Hawk Tawk, The Seahawk’s year starts here!
Welcome back to Hawk Tawk,
The time has come fellow 12ers. The season starts today, finally, the real deal. Today is the day where superstitions come out of hiding, and beer merchants worldwide start raking in the dough. Normally quiet homes are adorned with 12thMan Flags and raucous crowds of faithful and boisterous 12thmen and 12thwomen. Are you ready? I mean, are you really ready? Cool, so am I, let’s Tawk Hawk.
Sunday, at noon (at least here in Texas) Our beloved Seattle Seahawks take the field against the Carolina Panthers in North Carolina. Coming off another strong pre season, the Hawks should be looking to make a statement. In order to do that there are some important team battles that must be won. Let’s Tawk about those.
The first battle will be establishing a running game. I cannot fathom trouble in the run game, the Seahawks have way too many talented backs to allow a poor ground performance. I hope Coach is reading this, “Seattle must pound the rock down Carolina’s throat.” Between Lynch and Turbin there should be no issues gaining at least 140 yards rushing. I predict 160, but would be happy with 140. Oh, I forgot to mention that Seattle has a third talented back who can make sure there are never tired legs on the field. Carolina Panthers, if you get the chance to meet CM, you are in deep doo-doo.
The second battle will be containing Cam Newton. This will be interesting in a couple of ways. Seattle will start the year with a good idea of where they stand against highly mobile quarterbacks, and the offensive packages that come with them. I am excited to see what Dan Quinn has come up with to keep steadily applied pressure on Newton, while still containing him and forcing him to beat the Hawks with his arm. If the Hawks can put real pressure on Newton, they will win this battle. Mind you, I mean real pressure, not that “oh I almost got you before you completed that 30 yard pass kind of pressure.” No, I mean real pressure. Disruptive, hear footsteps, force bad throws, and throw interception pressure, that is what I am Tawking about. Boy, now I am getting pumped up thinking about Seattle’s defense crushing at the line and smashing into quarterbacks. Let’s all be good 12ers, and will that to happen with our minds, OK?
The third battle will be the pass protection for DangeRuss. If you have read Hawk Tawk before, you are familiar with my opinion of the offensive line’s play thus far. Play time is over, there ain’t no monkey swings and hop scotch on this here play ground. Now it is time for the hogs to be hogs, let us hope that the SeaHogs are hungry. I would love to see some defensive lineman get blown off the line and into his own linebacker. I would love to see Russell Okung wrap the rusher all the way around the back of the pocket and out of the play. I would really love to see Sweezy tossing aside defensive linemen like rag dolls. I would love to see all that without any false starts or holding, but a man can dream. Somehow fellow Hawkers, I think they can, So if you are listening SeaHogs, let it be so.
If all three of those battles tip whatsoever in Seattle’s direction, watch out Carolina, because you are going to get a steady dose of Russell Wilson. The whole country has seen what he can do with a mediocre offensive line. The whole world knows he can create a running game for his backs, just by scampering around a little. The Panthers are going to get a heavy dose of Wilson no matter what, I just wanted to make it sound cool. The Seattle Seahawks proved they can win on the road last year, so that is no longer a major factor to me. They showed that they can play football with any team in the league. Now they just have to do it again. That shouldn’t be that difficult, right?
Lets Tawk about a few nagging injuries that are slowing down a few of the key players. There are running backs with back problems which I have come to expect weekly. That is the nature of the BEAST. Brandon Browner took practice light on Wednesday with hamstring problems. This is a big concern, but not a deal breaker. High caliber corners are piled up in the corner waiting to play on this team. Did you catch that? Zach Miller is full go, but one has to wonder about his nagging foot and leg problems. The Seahawks are as deep at most positions as I have ever seen in the NFL, save for a few. Have you seen how many tight ends they are carrying? Zach Miller and Luke Wilson, that’s it. They have almost always had three so this is different from years past. Even though there is tackle Mike Person to work as a blocking tight end/sixth lineman, that is thin, Not Mike Person, he isn’t thin, I meant….oh, whatever, you know what I meant. Maybe I am making something out nothing, but hmmm?
"Let’s Tawk Ted. “Ted, what are you doing to prepare for the game on Sunday? Digging holes in the desert you say? Ted, you are a strange dude.”"
Minus all the hype, and hoopla, the Seahawks are poised to put a team like no other on the field. Never before has Seattle had such solid depth and talent. Never in the history of Hawkdom have the hearts of so many been entranced so deeply by our boys in blue. I am looking forward to images of Blue Friday. I am looking forward to the 12th Man Flag atop the Seattle skyline. I am looking forward to victory. So now, now I really have to go check on Ted, he is scaring me. Until our victory celebration, GO HAWKS! 12thMan now, 12thMan forever!