Hard Knocks just put a rising Seahawks star on everyone's radar

Anyone who watched Episode 1 of Hard Knocks and was wondering if Seattle Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald ever loses his cool got his answer in Episode 2. He does. It just takes a player like Derick Hall to bring out the anger.

Hall is emerging as one of the main stars of this season’s HBO peek behind the scenes at an NFL training camp. After seeing his ultra-high trunk and ultra-short shorts in episode one, the second installment built on something that happened late in the first episode.

Hall had gotten riled up during a skirmish and thrown a teammate to the ground. That got him a gentle reminder of what is and isn’t OK in camp.

Six takeaways from the Seattle Seahawks on Hard Knocks, Episode 2

This week, things got more heated. The edge rusher repeatedly ran too close to quarterback Sam Darnold during drills, and it didn’t sit well with his head coach. Macdonald eventually blew up – in an admittedly controlled manner – and pulled Hall off the field. In the process, he left no doubt in anyone’s mind about who was in charge of a Seattle Seahawks practice.

Macdonald certainly won his minor battle with Hall in that moment, but one of the main takeaways from the second installment is that Derick Hall is emerging as the star of the show. The progress of the fourth-year player will be one of the most intriguing storylines all season.

Hall is stepping up in the edge rusher pecking order. The Seahawks still have two veterans in Demarcus Lawrence and Uchenna Nwosu penciled in as starters, but Macdonald will use a rotation.

With Boye Mafe gone, Hall will be expected to play a bigger role this season. He showcased his talent in last year’s Super Bowl with a couple of sacks. If the Seahawks defense is to dominate again this year, he will have to perform like that week in and week out.

That has developed as one of the dominant storylines in the early episodes of Hard Knocks. Macdonald has talked to him. Lawrence and Leonard Williams are serving as big brothers. The goal is to rein in Hall’s more reckless tendencies without diminishing his passion. If all the involved parties are successful in doing that, Derick Hall will be a major force this year.

Justin Hinds gets his screen time

One of Macdonald’s biggest strengths as a head coach is clearly emerging through just two weeks. Though he remains firmly in control of his team, he does not feel the need to dominate the proceedings. He allows his assistants to take major roles.

This week, it was defensive line coach Justin Hinds who led the entire team through the positively spiritual Seahawks origin story.

Shadow boxing is key

We learned how vital shadow boxing is to team chemistry. We also learned that Macdonald can’t do it.

But the players sure can. They use the ritual as a way to work out differences and bond with teammates. At least, I think they do. To be honest, I’m still not entirely clear on what the entire process entails. I only know that they swear by it, and it looks very cool

Sam Darnold's spin rate

We learned that Sam Darnold throws a ball with an elite spin rate. It is something he has been working on his entire life. Apparently, Sam Darnold always knew he would be a professional quarterback, because I’m not sure this particular skill would have served him in any other line of work.

That ability to throw a tight spiral with more revolutions than most other QBs allows his ball to cut through poor conditions and also, according to Cooper Kupp, makes it easier to catch. This also led to one of the series best shots to date – a close-up of the ball as it sailed deep downfield.

In slo-mo, it felt like that ball was in the air for twenty minutes before it finally settled perfectly into the hands of receiver Tory Horton.

Marshawn Lynch is still an elite entertainer

And we learned, as if we needed the reminder, that when Marshawn Lynch shows up, everyone has a good time. The former star running back visited the Seahawks and, among other things, assured players like Michael Dickson and Ernest Jones IV that he wouldn’t rest until their Madden scores were raised to the appropriate level.

He informed Rashid Shaheed that his current Madden speed rating was 105. I’m not an expert on this, but I believe that would, in fact, break the game. (I do know that Xavier Worthy has a 99.)

Lynch may be one of the few guys around who can ask Ty Okada and Maxen Hook why the Seahawks have so many white DBs on the team right now.

Seahawks have strong interest in Terrion Arnold

We learned that Seattle is seriously considering signing embattled cornerback Terrion Arnold. This was the most substantive part of the program, and it speaks to exactly what Hard Knocks does best.

This is an ongoing story, and the show captured conversations between general manager John Schneider, his assistant Joey Schneider, and Macdonald as they contemplate what it would mean to sign Arnold.

With interest apparently high amongst several NFL teams, that is a situation well worth monitoring. There appears to be a good chance that by the time Episode 3 airs, Terrion Arnold could be with a new team. Whether it is the Seahawks or not, we will probably get more of the behind-the-scenes story next week.

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