SB Nation - John Carlson

Why John Carlson Was Blocking Mario Williams

John Morgan — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 02:59:41 -0000

By double clutching and not executing the designed wide receiver screen, Matt Hasselbeck allowed Mario Williams to fight through John Carlson and sack Matt Hasselbeck.

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John Carlson is not yet a competent blocker, but the day he becomes one, and he will, he still won't stand a chance against Mario Williams. So why did Greg Knapp assign Carlson to block Williams? It seems awfully foolish. Even an elite blocking tight end like Jim Kleinsasser shouldn't be matched against an elite end with perhaps the best tools this side of Julius Peppers.

It's simple, really. Knapp called a designed wide receiver screen to Nate Burleson. Burleson motioned from left wide toward the left slot and then Chris Spencer snapped. Matt Hasselbeck motioned hand off to Justin Forsett and then passed to Burleson. Well, he was supposed to. Instead, Hasselbeck faked hand off, pump faked and then surveyed his one remaining option.

And was sacked. T.J. Houshmandzadeh was in the left slot and initiated contact off the snap. He drove his defender back and got him to bite on the route. He wasn't close to open. Deion Branch was on the right. He ran a "go" route that was supposed to draw the safety but didn't. Hasselbeck saw that and optioned out of the screen. And was sacked.

One Right Guard's Journey Towards Respectability

John Morgan — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 00:51:14 -0000

More photos » by Elaine Thompson - AP

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Part of being a consistent contender is team health. Abstractly we can understand that for most teams, the starters will play better than their backups. When a team loses starters to injury it is less likely to win. What is much less understood is how game-to-game, even snap-to-snap health impacts players that are starting or contributing.

Ray McDonald was fully healthy in week two. He walked over Max Unger. McDonald was "probable" last week. He was listed with a "shoulder". Could that shoulder have sapped enough power to level the competition? Unger, much to his credit, has not appeared once on the NFL injury report.

Maybe Unger improved, maybe McDonald regressed, maybe McDonald was injured, maybe home field factored and Unger was faster off the snap or more willing to stretch the rules. It's impossible to know. We can be sure that Unger played better and his improved play was vital to Seattle winning.

In the first drive of the fourth quarter, Unger pulled twice and factored once. On his second pull attempt, Unger missed his assignment and that assignment, linebacker Takeo Spikes, tackled Julius Jones after six. Matt Hasselbeck ended the drive by attempting to pull out from the pile again and doing so again sacked himself by running into a defender.

Unger was the best man on the line at holding ground and protecting the pocket on Seattle's first play of its second drive. He then turned his man on a rush play and contained his man on the following pass play. That turned out to be pretty damn important in the interconnected world of Football.

For most of the season, Chris Spencer protected Unger. If a man was aligned over Unger, Spencer would typically turn right and double the defender. Rob Sims was the reliable guard. He was left to fend for himself. Unger proved capable of controlling his man and that allowed Spencer to read and react. It proved critical.

Lock was badly beat around the end by Manny Lawson. Sims controlled his man and Spencer stood free in his center zone. Spencer turned that freedom into a crucial freeing block. He doubled Sims man and the two dominated him so completely that Sims was able to pull free and pick up Locklear's blown assignment. What looked like a sack turned into a fifteen yard completion.

Unger was satisfactory on his final two plays of the drive. The play that preceded those was a heartening sign. Seattle, for the nth time all game, hit the 49ers nose tackle and short-spaced down linemen and moved out the middle in impressive fashion. Moving out the middle linemen, be it nose, defensive tackles or 3-4 ends, is a harbinger of a building run game. Justin Forsett missed the hole, but it was a beauty. Behind Seattle's center three a crease ripped open that would have harbored the rusher deep into the 49ers second level. Forsett cut left and into Manny Lawson for a loss of three. John Carlson was discarded in routine fashion.

Unger was steady, steady throughout the game, steady in crunch time, and reliable enough to make those around him look better. A steady Unger makes the entire offensive line better. He started the season weak at the point and unreliable snap to snap and is ending stout at the point and forgettable on most downs. That's good progression and return on a second round guard prospect. It's also a boring end to a series.

On the first play of Seattle's second to last drive, Unger put it all together. He helped force back the 49ers left defensive line and then shot into the second level. There, just as Jones approached the right edge, Unger inflicted a punishing cut block on Patrick Willis. Jones turned and sprinted up field into the 49ers open right side. Willis wasn't there to hit him. He wasn't there to stop the play short. Willis was just another spectator, watching Jones turn the corner and run for 11.

The Future of Matt Hasselbeck is the Future of the Seattle Seahawks, Pt. 2

John Morgan — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 03:26:51 -0000

More photos » by Ted S. Warren - AP

John Carlson, Justin Forsett, Deon Butler and Max Unger form the existing core of offensive talent that Seattle can build around. Chris Spencer, Rob Sims and Sean Locklear could be retained too. If Seattle begins its move towards the offense of the future, McBow and Sparkly New Skill Position Player will join this core in 2010.

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There is no third-year wide receiver rule and no single path a quarterback takes to competence. The Seattle Seahawks could employ any strategy this offseason and still not start a competent quarterback in 2010, 2011 and 2012. If it sticks with Matt Hasselbeck, it will commit itself to Hasselbeck's decline phase, starting him in his age 35, 36 and 37 year-old seasons. For perspective, a quarterback performs at 83.2% of total capacity at 34, but historically, that capacity drops to 76.8, 69.9 and 62.9% from 35 to 37. The Seahawks could attempt to offset that decline through building a better team.

Whoever drafts Hasselbeck's replacement, whoever that replacement is, and however that replacement is integrated into the offense, the Seahawks will most likely decline as a passing offense in 2010. Old quarterbacks lose ability in chunks. Young quarterbacks gain ability in leaps. The two cross paths sometime around an old quarterback's age 36 season and a young quarterback's age 24 season.

Hasselbeck will turn 35 next season. Seattle can retain him through the end of his contract while simultaneously adding the quarterback of the future. Hasselbeck would be the presumed starter and presumably better than his young replacement, help transition Seattle towards its future, and potentially resurrect his own career, should he desire.

That's why I dub this the "Graceful Exit Plan." Seattle could draft a quarterback in the top ten, but is less likely to with Hasselbeck under contract and costing $10 million against the cap. In the last ten drafts, two quarterbacks have been selected in the top ten five times. In the last twenty drafts, two quarterbacks have been selected in the top ten ten times. It's difficult to project a draft so early in the process, but it is likely Jimmy Clausen will join Sam Bradford, Colt McCoy, Tim Tebow, Tony Pike, Dan LeFevour and Sean Canfield atop this year's quarterback class.

Clausen is the most likely top-ten pick. The impact of keeping Hasselbeck is that Seattle is unlikely to select a quarterback within the top ten, and therefore we will assume Clausen is unlikely, Bradford could likewise be unlikely, but the remaining five will be available. The remaining five represent the most likely pool of replacements for Hasselbeck.

Canfield's age is not publically listed, Rotoworld lists him at 108, but he is a senior now and graduated from high school early to attend spring drills. It's most likely that Canfield is 22, and like most of the rest of his class, will be a 23 to 24 year-old rookie.

It's ridiculous to discuss a quarterback prospect's upside. Every legitimate prospect is capable of making Canton or selling Cadillacs in five years. Likewise, the age guidelines presented by Pro Football Reference evidence that quarterback development is initially about experience. The greatest single delta is between age 21 and age 22, when a quarterback jumps 22.2%, and the second greatest is between 22 and 23, when a quarterback jumps 18.5%. Most 22 year old quarterbacks are rookies. All 21 year old quarterbacks rookies. After the sophomore sprint growth is more gradual.

The Plan Might Be Enacted Thus:

Hasselbeck is a lame duck. The media loves to pick on such situations and tease out whatever controversy possible. The ownership, management and Hasselbeck must agree to bury the subject and unite behind a common plan. That starts the day after the draft, when the team provides a unified front: Hasselbeck is the starter, but his drafted replacement, the future.

If Greg Knapp is still Seattle's offensive coordinator, Seattle's pick will most reflect his personal preferences in a quarterback. Tim Ruskell has deferred to his coaching staff, sometimes smartly, and sometimes, like when re-signing Shaun Alexander, stupidly. It will reflect Knapp's system and Ruskell's eye for talent. Let's quickly vet potential candidates.

Knapp Approved:

McCoy

Tebow

LeFevour

Canfield

Ruskell Approved:

McCoy

Tebow

Tebow could fall off Knapp's list and Canfield appear on Ruskell's. The most likely candidate is McCoy. He fits Knapp's system and passes Ruskell's standards. Tebow is the second most likely candidate and then maybe Canfield. I'll run with Tebow and McCoy, because the two are similar types and would be built around in a similar fashion.

We'll assume Seattle's spends its first overall pick on McBow. Seattle would not likely spend additional early picks on the offensive line. Knapp would protect the quarterback by moving the pocket, establishing the run and extending the short passing attack. It would want a top receiver to pair with T.J. Houshmandzadeh, replace or eventually replace Nate Burleson (2010 is voidable), grow with McBow and one day power the McSeaBow's offense. Or, should that talent be unavailable, an elite running back prospect to lead Seattle's developing committee of backs.

Knapp likes speed and Ruskell likes polish. The two might settle on Brandon LaFell. Many players are faster than Lafell, but few are more polished. Lafell does not satisfy Knapp's desire for speed, but he can be a deep threat. He's a big player, known for his blocking ability, that passes Ruskell's standards and can fit within Knapp's system.

If Seattle retains or re-signs Burleson, or postpones its need at wide receiver, it could address its defense or add a running back. The one thing it will not likely do is invest heavily into its offensive line. Another GM might.

Seattle will face a difficult free agency before it reaches the draft. Retaining Hasselbeck means a major chunk of its salary cap is invested into a player very unlikely to contribute to its future. It could cut Patrick Kerney and Walter Jones, either, but it would be hard pressed to retain all three. It must cut someone or be dragged down by sunk cost.

That period will determine who Seattle targets in the draft, but skill position and defense should populate their prime targets.

How it Works: Seattle's coaching staff and executives buy themselves a stay of execution. Emphasis is on the future and Seattle's existing offense is culled for talent. One of Chris Spencer and Rob Sims will join Deon Butler, Max Unger, Justin Forsett, John Carlson, McBow and Sparkly New Skill Position Player to form Seattle's offensive core going forward.

McBow starts for most of the preseason and subs if Hasselbeck is injured or grossly ineffective. Hasselbeck endures his victory lap with statesman-like aplomb and tutors his young understudy, to whatever undetermined effect. Seattle is not a true contender in 2010, but it could contend for the NFC West. The defense gels and Seattle's young offense shows flashes.

How it Fails: If Seattle cannot sooth Hasselbeck but feels compelled to retain him, it will struggle to keep the media hounds at bay. Management accepts 2010 as a season spent towards its future, but the media exploits the fanbase's impatience, growing dissatisfaction and entitlement, and not so subtly splits the franchise between Hasselbeck and management; The past and the future; winning and the losing it takes to win again.

McBow struggles in the preseason and is stuck behind Mike Teel or Seneca Wallace on Seattle's depth chart. The offense, built to be cheap and good, versus expensive and dominating, like the Seahawks of yore, is cheap and bad. The defense does not pick up the slack. The Seahawks spiral towards their third straight losing season, a little older, and further wedged between a full rebuild and mediocrity.

Grading the Defense: Arizona Cardinals vs. Seattle Seahawks

Hawkwind — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 17:30:11 -0000

More photos » by Paul Connors - AP

Arizona Cardinals safety Adrian Wilson does his best Superman impersonation while intercepting a shuffle pass from Seattle Seahawks quarterback Matt Hasselbeck during the final minutes of the Cardinals' 31-20 win. (AP Photo/Paul Connors)

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In what's becoming a bit of a trend, the Arizona Cardinals defense had some up and down moments throughout their game against the Seattle Seahawks. On the upside, they allowed just only 20 points but on the downside they gave up 472 yards of total offense to a unit that was averaging less than 340 yards per game. The defense also harrassed and sacked Matt Hasselbeck four times but allowed relatively unknown Justin Forsett to rush for over 120 yards. All in all thought the bottom line is that their effort was good enough to win and they made some very important plays when they needed to perserve the lead.

Rush Defense: What else can you really say? Forsett, a seventh round pick from a year ago with 20 career carries coming into the game, basically ripped up the Cardinals front seven from start to finish. In total he carried the ball 17 times, with six of those rushes going for at least ten yards. Since the Hawks didn't trail by two scores until the the latter half of the 4th quarter, they were able to keep the running game a factor for most of the game. In addition to Forsett's yardage the Hawks got another 41 yards on a combined seven carries from Julius Jones (who suffered a terrible injury), Louis Rankin and Matt Hasselbeck. In total they racked up 164 yards on the ground on 24 carries (a gaudy 6.8 ypc average) while only losing yards on two of those carries. The Cardinals rush defense has fallen to eighth in the league and with Stephen Jackson, Chris Johnson and Adrian Peterson coming in the next three weeks, they'll need a much better effort to stay inside the top ten.

Pass Defense: This might be a hard stance to defend but I think the Cardinals pass defense was at least decent on Sunday. Sure, Hasselbeck threw for over 300 yards but he also only completed 50% of his passes, threw more picks than touchdowns and had a QB rating under 60. Digging a little bit deeper, 84 of his 315 passing yards on the day came on two mistakes by Bryant McFadden, but more on that later. Most of Hasselbeck's game was limited to short passes, as evidence by his yard per attempt number of 6.1, and the pressure that the front seven was able to apply certainly had an influence on his performance. The overall yardage number is tough to ignore but considering that it took 52 pass attempts to barely break 300 yards, I'd still consider it a decent performance by the secondary.

McFadden's Tough Day: If there was one guy who had a tough day on Sunday, it was Bryant McFadden. He not only was personally responsible for the Hawks two biggest offensive plays but he also accounted for three penalties totaling 51 yards. The first big play allowed, a 53 yard pass to T.J. Houshmandzadeh, was simply a case of McFadden never finding the ball. By the time he turned his head to locate the ball, it was in Housh's hands and McFadden had to grab a handful of facemask to get him to the ground. It total the play moved the Hawks from their own one yard line to the Cardinals' 31 and they would score thier first touchdown five plays later. His next big mistake was a bit less obvious but head coach Ken Whisenhunt confirmed it yesterday during his press conference. On the Seahawks second touchdown the Cardinals secondary was in a "three deep" defense and it was McFadden's job to cover anyone who went deep on his side. Somehow though he overlooked John Carlson streaking down the seam and the pass ended up going for a 31 yard touchdown. Blown coverages are going to happen at every level of football but this combined with a couple more poor plays really highlighted a bad day at the office for McFadden.

Pinning the Seahawks Deep: One thing that I think has gotten overlooked so far is where the Seahawks had to start most of their drives and once you see this you may look at their yardage totals a bit differently. The Hawks had 13 drives in this game and their average starting field position was their own 19, but even that doesn't tell the whole story. Four of those 13 drives started inside the Hawks' five yard line, including back to back drives that started at their own one yard line, and nine of the 13 drives started at or inside their own 20. Pinning them that deep is a testament to not only Ben Graham and the Cardinals special team coverage units, but also the Cardinals offense. When the offense doesn't turn the ball over they take a tremendous amount of pressure off this defense and making an opposing offense drive the length of the field really helps the "bend but don't break" philosophy.

Honor Roll:

Will Davis: We haven't talked much about him even though there's a large segment of the Cardinal-fandom that lists OLB as our biggest need heading into next years draft, but Davis is playing really well. Officially he had just one tackle but if watch the tape he's starting to show up more and more. With Chike Okeafor sidelined with an injury, Davis was splitting time with Bertand Berry and he was able to pressure Hasselbeck a couple of times and looks fairly comfortable in his role at outside linebacker. All in all not a bad rookie season for our sixth round pick.

Clark Haggans: Perhaps the games's defensive MVP, Haggans registered two sacks and six total tackles. We didn't expect a great deal from him but so far he leads the team in sacks and is on pace for his best season since 2006.

Antrel Rolle: Somebody must be whispering in Rolle's ear about the possibility of big dollars in his future because Rolle is finally turning into a bona-fide playmaker. He once again led the team in tackles and his pick of Hasselbeck in the fourth quarter was the first of two nails in the Hawks' coffin.

Karlos Dansby and Darnell Dockett: I almost didn't want to list these guys considering that the Seahawks ran all over the Cardinals front seven but Dansby and Nine-0 were instumental in the pressuring of Hasselbeck. Dansby carried the load without Gerald Hayes in the lineup and finished with eight tackles and half a sack. Dockett registered half a sack as well and finished with six tackles of his own.

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Considering the defense was missing two starters, I still look at this as a positive game for them as a whole. There are some aspects that can certainly be improved upon but overall I think this kind of effort/outcome gives this team a chance to win more often than not. Thoughts?

Poll

How would you grade the Arizona Cardinals defense?

A

5 votes

B

111 votes

C

136 votes

D

8 votes

F

9 votes

269 votes | Poll has closed

Post Game Reaction: Cardinals Beat Seahawks 31-20 With Second Half Effort

Andrew602 — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 01:29:17 -0000

More photos » by Paul Connors - AP

Seattle Seahawks quarterback Matt Hasselbeck had trouble getting away from Cardinals defenders. Hasselbeck was sacked four times on the day.

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Just as the headline states, the Arizona Cardinals were able to come back after trailing early in the game. In the first quarter the Cardinals found themselves going for a 4th and 1 at the 1 yard line. Tim Hightower wasn't able to get in the end zone as they turned the ball over on downs. Immediately after, the Seahawks marched 99 yards after Bryant McFadden allowed a 53 yard pass to T.J. Houshmandzadeh. Justin Forsett ran the ball 11 yards to give them the 7-0 lead. In the second quarter, a breakdown in coverage allowed a wide open John Carlson to score a 31 yard touchdown pass, giving the Seahawks a commanding 14-0 lead. Kurt Warner and the Cardinals offense came back in the hurry up, and threw a 28 yard touchdown to a wide open Steve Breaston. The Seahawks added a field goal and the Cardinals would've scored another touchdown had Mike Gandy not held onto a defender during a would-be Steve Breaston touchdown. In the Second half, a different Cardinals team showed up that was balanced. Beanie Wells got the bulk of the second half carries and took advantage, scoring two rushing touchdowns, one being on a 4th and 1. The final score came early in the 4th quarter when Kurt Warner found Larry Fitzgerald who dove for the touchdown, putting the Cardinals up 31-20. Two Matt Hasselbeck interceptions later and the Cardinals won the game. Here's some positives and negatives from the game.

The Positives

- Kurt Warner was once again spot on, completing 29 of 38 passes for 340 yards and two touchdowns. He was finally able to put together a good home performance. Warner had an even more impressive stat, which was not turning the ball over or getting sacked.

- Beanie Wells showed up as the rookie the Cardinals drafted, bringing explosive play and putting the Cardinals up late in the second half. He didn't get over 100 rushing yards but appeared to gain positive yardage anytime the Cardinals handed the ball off to him. He ended the day with 85 rushing yards and two touchdowns.

- The protection from the offensive line was excellent, not allowing any sacks on the day. They gave Warner plenty of time in the pocket and opened up big rushing lanes for Wells.

- The Cardinals defense buckled down in the second half, only allowing 3 points, but more importantly picked off Matt Hasselbeck late to ice the game.

- The Cardinals finally won at home. It had been a few weeks and things weren't looking bright after getting killed by the Panthers only three weeks ago. They gave the fans something to feel better about and got the proverbial monkey off their back.

The Negatives

- Penalties were horrendous. They ended a few drives and gave the Seahawks good field position at times. The Cardinals ended the day with 11 penalties for 136 yards. The Cardinals need to play smart and limit penalties, as they can dramatically change games.

- First half defense disappeared. The Cardinals defesne in the first half couldn't stop Seattles young, second year running back, Justin Forsett. Speed backs have been their weakness and facing Chris Johnson in two weeks has me worried.

- Mike Gandy's holding called killed a potential second touchdown to Steve Breaston. Gandy has had problems with penalties this year and his future is not bright in Arizona.

That's really the only negatives that I can think of to be honest. The game was closer then the score showed but the Cardinals came through when they needed to. They also didn't turn the ball over once or allow a sack, which is rare in Cardinal-land. This win puts the Cardinals at a comforting 6-3 record with a road game in St. Louis next week. What are your thoughts on the game?

Who Would You Take from the Seattle Seahawks?

Andrew602 — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 18:26:44 -0000

by Elaine Thompson - AP

Aaron Curry on the Cardinals defense would provide linebacker stability for a long time.

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The Seattle Seahawks record(3-5) doesn't speak volumes from their team, as they do have talent if you look in the right places. This week, you can pick who you would want to be a member of the Arizona Cardinals. It can be a young or new player, a starter or back up, etc. You can also take their current contract status into consideration, as if we were actually signing the player. Also look at who may be leaving our team after this season. This one may be difficult considering they're a division rival but when it all comes down to it, it's for the betterment of the team. So with that being said, here's some picks I would make from the Seahawks.

Aaron Curry - This has to be one of the easiest picks, as Curry's only in his rookie season and has played very well so far. He will develop into a leader on the defense, and has a wide enough skill set to blitz, stop the run, or drop in coverage. Should one of our aging linebackers(Okeafor, Berry, Haggens) leave or retire, Curry would be a great replacement.

John Carlson - Carlson would be one of the best additions to the Cardinals offense. We currently are without a clear cut starting tight end, and Carlson would solve that problem. He would add another target to the already dangerous offense, and provide solid blocking along the offensive line.

Lofa Tatupu - Although Lofa hasn't had a productive year since he was sent to the pro bowl in 2007, he's still one of the best inside linebackers in the league. He's a passionate defender and improves the players around him. If Karlos Dansby does leave for a bigger contract next year, the defense would be fine with Tatupu in the middle.

Brandon Mebane - Membane has slowly become a force at defensive tackle since he arived in the league in 2007. He's underrated but can play the run and get enough pressure on the opposing quarterback, evidence being his 5.5 sacks last year. Bryan Robinson is near the end of his career and we don't know enough about Gabe Watson or Alan Branch just yet.

That's it for my list, and as you can see, defense is where I was leaning. The Hawks have good receivers in T.J. Houshmandzadeh and Nate Burleson, but they wouldn't be an improvement over the Cardinals receivers now. Matt Hasselbeck and Julius Jones also wouldn't be a step forward from where we're currently at. Their offensive line is rarely healthy and needs to be revamped. Who would you take from the Seattle Seahawks and why?

Building a Playbook to Beat the Cardinals: Streaking Behind a Wall of Blockers

John Morgan — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 00:34:19 -0000

More photos » by Stephan Savoia - AP

Wes Welker replaced Deion Branch in New England. He is a new breed possession receiver that thrives off short passes and screens. Branch best matches Welker's mix of quickness and agility. This play is a Welker-special that Seattle could adopt.

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To wrap up today's look at winning plays, I illustrate a play I've never seen Seattle run. It's a little radical, but Greg Knapp seems willing to mix it up. This is a screen pass to the receiver. There's no read or progression, only execution. It is a passing play with the heart of a run, and like a run can help Seattle draw in cover and open things down field.

This is not a very popular play in the pros, but a personal favorite of mine and a chance to involve Deion Branch's quickness. The Patriots run something like this with Wes Welker. The key to it working is the interior line pulling forward without getting tied up. The I-backs rush forward to retard the freed pass rushers and the tackles and tight end John Carlson slow the edge rush.

Deion Branch starts by running a loose "out". That gives the linemen a chance to disengage. Then Branch streaks back underneath. Matt Hasselbeck is retreating from imminent contact and waiting for his receiver to slice underneath. The second Branch begins approaching the right guard, Hasselbeck zips it towards the center and allows Branch to run into the pass.

From there it's all about a split-second read, react and run. Branch can turn up field behind his blockers, but more likely, Branch continues his path left and attempts to race towards the left flat. It's a big play disguised as a little play. Branch has running room. The blockers won't last, but their purpose is to give Branch a floating pocket to attack the second level from. Let's hope that pterodactyl tendon holds.

Building a Playbook to Beat the Cardinals: Pounding the Ball Behind the Powerlifters

John Morgan — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 21:41:18 -0000

More photos » by Ted S. Warren - AP

Let's show our support and give back Mamma Blue.

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Sometimes, I, as a fan, ask myself what can I give back to the Seahawks organization? The men and women of the Seahawks give their lives to create Seahawks football, and I spend my life following it. If I could donate a fraction of my time to, not criticizing or commenting about, but helping the Seahawks, shouldn't I? So here goes...

Seattle must win in Arizona to keep the second half of the season exciting. When the Cardinals tore into Qwest and put a boot on the Seahawks offense, it ended the realistic chance Seattle would compete for a playoff spot. But screw realism. I didn't become a fan for rational thought. This Sunday begins the unrealistic, storybook, climatic run towards contention. And I am going to help them start.

The goal over the next two days is simple: construct an offense from and influenced by real Seahawks plays that can beat the Cardinals defense.

The Cardinals have constructed a powerful 3-4 defensive line. Rod Graves drafted Alan Branch and Calais Campbell in the second round. Branch and Campbell team with Darnell Dockett to put about 900 pounds and 19 feet of muscle up front. Branch is a rotational nose, and might play primarily at end because Kenny Iwebema is questionable with a knee injury. However they construct their front, it is the core of their defense and what allows their marginally talented linebackers to dominate the run game.

In their first matchup, Seattle was down 14 before its offense could take the field. We'll assume Seattle overcomes its Dehavenry this game. The Cardinals defended with their base, eight-in-the-box look.

Arizona ran a safety blitz with Adrian Wilson. Seattle ran an aborted play-action and then Matt Hasselbeck found Nate Burleson on a ten-yard hook. It worked, barely.

Instead of running play-action, let's attempt an actual run. The Cardinals ability to force runs out wide allows them to overmatch teams. Arizona has five standing defenders in the box. Seattle needs to establish a running presence between the tackles. The design is to run behind left guard.

First Seattle motions John Carlson into the right slot. Arizona may then motion Adrian Wilson or Clark Hagans to cover him. It also might not budge. We'll assume that Carlson, sophomore slump and all, is still receiving threat enough to draw Wilson. If he doesn't move or no one moves, the Cardinals might be blitzing off right end. It could be time to audible.

Wilson shadows Carlson. The next thing to do is demonstrate the blocking assignments. The goal is to push the defensive line left and then surge behind it and away from backside pursuit. Rob Sims matches against Campbell or Dockett, depending on the rotation. That is the single most difficult and critical block of this play.

The action has started. Seattle is attacking on multiple fronts, but the Cardinals have counterattacks. Hagans is unblocked and threatening to chase down Julius Jones. Carlson has a bad angle on Wilson and must attempt to cut block. Left inside linebacker Gerald Hayes and right inside linebacker Karlos Dansby are flowing towards Jones. For Seattle to execute properly, Locklear and Max Unger must be able pull into the second level and stop their respective assignments.

Let us now look at this play a fraction of a second later. Carlson has flopped, slowing but not stopping Wilson. Hagans is in hot pursuit. Dockett has been able to beat Willis on the outside. Not everything is working, but enough has to punch a hole. Spencer has turned nose tackle Bryan Robinson. Sims has down likewise against Campbell. Locklear is blocking down Dansby and Unger has cut Hayes. The path to the second level is paved and Jones must hit the hole hard.

There's nothing especially creative about this play, but it does play Seattle's personnel to their strengths. The hole is built off the Seahawks two most powerful blockers: Sims and Spencer. Locklear has the best balance and footwork and he pulls out and attempts to railroad the linebacker. Unger starts the play by assisting Spencer to get a mean push on Robinson. That double team moves the nose and creates space for Unger to run forward and cut Hayes. Unger is nimble and assignment correct, but not a powerful blocker. Carlson draws Wilson out of the tackle box and can either run off Wilson (against man cover) or cut his path (in zone). The goal is to stop Wilson from chasing the play from behind. Blocking tight end John Owens must only slow Chike Okeafor or Bertrand Berry enough that they are not able to run into the backfield and reroute Jones.

The weakest link is Willis against Dockett. That is why Willis uses his length to tie up and slow Dockett. You can not count on winning every matchup. Seattle needs to win two for this play to work: nose and right defensive end. If it can get that push, Jones will have a hole. It's not sophisticated, but it builds off Seattle's strengths and helps make play action a little less ludicrous.

Matt Hasselbeck's Square Wheels

John Morgan — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 21:39:59 -0000

More photos » by Donna McWilliam - AP

This doesn't happen from shotgun.

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Matt Hasselbeck sold play-action well but showed off his square wheels attempting to roll out. He was barely through his curve before he had to target Deion Branch because of pressure. The pass had all the mustard of a Coney Island sand crab. Branch dropped it before being blown up.

Max Unger was beat back but Hasselbeck found John Carlson for five to put Seattle back into manageable third down. The play was filthy with Greg Knapp.

With that we get to the infamous instant sack by Bobby Carpenter. No breakdown necessary, but in short order, this is what I blame for the play:

1. Hasselbeck for not audibling into shotgun.

2. Knapp for making no attempt to disrupt timing the Cowboy's timing. Seattle has made little use of hard counts and Dallas and Arizona have timed the Seahawks snaps to perfection.

3. Chris Spencer, who doubled down on the nose tackle, and Unger, who needed Spencer to help him with Jay Ratliff.

The real culprit, by my estimate anyway, is the new coaching staff and lack of continuity on the line. Hasselbeck should have audibled into shotgun regardless, but each of the above can be attributed to an offense learning a new playbook and an offensive line that hasn't played together very much.

Pawns in the Greg Knapp Offense

John Morgan — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 21:48:31 -0000

More photos » by Donna McWilliam - AP

After the tricks had failed, Matt Hasselbeck and Deion Branch proved talent alone can still win.

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Seattle started the drive with Edgerrin James in the backfield. He stumbled for one yard and then wasted the concerted push-left of the offensive line punctuated by a clean and well timed trap block by Rob Sims. It's moments like this you realize an offensive line creates opportunities, but the back must be able to cash in.

The Seahawks converted the first when John Carlson cut across the hash marks and found a soft spot in Dallas' zone. Seattle burned its next snap with a failed SeaCat attempt. It's part of the low-probability, high-reward attack that Greg Knapp has brought to Seattle.

It's a system that is not run through the quarterback, like the simple offense Peyton Manning has thrived in, that is not run through the rush game, like the proposed Seneca Wallace offense, but that is run through Knapp himself. With second and ten and Dallas up by two scores, Knapp read an overload-left blitz and split Carlson wide left. Dallas shuffled its players, and the secondary ran around, but at the snap, Carlson was wide open. Hasselbeck took a single-step drop, turned and tossed into the outstretched hands of Anthony Spencer. What defined both plays for me was there was no read, no progression or options, just an attack on a perceived weakness.

Hasselbeck hit Nate Burleson in the hands and Burleson stumbled through the catch, received for 36, but was free to the end zone. It was a great pass.

Seattle then ran, and as before, details stopped the start of a good play. Ray Willis dropped as if to pass block, and when James attempted to run behind right guard, Willis wasn't in position to maintain the hole. Willis needed to drive block and instead sagged as if to shadow.

Knapp attempted mate with a knight. He motioned Justin Griffith wide right, but Dallas held its 3-4 look and left Griffith uncovered. At the snap, Spencer, the left outside linebacker, rushed into the backfield and James abbreviated the play action and cut blocked him. The left inside linebacker buzzed into the right flat and the safety closed over top, but Griffith was free between them, yards from the end zone. Hasselbeck threw a perfect pass towards the pylon and Griffith threw his hands up and stumbled absently as if unaware where to go. Knapp had an interesting theory, but defenses ignore fullbacks for a reason. Maybe if it is was Stanley Havili or Leonard Weaver split wide it would have worked.

The drive ended on a beautiful pass and an equally beautiful catch by Deion Branch. Branch ran a skinny post and jumped and turned just as the pass hit him in the numbers. It was basic football decided by talent and execution. The style that defines the Colts offense; a style Knapp may have abandoned after years of JaMarcus Russell and Michael Vick.