CHUCK ARMSTRONG TONIGHT AT 7:05

Tune in tonight to hear Chuck Armstrong under the kleg lights. Have they fixed their problems? Why haven't they develop minor league talent? Is Ichiro tradeable? Will Ichiro play centerfield? Is Bavasi the right guy for the job? What have they done to make sure that the get out of the doldrums?
It is all tonight on Locked on Sports at 7:05 and open phone lines to follow for your reaction.

SEAHAWKS STAT BREAKDOWN AFTER WEEK 4

This season Locked on Sports is following some specific stats about the Seahawks. Each week I will post these stats. With a quarter of the season completed I thought it was time to reveal the them for the first time. Put your thoughts in the comment zone.
Things I found interesting: Alexanders 1st down rate, Alexander's thrid down rate, run v. pass amount on first down and Bobby Engram all the way across the board.

Section 1: PLAY SUCCESS RATE --- To be a success a play must get 40% of the yards on 1st down, 60% on 2nd down and the 1st down on a 3rd down play.

Overall
Alexander: 50%
Morris 38%
Passing: 67%

1st Down
Alexander: 39% (17 of 44)
Passing: 64% (46 of 72)

3rd Down
Alexander: 100%
Passing: 55%

Section 2: RECEPTION RATE --- % of pass intended to the receiver that were caught

Player
Engram: 78%
Strong: 72%
Jackson: 66%
Jurevicus: 57%
Stevens: 52%
Hannam: 50%
Alexander: 29%

Section 3: 3rd Down

3rd Down Efficiency
1 to 3 to go: Run 83% Pass 100% Overall: 91% (10 of 11)
4 to 6 to go: Run 50% Pass 33% Overall: 40% (2 of 5)
7 or more : Run 33% Pass 17% Overall: 19% (5 of 27)

3rd Down Receiving %– 1st Down %
Jackson – 40% of intended passes 30% of intended for 1st down
Engram -- 50% -- 33.3%
Stevens – 50% -- 25%
Jurevicus – 33% -- 33%
Hannam – 67% -- 67%

D-JACK OUT !! BOBBY E OUT !! PUNTER CUT !!

The Seattle Seahawks will be very shorthanded at the receiver position this weekend. Mike Holmgren announced today at his weekly press conference that the Hawks would be without both Darrell Jackson and Bobby Engram for the match-up with the Rams.

Jackson bruised his knee earlier this season and it has become a serious enough issue that he will sit out this week. This could linger for a few weeks. Bobby Engram broke a rib on the first play of the game against Washington and he will also be out.

Holmgren did not announce the starting receivers, but they are limited in their options. Look for Peter Warrick to work in the slot with DJ Hackett and Joe Jurevivius as your starting receivers.

Itula Mili is not all the way ready. He could be available for limited action, but also could be on the inactive list.

The Hawks also waived punter Leo Araguz and re-signed Tom Rouen. Rouen was with the Hawks last season and he will also be Josh Brown’s holder.

Holmgren acknowledge the amount of talk about his decision not to pass at the end of regulation and said, “I don’t struggle with that decision at all.” He added that if they had made on more block on the first run Alexander would have run for a touchdown. That is the same play they used to beat Atlanta in overtime a few years ago and the play that resulted in Alexander’s big run v. Dallas last season.

The line of the press conference was when talking about Mike Martz play calling, Holmgren said “ I have been called a little wild and wacky myself.”

Holmgren reminded us that only 3 players on this year’s Hawks defense played in all of the games against the Rams last year. The problem is all three are in the secondary.

Locked on Sports: Fear, not numbers, sacked Holmgren

Locked on Sports: Fear, not numbers, sacked Holmgren: "Holmgren's entire decision to run, not pass, was based upon a 9.2 percent chance. Yet, in the minds of most coaches, it is the correct decision.

With the established risk at 9.2 percent, what are the other possibilities? More than 56 percent of the time Hasselbeck passes, he completes the pass; 34.3 percent of his attempts fall incomplete.

What was the gain? In Brown's career, if he attempts a kick from between 40 and 49 yards, he makes 61.9 percent of the kicks. When the attempt is between 30 and 39 yards, he connects on 90.5 percent.

A nearly 30 percent gain with a 9.2 percent risk? Can I please have that investment?"

REGGIE EVANS SIGNS

950, KJR is reporting that Reggie Evans will be reporting to camp. Evans has decided to sign the one year tender agreement and become an unrestricted free agent next season. The Sonics had offered Evans a 2 year 5 million dollar deal.
Evans will compete for the starting power forward job with Vlady Radmanovic and Nick Collison. Bob Weiss said yesterday that he likes Evans with Potapenko more then liked Evans with James. Also, he said he would like for Collison to come off the bench.

EVANS HOLDS OUT + WEISS PLAN

The Sonics had media day this evening. Camp starts tomorrow. Here is a collection of the discussion points at Media Day.

As we reported Friday night on 950, KJR Reggie Evans is holding out until he comes to a contract agreement with the Sonics. According to sources, the Sonics offered a 2 year 5 million dollar contract. Evans’ agent is notorious for tough negotiations. The Sonics are not surprised by this development. Head Coach Bob Weiss said he knows what Evans can do, but they will put heavy focus on defense in the opening of camp and the 4 spot will be won by defense. Defensive rotations have not always been a strong point for Evans.
The 4 position will be the most interesting battle in camp. Weiss says he would like to bring Collison off the bench. He really likes the combination of Fortson and Collison on the floor together. However, Weiss did say that Collison will finish games for the Sonics. He also noted that Collison was far and away the best defensive forward on the team last season. According to Weiss, Collison is shooting the ball great.
Weiss also said in some ways he likes the combo of Reggie and Vitaly better then the combo of Reggie and Jerome James last season, because Reggie and James were two non-shooters.
He also mentioned the idea of starting Vlady Radmanovic as the 4 and playing the way Phoenix did last season.

Bob Weiss main point was that last year’s team was within one shot of pushing the World Champs to Game 7 and they did with a terrible defensive team statistically.
In an attempt to change that he will put heavy focus on transition defense and being a more focused defensive unit.
This will be done primarily in two ways. He says every play in the NBA is built around the 1st, 2nd and 3rd option. His design is to guard those 3 with 5. He talked about a concept of contain, help and help the helper.
They have hired Brendon Malone, a long time NBA assistant to join the staff. Malone has worked with both Hubie Brown and Chuck Daly in his career.
Bob Hill, another new assistant, has also with Brown and Larry Brown. They both bring heavy defensive knowledge.
The defense will be much simpler with just 2 ways to play the mid pick and roll and 1 on way to play the side. The hope is that will improve execution.

Practices will be much more 5 on 5. Weiss will take an idea from Jeff Van Gundy. Before each practice the team will hold a “forum” and then go out and practice which should help the flow and conditioning.

Style offensively will be more focused on a fast break. Weiss felt last year’s focus on the secondary break often got players thinking of where they should go on the second part of the break rather then focusing on how to score in the initial break. Weiss wants the basketball skills to be free to show. On the break he wants penetration and then play basketball.

MIKE HOLMGREN MONDAY PRESSER

I just got back from mike HolmgrenÂ’s Monday press session. Here is a re-cap.

Holmgren says he doesn’t second guess the decision to run both plays before the missed field goal. Then I will do it for him. The whole premise is that he is scared of an interception. In his entire career Matt Hasselbeck averages just 2.8% of his passes being intercepted. That is crazy to make a decision based on that little a margain.

Moreover, Josh Brown’s percentage from 30 to 39 yards is 91% and from 40 to 49 is 62%. The risk of an interception is far inferior to the reward of gaining another ten yards. If you want to get deeper in the numbers. Here is the entire breakdown.
56.5% of the time Hasselbeck passes it is complete.
34.3% of the time Hasselbeck passes it is incomplete.
6.5% of the time Hasselbeck is sacked
2.7% of the time Hasselbeck throws an interception.

Therefore, he based his whole decision on 9.2% of the time. The numbers don’t lie.

On the injury front it is unlikely Bobby Engram will be able to go. He cracked a rib on the first play of the game and fought through it for most of the game. Floyd Womack is back and available, but he has had a death in the family so Sean Locklear is likely to start again. Locklear will be going up against Leonard Little.

Holmgren sited inexperience and youth for many of the third down issues. Guys were lined up wrong or made too much of an effort to disguise their blitz. On the final 3rd down conversion in overtime Michael Boulware blitzed from 16 yards off the line of scrimmage and was no where close to getting to Burnell.

The NFL has contacted Holmgren about the awful pass interference call on Boulware. That was a game changing bad call.

HAWKS LOSE IN OT

AGGGGHHHHH!!!!!! Why, why can't a Seattle team ever win a close game !!!!! Why didn't Holmgren try to get ten yards closer. Why. Why. Why. Why couldn't the Hawks get a stop. Agghhhhhhhh!!!!!. This is tearing my heart out and it sucks !!!!!!!!!!!

HAWKS GO TO WASHINGTON DC

Huge game for the Hawks this weekend. This is the bridge game they have to win. Let’s break it down.

#1 thing to look at --- can the Hawks go East the Hawks are 0 for their last 8 when they travel three times zones. All of those teams have been strong physical teams and that is what they are facing with the Skins. The Skins philosophy is pound, pound, pound and then go deep.

#2 thing to look at – Can the Skins score enough to beat the Hawks. For the first 7 quarters and 11 minutes the Hawks scored a grand total of 9 points and no touchdowns.
The Skins offense line had a miserable day against the Cowboys as Brunell got sacked 5 times. This is a huge two part test for the Hawks do they really have a pass rush and can the keep Santana Moss in front of them.

#3 thing to look at – Can Shawn Alexander handle the physical play of the Skins. Shaun Alexander will be facing the league's No. 2-ranked rush defense in the Redskins (65.5). In 2004, he averaged 71.2 rushing yards in five games against top-10 run defenses. The Skins have only allowed 131 yards rushing in two games – 1st down passing will be vital -- 2.8 yards a carry.
My guess is Shaun will be negated and have nothing going against the Skins.

#4 thing to look at --- 1st down passing. Without Alexander the Hawks will have to be great passing on first down. The Skins pressure more then any team in the NFL. Therefore, the Hawks will not be able to get into their 5 or 7 step drop game and they will have to hit the quick passing game early in downs.

#5 thing to look at --- Will Holmgren max protect the QB. More often then not Holmgren’s philosophy is to send the extra receiver rather then protect the QB. Greg Williams the DC for the Skins will test Homlgren. Dallas max protected and the Skins never got a sack on Bledsoe and the Boys converted on 43% of their third downs.

I take the Hawks. The Skins simply can’t score enough to beat Seattle. A huge road win for the Hawks and they end the futility in East Coast Games.

COUGARS LOOKING FOR THE TAIL OF THE BEAVER

It is discovery time for the Cougars. How good are they? There are certain things you don’t doubt when it comes to the Cougs.

One, their offense will score points. It is a birth right at WSU that they will be able to score. Jerome Harrison is going to be productive week in and week out.

This week the Cougs receivers will be able to exploit a young and inexperience Beavers defense. To be honest, I am not convinced that Oregon State is a well coached football team this season and I anticipate the Cougars will be able to take advantage of flaws in the Beavers system.

However, what we are going to find out is where Rob Akey’s defensive unit is. Oregon State can throw the football. They are third in the country in passing. The Cougars secondary has not been tested this season and we are going to find out if they have the metal to handle Mike Hass and the Beavers.

Also, the Beavers haven’t been able to run the football at all. If they are able to run on Saturday then the Cougars are in trouble both at Reiser and all season. If the Cougs can stop the run then they can really put their ears back and be the sack masters that they usually are.
Cougars prevail and show the top of the Pac-10 that there is another competitor in upper house of one of the nation’s best conferences.

HUSKIES FACE THE BRUINS

This is a terrible match-up for the Huskies – see UCLA is good and the Huskies aren’t. 2 main issues here.

Defensively the Bruins passing game is a dink and dunk which is fine if you can stop the running game and there is no way the Huskies are going to slow down Maurice Drew. The Huskies have played two physical football teams and have gotten crushed on the ground on both of them. The left side of the UCLA line is enormous and they are going to blast the Dawgs.

The other issue is it is a bad match-up for the Huskies offensively. UCLA plays a very conservative defense where they leave two safeties deep but at the same time they roll up on your receivers. Therefore they are going to force Stanback to read the spaces in the defense and that is not his strength. His strength is going over the top and UCLA will not allow it.
Finally, UCLA has great linebackers and they will be able to handle the lack of the Huskies running team.

Simple game good team beats bad team by a lot

MLB.com has the Yankees Divison Champship Shirts on the Site

Theonly problem is the haven't won the divison yet. Got to love this picture.
0927051yankees2.jpg (JPEG Image, 600x575 pixels) - Scaled (95%)

Hawks’ Strong great on field, even better off it | TheNewsTribune.com | Tacoma, WA

Hawks’ Strong great on field, even better off it | TheNewsTribune.com | Tacoma, WA: "And just about every year, he has to fend off the notion that he can be replaced. Joining the team as a free agent in 1993, Strong has played for three coaches (Tom Flores, Dennis Erickson and Holmgren), and lined up behind nine quarterbacks. He became a Seahawk in the year Rick Mirer was drafted and the team traded for Keith Millard.

Strong came into the league just two years after Mosi Tatupu retired, and is now on a roster with Mosi’s son, Lofa."

Bulls' demand for DNA about wrong, rights

Bulls' demand for DNA about wrong, rights: "Eddy Curry is not a thoroughbred. He's not a sheep. He's not a dog for breeding. But the Bulls seem to think that because they have offered him a $5.14 million contract, they have bought the right to force him to take a DNA test to see if his heart condition might be fatal.

They are wrong. Your DNA is a personal, private thing that cannot be purchased. If Curry doesn't want to submit to the test for the Bulls, then that's it. No test. The DNA is his. The DNA is him.

For $5 million, the Bulls are not buying Eddy Curry. They are buying Eddy Curry's services. Curry is not for sale."

MIKE HOLMGREN PRESS CONFERENCE

I just got back from the Wednesday Mike Holmgren press conference. Here is a re-cap of the news and notes from the presser.
On the injury front Peter Warrick will sit out practice today with a groin injury. DJ Hackett will take his spot in the passing game and Jimmy Williams will return punts. Itula Mili is still not at full strength and may be another week before he is ready. Pork Chop Womack is still a week away, but will be the left tackle when he returns.
Holmgren talked about the Skins’ defense as a very aggressive unit that plays true pressure defense and bring the blitz more then most teams in the NFL. Specifically, they like to bring former Hawk Shawn Springs off the edge in a blitz. Springs v. D-Jack will be a big time match-up on Sunday.
In regards to D-Jack, I asked what he does to get so open. Holmgren talked about his tremendous quickness, that he is faster then people give him credit for and that he really is terrific in the first 5 yards of a route.
Offensively the Skins, offensive line will just maul you. They play a very similar system to what Joe Gibbs ran when he was the head coach the first time. He will pound, pound, pound and they shoot for one deep.
I brought up Holmgren’s passing on first down, he said you really have to have great confidence in your QB to make those calls. He admitted that running on first down is the hardest down to run on so if they can he is more then willing to pass on first down. In addition, he mentioned that they chart their own tendencies and will try to change his patterns.
Crowd noise is always a factor on the road. The obvious problem is audibles. Hasselbeck no differently then any other QB gets flustered when he can’t change out of bad plays and then no longer feels comfortable or in a rhythm.
The Hawks 3rd down defense has been amazing thus far. Holmgren credits it with a young defense that just flys around. He also talked about the depth of the roster and the rotation of players they are able to use. I wonder how much John Marshall calling the defense may be responsible for this change.
This year’s defense is different because of the depth. I wrote about this today in the Seattle PI and Holmgren discussed it at the press conference. In the past the starters got hurt and their was no second line, this year there is no such class distinction, they are all interchangeable parts. All the players feel they are contributing.
I credit a great deal of this to the influence of Tim Ruskell on this football team.
Lastly, I asked why the Hawks use Mack Strong in the 2-minute drill rather then Alexander. Holmgren said they have numerous personnel groups that can be used. However, he added that he usually asks Matt what he wants to use. Interesting, if I was Matt I wouldn’t want to have a back in the game that I couldn’t check to as a blocker or dump off to in the passing game.

Locked on Sports: Hawks appear complete

Locked on Sports: Hawks appear complete: "However, this year looks and feels different. Addition by subtraction was the mantra all offseason and it is holding true. The purge of a heartless, selfish defensive unit has given way to an active, aggressive and free-flying group.

The biggest difference is that the Hawks are a complete team. Top to bottom, every player has a role and fills a need.

It is president Tim Ruskell's signature. Every roster spot is being maximized."

WHAT DOES THIS SAY ABOUT STANBACK

This week will be the biggest test for Isaiah Stanback. Truly I don’t think you can make an opinion on him until we see how he reacts when playing good teams that have a scouting report on him. However, I think there is an interesting trend developing. In the Air Force game Stanback hit a ton of 3 step drop plays and since then the clubs have taken that play away from Isaih. Today I went through the play by plays that I keep for the Huskies game and broke Isaiah Stanback offense into two categories, pocket passing and rollout/screen plays. Let put a few qualifiers on this. It is not perfect. I do the best I can. Also I didn’t count after 3 quarters against Idaho because the game was over and I didn’t count the end of the Cal game because it was garbage.
Here is what I discovered
In pocket passing Stanabck is: 12 of 33 for 281 yards with 1 TD and 1 INT
Out of the pocket or screen he is: 13 of 13 for 109 yards

The 13 of 13 is amazing. The 12 of 33 is awful. Not sure what this means.

SONICS SIGN RADMANOVIC TO ONE YEAR DEAL

SONICS SIGN VLADY TO ONE YEAR CONTRACT

As we have reported on 950, KJR’s Locked on Sports for most of the off-season the Sonics and Vlady Radmanovic were unable to find common ground on a long term contract. Instead, today the Sonics signed Radmanovic to the one year tender contract. This makes Radmanovic a free agent after the season. It also restricts the Sonics ability to trade him.
The ideal situation for the Sonics would have been to come a long term agreement. However, the asking price from the Radmanovic camp was more then they were willing to commit to. The Radmanovic camp thought the contracts of Kwame Brown, Tyson Chandler, Samuel Dalembert and Bobby Simmons set the market where the Sonics didn’t feel those were appropriate comparisons.
Dave Bauman, Radmanovic’s agent, said during the process that if Radmanovic signed the tender it was his first step out the door and was a sign of lack of commitment from the Sonics that Radmanovic would not forget going into free agency. Time will tell if that was negotiation bluster or if the Sonics have just taken the first step to losing a key piece.
Radmanovic is also in the news today for a fight he got in with a Serbian teammate at the World Championship in the locker-room after their shocking loss to France.

HOT READS ON THE NFL

Is Randy Moss really so good that Dante Culpepper has fallen apart without him or is that the Vikings are terribly coached ….. Is their any guy you root for in the NFL more then Trent Dilfer his post game quote after the Browns beat the Packers in Lambeau on the day they retired Reggie White’s # was so touching “I am sure my son and Reggie were together watching the game.” This is guy that you have to root for ….. Are the Bengals for real, the numbers say yes but realize they still haven’t played anyone yet …
The Saints got screwed so badly last night with that game-taking place in New York. …. Tom Brady’s comments after the game were interesting about how this is a totally different group then they have had in the past, it is clear he doesn’t feel whatever that championship feeling is ……. I thought Brian Billick was supposed to be an offensive genius, but his offense in Baltimore is the worst in the NFL …
If KC defense is as good as it seems, Indy and NE better look out in the AFC … What happened to the big year of the Atlanta Falcons, you have to have an offensive line and they don’t … Joey Harrington is following in the footsteps of other great Oregon NFL QB’s like Akili Smith … 1-0 teams on the road this weekend generally lost I believe those teams that were 1-0 and went on the road were 2-8, I include the Saints as a road team

HUSKIES BLOW OUT THE VANDALS

A win is a win is a win. Bottom line the Huskies will take it anyway they can get it. Also, the Idaho Vandals are terrible.
Here are a few thoughts from Husky Stadium while the Dawgs blow out the Vandals.
Could you imagine if the Huskies had won the Air Force game. They would be 2-1 having lost to a great Cal team. You also have to wonder if the Huskies would have quit against Cal had they beat the Falcons. Cal still would have won and won easily as they were a far superior team.
This was vintage Tyrone Willingham football. Find an advantage and milk it to the end. The Huskies came out and pounded the football. They called running plays on 18 of the first 25 plays. The offensive line was making hay on each and every run.
Louis Rankin had a good day and showed some nice footwork that many wondered if he had.
Defensively the Huskies coaches had some very nice blitz packages dialed up for the Vandals. Early in the game they brought two guys up the middle with the first guy tying up the blockers and the second guy would get to the quarterback. The Huskies also implemented a pass rush front 4 on passing downs, it included Caesar Rayford on an end with Greyson Gunheim on the other end. Manase Hopoi and Wilson Afoa were the tackles for most of those allingnments.,
Idaho was slow. Numerous times it looked as though Idaho’s backs would have a running lane and then they never had the speed to get to it.
Finally, I know it is a nice win, but I have to throw a word of caution. I am very worried about Isaiah Stanback’s play. He was awful early completing just 1 of his first 6 throws with an interception and a fumble. Throughout the game, he almost never went to a secondary receiver. Moreover, his best plays were often very poor decisions. The bomb to Craig Chambers was into double coverage, the touchdown to Johnnie Kirton was ill advised and he should have two other balls intercepted. His scrambling ability and escapability are impressive, but his quarterbacking game is not progressing.
A win is a win is a win.