Inside Football: Be very afraid of Russell Wilson and the Seahawks / It's getting ugly in St. Louis
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Inside Football: Be very afraid of Russell Wilson and the Seahawks
December 6, 2015 10:46 pm ET
Did you write off the Seattle Seahawks? Chalk this up to a lost season? That dreaded Super Bowl hangover taking hold? A team that couldn't get out of its own way since losing the Lombardi Trophy in the most dramatic fashion possible?
Yeah, notsofast. Check out the NFC playoff picture. Go ahead. We've got you covered here at cbssports.com. Click on that page and then come right back here.
Yup, only four teams in the conference have more wins than the Seahawks, who have won three in a row to control their own destiny in term of reaching the postseason. And, after Sunday's dismantling of the wounded Vikings, the Seahawks have a shot to creep into the fifth position.
Sure, they're not going to catch the Cardinals for the NFC West title. But that's not a big deal. This team can still win on the road and, frankly, the Cardinals are the only team that I believe is a true matchup problem for them in the entire NFC.
This is a very dangerous team right now, and whether or not Marshawn Lynch comes back or not won't really matter. The Seahawks have an equation that works for them right now and unless they are facing a true elite quarterback on a team that can succeed throwing the ball 40-plus times, I like their chances.
Even against Carolina, certainly the class of the conference, I like Seattle's odds to at least make it a helluva contest. The Seahawks will take away the run and the Panthers, as great as they are, lack the kind of downfield weapons to truly exploit the Seahawks' glaring deficiency in the secondary. It feels crazy to write that, week after week, but it is the case.
The Seahawks would force Cam to beat them repeatedly through the air and maybe he might, but unless they are facing him or Carson Palmer or Tom Brady or Ben Roethlisberger, I really like their chances. I'd put Aaron Rodgers in this group on his obvious talent alone, but not at this point given the lack of playmakers around him and the constricted nature of the Green Bay passing game.
This group knew it was at a crossroads after losing to Arizona in mid-November. It looked sluggish and downtrodden at times and was stumbling to find its way. Since then, the Seahawks defense has continued to suffer against the pass, but it is finally creating some interceptions and you can't run the ball on it. Just ask Adrian Peterson.
On the other side of the ball, the offense has absolutely exploded, with quarterback Russell Wilson playing the best football of his life. He's as good as anyone in the league right now. He's always been at his best when it mattered most, and I don't anticipate his ascent slowing now with the postseason in sniffing range.
The Seahawks have scored at least 29 points in four straight games and have amassed a total of 148 points in that span (a gaudy average of 35 a game). Thomas Rawls has sparked the running game in ways that even Lynch was not, rushing 70 times for 391 yards (5.6 yards per carry) during this three-game winning streak, with a rushing touchdown in each game. Rawls is creeping up on 700 yards for the season and has a legit shot at topping 1,000 yards despite such humble origins and a limited role this season, and the ability to grind it out on the ground and create explosive plays in the run game has given Wilson a boost.
The offensive line has finally started blocking better -- give a nod to esteemed line coach Tom Cable -- and the switch at center has paid major dividends. Wilson has done the rest, even at a time when Jimmy Graham has been lost for the season and with the margin for error becoming quite slim for a team that once found itself at 2-4 not all that long ago. Now, an 11-win season is not out of reach and Wilson is leading the charge.
Whether or not he qualifies as a “celebrity quarterback” remains in doubt -- whatever that phrase means -- but his ability to play inside the pocket is now. At a time when some were ready to take their critiques of him to a new level, Wilson is playing superbly and he's doing so within the confines of the offense and making plays in the pocket and producing big boy throws when it matters most. All he did Sunday was go 21-for-27 while accounting for four more touchdowns. He simply out-classed a depleted Vikings defense.
All Wilson has done the past three games is complete 66-of-86 passes (77 percent) for 879 yards (293 per game/10.2 per attempt!) with 11 TDs, 0 INTs and a near-perfect rating of 148. He's accounted for 12 TDs in the past three weeks and he doesn't face another decent team until the rematch with Arizona in Week 17, getting the reeling Ravens, Browns and Rams the next three weeks.
This team is going back to the playoffs and going into Washington or Philadelphia or Dallas(?) or Minnesota or even Green Bay in the first round will not phase these Seahawks in the least. Getting back to the NFC Championship Game, or beyond, would not surprise me in the least. They just might enter the playoffs as the hottest team in the league.
It's getting ugly in St. Louis
The Rams are about the exact opposite of Seattle right now. In hindsight, the high point of this season for St. Louis was Week 1, when the Rams upset the Seahawks, and this season could end in a decided slide.
The Rams don't look capable of winning a football game, the once-stout defense is sagging under repeated injuries and the offense provides no hint of ever giving that unit any support. It's beyond ugly. The Rams are almost locked into taking a quarterback as high as possible in the draft, the offensive line rebuild looks like it might need to start over, again, and all the while they still owe real guaranteed money to Nick Foles next season. They are being watched ever so closely after their mishandling of Case Keenum's concussion.
Will Jeff Fisher be shown the door at the end of the season? (USATSI)
Todd Gurley has been rendered a spectator at the mercy of a bad line, stacked boxes against him, no weapons in the passing game and having to watch most of the game with his team repeatedly falling woefully behind. The Rams have lost five straight games -- with a deficit of 24 points in three of those contests -- and haven't mustered even 350 yards of total offense in a game since November 1. That's also the last time St. Louis scored more than 18 points in a game.
The Rams have been held to 285 yards or less in three of the last four games and had all of 212 yards Sunday against the Cardinals two weeks after mustering 213 yards against the Ravens.
The job security of coach Jeff Fisher and GM Les Snead, both finishing their fourth year on the job, will be the topic of considerable discussion locally. But with owner Stan Kroenke focused solely on a potential move to LA and not inclined to eat salary to let people go. and facing limited revenue streams given his systematic alienation of the St. Louis fan base, many around the league figure even these dire straights might not move him to act.
LA getting in the way?
Maybe it's a coincidence, and I guess it probably is, but since the attempts of the three NFL teams to move to LA became more formal (St. Louis, San Diego and Oakland), the bottom has dropped out on all three seasons. Derek Carr throwing picks on three straight late drives Sunday, and all three nearly being taken to the house by the Chiefs, pretty much cemented it. Since Nov. 1 the three teams are a combined 4-13 and none of them will be reaching the playoffs.
Inside Football: Be very afraid of Russell Wilson and the Seahawks
December 6, 2015 10:46 pm ET
Did you write off the Seattle Seahawks? Chalk this up to a lost season? That dreaded Super Bowl hangover taking hold? A team that couldn't get out of its own way since losing the Lombardi Trophy in the most dramatic fashion possible?
Yeah, notsofast. Check out the NFC playoff picture. Go ahead. We've got you covered here at cbssports.com. Click on that page and then come right back here.
Yup, only four teams in the conference have more wins than the Seahawks, who have won three in a row to control their own destiny in term of reaching the postseason. And, after Sunday's dismantling of the wounded Vikings, the Seahawks have a shot to creep into the fifth position.
Sure, they're not going to catch the Cardinals for the NFC West title. But that's not a big deal. This team can still win on the road and, frankly, the Cardinals are the only team that I believe is a true matchup problem for them in the entire NFC.
This is a very dangerous team right now, and whether or not Marshawn Lynch comes back or not won't really matter. The Seahawks have an equation that works for them right now and unless they are facing a true elite quarterback on a team that can succeed throwing the ball 40-plus times, I like their chances.
Even against Carolina, certainly the class of the conference, I like Seattle's odds to at least make it a helluva contest. The Seahawks will take away the run and the Panthers, as great as they are, lack the kind of downfield weapons to truly exploit the Seahawks' glaring deficiency in the secondary. It feels crazy to write that, week after week, but it is the case.
The Seahawks would force Cam to beat them repeatedly through the air and maybe he might, but unless they are facing him or Carson Palmer or Tom Brady or Ben Roethlisberger, I really like their chances. I'd put Aaron Rodgers in this group on his obvious talent alone, but not at this point given the lack of playmakers around him and the constricted nature of the Green Bay passing game.
This group knew it was at a crossroads after losing to Arizona in mid-November. It looked sluggish and downtrodden at times and was stumbling to find its way. Since then, the Seahawks defense has continued to suffer against the pass, but it is finally creating some interceptions and you can't run the ball on it. Just ask Adrian Peterson.
On the other side of the ball, the offense has absolutely exploded, with quarterback Russell Wilson playing the best football of his life. He's as good as anyone in the league right now. He's always been at his best when it mattered most, and I don't anticipate his ascent slowing now with the postseason in sniffing range.
The Seahawks have scored at least 29 points in four straight games and have amassed a total of 148 points in that span (a gaudy average of 35 a game). Thomas Rawls has sparked the running game in ways that even Lynch was not, rushing 70 times for 391 yards (5.6 yards per carry) during this three-game winning streak, with a rushing touchdown in each game. Rawls is creeping up on 700 yards for the season and has a legit shot at topping 1,000 yards despite such humble origins and a limited role this season, and the ability to grind it out on the ground and create explosive plays in the run game has given Wilson a boost.
The offensive line has finally started blocking better -- give a nod to esteemed line coach Tom Cable -- and the switch at center has paid major dividends. Wilson has done the rest, even at a time when Jimmy Graham has been lost for the season and with the margin for error becoming quite slim for a team that once found itself at 2-4 not all that long ago. Now, an 11-win season is not out of reach and Wilson is leading the charge.
Whether or not he qualifies as a “celebrity quarterback” remains in doubt -- whatever that phrase means -- but his ability to play inside the pocket is now. At a time when some were ready to take their critiques of him to a new level, Wilson is playing superbly and he's doing so within the confines of the offense and making plays in the pocket and producing big boy throws when it matters most. All he did Sunday was go 21-for-27 while accounting for four more touchdowns. He simply out-classed a depleted Vikings defense.
All Wilson has done the past three games is complete 66-of-86 passes (77 percent) for 879 yards (293 per game/10.2 per attempt!) with 11 TDs, 0 INTs and a near-perfect rating of 148. He's accounted for 12 TDs in the past three weeks and he doesn't face another decent team until the rematch with Arizona in Week 17, getting the reeling Ravens, Browns and Rams the next three weeks.
This team is going back to the playoffs and going into Washington or Philadelphia or Dallas(?) or Minnesota or even Green Bay in the first round will not phase these Seahawks in the least. Getting back to the NFC Championship Game, or beyond, would not surprise me in the least. They just might enter the playoffs as the hottest team in the league.
It's getting ugly in St. Louis
The Rams are about the exact opposite of Seattle right now. In hindsight, the high point of this season for St. Louis was Week 1, when the Rams upset the Seahawks, and this season could end in a decided slide.
The Rams don't look capable of winning a football game, the once-stout defense is sagging under repeated injuries and the offense provides no hint of ever giving that unit any support. It's beyond ugly. The Rams are almost locked into taking a quarterback as high as possible in the draft, the offensive line rebuild looks like it might need to start over, again, and all the while they still owe real guaranteed money to Nick Foles next season. They are being watched ever so closely after their mishandling of Case Keenum's concussion.
Will Jeff Fisher be shown the door at the end of the season? (USATSI)
Todd Gurley has been rendered a spectator at the mercy of a bad line, stacked boxes against him, no weapons in the passing game and having to watch most of the game with his team repeatedly falling woefully behind. The Rams have lost five straight games -- with a deficit of 24 points in three of those contests -- and haven't mustered even 350 yards of total offense in a game since November 1. That's also the last time St. Louis scored more than 18 points in a game.
The Rams have been held to 285 yards or less in three of the last four games and had all of 212 yards Sunday against the Cardinals two weeks after mustering 213 yards against the Ravens.
The job security of coach Jeff Fisher and GM Les Snead, both finishing their fourth year on the job, will be the topic of considerable discussion locally. But with owner Stan Kroenke focused solely on a potential move to LA and not inclined to eat salary to let people go. and facing limited revenue streams given his systematic alienation of the St. Louis fan base, many around the league figure even these dire straights might not move him to act.
LA getting in the way?
Maybe it's a coincidence, and I guess it probably is, but since the attempts of the three NFL teams to move to LA became more formal (St. Louis, San Diego and Oakland), the bottom has dropped out on all three seasons. Derek Carr throwing picks on three straight late drives Sunday, and all three nearly being taken to the house by the Chiefs, pretty much cemented it. Since Nov. 1 the three teams are a combined 4-13 and none of them will be reaching the playoffs.