SBNation.com User Blog: Nate Dogg

Seahawks at Redskins: Playoffs Video Retrospective

Nate Dogg — Thu, 10 Jan 2013 01:42:50 -0000

I don't have a lot to say for this one. I was pretty drunk during the game, and pretty groggy with a cold when I put this together. Game ball goes to Zach Miller, who had four huge catches. Two converted third downs, one converted a fourth down, and one for the two point conversion to put Seattle up 7. Danny has a nice break down on how they got him in position for those catches. You should read it.

Everyone had big moments on offense. Marshawn had a couple on top of his overall great day, my favorite being the fumble recovery. Rice and Tate had big sideline catches. Baldwin broke free in the middle of the field and made Jordan Pugh look silly. Robinson added on to his great day catching the ball against the Rams, coming up with a first down and another TD. Wilson turned in his best blocking performance of the year.

Go Hawks, Superb Owl, and get healthy RG3. The league would be much worse off without a healthy RG3.

Passing Defense

Passing Offense

Rushing Defense

Rushing Offense

Go Hawks, Superb Owl, and get healthy RG3. The league would be much worse off without a healthy RG3.

Passing Defense

Passing Offense

Rushing Defense

Rushing Offense

Seahawks vs Rams: Video Retrospective

Nate Dogg — Thu, 03 Jan 2013 05:32:27 -0000

Guys, the season is over. Holy shit.

PLAYOFFS!!!!!!

This play was a great example of something that doesn't get talked about in much depth. It's a read option play where Marshawn gets the ball and breaks off a nice run because of the attention Wilson is given. Wilson "blocks" the end, but he also freezes Rocky McIntosh (#50) who ends up out of position to make a play on Lynch. The read option isn't just about Wilson gaining yards.
Lane struggled again this week, and if I'm not mistaken was benched in favor of Maxwell for a stretch. Last week against the Niners he struggled at times with Moss but otherwise held it together. Against St Louis he was running pretty cold for the start and gave up both of the big plays on the Rams first TD drive. It'll be interesting to see how the CB snaps shake out this week with Browner back.
If Janoris Jenkins ever sees Russell Wilson again it'll be too soon.
Sweezy had a rough game. If you need a reminder of how raw he is, this play where he chases a stunting lineman to the other side of Unger will probably do. It wasn't just the mental mistakes though, he had issues holding up in the run game and with staying engaged against pass rushers. Moffitt has been inactive the last two weeks, it'll be interesting to see if he can earn some playing time against Washington.
Every game Michael Robinson has a catch where he's able to rack up a few yards and a first down. This week he had three of them, one for a touchdown, and ended each of them with a big hit. A nice way for him to end another solid year.
Every week Wilson makes at least one jaw dropping play. My favorite this week was his scramble and toss to Tate late in the game. It's a good thing he's on Seattle, but if we ever had to play against him I'd have at least 3 aneurysms a game watching pass rushers try to chase him down.

Go Hawks, and Superb Owl

Pass Defense

Pass Offense

Rushing Defense

Rushing Offense

Guys, the season is over. Holy shit.

PLAYOFFS!!!!!!

This play was a great example of something that doesn't get talked about in much depth. It's a read option play where Marshawn gets the ball and breaks off a nice run because of the attention Wilson is given. Wilson "blocks" the end, but he also freezes Rocky McIntosh (#50) who ends up out of position to make a play on Lynch. The read option isn't just about Wilson gaining yards.
Lane struggled again this week, and if I'm not mistaken was benched in favor of Maxwell for a stretch. Last week against the Niners he struggled at times with Moss but otherwise held it together. Against St Louis he was running pretty cold for the start and gave up both of the big plays on the Rams first TD drive. It'll be interesting to see how the CB snaps shake out this week with Browner back.
If Janoris Jenkins ever sees Russell Wilson again it'll be too soon.
Sweezy had a rough game. If you need a reminder of how raw he is, this play where he chases a stunting lineman to the other side of Unger will probably do. It wasn't just the mental mistakes though, he had issues holding up in the run game and with staying engaged against pass rushers. Moffitt has been inactive the last two weeks, it'll be interesting to see if he can earn some playing time against Washington.
Every game Michael Robinson has a catch where he's able to rack up a few yards and a first down. This week he had three of them, one for a touchdown, and ended each of them with a big hit. A nice way for him to end another solid year.
Every week Wilson makes at least one jaw dropping play. My favorite this week was his scramble and toss to Tate late in the game. It's a good thing he's on Seattle, but if we ever had to play against him I'd have at least 3 aneurysms a game watching pass rushers try to chase him down.

Go Hawks, and Superb Owl

Pass Defense

Pass Offense

Rushing Defense

Rushing Offense

Seahawks vs Niners: Video Retrospective

Nate Dogg — Sat, 29 Dec 2012 04:10:48 -0000

This was one of my favorite games ever.

Jermaine Kearse is a guy I really liked in college, his senior slump not withstanding. He's getting regular snaps now, and he's getting some balls thrown his way. Unfortunately, he's developed a bit of a bad pattern. It seems like every game he has a nice catch followed up by a frustrating drop, and then is never seen from again. The Niner game was another example of that. Hopefully he'll be able to get more consistent as he gains more experience, because the talent is there. He feels really close to earning a solid role on this team.

With Kearse's potential teasing, and Baldwin reminding us why we all fell in love with him last year, I wonder where the Q/PM rank WR in their offseason priority list.

I keep saying this, but I love love love Wilson's definition of open. It's not what most quarterbacks call open, and it sets his receivers up for spectacular plays. Baldwin's first touchdown is yet another example of this. Baldwin gains separation, but the defender is still between him and Wilson and he has precious little real estate in the corner of the end zone. Wilson compensates for this by putting the ball well high but still catchable, letting Baldwin do the rest. The catch is breath taking and I hate to take anything away from Baldwin's effort, but Wilson allows it all to happen. It's a very special trait that he's demonstrated time and time again. Love it.

Go Hawks, and Superb Owl.

Passing Offense

Passing Defense

Rushing Offense

Rushing Defense

This was one of my favorite games ever.

With Kearse's potential teasing, and Baldwin reminding us why we all fell in love with him last year, I wonder where the Q/PM rank WR in their offseason priority list.

Go Hawks, and Superb Owl.

Passing Offense

Passing Defense

Rushing Offense

Rushing Defense

Seahawks at Bills: Video Retrospective

Nate Dogg — Sat, 22 Dec 2012 21:11:07 -0000

This was a crazy game. How crazy was it? So crazy that the flea flicker Seattle ran has been all but forgotten.

Seattle did a lot of three man rushes early in the game, even mixing in some 3-4 looks. This was to control Spiller and the screen game, and it worked pretty well. The 3-4 was something they used against Philadelphia last year when they were trying to get extra speed on the field in order to contain McCoy's speed. It's a fun wrinkle against those types of backs.

The Bills had a little spurt of offense at the end of the first half and looked like they might keep the game in reach. They did a lot of this by attacking the middle of the field, targeting the linebackers (Wagner and Wright) specifically. It's nothing we haven't seen before, they've played well over all but are still prone to rookie stretches. It's even less concerning considering some of the catches the Bills receivers came up with to keep those drives moving.

I'm going to miss watching Jones out there. He's so tall, long, lean, and smooth out there, he's a really enjoyable guy to fix on and watch for a few plays. Seattle likes to stand Jones up a lot, and in this game we saw Mebane do it as well on one play. I wonder if that's something we'll see them try more with Jones out.

Passing Offense

Passing Defense

Rushing Offense

Rushing Defense

This was a crazy game. How crazy was it? So crazy that the flea flicker Seattle ran has been all but forgotten.

Passing Offense

Passing Defense

Rushing Offense

Rushing Defense

Seahawks vs Cardinals: Video Retrospective

Nate Dogg — Mon, 10 Dec 2012 22:40:30 -0000

Game notes:

Bit of an issue with the audio in this game, so after the first few plays I just killed it. I was tempted to add some classic youtube highlight video music over the top, but I figured I'll let you pick your own sound track.
At one point late in the game, Chris Myers said the only real negative for Seattle had been the pass rush. I don't know what game he was watching, because Seattle was absolutely getting after Arizona's QBs even if they weren't converting a ton of sacks.
I didn't watch him particularly closely, but Red had at least two good plays rushing the passer. One where he ducked inside the tackle and came clean, another where he got good push and got his arms up in the QBs face.
Marshawn looked like Marshawn again. Lets hope he can have another long stretch of games where his back isn't bothering him.
I have a bunch of gifs I'd like to make from this game, but photobucket's 5mb limit is killing me. If anyone knows of a better place to host gifs, let me know

Big thanks to CrossCech, who has been a huge help in making sure I have the video to make these each week.

Passing Offense
Passing Defense
Rushing Offense
Rushing Defense

Game notes:

Bit of an issue with the audio in this game, so after the first few plays I just killed it. I was tempted to add some classic youtube highlight video music over the top, but I figured I'll let you pick your own sound track.
At one point late in the game, Chris Myers said the only real negative for Seattle had been the pass rush. I don't know what game he was watching, because Seattle was absolutely getting after Arizona's QBs even if they weren't converting a ton of sacks.
I didn't watch him particularly closely, but Red had at least two good plays rushing the passer. One where he ducked inside the tackle and came clean, another where he got good push and got his arms up in the QBs face.
Marshawn looked like Marshawn again. Lets hope he can have another long stretch of games where his back isn't bothering him.
I have a bunch of gifs I'd like to make from this game, but photobucket's 5mb limit is killing me. If anyone knows of a better place to host gifs, let me know

Big thanks to CrossCech, who has been a huge help in making sure I have the video to make these each week.

Passing Offense
Passing Defense
Rushing Offense
Rushing Defense

Seahawks at Chicago: Nate Dogg Retrospective

Nate Dogg — Sat, 08 Dec 2012 01:29:23 -0000

Somebody forgot to record the game, and my torrent site shockingly came up short this week. So we're doing it Pete King style. Awwwww yeah.....

You Should Probably Be Sitting Down For What I'm About To Tell You

Red Bryant is a bit of a black hole against the pass. How black is he? Let's take a look.

Play 1

2nd and 10 from the 50 yard line, Chicago in a two tight end, one back set:

I've posted this a couple times already. Chicago runs play action with the play side (across from Red) TE releasing out into a route and the other TE staying in to block. Red is lined up in a wide nine for some reason, and the entire offensive line blocks down to their left. This leaves only the running back to block Red, and he's only looking to chip before getting out into his route. That leaves 6 offensive linemen to block the remaining three defensive linemen.

Red has to be able to get pressure in these situations, but he doesn't. He does manage to knock the running back on his ass, killing his route.

Play 2

2nd and 10 from the Chicago 30, Chicago in a two tight end, one back set.

A bit of an opposite of the previous play. Red is doubled by the right tackle and a tight end, with Mebane and Branch also seeing double teams. That doesn't leave anyone to block Clemons, which is a bit of a problem for Chicago.

Play 3

2nd and 9 at the Chicago 51, Chicago in a two tight end, one back set.

Here we have Red being single blocked by a chipping TE. The TE is able to completely stone wall Red with minimal effort before slipping into his route. That leaves the right tackle to help on the defensive tackles, who are effectively double teamed.

Play 4

1st and 10 at the Chicago 37, Chicago in a one tight end, two back set.

Again, Chicago assigns only a tight end to block Red. That gives them seven blockers to block the remaining two defensive linemen and two blitzers.

Play 5

1st and 10 at the Chiacago 15, Chicago in a one tight end, one back set.

It's a little difficult to see here, but Irvin and Red are stunting against two tight ends and the left tackle. Red comes around the corner and the far left tight end peels off to block him, leaving a tight end and the left tackle to double Irvin. Branch is also double teamed, and Clemons is working against the right tackle and a chipping running back. Fortunately Mebane wins his match up against a single block and is able to provide some pressure.

Play 6

1st and 10 at the Chicago 5, Chicago in a one tight end, two back set.

Red is single blocked by the right tackle, with a tight end and a running back available to help. He gets zero push however, so the running back and tight end are available to pick up either Wagner or Wright should they have blitzed. The offensive line has a man to spare against the remaining three defensive linemen, and the full back chips Clemons for good measure.

Again, Mebane is able to win his matchup and shed his blocker. Unfortunately there are just too many offensive linemen, and he's unable to navigate the mess and pressure Cutler before he has time to get rid of the ball.

Play 7

2nd and 8 at the Chicago 41, Chicago in a one tight, two back set.

Cutler has barely completed the play fake to Forte and already Red is completely out of the play. All it took from Chicago was a tight end, who releases into a route after destroying Red in pass protection. Forte is completely free to pick up any potential blitzers, while the remaining five offensive linemen pick up their assignments.

Play 8

1st and 10 at the Chicago 48, Chicago in a two tight, one back set.

Noticing a trend? Here we have Red being blocked by a tight end. An additional tight end and Forte are available to help, but they aren't needed and can look for blitzers.

Play 9

1st and 10 at the Seattle 48, Chicago in a two tight, two back set.

Red Bryant

Chipping Full Back

Zero pressure

That haiku is almost as bad as Red Bryant's pass rush moves. Zing!

There has been a lot of talk about improving Seattle's pass rush by upgrading at the three tech over Alan Branch. It's not a bad idea, any time you can upgrade your team you should consider it. But looking at the above plays it's clear that, on pass plays involving Red Bryant, Seattle is effectively rushing three. The best pass rushing defensive tackles are going to seriously struggle in those situations. If Seattle is serious about wanting to improve the pass rush from it's base package, it would be able to get much bigger gains out of figuring out what to do with Red over making a serious investment in a new three tech.

As The Read Option Goes, So Too Goes The Seahawks Offense?

Two weeks ago, Seattle went into Miami and faced the 10th ranked defense by DVOA. The offense scored 14 points, and floundered an opportunity at a game winning drive. Last week, Seattle went into Chicago and faced the top ranked defense by DVOA. The point output wasn't much better, but they did manufacture two game winning drives.

What was the difference? Well, the success of the read option in the Bears game is no secret. On Seattle's last drive in regulation, Wilson rushed for 20 of the 97 yard drive. In the game winning OT drive, he rushed for 30 of the 80 yard drive. In addition to that, the read option opened up the game winning touchdown (which Danny breaks down here). Against Miami, Seattle ran the read option only two or three times.

It was effective against the Jets and it was a killer against the Bears, where the hell was it against Miami? One of the issues may have been the athleticism of the Dolphins linebackers, or at the very least the lack thereof with the Jets and Bears linebackers. If that's the case, it's possible we'll see the read option disappear again against Arizona this weekend. The Cardinals have some supremely athletic linebackers, Darryl Washington first among them.

What does that mean for Seattle's offense? I don't want to doom and gloom too much, because I'd take even odds that Seattle's defense alone will outscore the Cardinals. But if you consider that against the last two top 10 defenses Seattle's offense faced they averaged 15.5 points, and that the Cardinals rank fourth in DVOA on defense, it's not absurd to think Sunday's game could be closer than the two team's track records would lead you to guess.

Of course, it's a home game. That might make the whole thing moot.

10 Things I Think

I think I can't believe I'm doing a Peter King inspired fanpost.
I think Marshawn Lynch is hurt, and I think I'm worried about his long term effectiveness.
I think Jim Jones would be jealous of the cult of personality that Russell Wilson has built.
I think, after doing a single fan post involving writing, that I'm very appreciative of the work that Danny et al put into the site. Video retrospectives are easy compared to this.
I think Samuel Smith makes great beer.
I think Seattle has little interest in bringing back Jason Jones for next year. The fact that Scruggs would have started over him in the case of Bryant missing a game makes me wonder how much they like him.
I think I need to find better ways to spend my Friday nights.
I think that I'd be ok with replacing Red with Branch and finding a true three tech in the draft. Especially if that three tech in Sheldon Richardson.
I think I'd still ultimately rather have a receiver in the first round. Wheaton or Patterson would make me cream.
I think the Rams game at the end of the year is going to decide if Seattle gets into the playoffs or not.

Somebody forgot to record the game, and my torrent site shockingly came up short this week. So we're doing it Pete King style. Awwwww yeah.....

You Should Probably Be Sitting Down For What I'm About To Tell You

Red Bryant is a bit of a black hole against the pass. How black is he? Let's take a look.

Play 1

2nd and 10 from the 50 yard line, Chicago in a two tight end, one back set:

Red has to be able to get pressure in these situations, but he doesn't. He does manage to knock the running back on his ass, killing his route.

Play 2

2nd and 10 from the Chicago 30, Chicago in a two tight end, one back set.

Play 3

2nd and 9 at the Chicago 51, Chicago in a two tight end, one back set.

Play 4

1st and 10 at the Chicago 37, Chicago in a one tight end, two back set.

Again, Chicago assigns only a tight end to block Red. That gives them seven blockers to block the remaining two defensive linemen and two blitzers.

Play 5

1st and 10 at the Chiacago 15, Chicago in a one tight end, one back set.

Play 6

1st and 10 at the Chicago 5, Chicago in a one tight end, two back set.

Play 7

2nd and 8 at the Chicago 41, Chicago in a one tight, two back set.

Play 8

1st and 10 at the Chicago 48, Chicago in a two tight, one back set.

Noticing a trend? Here we have Red being blocked by a tight end. An additional tight end and Forte are available to help, but they aren't needed and can look for blitzers.

Play 9

1st and 10 at the Seattle 48, Chicago in a two tight, two back set.

Red Bryant

Chipping Full Back

Zero pressure

That haiku is almost as bad as Red Bryant's pass rush moves. Zing!

As The Read Option Goes, So Too Goes The Seahawks Offense?

Of course, it's a home game. That might make the whole thing moot.

10 Things I Think

I think I can't believe I'm doing a Peter King inspired fanpost.
I think Marshawn Lynch is hurt, and I think I'm worried about his long term effectiveness.
I think Jim Jones would be jealous of the cult of personality that Russell Wilson has built.
I think, after doing a single fan post involving writing, that I'm very appreciative of the work that Danny et al put into the site. Video retrospectives are easy compared to this.
I think Samuel Smith makes great beer.
I think Seattle has little interest in bringing back Jason Jones for next year. The fact that Scruggs would have started over him in the case of Bryant missing a game makes me wonder how much they like him.
I think I need to find better ways to spend my Friday nights.
I think that I'd be ok with replacing Red with Branch and finding a true three tech in the draft. Especially if that three tech in Sheldon Richardson.
I think I'd still ultimately rather have a receiver in the first round. Wheaton or Patterson would make me cream.
I think the Rams game at the end of the year is going to decide if Seattle gets into the playoffs or not.

Seahawks at Miami: Video Retrospective

Nate Dogg — Fri, 30 Nov 2012 20:56:44 -0000

It's not a surprise that Red is suddenly listed on the injury report and his status is in question for this weekends game. Red was way off his game against Miami, and was easily the weakest link in Seattle's run defense. Rob at Seahawks Draft Blog seemed to put a lot of the blame on the defensive tackles, but Miami consistently ran stretch plays right at Red with good success. The defensive tackles weren't stellar, but they held their ground and were mostly assignment correct while Red was pushed all over the field. It's clear he's not right, and if he's going to be anything like that against Chicago Seattle will be better off sitting him.

Passing Offense Passing Defense Rushing Offense Rushing Defense

Seahawks vs Jets: Video Retrospective

Nate Dogg — Wed, 21 Nov 2012 23:15:56 -0000

Bye weeks blow. Here are some videos that may help you get through the last few days!

I had some interesting stuff to put here about constraint plays and Mike Morgan's awesome fourth down stuff, but Danny is a huge jerk and decided not to wait a week to talk about the game so I'm a bit out of ideas. So I guess I'll just sum up the stuff about constraint plays by saying that Bevell seems to have really seems to have really hit his stride. I'm not sure if Carroll has allowed him to open the play calling up a bit, if Wilson's improvement has made him look better, the penalties getting cleaned up has improved effectiveness, or if it's a little bit of all of that but I'm really coming around on him. Even if that option in the Green Bay game was the worst play call I've ever seen.

Programming note: Judging by the number of views on the special teams videos none of you will be too sad to see that I've stopped doing them.

Rushing Offense:

Passing Defense:

Passing Offense:

Rushing Defense:

Bye weeks blow. Here are some videos that may help you get through the last few days!

Programming note: Judging by the number of views on the special teams videos none of you will be too sad to see that I've stopped doing them.

Rushing Offense:

Passing Defense:

Passing Offense:

Rushing Defense:

Seahawks vs Vikings: Video Retrospective

Nate Dogg — Tue, 06 Nov 2012 15:03:14 -0000

Wooooooo read option!!

The Seahawks broke out some pretty awesome blitz packages against Ponder, and this sack was sexy as all hell. I had to watch some of these blitzes two or three times in slow mo to figure out what everyone was doing. Ponder looked like he needed to do the same thing.

I only had the chance to watch the Lions game once, so maybe this has already been brought up, but it's worth noting that Seattle looks to have replaced Jones with Red in these fronts. He's not as disruptive as Jones, but he's doing a good job.

Wilson looks to have taken a serious step in his consistency, with what I would say are his two best performances of the year coming in back to back games. His accuracy was still a bit erratic at times in the second half, but he was able to avoid the long periods of ineptitude that had plagued him in most of his other games.

Pass Offense:

Pass Defense:

Rushing Offense:

Rushing Defense:

Special Teams:

Wooooooo read option!!

Pass Offense:

Pass Defense:

Rushing Offense:

Rushing Defense:

Special Teams:

Seahawks at Niners: Video Retrospective

Nate Dogg — Wed, 24 Oct 2012 14:06:21 -0000

Programming note - There will be no video retrospective next week, as I will be in Iceland from Sunday to Sunday. I might try to catch up on the Lions game at some point, but no promises.

This was another bad game for the special teams group. Ginn had a couple big returns and Leon was kept bottled up. Leon was great in the Cardinals game, but I keep waiting for him to take one to the house and win one of these close games. As for the coverage teams, they've been very hit and miss this year. Hopefully they'll get some consistency as the year goes on.

One thing that has really stood out to me about Wilson is he is not afraid to put the ball in a place for a receiver to go make a play on it. The Edwards pass in the end zone, the Rice comeback on the left sideline where he had to go up for the ball and the corner lost track of him, the Moore pass on the tight sideline, and Tate's pass along the tight sideline later in the game are all examples of this. It's a nice change of pace from a guy like TJack, and it's something that got me excited for him in the preseason, but it also makes him extremely reliant on his receivers. It makes me very hopeful that Seattle is aggressive in adding a big time play maker at the position, either early in the draft or through free agency.

Rushing Offense:

Rushing Defense:

Special Teams:

Pass Offense:

Pass Defense:

Programming note - There will be no video retrospective next week, as I will be in Iceland from Sunday to Sunday. I might try to catch up on the Lions game at some point, but no promises.

Rushing Offense:

Rushing Defense:

Special Teams:

Pass Offense:

Pass Defense:

Seahawks vs Patriots: Video Retrospective

Nate Dogg — Sat, 20 Oct 2012 22:20:42 -0000

Sorry for the delay folks. Niners retrospective should be coming soon.

Jon Ryan didn't have his best game. He showed pretty poor awareness on the dropped snap, and out kicked his coverage a few times. The special teams as a whole really struggled, outside of Leon's last punt return.

I really like how Seattle handled their two minute offense at the end of the game. They seemed to be very aware of both how much time they had, staying patient and calling a few run plays. This probably helped set up the big play to Rice, and if they hadn't gotten that they were on pace to drive steadily down the field and leave the Patriots offense little time. Bevell gets a lot of heat, and I think a lot of it's deserved, but this was a nice job of play calling.

Passing Offense:

Rushing Offense:

Passing Defense: (Technical difficulties forced me to leave out three of the final plays)

Rushing Defense:

Special Teams:

Sorry for the delay folks. Niners retrospective should be coming soon.

Passing Offense:

Rushing Offense:

Passing Defense: (Technical difficulties forced me to leave out three of the final plays)

Rushing Defense:

Special Teams:

Seahawks at Panthers: Video Retrospective

Nate Dogg — Mon, 08 Oct 2012 20:47:03 -0000

"You don't appreciate Earl Thomas enough" is a fledgling meme I support, but I'm going to guess you don't appreciate Jason Jones enough either. He's been near unblockable in pass rushing situations, and he's had a big part in Bruce Irvin's early success. Both of Irvin's sacks yesterday came off of stunts with Jones, and the half sack that Irvin got in the Dallas game was shared with Jones. Jones also forced an interception yesterday that Thomas inexplicably dropped. The idea that he'll walk after his one year deal is up is terrifying.

Last week I wondered if Carolina's run first personnel packages would give Seattle's pass rush problems by denying opportunities for their subpackages. It did, as we didn't see Seattle get too crazy until the end of the game. It also didn't matter because Cam was terrible, Steve Smith was too busy trying to wrestle Sherman, and the Carolina running backs looked soft and slow. For all the draft capital and money they've poured into building a three headed running attack, it looked about as potent as the Cardinals ground game yesterday.

Pass Offense:

Pass Defense:

Run Offense:

Run Defense:

Special Teams :

Seahawks at Rams: Video Retrospective

Nate Dogg — Mon, 01 Oct 2012 16:48:34 -0000

So that sucked. Whatever is being asked of the offense, what they're getting out of the passing game isn't enough. No one is expecting Aaron Rodgers numbers from the offense, but they're not even cracking Alex Smith levels right now.

James Carpenter's first game back was a pretty good one. He looked decent in both run and pass blocking, and showed a lot of the same quickness that he had before his injury. I know Giacomini isn't the most popular guy in town right now, but I hope Seattle leaves Carpenter at guard. The left side of the line looked strong for most of the game.

Wagner had a little bit of a coming out party, displaying his speed on a couple different plays. We should see more of it as he gets comfortable diagnosing plays, and hopefully it'll start translating to the passing game as well.

One thing that allowed St. Louis to have more success against Seattle's defense than Green Bay did is their balance. Seattle played all out against the pass against Green Bay, using lots of 3 man front sub packages and blitzes. The Rams kept Seattle away from that by running more conventional sets, and Seattle's base defense struggled to get significant pass rush. It should be interesting to see how Seattle handles the Panthers, Patriots and Lions, all offenses that can get up and down the field without flooding it with receivers.

Special Teams:

Passing Defense

Rushing Defense:

Passing Offense:

Rushing Offense:

Seahawks vs Packers: Video Retrospective

Nate Dogg — Sat, 29 Sep 2012 20:44:51 -0000

Technical difficulties be damned, here are the videos for last week's Monday night match up. I don't have a lot to add to the conversation on this one, it followed the blue print we all expected and have seen over the course of the season so far. Defense, good. Offense, anemic. It's working for now, but they're playing with fire a bit. The offense probably won't ever be considered explosive, or even top 15, but they need to find a way to consistently squeeze out a couple more field goals at least. Cleaning up the penalties could get them there.

Keep an eye on Brandon Browner. Not so much in this game, but just in general. He was a fan favorite last year because of his freakish size, but he wasn't always that good of a player. He evened out at the end of last year, and it seems like he's continuing into the season. He's winning me over.

Fuck you Bevell for even thinking this was a good idea, let alone calling it in that situation.

Special Teams:

Passing Offense:

Passing Defense:

Rushing Offense:

Rushing Defense:

Tate fined 21k for hit on Lee

Nate Dogg — Wed, 19 Sep 2012 20:18:15 -0000

Tate fined 21k for hit on Lee

Hard for Tate to complain too much as there is a decent argument that his hit should've been penalized, but it's a pretty ridiculous amount considering what Cole got for his arm toss of Okung last year.

Seahawks vs Cowboys: Video Retrospective

Nate Dogg — Wed, 19 Sep 2012 06:21:44 -0000

As fun as it was to watch this defense the first time through, it was even more fun the second and third time. There is a lot to dig into there. Seattle used several different looks including lots of three man fronts, and even what looked like some standard 3-4 alignments. I didn't chart the plays, but I noticed Clemons dropping back into coverage as much as I've seen him do in a single game. Irvin and Jones had good games, and it's very exciting to see them start to play off of each other so well. Meanwhile Mebane and Branch continue to do their thing, stuffing the run, so well that the other team stops giving them a chance to do it. It's good to be a Seattle defender right now.

Passing Defense:

Rushing Defense:

Special Teams:

Rushing Offense:

Passing Offense:

Seahawks at Cardinals: Video Retrospective

Nate Dogg — Fri, 14 Sep 2012 15:12:19 -0000

I was a bit slow getting these put together this week. The goal for next week is to have them done early so Danny can use them in the awesome breakdowns he's been doing. The videos are broken down by Pass Offense, Pass Defense, Rush Offense, Rush Defense, and Special Teams.

Special Teams! Maybe I've missed it, but I'm surprised there has been so little talk about Leon Washington. After a bit of a down season, and offseason speculations that he'd be a cap casualty, he almost single-handedly kept Seattle in the game. Here are the plays that set up the Hawks' scoring drives last week:

-- Mebane fumble recovery at the Arizona 42. Field goal.

-- Leon kick return for 83 yards to the Arizona 24. Touchdown

-- Sherman pick at the Arizona 34. Field goal.

-- Leon punt return for 52 yards to the Arizona 16. Field goal.

Seattle only had two drives where the offense crossed the 50 yard line.

-- Mebane fumble recovery at the Arizona 42. Field goal.

-- Leon kick return for 83 yards to the Arizona 24. Touchdown

-- Sherman pick at the Arizona 34. Field goal.

-- Leon punt return for 52 yards to the Arizona 16. Field goal.

Seattle only had two drives where the offense crossed the 50 yard line.

Special Teams:

Running Game:

Running Defense:

Passing Defense:

Passing Offense:

James Carpenter: 2011 Season Retrospective Part 2 Inspired by the Draftbreakdown guys. Missing...

Nate Dogg — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 17:56:53 -0000

James Carpenter: 2011 Season Retrospective Part 2

Inspired by the Draftbreakdown guys. Missing are the week 1 Niners game and the week 7 Browns game.

When I split these into two parts I did it a bit lopsided and ended up with only two games in part 2. Not sure how I managed that, but I went back and added some extra plays so we can get an extra close look at his final two games of 2011.

James Carpenter: 2011 Season Retrospective Part 1 Inspired by the DraftBreakdown guys. Not...

Nate Dogg — Thu, 07 Jun 2012 19:28:17 -0000

James Carpenter: 2011 Season Retrospective Part 1

Inspired by the DraftBreakdown guys. Not included are the week 1 Niners game and the week 7 Browns game.

Matt McCoy: 2011 Season Retrospective Inspired by the DraftBreakdown guys. Not included are the...

Nate Dogg — Wed, 06 Jun 2012 06:46:56 -0000

Matt McCoy: 2011 Season Retrospective

Inspired by the DraftBreakdown guys. Not included are the week 1 Niners game and the week 7 Browns game.

Unfortunately, missing the week 1 Niners game is a pretty big blow for this video. I'm sure a lot of people remember Bigtrain's McCoy .gif from that game though. That's probably the highlight of his season.

John Moffitt: 2011 Season Retrospective Inspired by the DraftBreakdown guys. Not included are the...

Nate Dogg — Thu, 31 May 2012 04:51:11 -0000

John Moffitt: 2011 Season Retrospective

Inspired by the DraftBreakdown guys. Not included are the week 1 Niners game and the week 7 Browns game.

Doug Farrar on BMW's veteranosity

Nate Dogg — Sun, 27 May 2012 18:29:59 -0000

Doug Farrar on BMW's veteranosity

"I don't think it requires any extra attention; it's just being a veteran in the room," Williams said. "Being a veteran in the group. Being a good teammate. This year hasn't been the year I wanted it to be, health-wise or numbers-wise, but you've still got to be a pro, and you've still got to help the guys out. I love what Doug brings to our group and the kind of player he is, so I just have to do my part. That goes for Golden — that goes for all those guys."

Kris Durham: 2011 Season Retrospective Inspired by the DraftBreakdown guys. Not included are the...

Nate Dogg — Wed, 23 May 2012 17:10:03 -0000

Kris Durham: 2011 Season Retrospective

Inspired by the DraftBreakdown guys. Not included are the week 1 Niners game and the week 7 Browns game.

Had to scrape the bottom of the barrel a bit on this one. Includes 24 of his 39 snaps and all three of his catches.

Heath Farwell is good at special teams

Nate Dogg — Wed, 23 May 2012 01:07:47 -0000

Heath Farwell is good at special teams

"One note on these stats: We haven't yet added the ability to correct for plays which are shortened by penalty; in other words, if a player makes a tackle on a long return, and that return gets shortened due to a holding penalty, the player ends up listed with a tackle on the shorter yardage."

Aaron Curry: 2011 Season Retrospective Inspired by the DraftBreakdown guys. Not included are the...

Nate Dogg — Fri, 18 May 2012 15:59:39 -0000

Aaron Curry: 2011 Season Retrospective

Inspired by the DraftBreakdown guys. Not included are the week 1 Niners game and the week 7 Browns game.

Big thanks to GasolineSnuggie for telling me how to do boxes instead of names!

Walter Thurmond: 2011 Season Retrospective Inspired by the DraftBreakdown guys. Not included are...

Nate Dogg — Sat, 12 May 2012 14:08:18 -0000

Walter Thurmond: 2011 Season Retrospective

Inspired by the DraftBreakdown guys. Not included are the week 1 Niners game and the week 7 Browns game.

There were a few comments in the previous post about using a box around the player instead of a name. I'd prefer to do it that way as well, but I'm not able to with the software I'm using.

Marcus Trufant: 2011 Season Restrospective Video. The inspiration here is obviously guys like...

Nate Dogg — Tue, 08 May 2012 18:42:38 -0000

Marcus Trufant: 2011 Season Restrospective Video.

The inspiration here is obviously guys like Aaron Aloysius and JMPasq's prospect videos. The plan is to do these for as many Seahawk players as I can. Is this something people would be interested in? If it's something people are interested in, do you have any suggestions for formatting based off how this video went? I'm already planning to add a buffer picture at the start and I'm going to try to go longer after each play so it's not so herky jerky (although it can be tough depending on what the broadcast does).

FO's SackSeer doesn't like Courtney Upshaw

Nate Dogg — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 06:33:56 -0000

FO's SackSeer doesn't like Courtney Upshaw

Courtney Upshaw ranks very low, which isn't a huge surprise if you're familiar with SackSeer. Pass rushing would only capture part of Upshaw's value anyways.

I thought it was interesting that they mention Robert Ayers in his summary, that seems to me like a good comparison for Upshaw.

Malik Jackson - Tennessee Defensive Lineman

Nate Dogg — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 17:36:50 -0000

Malik Jackson is a 6'5, 270lb senior for Tennessee. As you'll see in the video below, he literally played every position on the Tennessee defensive line. Anything from nose tackle in a 3-4 to defensive end in a 4-3, Jackson did it. Most commonly he played both the 1 tech and 3 tech in a 4-3. At 270lbs.

Jackson originally committed to USC under Pete Carroll. I only just now learned that after trying to dig up some background info on him. That isn't why I chose to write this piece, but it is interesting now that I know about it. With USC his appeared in 21 games as a rotational guy during his freshman and sophomore years, getting 5.5 sacks and a couple forced fumbles. He transferred without sacrificing a year of eligibility because of USC's sanctions. Since joining Tennessee, he's started 24 out of 25 games, collecting 7.5 sacks, 26 tackles for loss and a couple more forced fumbles.

But who cares about stats, on to the video.

00:00 - Right off the bat you see Jackson's versatility. He's playing the nose in a 3-4. He does a good job of driving the center back but isn't in a position to shed his blocker and doesn't fully plug the hole.

0:22 - He's lined up as a three tech here I think. He gets driven back by the guard but does a very nice job shedding his blocker and getting in position to make a tackle at the line of scrimmage.

00:33 - Defensive end in a 3-4, I think. This is kind of a weird look and I don't think he has normal 5 tech responsibilities here. Good burst, active hands, drives the guard back and is able to get loose in the back field.

00:44 - 1 tech in a 4-3. That's four plays and four different positions in the first seven minutes of this game.

00:53 - Initially lined up over the center, he shifts to the 1 tech. This is where Jackson first really caught my eye, that's some really impressive explosion off the line. He dips his shoulder to slip past the center, demolishes a running back trying to chip block and forces a dangerous throw from the quarterback.

01:02 - Back to back plays where Jackson gets good penetration but over-pursues on the first and slips on the second.

01:41 - Does a nice job forcing a double team and pushing it back.

02:00 - Stands up and sheds the center to make a tackle in the back field. Shows good lateral agility to get in the running lane.

02:48 - Jackson gets driven back but is able to maneuver his blocker to stay in the play.

04:06 - Very nice swim move here to slip by the center before shedding the guard and pressuring the quarterback.

04:27 - Does a good job squeezing between blockers and getting into the back field. He gets blocked by the pulling guard but he clogs the running lanes, killing the run.

04:34 - Does a good job moving through trash to track down the running back on a play ran away from his side.

05:02 - Jackson initially has trouble getting any pass rush on this play but he reads Jordan Jefferson and drops into contain. Jackson and 99 do a good job of bottling Jefferson up but he's able to escape for a big gain.

05:32 - Again Jackson does a really nice job of slipping off blockers and maneuvering trash in a short yardage situation.

05:41 - Nice job getting into the backfield but he isn't able to finish the play.

05:50 - Jackson, and the entire defensive line, gets bull dozed by Bama's line.

05:58 - Nice use of hands here by Jackson, shedding the center and shucking the back.

06:42 - This is slow build pressure, by Jackson drives his man back, uses his hands well and then gets his hands up to try to tip the pass. The quarterback is eventually forced out of the pocket and has to make a tough throw across his body to avoid Jackson.

06:59 - I'm not sure what is going on with the left guard on this play, but while Jackson engages the center he reaches out with his right arm and throws the guard to the turf.

07:57 - Jackson is lined up as a defensive end in a 4-3 and while he gets good pressure and even ends up with a sack, you can see that he's not a pure speed rusher.

08:20 - This play is ugly. No pass rush, doesn't even really try, and then he isn't able to make a play on the running back. If you're not going to rush the passer, you'd hope he'd put himself in better position to stop that dump off.

08:43 - Back to back plays where he's stonewalled by the right guard. It looks like he struggles with the guards strength on these two plays.

09:15 - Another goal line situation where he finds a way to get into the backfield. That's a tackle for loss if not for the hold.

10:37 - Defensive end again, he reads the play and slides off two blockers to pressure the quarterback.

10:45 - Again, he's not a speed rusher. He's still able to get pressure here and shows off an iffy spin move.

10:55 - Back to back plays where he continues to do a great job of holding his ground, using his hands to keep blockers off of him and making a tackle at the line of scrimmage.

Conclusion

Jackson does all of that at 270lbs. For the most part it's incredibly impressive, but his lack of size certainly shows at times. He can struggle with strong offensive lineman and can get overwhelmed on running plays at times. Personally, I don't come away too concerned about that. Jackson is very, very unlikely to be asked to play 1 tech at the next level. As a three tech he showed me more than enough against the run that I would not worry about him at defensive tackle, as undersized as he is.

The flip side of his tweener status is that while he is a very athletic defensive tackle, he has fairly mediocre athleticism for a defensive end. He still uses his hands very well and has some nicely developed pass rush moves, but he's not a speed rusher and he didn't show off a great bull rush either. I think a team that drafts him with plans of making him a defensive end is going to be disappointed and Jackson may not amount to much more than filler in that role.

That's where Seattle comes in. Jackson would be great depth for Red Bryant. Jackson would not be as dominant against the run as Red, but he would hold up there very well. In the video above Jackson showed the ability to hold his ground, read a play and shed his blocker to make a play. That would serve him well as a two gapping 5 tech, and his lack of pure pass rush as a defensive end is masked by the scheme.

On passing downs, Jackson would be able to slide inside to the three tech where he can provide an inside pass rush. He's already shown the versatility to play multiple positions in a game, so there is a lot less uncertainty about how he would handle this than most players who are projected to be able to play multiple spots. This would also allow Seattle to protect him on running plays if they're not confident in his ability to play all three downs, or in short yardage situations.

NFLDraftScout has Jackson listed at the 12th defensive end and the 129th overall prospect. That's something like a 4th round grade most likely. I haven't seen his name anywhere else, so I don't know if that's where some of the more ambitious mock drafts are putting him, but I would like that pick for a team like Seattle. He has the skill set to be valuable role player that can contribute depth across the line.

If you're interested, there is another video of Malik Jackson on draftbreakdown.com.

Seahawks at Cardinals gifs

Nate Dogg — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 05:11:25 -0000

Seattle shouldn't have lost this game.

Offensive Line

Play 1 - Max Unger and Robert Gallery vs Darryl Washington and Calais Campbell. Washington and Campbell blow this play up. Calais Campbell shrugs off Robert Gallery and gets into the backfield, stringing out the run. Unger isn't able to get out on Darryl Washington, allowing him to knife in and bring down Leon Washington for a lose (despite a pretty nice stiff arm by Leon).

Play 2 - Max Unger and Robert Gallery vs Darnell Dockett and Calais Campbell. Gallery gets good push on Campbell as he tries to pursue the play. Darnell Dockett jumps to his left as the ball is snapped, allowing Unger to get position on him and screen him out of the play. Washington slips the arm tackle from Campbell and busts off a 15 yard gain.

Play 3 - Zach Miller, Left Tackle. Zach Miller is playing left tackle and Paul McQuistan lined up outside of Breno Giacomini in an unbalanced formation. Gallery does his thing, driving Campbell down field as Campbell is trying to pursue the run. Unger jumps out immediately and gets a nice cut block on Darryl Washington. Miller does an excellent job, pancaking Steward Bradley and screening Adrian Wilson out of the play. Leon takes advantage of the giant hole between Gallery and Miller, nearly picking up a first down.

Play 4 - Robert Gallery vs Vonnie Holliday. Yikes. Not much to say here, rough play for Gallery. That he gets driven back so far isn't actually that big of a deal on this run, but getting shucked the way he did blows it up. If he could have at least managed Holliday for a beat longer, Marshawn Lynch has a lot of space ahead of him.

Play 5 - Max Unger vs Darryl Washington. This run is a team effort, but Unger and Washington were matching up all day. When Unger was drafted, John was nervous about how he would handle 3-4 nose tackles. Seattle has handled this in a variety of ways, and against Arizona the most common way was to have Unger ignore the defensive line and get out on a MLB instead. Unger is very good in space and he shows it on this play, neutralizing Washington. McQuistan gets a good cut block on Campbell and Gallery escorts David Carter out of the play. Marshawn has gotten so good at cutting back on runs like this. He's able to weave his way to the first down marker before dragging Rashad Johnson an extra five yards.

Deep Passing Attack

Play 6 - Deep Ball: First attempt. Play action pass with great protection. Tarvaris Jackson overthrows this ball, but it's catchable. Obo didn't have his best game, but he wasn't as bad as some people were saying. Each of his drops were very tough catches, this one included. Still, he had a realistic chance of reeling this ball in and he wasn't able to make the play.

Play 7 - Deep Ball: Second attempt. Same deal, play action with great protection. Tarvaris goes all out on this one though, over throwing it so badly that Obo has no shot.

Play 8 - Deep Ball: Third attempt. You might be noticing a trend. Play action pass. The protection isn't quite as good as the previous two, but still very good. Jackson has Tate but puts the ball out of bounds.

Play 9 - Deep Ball: Fourth attempt. No play action on this one but the protection is solid again. But, just like the previous plays, Jackson over throws it and Ricardo Lockette has no shot at the ball. Wait, what?

Play 10 - Deep Ball: Fourth attempt part 2. Look at Lockette eat up that cushion. In fairness to TJack, this is actually a decently placed ball. Lockette has to slow down to find the ball and then battle Marshay Green for position. It's not the best pass, but it's close enough and Lockette is able to come up with a circus catch.

Play 11 - Deep Ball: Fifth attempt. TJack has all day in the pocket but over throws Lockette again. The one positive you can take from all of these plays is that Jackson does a nice job of anticipating his receivers coming free down field. With the exception of maybe the second attempt, none of these guys are open when TJack lets loose.

Tarvaris Jackson

Play 12 - Tarvaris Jackson vs Triple Coverage. Jackson sense the pressure from the free blitzer and knows he has to get rid of the ball. That's good. He decides to loft the ball down the middle of the field, allowing Richard Marshall to make an easy play on it. That's bad.

Play 13 - Tarvaris Jackson and Dougie Fresh. Jackson has a nice pocket but scans the field and doesn't find anyone open. He wants to check down but Marshawn trips over Paul McQuistan. Jackson does a good job keeping calm with plenty of protection, looks back down field and finds Doug Baldwin. Very nice catch by Baldwin to get the first down.

Play 14 - Tarvaris Jackson and Cameron Morrah. Dockett and Nick Eason eat up Lemuel Jeanpierre and Unger pretty quickly on this play. Jackson is able to check down and find Cameron Morrah before taking a hit. Not a particularly special play, but it's good awareness from Tarvaris to sense the pressure and get the out to a receiver instead of taking a sack.

Intermission

Play 15 - Richard Sherman Dance Party.

Seahawks' Pass Rush

Play 16 - Kam Chancellor and Leroy Hill Blitz. Seattle was aggressive in blitzing Arizona, but they weren't any more effective. I obviously don't know how this blitz is designed, but to my eye it's ruined by Kam Chancellor taking a path that's too wide and cuts off Leroy Hill. Hill has to slow and try to cut back inside of Kam, instead of having maybe a free path to Skelton if he had just rushed straight into Levi Brown at the start of the play. Roy Lewis tops the play off with some pretty poor coverage on Andre Roberts, who picks up the first down.

Play 17 - David Hawthorne and Roy Lewis Blitz. David Hawthorne is too tentative a blitzer for my liking. He always seems to pussy foot around at the line of scrimmage. Roy Lewis gets picked up by Larod Stephens-Howling, but pressure from Anthony Hargrove and Raheem Brock forces John Skelton his way. However, Lewis isn't able to make a tackle and Hawthorne isn't able to chase down Skelton before he gets the first.

Play 18 - Earl Thomas Blitz. Earl Thomas gets a good jump and nearly comes clean on this blitz. Daryn Colledge gets to him just quick enough to force him a little wider and out of the play. Thomas ends up unable to get a hand on Skelton. Mebane is able to get pressure up the middle, almost picking up a sack while wearing Lyle Sendlein as a cape.

Unfortunately, Skelton is able to step up into the space that Red Bryant should be filling, but isn't. Bryant likes to give up on pass rushing and play contain. I don't know if he's being coached to do this, but it very likely costs him a sack in this situation. Levi Brown has completely bailed on his block, deciding to flail after ET instead. If Bryant had kept up his pass rush, he's very likely there to take Skelton down when he steps forward to avoid Mebane.

Play 19 - Leroy Hill and Roy Lewis Blitz. Chester Taylor and Lyle Sendlein do a very nice job on this blitz. Taylor crosses in front of Skelton to pick up Lewis. Sendlein bails on Allen Branch to pick up Hill, and in the process gets a nice chip on Hargrove. Larry Fitzgerald lined up in the slot, ultimately leaving Kam Chancellor to cover him. He does this poorly, and Fitzgerald catches the ball with enough space to break off a long run for 41 yards.

Play 20 - Zone Blitz. Seattle rushes three down linemen and blitzes Roy Lewis, dropping Chris Clemons into coverage. The blitz works pretty well, with Raheem Brock mucking up the right side of the offensive line, allowing Lewis to come free. Insanity ensues, as Skelton is able to slide to his left and then throw to his right, hitting a wide open Todd Heap. Heap gets some pay back on Chancellor, breaking his ankles and getting the ball down to the Seattle goal line.

Play 21 - Leroy Hill Blitz. This is another nice blitz that goes for not. Hill blitzes and shrugs off Brown, getting pressure up the middle. King is no match for Clemons, who gets pressure to the inside despite what looks like a hold. Unfortunately, Clemons runs into Hill and the two get tangled up on each other. Skelton slides to his left and is able to scramble for a first down.

Seahawks' Run Defense

Play 22 - Red Bryant vs Rex Hadnot and Jeremy Bridges. This play works because of the double team Jeremy Bridges and Rex Hadnot get on Bryant. They're able to drive him back before Bridges slides off and gives Hawthorne a weak push that sends him sprawling. Hawthorne seems to want a flag, and it does look like a borderline block in the back. Chancellor comes down and fills the hole up the middle, but Howling is already taking this play off tackle. Bridges continues to terrorize Seattle defenders, knocking Browner out of the play. Howling ends up with 39 yards before ET is able to bring him down.

Play 23 - Brandon Mebane vs Daryn Colledge and Lyle Sendlein. Mebane has great burst off the line and he uses it to drive a double team back into Howling as he takes the hand off. Howling tries to cut it back up the middle but Hawthorne has the hole filled. Howling tries to bounce it outside once more before giving himself up to Clemons.

Play 24 - KJ Wright vs Rex Hadnot. Mebane sheds Sendlein at the snap, Bryant slides off a cut block from Bridges and shrugs off a chip from Jeff King as KJ Wright picks up the pulling Hadnot and drives him back into Howling's running lane. Wright sheds Hadnot and the three combine to tackle Howling for a loss.

Seahawks' Secondary

Play 25 - Earl Thomas vs Andre Roberts. This is cool. It's rare that we get to see a safety cover like this for the entire play. Thomas is up in the slot on Roberts. He gets a good press on Roberts, handles the double move and sticks with him down the field. We don't get too see it too often, but Thomas is special in coverage.

Play 26 - Earl Thomas vs LaRod Stephens-Howling. Thomas does an excellent job reading run and tracking down the play from behind. There's an audible "Aw!" from the crowd as they see the hole open for Howling before ET brings him down.

Play 27 - Earl Thomas vs Larry Fitzgerald. Fitzgerald is lined up in the slot, something Arizona did quite a bit with success. Thomas tries to separate Fitzgerald from the ball, but Larry Fitzgerald is really good.

Play 28 - Richard Sherman vs Larry Fitzgerald. Sherman gets a decent press on Fitzgerald but Fitz is deceptively fast and starts to separate. Sherman tries to get physical with him but loses that battle too. By the end of the play, Fitzgerald has enough separation that if the ball is placed where it needs to be, Fitzgerald probably scores a touchdown.

Miscellaneous

Play 29 - Heater vs Andre Roberts. Heater can still lay people out.

Play 30 - KJ WRIGHT HAS A FOOTBALL!! Hat tip to Earl Thomas on the strip.

Seattle shouldn't have lost this game.

Offensive Line

Deep Passing Attack

Play 7 - Deep Ball: Second attempt. Same deal, play action with great protection. Tarvaris goes all out on this one though, over throwing it so badly that Obo has no shot.

Tarvaris Jackson

Intermission

Play 15 - Richard Sherman Dance Party.

Seahawks' Pass Rush

Seahawks' Run Defense

Seahawks' Secondary

Miscellaneous

Play 29 - Heater vs Andre Roberts. Heater can still lay people out.

Play 30 - KJ WRIGHT HAS A FOOTBALL!! Hat tip to Earl Thomas on the strip.