SB Nation User Blog: abender20

MNF Open Game Thread

abender20 — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 00:55:20 -0000

More photos » by L.G. Patterson - AP

Chris Long has a lot of work to do on his pas de deux. Drew Brees? Swan Lake, bitches.

Brady. Brees. Maroney. Thomas. Moss. Colston. Sharper. Applebee's commercials starring Chris Berman, and of course, Ron Jaworski's incredulous chin wagging. Talk about appointment television!

Selig to Step Down in 2012

abender20 — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 20:12:08 -0000

Selig to Step Down in 2012

Selig finally falling on his sword for allowing a tie in a meaningless baseball game.

More brain damage for Roethlisberger

abender20 — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 05:52:35 -0000

More brain damage for Roethlisberger

Your brain is important. Concussions are bad. Four concussions in 3+ years is even worse.

Sunday Early Gamethread

abender20 — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 17:11:30 -0000

More photos » by Jim Dietz - AP

This will be a familiar sight today.

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No Seahawks this week. Instead, we have the privilege of watching Favre and Big Ben challenge the limits of pocket protection.

Public Service Announcement

abender20 — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 23:22:15 -0000

This is why we love football, after all. Anything can and will happen in any given play, game, or season. Anything except Seattle winning, of course. Doormats turn around and wear the crown and the mighty are made to kneel and kiss the floor. Remember: It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. RAT BASTARDS. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game. It's only a game.

Seahawks at Colts Open Thread

abender20 — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 16:30:57 -0000

by John Froschauer - AP

Seneca Wallace had better hope that he doesn't finish today's game in a green uniform. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)

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The Colts are going to score. Given the health of the defense and the Manning across the line of scrimmage, the Seahawks offense had better put together a strong performance against an indy defensive unit handing out fewer doses of Dwight Freeney than usual. As the Cardinals showed last week, abandoning the run game plays right into the hands of the smaller, quicker Colts defensive front. Whoever starts on the Seattle O-line had better get some seams for Julius Jones and Justin Forsett. Seneca Wallace looked comfortable making throws on the run last week, drifting backward out of his drop and then running toward the line of scrimmage to find his receivers. He still needs to make better decisions. How will the Seattle offense manage this week with a patchwork line to compliment their patchwork quarterback? Will John summon the strength to get in front of a television? Will Scruffy send a shipment of live bears to Lucas Oil Stadium? Will Edgerrin James, like a spurned former lover, tear through the Colts like a man possessed? Probably not. But stay tuned.

Tatupu to donate brain to science

abender20 — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 20:15:09 -0000

Tatupu to donate brain to science

Concussions in athletes are generally brushed off as fairly insignificant. Seeing as how cells in your brain don't regenerate well (or at all), brain trauma is nothing to ignore. Lofa Tatupu is making a pretty generous gift.

Quick Friday Editorial: LeGarrette Blount and the Ruskell Code

abender20 — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 22:15:13 -0000

A week and a half ago, John brought up an open thread for the public lusting after college running backs. Not only were we all looking at backs that caught our fancy, but:

So to head off every thread devolving into fantasy GMing and rosterbation, here's a few 2010 prospects, passed through the Ruskell sieve, to enjoy on this autumn day of August.

Blount was brought up fairly quickly, but he was almost immediately dismissed by a certain someone for his track record, which was dubious enough to wilt under the heat of the Ruskell Code. The point of this isn't to toot John's horn, although the timing is hilarious. Unless you don't own a television, computer (demonstrably false), or newspaper subscription, then you probably know that LeGarrette Blount punched a Boise State player on the field after last night's loss for the Ducks. He has now been suspended for the entirety of the year, ending his career at Oregon and possibly his career as a football player.

Each year around draft time, there's usually a bit of teeth-gnashing about the players that Tim Ruskell doesn't bother drafting, namely those with any bit of red flaggery in their background. Sure, not every college kid who urinates on a parked car will go all Maurice Clarett and start their own mobile militia. We forget, however, just the magnitude of the investment in these players. Blount came into the season with a scholarship and likely the majority of carries for an Oregon team trying to contend for a Pac 10 Title. Investing a good deal of their trust in a particular player, Oregon was let down.

Just as the level of competition ratchets up with the jump to the NFL, so too does the magnitude of the investment in players. Rosters are smaller and salaries are immense. When thinking about draft-worthy players, we tend to consider the inherent risk of failure to develop or the risk of serious injury. We need to remember to add in the risk of immature or unstable character . It's nice to marvel at the potential of players like Blount, but last night we saw the bottom face of that sort of coin flip.

Bedard not going anywhere

abender20 — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 16:27:18 -0000

Bedard not going anywhere

Also, both Don Wakamatsu and Rob Johnson think that Bedard may be hurt. I wonder what Bedard thinks?

Goodbye Field Gulls

abender20 — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 17:16:00 -0000

More photos » by Elaine Thompson - AP

Seattle Seahawks quarterback Matt Hasselbeck shows me the door. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)

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113 posts. That is the extent of my career at Field Gulls. While I've had a good time over the last six months, I am sad to say that I am moving on from this wonderful site after having just been accepted to medical school. While I will certainly try to read John's work as frequently as possible, I just can't afford to dedicate the time necessary to do daily football-related blurb writing.

I hope you all appreciate the outstanding quality of the work that John turns out on a daily basis because we as Seahawk fans are spoiled rotten. I'll try to drop by and post once in a while if something tickles my fancy, but in a month's time I'll be up to my neck in textbooks and up to my wrists in cadaver.