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Interesting trade by JS. We traded a active LB that we signed, Jerome Baker AND gave a 4th to Tennessee for another LB. I don't know much about Ernest Jones IV, but I've never heard him talked about as a "star". What am I missing?

jshawaii22 wrote:Interesting trade by JS. We traded a active LB that we signed, Jerome Baker AND gave a 4th to Tennessee for another LB. I don't know much about Ernest Jones IV, but I've never heard him talked about as a "star". What am I missing?

I'm surprised you don't know much about Ernest Jones, considering he was a Ram since he was a rookie. I would say he is an upgrade from Baker. Baker to me played okay, but was having trouble shedding blockers and filling the run lanes, and thus we are bottom 5 in run defense. EJ4 adds a lot more lateral speed and finished 11th last season with 145 tackles for the Rams, where Baker(with injury) finished with 78 tackles. I see this is a necessary upgrade to shut down the run, and since we have only played division opponent till this point, it would be helpful to have a player who is familiar facing the division opponents.

Jones is the guy Bobby took under his wing when he played for the Lambs

we do need some better LBs. So positive move for a seemingly low cost.

I remember a lot of players who beat up on the Seahawks, but he wasn't one of them. I would question why the Titans are sending him away a few months after signing him. Both players were at the end of a contract, so if he's as good as 4xPips views him, and we can sign him to another Leonard Williams type contact (reasonable) would be nice. Coach indicated he might start at ML Sunday, so it won't take long to see him on the field as a Seahawk.

Hopefully not a lateral move. Glad to see a willingness to make moves when something isn't working.

We also claimed LB Josh Ross from the Ravens.
He played for MacDonald last year but was a ST player this year.

jshawaii22 wrote:I remember a lot of players who beat up on the Seahawks, but he wasn't one of them. I would question why the Titans are sending him away a few months after signing him. Both players were at the end of a contract, so if he's as good as 4xPips views him, and we can sign him to another Leonard Williams type contact (reasonable) would be nice. Coach indicated he might start at ML Sunday, so it won't take long to see him on the field as a Seahawk.

My apologies, that wasn't my intention.

From the Titan's perspective:

EJ4 is on his last year of his rookie deal, they gave up a 5th round pick in the 2026 draft for him(trade risk very low). He is 2nd on the Titan's team in tackles with 44 in 6 games played. Compared to Tyrel Dodson on our team who has 55 Tackles( 7 games played) he would be roughly right behind him given the average tackles per game. The Titan's have already waived the white flag and are in fire sale mode as they already dumped Hopkins. There are even speculation if Levis is the franchise QB. So, it would make sense to get upgraded value for a player that will have to get paid next season. Possibly their thought process is they are scouting the ILB group of next years draft class and looking to start fresh with another rookie and play out the rookie contract. So trading him for Baker make sense, as you get a decent starter and most likely will cut him after this season unless Baker takes a team friendly contract.

They upgrade their trade position from giving up a 5th round pick in 2026 to getting a starter and next years 4th round pick. So in a lost season this is a win for the Titans.

From the Seahawk's perspective:

This maybe a season where we can possibly steal this division from the 49ers considering how many of their top tier players are injured. We are clearly not as talented as the 49ers roster to roster, but given the circumstances we probably may steal this division and may never even beat them in the regular season. So this sort of trade indicates we are trying to better the team for this year, and if EJ4 turns out to be stud it's worth giving him an extension. We are giving up next years draft capital to make a gain for his season, so it's riskier for the Hawk's but the pay out could be better for us, or it can be another wasted attempt JS and we can regret it next year if EJ4 isn't much better than Baker, and he signs elsewhere.

All in all the risk is on the Hawks. I do believe EJ4 is better, younger, and is a sure tackler. So he could potentially be the starting ILB for us for a longtime if he fits well with in the scheme of Mike Macdonald's future defensive plans.

The only reason to partially mortgage the future is for the FO to lessen the heat or evade it. We all know the Seahawks aren’t yet in a position to challenge for the Lombardi trophy, so why give up a 4th for a possible rental who’s on his 3rd team this year?
Is winning the division that important. I believe we have to build through the draft but since JS seems to do this type of thing every year,I sure hope he he’s right with this move.

NorthHawk wrote:The only reason to partially mortgage the future is for the FO to lessen the heat or evade it. We all know the Seahawks aren’t yet in a position to challenge for the Lombardi trophy, so why give up a 4th for a possible rental who’s on his 3rd team this year?
Is winning the division that important. I believe we have to build through the draft but since JS seems to do this type of thing every year,I sure hope he he’s right with this move.

Even as much of a Debbie Downer as I am, I'm not quite ready to make that assumption ie that we're not in a position to challenge, not so much because I think we're a championship team, but more because of the teams in our conference. It could all be Fool's Gold, but I'm holding out for now.

NorthHawk wrote:The only reason to partially mortgage the future is for the FO to lessen the heat or evade it. We all know the Seahawks aren’t yet in a position to challenge for the Lombardi trophy, so why give up a 4th for a possible rental who’s on his 3rd team this year?
Is winning the division that important. I believe we have to build through the draft but since JS seems to do this type of thing every year,I sure hope he he’s right with this move.

Yes! Winning the division is that important. You never know what can happen in this league, and injuries can play a major role. At the start of the season would you have guessed the Commanders with a rookie QB, and their given talent would be leading the Cowboys after 7 weeks? I don't know about you but I wouldn't. I would look at both rosters and clearly state the Cowboys have way more talent and should be contending with the Eagles for that division.

Remember the Giants were a 9-7 wildcard team, and at one point they were 6-6 and they were written off, but made the playoffs as a division winner at 9-7. The Packers were 15-1 that season, but anything can happen and Giants went on to win the SB.

So I think you have an opportunity to win the division, which this year we have the potential given the injuries the 49ers have, I say yes you need to try and win it. I am not saying we will win it for sure, but we have a chance this season and you never know what may happen come play off time. A lot of teams choke in the playoffs.

I’m not saying-or didn’t mean to say- that you don’t try to win, but don’t sacrifice the future for a low chance at getting past the first round. We’ve done that with Pete for 7 or 8 years with mid season trades that didn’t pan out except for Williams last year but gave up 2nds, 3rds and now a 4th previously for players on their last year, not to mention what we gave up in the Adams trade. We had to break the bank for Adams but didn’t re-sign Clowney and Richardson.
Take care of building the team through the draft and FA. Those 3rd and 4th round picks are where you will typically find the solid Guards, DTs, and LBs that we have been light on for 5 or 6 years.

NorthHawk wrote:I’m not saying-or didn’t mean to say- that you don’t try to win, but don’t sacrifice the future for a low chance at getting past the first round. We’ve done that with Pete for 7 or 8 years with mid season trades that didn’t pan out except for Williams last year but gave up 2nds, 3rds and now a 4th previously for players on their last year, not to mention what we gave up in the Adams trade. We had to break the bank for Adams but didn’t re-sign Clowney and Richardson.
Take care of building the team through the draft and FA. Those 3rd and 4th round picks are where you will typically find the solid Guards, DTs, and LBs that we have been light on for 5 or 6 years.

I definitely want to move away from the desperate trades. Draft capital is better to have if you're any good as a GM. Better to add youth and better for the salary cap.

NorthHawk wrote:I’m not saying-or didn’t mean to say- that you don’t try to win, but don’t sacrifice the future for a low chance at getting past the first round. We’ve done that with Pete for 7 or 8 years with mid season trades that didn’t pan out except for Williams last year but gave up 2nds, 3rds and now a 4th previously for players on their last year, not to mention what we gave up in the Adams trade. We had to break the bank for Adams but didn’t re-sign Clowney and Richardson.
Take care of building the team through the draft and FA. Those 3rd and 4th round picks are where you will typically find the solid Guards, DTs, and LBs that we have been light on for 5 or 6 years.

You stated "is winning the division that important"

I am reacting to that statement. I agree we have track record of making some bad trades. However, EJ4 could and may have the potential to be a solid fit for our team. I don't believe he is an all pro, or pro bowl player, but who knows maybe he will shine in this defense. Is risking a 4th rounder for him too high of a cost, hmmm it's hard to say. It will look like a genius move if he makes an impact right away, and helps slow down the run. Or will look like another wasted move by the front office if we have a losing season and he signs elsewhere. I would hope, that if he does well they have plans to keep him long term.

Circling back to winning the division. If we can steal the division and win it, with hopefully a winning record regardless of how we stack up against the rest of the league, would certainly entice more FAs to want to play here vs playing for dumpster fire. There is a reason why some teams stay losing franchises year after year and never get better because they don't have a winning culture. It would boost team moral, and give us something to build off of.

We’ve done that in the past and went one and done more than once. I’d rather play the long game with draft picks.

4XPIPS wrote:Yes! Winning the division is that important. You never know what can happen in this league, and injuries can play a major role. At the start of the season would you have guessed the Commanders with a rookie QB, and their given talent would be leading the Cowboys after 7 weeks? I don't know about you but I wouldn't. I would look at both rosters and clearly state the Cowboys have way more talent and should be contending with the Eagles for that division.

Remember the Giants were a 9-7 wildcard team, and at one point they were 6-6 and they were written off, but made the playoffs as a division winner at 9-7. The Packers were 15-1 that season, but anything can happen and Giants went on to win the SB.

So I think you have an opportunity to win the division, which this year we have the potential given the injuries the 49ers have, I say yes you need to try and win it. I am not saying we will win it for sure, but we have a chance this season and you never know what may happen come play off time. A lot of teams choke in the playoffs.

I'm in this boat. With the possible exception of the Lions, there isn't a dominant team in our conference let alone the division, and at 4-3 and leading our division, we have a more than reasonable chance of going deep into the playoffs this season. So long as we're in the thick of things, we play to win and win now.

I think that our record is largely a mirage. We've really only beaten the Falcons as the others didn't have a QB of any quality at the time we played them.
I don't know if the Rams are back on track or if last night was just one of those games but they can be trouble and the 49ers even beaten up like they are can still give us a lot of trouble - and that's only our division. I forgot about the Cards who's run game looks good and Murray is back to scrambling well.
The other teams of note in the NFC that I think would give us matchup problems are the Lions, Vikings, Packers and I think the Commanders and Bucs would be trouble, too. So I don't think giving up draft picks possibly for a 10 game rental is worth the gamble. Clearly 2 teams don't think he's a difference maker so why should he be that here?

Basically I think we are 2nd tier and capable of losing to any team like the Giants on any day. That should mean an early exit like the last half dozen years if we make the playoffs when teams really focus on the game at hand.
But that's just my opinion - I could be wrong and often are.

I don't think our record is a mirage but being atop the division may be. We'll see how long it lasts.

trents wrote:I don't think our record is a mirage but being atop the division may be. We'll see how long it lasts.

If we can split with the 49ers, then we'll be in good shape.

I don't know if the Rams have turned a corner and will be a tough out from here on in or whether their performance against the Vikings was a one off.
If they have got their act together, they could be a real threat in the division and seem to always do well against us.

NorthHawk wrote:I don't know if the Rams have turned a corner and will be a tough out from here on in or whether their performance against the Vikings was a one off.
If they have got their act together, they could be a real threat in the division and seem to always do well against us.

I was thinking the same thing. The Rams have been without Cooper Kupp since Week 2 and Puka Nacua has been hobbled since Week 1. They finally had both healthy Thursday night and it sure seemed to make a difference. But was it just a case of the Vikings being overrated?

As far as our division goes, I wouldn't sleep on the Cards, either. They're 2-0 in the division, having beaten both the Rams and Niners, and looking at the remaining schedules, they have the easiest by far, which includes the Fins, Bears, Jets, Pats, Panthers, and Vikings. With the Niners seeming to be having a down year, the NFC West is up for grabs.