I don’t even know why I’m writing about these pre-season games. There’s nothing even remotely noteworthy to discuss.
No Russell Wilson. No … most of the other good starters you know and love. And, clearly, nobody good for the Chargers either. Here are some things I noticed:
Cody Barton looks good! People are worried about the linebacker depth on this team – especially with the injury to BBK – but he was all over the place in this game (and, really, all pre-season); he looks like a completely different player than we’ve seen so far in his pro career! God forbid, if he were to have to replace Bobby Wagner, I don’t think it would be as significant of a drop-off as most people might believe.
Nick Bellore looks … serviceable! I’ll be honest, I never gave him a second thought when I heard they were playing him at linebacker. That sounded like usual Training Camp nonsense that you hear about whenever there are injuries to depth at a certain position. He’s no K.J. Wright. He shouldn’t be starting for anyone. I’m glad his special teams skills are able to translate to him being competent at defense. If he were to play some snaps in a pinch on gameday, I’d be okay with it.
It was nice to see Marquise Blair back in action. With this Quandre Diggs hold-in situation brewing, I’ll be honest, I wouldn’t mind sticking to our guns and seeing what Blair has to offer as a starting free safety. Is Diggs really in a position to hold out? Is he willing to lose game checks over it? I think I’d call his bluff and see what happens with Blair in the meantime.
Darrell Taylor looks like he’s making progress! I don’t think he’s a complete player by any means. There will be growing pains, if indeed he enters the regular season as our starting SAM linebacker. But, he’s flashing some good attributes in the meantime and that’s encouraging. I think by season’s end – if he can stay on the field – he’ll be MUCH better than where he is now.
Alton Robinson looks like he’s also making progress! We all liked what he did as a rookie last year, and it appears he’s making the next step. It’s not a huge leap forward or anything, but if indeed he’s better than he was last year, that’s going to help our defense tremendously.
On offense, clearly Alex Collins did everything he needed to do to make this team. 37 rushing yards and a TD; 7 catches for 52 yards. Essentially, he did what DeeJay Dallas did the first two games of the pre-season (Dallas didn’t play at all, seeming to secure his spot on the 53-man roster). Rashaad Penny, on the other hand, looked disappointing. I don’t think Penny will be cut, because there’s apparently no cap savings in it, but the Hawkblogger article on this game talked about the Seahawks maybe listening to trade offers. I’d be ALL FOR that, even if it’s just a sixth or seventh rounder. Penny is a bust, that much is clear. Taking what you can get for someone who isn’t in your future plans is all you can really hope for.
We saw our first Dee Eskridge action of the pre-season, in a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it performance (which I apparently did, because I don’t remember him at all; to be fair, I was hardly paying attention as I fast-forwarded through the bulk of this game on DVR the next day). Everyone’s raving about him, so that’s exciting. Otherwise, not a lot from the receivers in this one.
It was a 27-0 laugher where no one of note got hurt. I’ll take it. I’m not bothered whatsoever by the starters sitting out the pre-season, because I think they get the bulk of their work done in practice anyway. These are veterans, we know what they’re capable of when the games matter. It’s idiotic to want to expose them to injuries in games that don’t count.
When compared to previous years, this might be the healthiest the Seahawks have ever been heading into the regular season! Now, obviously, guys could come up lame in weeks 1 and 2; that won’t shock me at all. But, hopefully reducing the number of hits in the pre-season is a net positive. All we can do is cross our fingers and hope.
Now, there’s a pointless off-week for the entire NFL before the season starts. I don’t know why this exists, I don’t know who had the bright idea to increase the regular season by a week – but not add an extra BYE week – but that’s life: it’s not always to our liking, and it’s run by people who lack common sense.