the franchise but if Carroll was serious about winning this season he would start Whitehurst over Jackson. Whitehurst gives the team a chance to actually move the ball and score some points. Mr.Competition sticking with Jackson over his hand pick quarterback has to leave the fans wondering if Carroll truly knows something we don't.

In conclusion, I don't ever want to hear Carroll claim he is all about competition when he clearly isn't.  The team obviously isn't trying to win this season or they would have brought Matt Hasselbeck back instead of the joke that is Jackson. Carroll is obviously tanking this season which is fine and all as you need to be terrible to be great. I just don't want Carroll to pretend this season isn't a rebuilding project and for the Seahawks to not charge the fans full price for such a terrible product. The Seahawks quarterback situation is a mess and if Carroll was serious about winning he would make a change. He would at the very least let Whitehurst compete for Jackson's job. Instead mr.competition will continue to go with Jackson over the quarterback that he gave up a few draft picks for. Mr.competition come to find out is all about competition unless it involves the most important position on the team. This is going to be a long year watching Jackson hold the ball forever as he makes Trent Edwards look like the mad bomber.

Steelers shutout Seahawks 24-0

By  Kshell

The Pittsburgh Steelers(1-1) shutout the Seattle Seahawks(0-2) 24-0 for the Seahawks first shutout loss since the last time they played in Pittsburgh which was a 21-0 loss back in 2007. The Steelers have no shutout the Seahawks in back to back games since beating them in Super Bowl XL. There will be no blaming the refs this game as the Seahawks had just 164 total yards of offense. Meanwhile the Steelers had 421 yards of offense. The Steelers were led by Ben Roethlisberger who threw for 298 yards with a touchdown on the game. The Seahawks had just eight first downs. Their leading rusher was Tarvaris Jackson who had 12 yards rushing showing the Seahawks had no rushing game. The Seahawks longest play was only 17 yards on the day as their offense under second year coach Pete Carroll appears to be heading towards a very long season.

The Steelers began the game like a team looking to avenge their loss from the week before. On the opening drive the Steelers drove down the field 81 yards in eight plays highlighted by a Roethlisberger 30 yard pass. The Seahawks though had a great goaline stand to stop the Steelers on the one yard line. The Seahawks offense did go three and out from their own one yard line. So the Steelers took over on their own 40 yard line where they marched down the field again. After an incomplete pass by Roethlisberger, Rashard Mendenhall ran for a gain of nine yards. Then on third and one, Roethlisberger hit Mike Wallace for a gain of six. Mendenhall ran for nine yards followed up by a Roethlisberger completion to Isaac Redman for a gain of six yards to the Seahawks 30 yard line. Then on a double reverse pass to Hines Ward to the Seahawks 15 yard line, Mendenhall had two carries for 14 yards to the one yard line. Then Mendenhall ended the drive with a one yard touchdown run to give the Steelers a 7-0 lead.

After the Seahawks offense continued to do nothing. The Steelers with the short field took over on their own 47 yard line. Isaac Redman started the drive off with a five yard run, then on third and five Roethlisberger again extended the drive with a nine yard pass. Roethlisberger hit Wallace for a gain of 16 yards to the Seahawks 23 yard line. After a short run of three yards, Redman then ran for a 20 yard touchdown run to give the Steelers a commanding 14-0 lead. The Seahawks continued to do nothing offensively. The Steelers once again continued to march on the Seahawks defense. The Steelers drove 81 yards on 14 plays but had to settle for a field goal. The Steelers would lead at halftime 17-0. In the first half the Steelers had 275 yards of total offense in the first half while not punting one time. Meanwhile the Seahawks had just 61 yards of total offense failing to reach the Steelers territory.

In the second half not much had changed. The Seahawks offense continued to do nothing while the Steelers in the third quarter still put up some nice drives. On the Steelers second drive they went on a nine play 71 yard touchdown drive. On second and 11 from their own 28 yard line, Mendenhall had a run of eight yards setting up a third and three. Once again Roethlisberger delivered hitting a 14 yard pass. He then hit Wallace for a gain of 23 yards. The Steelers after a 15 yard penalty were facing a first and 25 from the Seahawks 42 yard line. Roethlisberger hit Wallace for a five yard gain then hit an 18 yard pass setting up a third and two. He would hit Super Bowl XL MVP Hines Ward for a gain of 15 yards to the Seahawks four yard line. After a run of two yards Roethlisberger hit Wallace on a fade pass for a two yard touchdown to give the Steelers a 24-0 lead.

The Steelers ended up hanging on for the win 24-0 over the Seahawks. The Steelers were led by Roethlisberger who was 22-30(73.3%) passing for 298 yards with a touchdown and a 115.7 QB rating. His main weapon who kept burning Brandon Browner all game long was Mike Wallace who had eight receptions for 126 yards with a touchdown. The Steelers couldn't really run the ball as Mendenhall had 66 yards(3.5 YPC) rushing with a touchdown while Redman had 49 yards(4.9 YPC) rushing with a touchdown. The Steelers offense had 421 yards of total offense while controlling the clock for 38:44 while grinding out 23 first downs. The Steelers owned this game against the Seahawks showing why they are the defending AFC champions while the Seahawks are a team in transition. The Steelers in the first half dominated the game going up 17-0 while just going through the motions in the second half. The defense proved to be too much for the Seahawks pathetic offense while the offense controlled the clock. The Steelers have a big time quarterback who can make plays while the Seahawks simply do not have that guy who can make his plays.

The Seahawks has some major problems this season. The offensive line hasn't been very good but the main problem is the quarterback play. The Seahawks had just 164 yards of total offense with eight first downs. The Seahawks averaged only 3.5 yards per play which is pathetic for an NFL offense. Tarvaris Jackson was 20-29(69.0%) passing for just 159 yards(5.5 YPA). He was sacked five times and couldn't find any offense. Marshawn Lynch had another pathetic outing with 11 yards rushing(1.8 YPC) on six carries. The Seahawks offense through the first two games and four games in preseason has looked rather pathetic. This offense looks like a team that is headed towards a top five draft pick.

All in all, the Seahawks are an offense which is the worst kind of offense to have. They are an ineffective offense. The Seahawks don't turn the ball over like crazy but they also don't do anything offensively which is highlighted by Jackson who refuses to go down field. The Seahawks offense is a plain mess and the secondary facing an elite quarterback was finally picked apart. The difference between these super bowl teams from Super Bowl XL is night and day. The Steelers have 17 players on their roster from their Super Bowl XL team while the Seahawks have just two. Carroll has this team in transition and his offseason appears to have busted. The Seahawks have yet to see Sidney Rice play while Robert Gallery was injured again. The Seahawks took a risk by letting go of Matt Hasselbeck who threw for 358 yards in a win over the Ravens on the same day the Seahawks were shutout. Now the Seahawks are 0-2 and have a fan base who is rooting for them to lose so they land Andrew Luck. The Seahawks in the present are in serious trouble and should think about making a quarterback change.

Observations:

- Marshawn Lynch finished the game with 11 yards on six carries. For the season Lynch has just 44 yards on 19 carries for a 2.3 YPC average which is terrible. In 16 games with the Seahawks he has ran for under 50 yards in 10 games, under 40 yards in eight games and under 30 yards in six games. He has averaged under 4.0 YPC in 11 games, under 3.0 YPC in eight games, under 2.0 YPC in three games. So in other words "beast mode" has been an absolute bust for the Seahawks since they have acquired. This is a position the Seahawks need to address in the NFL draft this upcoming season.

The offensive line isn't helping Lynch much as they are blocking very poorly. Still he spends way too much time dancing in the backfield instead of attacking a hole. He also is very slow as he is incapable of breaking off a big run on his own.  Lynch at this point in his career appears to be a short yardage specialist. He has shown that he isn't an every day starting NFL running back seeing how he he has ran for under 3.0 YPC in 50% of his games in a Seahawks uniform. He's had just five games in his career where he ran over 4.0 YPC and only six games where he ran more than 50 yards which shows he is doing a horrible job in Seattle. Time to end the Lynch era at running back after this season.

- The Seahawks need to make a change at quarterback. Pete Carroll is all about competition yet when it comes to Tarvaris Jackson he immediately named him the starting quarterback. In preseason when Charlie Whitehurst clearly out performed him Carroll still stuck with Jackson. Now when you look at Jackson's numbers which were 20-29(68.9%) for 159 yards with zero interception you are probably thinking I'm being unfair to him. The facts are with him as quarterback the Seahawks are an ineffective offense. For the season Jackson is 41-66(62.1%) passing but only 356 yards with two touchdowns and one interception. He is also having just 5.4 YPA while taking seven sacks.

Jackson takes captain checkdown to a whole new level as he doesn't even attempt a pass down field. He just dumps it off every throw or hang onto the ball way too long to be dropped for unneccesary sacks. For an average quarterback you want him to have his YPA at 8.0 while Jackson for his career 6.5 while taking 57 sacks in 38 games. Jackson is a bum who should never be a starter in this league. He may not turn the ball over but he also doesn't do anything either as the Seahawks offense continues to score no points.

- By Pete Carroll letting Hasselbeck go whether the fans wanted to accept it or not he announced he was rebuilding. Now thankfully for Carroll he won the division title his first year so the fans will give him some time. Carroll is in a dangerous position as some fans will never like him from his USC days and how bailed on USC when times were rought.  He also burned the fan base by letting go fan favorites Matt Hasselbeck, Lofa Tatupu, and many others go. Under Carroll the franchise turned over. I still believe in Carroll but this year he'll have some heat on him that is for sure. He has still yet to prove he is an NFL coach. After this year the Seahawks will most likely be picking in the top five with Carroll having a terrible coaching record. He signed a five year deal so should be interesting if Paul Allen gives him the full five years or if he'll pull the Carroll plug early.

In conclusion, the Seahawks have a quarterback controversy on their hands. Whenever you start off 0-2 with getting shutout the quarterback will take heat. The Seahawks offense is beyond terrible and in the draft they will have to draft quarterback then running back with their first two draft picks.The offense needs playmakers which they lack. I look around the league and see all these great quarterbacks then I see the Seahawks with Tarvaris Jackson makes me sick. The Seahawks are bringing a broken twig to a gun fight unless they are facing the 49ers. The Seahawks are in for a long season which always sucks. The Seahawks defense is okay and really good against the run that is the only saving grace. The offense is going to make fans sick especially after six months of bad Mariners baseball. Going to be a long year guys especially if Carroll continues to stick with Jackson as his quarterback. Sticking with Jackson could eventually lose Carroll his job.

Cougars dealing with adversity..Again.

By Outsider Steve

Why does this always seem to happen to the Washington State Cougar football team? For the last two seasons Paul Wulff  has had to deal with season ending injuries to major pieces of his offense. In 2009 RB James Montgomery was lost for the season to a freak injury, diagnosed as an anterior lateral compartment syndrome, it required doctors to remove muscle from Montgomery's leg, nearly costing Montgomery his leg. In the 2010 opener against Oklahoma State, RB Ricky Galvin broke his forearm on his first play from scrimmage. Both injuries severely crippled the Cougars offense, and ultimately setting the program back another year. As bad as those injuries were, those hits cannot compare to the hit that was taken to QB Jeff Tuel last Saturady against Idaho St. And to the potential catastrophe that looms for head coach Paul Wulff and his coaching future in Pullman.

After sitting out for the first couple of series with stomach issue, QB Jeff Tuel entered the game with the Cougars upon Idaho St 14-0. Five plays later as Tuel rolled to his right on a scramble and headed toward the sideline, he was hit by Idaho State linebacker J. T. Albers. Tuel crumpled to the turf, and the end result was a broken left collar bone. The WSU medical staff has determined that Tuel's injury is not a season ending type, but it will require 4-6 weeks recovery. The key phase here is "recovery time". Meaning the time needed for the bone to actually heal. Then, if your accounting for the time to get Tuel's arm back into game shape, this injury could stretch into the 7-9 week time frame. Which would put Tuel back on the field for the November 19th game at home vs Utah or November 26th game vs Washington in the Apple Cup. No matter how the Cougars spin this, They will not be able to have their best player available for the bulk of the Pac-12 schedule. Potentially ending any hopes the Cougars may had before the season started.

Where does this leave the Cougars at the QB position going forward? For Head Coach Paul Wulff and Offensive Coordinator Todd Sturdy, the decision seemed to be a relatively easy one, tabbing redshirt senior Marshall Lobbestael as his starter this week vs UNLV. But the questions surrounding the senior from Oak Harbor still remain. Can Marshall Lobbestael win at the Pac-12 level? Up to this point in his college career, most would look at Lobbestael's body of work, 120/247, 1226 yards, 7 TD's/12 INT's, and answer with a resounding no. But in all fairness, Lobbestael didn't look like the timid sophomore we had previously seen against Idaho St. Anything but. Lobbestael finished with 14/19, 250 yards, 2 TD's, 73.7 com%. At one, completing nine straight passes. He had look and feel of a seasoned QB ready to step in and take control of the offense. Which is exaclty what Paul Wulff must have of his QB's moving forward if the Cougars have any chance at achieving any aspirations moving forward.

It's not like Cougars don't have any other options at the QB position. This happens to be the deepest position on the Cougar depth chart. Sitting very closely behind Lobbestael on the depth chart is Conner Halliday. The redshirt freshman from Ferris H.S. in Spokane, had very nice audition on Saturday vs Idaho St. In limited action, Halliday finished with a 6/13, 67 yards, and 2 TD's. He didn't light the world on fire with his arm, but he did managed the offense in such an efficient manner, that his performance has created a little bit of a QB controversy. And rightfully so. Conner Halliday is projected as the future of the position for the Cougars. And with the injury to Jeff Tuel, most consider this as the perfect time for Halliday to step in and get his feet wet. But this is not the right time for a QB controversy. This is the last thing Paul Wulff wanted because it's not that simple of a question for Wulff to answer. It's a decision that could easily determine his future on campus. So why have a controversy at all?

This is what the 2011 season come down to Paul Wulff. Do you take the experience in Lobbestael or go with the the kid with the bright future in Conner Halliday? If Wulff wants to keep his job beyond this season, then the only option at this point is going with experience and sticking with Lobbestael for the long haul. Through the good times and bad the Cougars will have with Lobbestael at QB, you cannot do anything to disrupt the positive momentum that has been created. That's exactly what could happen if Wulff chooses to hedge his bets on the freshman Halliday. The safe play for Wulff right now is to ignore all the calls for Halliday, and stick to his guns. In any event, this has to the worst possible scenario that coach Wulff had ever envisioned. There is no one right answer to this question. Only time will tell if either QB is the right guy. And for Paul Wulff and his coaching future, that is the one thing he doesn't have anymore..

Seahawks to face Raiders with questions still looming large

Graphic courtesy of Ryan Gray (@RGray525)

By Wyatt Lyles

The Seahawks will be taking on the Raiders in their final game of the preseason. There will be a lot of things to look out for in this game, so let’s get right into it.

While the QB controversy had been the biggest question going into games, a new, and perhaps more pressing, issue has come up. That issue is the one of the offensive line. I feel like I’ve been repeating the same things over and over the last couple weeks, but this is a big issue that needs to be worked on. I hope that at least some of the problems will be alleviated once Russell Okung is back into the line up, which looks like may be happening pretty soon here. But until then, there is some major work to be done.

Perhaps the person who’s got the most work to do is rookie right tackle James Carpenter. While he is a rookie and this has been an extremely short off season, there is a big concern with him. I could see if maybe he missed a few blocks here and there, but he got completely destroyed in last Saturday’s game against Denver. Guys were literally just blowing right past him, and knocking him around like he was some skinny kid on the playground. This is something that just can’t happen, an Pete Carroll has recognized this. This week at practice, as reported by Clare Farnsworth of the Seahawks Blog, Carpenter has been splitting reps with Breno Giacomini on the offensive line. This was a smart move as Carpenter just may not be cut out to be a starter just yet. I would say to start him tonight and see how he does. If he shows some improvement, let him start in the season opener against the 49ers. But, if he looks the same as he has been, then it may be time to bench him for now until he’s ready to be a starter. Look to see how the line does tonight. Will our QBs actually have time to throw the ball? We’ll find out soon.

Looking at the QBs briefly, Carroll has said that Tarvaris Jackson will be starting the game, but did not say how long he or any other starter will be playing. It had been speculated that the starters may play longer than usual to get them more reps in preparation of the season opener. Both Charlie Whitehurst and Josh Portis will make an appearance tonight as well, we just don’t know how long.

I won’t go into another discussion of the “QB Controversy” since that’s been hashed, and re-hashed enough already. I will say one thing, though. Some people have been saying all preseason that Whitehurst should be the starter for this team based on his performance in the first two games. When those people were reminded that he had only played against backups, they said that it didn’t matter and that Jackson perhaps wouldn’t be able to do the same against the backups. Well, last weekend, Jackson led a TD drive against the backups, and looked just as good as Whitehurst had against the backups. So some of those naysayers should have been silenced a bit after that.

Also look for what some of the young guys will be doing in this game. There’s a lot of guys, especially at the receiver position (Chris Carter, Patrick Williams, Doug Baldwin, Ricardo Lockette) and in the secondary (FS Mark LeGree, CB Byron Maxwell, SS Josh Pinkard, DB Jeron Johnson, CB Richard Sherman), that will be fighting for a spot on the 53-man roster that needs to be decided on by Saturday. So this is their last chance to make themselves stand out to the coaches. Hopefully they get a chance to play and showcase their abilities in this final game.

Let’s look at some of the injuries this week before we get out of here. Running back Marshawn Lynch (ankle) and linebacker David Hawthorne (knee) did not practice yesterday and have been pretty much ruled out for tonight’s game. The following didn’t practice yesterday, but haven’t been officially ruled out for the game: wide receivers Mike Williams (toe), Sidney Rice (shoulder), Ben Obomanu (head), and Isaiah Stanback (hamstring); defensive lineman Pierre Allen (hamstring), and strong safety Kam Chancellor (foot). We should know more about their official status for the game later on today.

Mainly for tonight, just look for the first team offense to get one last chance to find some cohesion and actually start to gel. This is the last chance they’ll have before the opener to get something going. Let’s hope we see something good out of them today.

Seahawks Look to Get Things Going Against Broncos

(Photo Courtesy of @RGray525)

By Wyatt Lyles

The Seahawks will be taking on the Broncos tonight at 6pm in the mile-high city. No doubt the focus of the national media on this game will be the Bronco’s QB situation. Specifically, that one guy. Ah, what was his name? Oh right, how could I forget? Tim Tebow. He’s no doubt going to dominate the conversation of this game. Well, in everywhere but Seattle that is.

All of us Seahawks’ fans couldn’t give a crap about that Tebow guy and whether he’s a 4th or 1st string QB. We care about seeing our 1st string offense finally getting some cohesion. We want to see the offensive line FINALLY give our QB some time to throw the ball. We pretty much just want to see everything that went wrong last Saturday go right this Saturday.

Seahawks quarterback battle heating up or is it?

By Taylor Gombos

My name is Taylor Gombos and I'm  the owner and founder of  http://www.theseattlesportshub.com/ I am posting on here because this site and my site have a cross promotion, which in my opinion has been great thus far. I hope you enjoy reading and when your not checking out this great site, check us out at
http://www.theseattlesportshub.com/

Note: In this article, I will look at the Seahawks quarterback situation, and give my crazy and controversial opinion on who I think should be the starter for our Seattle Seahawks. You be the judge on how controversial my thoughts are.

  Let's face it fellow Seahawk fans, whether or not we want to admit it, our team, the Seattle Seahawks, has a quarterback controversy. Yes I am officially going on record and stating that the Seahawks have a quarterback controversy but my solution of who I think should be the Seahawks starting quarterback may shock you. The  Seahawks quarterback controversy that I am describing is one that I have to be honest, I'm not used to it, because for 10 years we had the luxury of having our starting quarterback set with Matt Hasselbeck. We never had to worry about who the starter was because Hasselbeck was always tabbed as the starter.

  My fellow Seahawk fans and 12thman Faithful members, times have changed, these aren't your father's Seahawks, this team is in the midst of a drastic change and it is my belief and opinion that this team has still not found its quarterback just yet.

Before I reveal my choice, let's examine the candidates for the No. 1 contender (aka the starting quarterback job, sorry I'm a big fan of wrestling, so let me throw out one more cliche here. The Seahawks quarterback situation is like a triple threat match for the WWE title, in this case the title represents the starting quarterback for our Seattle Seahawks. Ok enough WWE stuff, it's time to look at this quarterback situation.

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Tarvaris Jackson:

For the last two weeks we have all watched and witnessed  Jackson, the man who was named the Seahawks starting quarterback for 2011, have two sub par games back-to-back. The most recent game, a 20-7 loss against the Minnesota Vikings really wasn't his fault due to the poor offensive line but I have to say I am not impressed with him thus far, I'm really not and I'll tell you why. I'm not impressed with him because I feel like he is over hyped and isn't worthy of being handed the starting job.

  Again I'm not going to bash Jackson into the ground here, because as I said the O-line was totally crap but I can't get over the fact that Jackson is being handed the starting job, like a spoiled child being handed everything on a silver plate, Pete Carroll just handed Jackson the job. It's puzzling to me that a coach like Carroll who preaches competition until we're blue in the face would just hand Jackson the starting job. Now before I go on, I don't mean anything against Carroll with that last statement, I'm In and I agree with all the moves Carroll and Co. have made, but making Jackson the undisputed starter doesn't make sense.

                                                                        

  Carroll has said that the only reason that Jackson was given the starting job was because of his familiarity with new offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell's offensive system. Jackson could have fooled me, it looks like he just learned the offense a week ago. Seriously though, for anyone who claims that Jackson knows Bevell's system, that may be true but remember Jackson knows his system from Minnisota, you know the system where he had an outstanding O-line, and a kick ass running back.

  The final thing I will say about Jackson is the fact that he is new to this being the straight up starter, because for two years he had to get out of the way for old man Favre. It seems to me that he is pissing away this precious opportunity. Is he the future of the franchise or just a placeholder for a future draftee only time will tell if Jackson is the real deal.   

Charlie Whitehurst:

Ah yes Whitehurst, the quarterback who lead our Seahawks to a win against with his wonderful quarterback play and his awesome passes.......ok I'm back down to earth again, I must have been referencing his college days at Clemson.

  To say it lightly, former Hasselbeck backup Whitehurst is just that a backup, and he will always be a backup. But I have to say that part of me is at least semi curious to see what it would be like to have Whitehurst play against a first team defense. There isn't much to analyze with Whitehurst, he is a career clipboard holder but again I would love to see him start the upcoming preseason game, because he has performed very well the last two games, and I also believe that after all his years of being a back-up he should be given the chance to see what he has as the starting QB. The only other thing I can think of to add about Whitehurst is that he and the second team have scored more points than Jackson and the first team unit, which to me is really sad.

Josh Portis:

When it comes to analyzing Portis, I find myself dumbfounded and at a loss for words. No it's not that Portis has blown me away with his play on the field, it's just he is a rookie and like most rookies, you never know what to expect.After hearing so much about Portis from Carroll, I have to say I was eager to see him in action and see what he has. While he hasn't been the most flashy player on the roster, I will say he has been somewhat impressive but keep in mind he is playing against third and fourth stringers. As a rookie, Portis has a lot more room for error than the other two QB's on the roster but I still expect some great things from him, but we will see.

________________________________________________________________________________

So with all this said, the Seahawks appear to only have a two person race at quarterback in my opinion. I'm going to disqualify Portis, because he doesn't appear to be ready to handle the pressure of being the starting quarterback just yet.

  I know I ragged him a lot and his ears are probably ringing, but if I had to chose the Seahawks' starting quarterback I would choose Jackson, because like I said I ripped on him pretty bad but that is only because I felt and still feel that he should have to compete for the starting job. Like I said Carroll prides himself on competition so why not have a competition to see who the quarterback will be. Apparently the coaching staff knows more than I do, which must be the reason  why they are coaching and I am sitting here writing this article.

  While my criticisms of Jackson may have confused the hell out of some of you, and may have been unwarranted, I will say this, my criticisms of Jackson were designed to light a fire under his butt, I am in no way blaming him for all the problems that this team has at all. 

  To end, let me add that Jackson gives the Seahawks something that they haven't had since the days of Seneca Wallace, and that is a quarterback with mobility, who can take off and run if he needs to, which is very refreshing. All I know, is this quarterback controversy will be fun to watch.

Quaterback controversy in Seattle? Who should start the Seahawks playoff game?

By Kshell

This Saturday the Seattle Seahawks(7-9) will be the defending Super Bowl champions New Orleans Saints(11-5) in the Wild Card playoffs. The Seahawks return to the playoffs under first year head coach Pete Carroll for the first time since 2007. There was some questions on who will start at quarterback for the playoff game but Pete Carroll announced that he is sticking with veteran Matt Hasselbeck. In this following blog post I'll explain why Carroll made the correct call and it's not even close.

Before I explain why Carroll made the right decision I'll show why Whitehurst was even considered. Whitehurst played a good game in the NFC West championship game against the St.Louis Rams which you can read about by clicking on here. Whitehurst played well against the Rams completing 22 of 36 pass for 192 yards without throwing an interception. He played well in a primetime game which is a sign he can thrive under pressure.



With Hasselbeck struggling taking care of the ball as of late many fans want Whitehurst to start. Whitehurst has played smart but also isn't doing anything either. He has essentially started three games since he played the majority of the Tampa Bay Game. In his three games where he played extended playing time he scored just one touchdown each game. Against a powerful offense like the Saints 16 points won't be enough. Another reason why Whitehurst shouldn't start is because his season numbers are worse than Hasselbeck's across the board. Whitehurst YPA is only 5.1, completion percentage is 57.6% and his rating is 65.5 on the year. Whitehurst was terrific in the game against the Rams but the Seahawks will need more against the Saints.

Now that I listed why people may think Whitehurst should start I will now explain why Hasselbeck starting is the right move. First of all Hasselbeck has already faced this Saints defense before and had one of his better games as a Seahawks quarterback passing for 333 yards which you can read here. Hasselbeck is one of the few guys on this roster with any playoff experience as Hasselbeck will be making his 10th career playoff start. Hasselbeck is 4-1 all-time at Qwest Field in the playoffs with a four game winning streak.



The Seahawks have a better chance of winning the game with Hasselbeck. Whitehurst is fine if you have a defense like the 2000 Baltimore Ravens but the Seahawks don't in 2010. The Seahawks to win this game need points and need a quarterback who can score points. Hasselbeck had a horrible year by his standards but still beat Whitehurst across the board with 6.8 YPA, 59.9% completion and 73.2 quarterback rating. When Hasselbeck faces a blitz which the Saints love to do his YPA is above 9.0. Hasselbeck has faced every type of defense there is while Whitehurst hasn't. For the Seahawks to pull off the upset Hasselbeck has to bring his "A" game which is still better than Whitehurst "A" game.

For those who want Whitehurst to start you are entitled to your opinion. Hasselbeck has thrown 17 interceptions this year to just 12 touchdowns and he hasn't played well at all. Whitehurt might not turn the ball over but when it comes to winning games he doesn't score points at all. Go watch the Rams game again his "break-out" game and he left some points on the board. He overthrew Mike Williams when Williams had one on one a veteran like Hasselbeck lobs it up to Williams for an easy touchdown. On another play Whitehurst panic when if he had just stepped up in the pocket he runs for an easy 20 yards if not a touchdown in the third quarter. Whitehurst is a better runner than Hasselbeck but he isn't Michael Vick either. Hasselbeck is a better passer, is a veteran who has been there and done that. Whitehurst has played in three and a half games in his career that's it.



Ultimately Pete Carroll made the right decision. He is going with a guy who has won four playoff games, started nine playoff games in his career. Whitehurst may have won the NFC West Championship but Hasselbeck has won the NFC Championship. With Whitehurst you get no turnovers but no points or upside. With Hasselbeck you could get a disaster at this stage of his career or you could the good Hasselbeck who will lead the Seahawks to the upset win over the Saints. Hasselbeck has already played great against the Saints this year, is the team captain and has won big games in the past. Quarterback controversy? Puhhhhlease! Hasselbeck gives the team the best chance to win and I'm glad Carroll made the right decision. Now we have to worry about the real problem which is finding a way to stop Drew Brees.

Seahawks win NFC West Championship over Rams 16-6!

By Kshell

The Seattle Seahawks(7-9) set history when they defeated the St.Louis Rams(7-9) to win the NFC West Division title. The Seahawks are the first team ever in a 16 game schedule to reach the playoffs with a losing record. To make matters worse the Seahawks will also host a playoff game against the New Orleans Saints who won four more games and defeated the Seahawks. The Seahawks didn't make up the rules they are just playing by them and the Seahawks with backup quarterback Charlie Whitehurst defeated the Rams 16-6. With Whitehurst smart passing and a great defense Pete Carroll won a division title in his first year back in the NFL in over a decade.



In a big game with a backup quarterback many figured the Seahawks would come out featuring the run. Instead the Seahawks came out throwing with Whitehurst in shotgun hit Justin Forsett for a gain of 13 yards. On the next play Whitehurst found a wide open Ruvell Martin for a gain of 61 yards. Whitehurst still throwing hit Forsett for a gain of four yards. Facing a third down the Rams committed a crucial holding penalty giving the Seahawks first and goal from the seven. After completing a pass to Golden Tate, Whitehurst hit Mike Williams for a touchdown from four yards out to give the Seahawks a 7-0 lead.

The Seahawks defense would stuff the Rams the first three series of the game holding the Rams to just 23 yards on 10 plays. The Rams would then go on a 13 play 83 yard drive which resulted in a Josh Brown 32 yard field goal. The Seahawks defense did a good job of holding the Rams to just three points. Seahawks defense would three and out the Rams on the next two series. The Seahawks would head into halftime up 7-3. Whitehurst was 15 of 20 passing for 145 yards and a touchdown in the first half.

In the second half as the Seahawks were at their own 28 when Whitehurst completed a pass to Marshawn Lynch who then fumbled the ball. The Rams trailing 7-3 had the ball on the Seahawks 21. The Rams then had first and goal from the six yard line but after a costly penalty had to settle for a Josh Brown 27 yard field goal. The Rams did cut the lead to 7-6.



The Seahawks feeling momentum slipping away had a key scoring drive. The drive began when Lynch ran for 24 yards. After a penalty and facing a second and 17, Forsett then ran for 21 yards. Facing a third and four Whitehurst hit Mike Williams for a gain of six then shortly after that hit Leon Washington for a gain of 10 yards. The Seahawks had the ball on the Rams 15 yard line but would settle for an Olindo Mare field goal 31 yard field goal to give the Seahawks a 10-6 lead heading into the fourth quarter.

In the fourth quarter the Seahawks would extend their lead when Whitehurst would hit Ben Obomanu for a gain of 13 yards to the Rams 35 yard line. Lynch would rush for another 13 yard run to the Rams 22. The Seahawks would have to settle for a Mare 38 yard field goal to extend the Seahawks lead 13-6 over the Rams with over 10 minutes to go in the game.



With under nine minutes to go in the game the Rams rookie quarterback Sam Bradford finally made a rookie mistake. Trailing by seven points with the ball on the Seahawks 46 yard line Bradford threw a costly interception to Seahawks linebacker Will Herring. The Seahawks then went on a 13 play 47 yard drive eating up over seven minutes in time which ended with another field goal by Mare to go up 16-6. The Seahawks offense didn't do much but did just enough to get the win.



The Seahawks defense which has been getting crushed lately stepped up. The Seahawks defense held Steven Jackson to just 45 yards rushing. The defense also pressured Sam Bradford as Bradford completed 19 of 36 passing for 155 yards with an interception. The defense sacked Bradford three times with Raheem Brock getting 2.5 sacks on Bradford. The Seahawks defense allowed the offense to settle for field goals instead of touchdowns.



This year hasn't been pretty but the Seahawks are back in the playoffs. The Seahawks winning their fifth division title in the last seven years get to raise up another division championship banner. Pete Carroll and Charlie Whitehurst seen to the right hugging who would have thought that a year ago when the team had quit under floundering head coach Jim Mora. The Seahawks are in the playoffs and despite what people say the Seahawks have earned it. You play to win the division and Carroll was brought in here to win games. Carroll won just enough games this year and the Seahawks will host a playoff game this Saturday. It will be nice seeing playoff football at Qwest field once again.

Observations:


- Charlie Whitehurst finally took advantage of his opportunity and now we have a quarterback controversy. Whitehurst finished the game completing 22 of 36 passes for 192 yards passing with a touchdown for a quarterback rating of 84.5. Whitehurst also ran for 30 yards extending a couple of drives.

Whitehurst most importantly didn't turn the ball over which has been a problem for Matt Hasselbeck. On the year Whitehurst was 57 of 99(57.6%) for 507 yards(5.1 YA) with two touchdowns and three interceptions. He also has a rushing touchdown. His quarterback rating is 65.5.

Hasselbeck was 266 of 444(59.9%) for 3,001 yards(6.8 YA) for 12 touchdowns and 17 interceptions. Hasselbeck has three rushing touchdowns with a quarterback rating of 73.2. So who Carroll chooses to start should be an interesting decision.

I'll break it down in a few days who I think should start at quarterback. Whitehurst was the player of the game though given the circumstances. The season was on the line and he took the opening drive for a touchdown then played smart the rest of the game.

- Leon Washington had a nice all around game. I'm glad he is being used more on the offense. Washington had three kickoff returns for 62 yards, six punt returns for 25 yards, caught three passes for 24 yards and also ran for four yards. Washington is a nice spark plug and how the Seahawks used him was perfect. If it wasn't for Devin Hester, Washington would be going to the pro bowl this year.



- The Seahawks ran the ball effectively especially in the second half. Marshawn Lynch carried the ball 20 times for 75 yards rushing and Justin Forsett added 28 yards on just three carries. Both backs were effective catching passes out of the backfield.

Forsett had 22 yards receiving on three catches and Leon Washington added 24 yards receiving on three catches. Marshawn Lynch also caught a pass. The Seahawks offensive line has been a work in progress all year long but when Lynch does have some holes to run through he has been taking advantage of those.

With the Seahawks Lynch finished with 573 yards rushing on 165 carries(3.5 YPC) with six touchdowns. He also caught 21 passes for 138 yards. Forsett finished with 523 yards on 118 carries(4.4 YPC) with two touchdowns. He also caught 33 passes for 252 yards. This is the first time in a while I like the Seahawks running backs just give them a line to run behind and the running game should be fine.



- Pete Carroll fled USC for a team who was 9-23 the last two years. He now has the Seahawks in the playoffs in his first year similar to what Mike Holmgren did when he first took over in 1999.

Carroll made plenty of risky moves in the offseason by releasing T.J.Housmandzadeh, trading Deion Branch midseason, trading for Whitehurst, trading for Chris Clemons who he is hugging on the picture to the right, etc. Carroll despite a roster that has bandaids over broken bones got more than enough out of this roster. This was a team many including myself figured would be drafting in the top three. The Seahawks will now take on the New Orleans Saints at home in the playoffs. The Seahawks are 4-1 all-time at Qwest Field.

Carroll and Schneider had a great first draft give them another year or two of that kind of drafting should be fun. Tim Ruskell really killed the Seahawks look up his drafts in the past which Carroll and Schneider are trying to recover. Carroll is a great motivator and hopefully this team can build on this win.

At the end of the day the Seattle Seahawks are the 2010 NFC West division champions. Nobody can take that away from this team. Despite having zero pro bowlers on the roster for the second straight year the Seahawks will be hosting a playoff game. Carroll won a division title with mostly castoffs that nobody wanted. The offensive line has been a work in progress all year, the quarterback play hasn't been good neither has the defense, the rushing game was historically awful yet the Seahawks are division champions. The 12th man will be loud and hungry for the playoffs and the Seahawks have nothing to lose. Regardless of what happens in the playoffs the Seahawks have already exceeded expectations this year.