Cowboys Preseason Game

[RiverDog]

Game time is 5:00 pm PDT tonight, televised locally on Fox and NFL Network. You can also watch stream it on the Seahawks mobile app, Seahawks.com, NFL+, Yahoo Sports app and browser. At least I'm able to record this week's game.

A couple of things to note: We have 17 days between this game and our season opener vs. the Broncos. That's a long time to go without getting any live football action, so my guess is that we'll see quite a few of our starters playing. Rashaad Penny is out, tested positive for Covid yesterday, as is Kenneth Walker, nursing a groin injury. The offensive line looks like a mash unit, with guards Damien Lewis and Gabe Jackson along with tackle/guard Jake Curhan all nursing injuries. However, we should get our first look at Eskridge, who is expected to get his first live action in 11 months.

On defense, Jordy Brooks and Boye Mafe are not expected to play. I'm not sure about our "heat seeking missile" safeties.

https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/teams/SEA ... pth-chart/

Although Geno Smith is expected to get the start, we're likely to see a lot of Drew Lock as Pete made a commitment to get him more playing time after he had to sit out the last game. Look for Geno to play no more than two series. I would also expect both Lockett and Metcalf to see some limited action. Will Dissly has been used sparingly so far this preseason.

[NorthHawk]

The pre season games to me are just an opportunity to see how the rookies are progressing.
That, along with any changes to schemes (which aren't usually unveiled before the season starts) or trends on Offense.
I'm hoping to see more plays on Offense that pressure the edges along with more pre snap motion. I'm hoping Pete will allow them to do at least this bit of progressive thinking on Offense.

[Hawktawk]

Pete made clear today that Geno enters this final game as the clear leader for the job . The fans are dismayed . Except I’m excited . Next to Geno I’m probably the only guy . But let’s see. If he trips over the back or gets a bunch of batted balls or turns it over and Drew takes the top off who knows . Other than hoping receivers catch balls and tacklers tackle so we can get a true evaluation just no big injuries and may covid please not sweep the roster . The gam that matters is on the 12th

[Aseahawkfan]

I'm watching mainly because there is no other football on. I'm not feeling any kind of ability to assess the players under these conditions. The scores are high. There is no real game planning. I can't tell how good Charles Cross is going against no name pass rusher number 3 who might not even be on the team and isn't going to be a starter.

Some people have way over-hyped average to bad players and built up the rookies into pro bowlers before they even play a real down. I've never, ever seen that to be the case in all my years of watching NFL football. The rooks are going to be rooks with a ton of growing pains when the real football starts.

Penny hasn't played a down in the preseason even with a completely rebuilt offensive line and Penny on a one year prove it contract. He's supposed to magically do great with an inexperienced QB and offensive line. Not sure why Pete wasn't pushing Penny to learn to work harder with the O-line, but maybe he's hoping to keep the guy back and uninjured since Walker is out now too.

[Hawktawk]

Penny may have played without covid but I don’t care . He’s a big super fast dude and he will pick up where he left off if he’s recovered . No point risking him . He’s a 5 year vet with a career 5.6 ypc average , 6.1 career when given ten carries or more and 6.7 as a starter over 6 games . 7.2 ypc last 4 games . If he don’t blow something he could easily lead the league in rushing . Great backs make their line better , especially guys that are patient and set up blocks then get skinny and north and south pronto . Penny is that guy just like Alexander was although he had a damn good line and I don’t think he had quite the speed . I choose to believe and root for him to be healthy as he makes us a top ten offense . Homer and Dee Jay looked great too . Walker survived a sneeze . I thought it was a bit harsh like Parcells being asked about Terry Glenn nursing something “ she’s doing fine “ . He will be back . We will run .

[RiverDog]

Penny hasn't played a down in ANY preseason. That just shows how unavailable he's been over his career.

All 3 of our regular guards, ie Lewis, Jackson, and Curhan, are all nursing injuries and are listed as questionable for Week 1 vs. Denver. Although not a huge deal, it would have been nice for our starting OL to get some game work together before the regular season begins. The OL needs to function as a unit.

[Aseahawkfan]

That was a nice throw by Lock and nice catch by Hart.

Miles Adams very active. Working to make the team.

Lock got a way better arm than Geno, but his decision making not so great.

[trents]

Lock looked sharp until that bonehead INT. He has a good pocket presence and a strong and accurate arm. Vision and decision making is still a question.

[Oly]

Lock looked sharp until that bonehead INT. He has a good pocket presence and a strong and accurate arm. Vision and decision making is still a question.

Glad to hear, because I tuned in two plays before the INT and he's looked like absolute s*** in what I've seen in my tiny sample size. There was the INT, the near-INT on the hook/out at the right sideline, the near-INT/WR injury due to the high pass on 3rd down...I mean, in that small sample he's looked not NFL material in decision making and backup-at-best in accuracy.

[Hawktawk]

Team Geno all the way . Lock has a bigger arm and more effortless release then Geno but not by much .nobody in the league has a “way stronger arm “ than Geno smith . He had another 3 drops on his one drive and I’m beginning to wonder if these receivers aren’t expecting the ball that quick . He’s got a gun . At this point it seems clear if we want to win he’s our choice : if we want to try to develop Lock it’s gonna be a long year imo . Might be with Geno too but he commands the huddle and reads the field 10 times as well.

[Aseahawkfan]

Lock lost the competition. Pete hates turnovers.

Gonna be Geno unless he plays terrible or gets hurt. Gonna be a long year with these two at QB.

[RiverDog]

Lock looked sharp until that bonehead INT. He has a good pocket presence and a strong and accurate arm. Vision and decision making is still a question.

That seems to be the problem with Drew Lock. It was the same story in the Steelers game. He looks great until on one play, he makes a huge, fatal mistake that ends up costing his team the game. After watching him in preseason, it's no wonder the Broncos decided to cut bait.

[trents]

It wouldn't surprise me, however, that whoever starts the first game at QB, there will be a change at some point in the season, maybe more than once. And if either Smith or Lock get's injured during the season, Eason may get his chance. I just don't see any of those guys being able to sustain success.

In this last preseason game, the offensive stars are D.J. Dallas and the OL. On defense, Michael Jackson.

Man, Eason towers over everybody.

[Aseahawkfan]

Nothing much has changed for me. Looks like a 6-8 win team.

Gonna be very conservative and inconsistent QB play, very little magic like Russell could do.

RBs should be ok even if Penny is just ok. We look deep enough at RB to sustain some kind of run game.

O-line tackles did fine for rookies. They didn't face much quality competition, but that will come quickly in our division.

Defense looks problematic. D-line does not look like they get consistent push or pressure and they get pushed around in the run game. We still don't know who starting CBs are and it's likely to be one or two rooks. Hopefully our starting safeties are ready to go or we're going to have some real problems on coverage.

Best position group is WRs. Worst is is probably D-line, which still looks very weak.

Final cuts coming. Now we see how we do against starting level competition rather than scrub ball.

[Old but Slow]

As this is not going to be a highly competitive season for the 'Hawks, I would not mind if they gave Eason a decent shot. He was a 4th round pick, I believe, is tall and has a strong arm, so he may show enough to be the backup for us or some other team. That idea suggests a "tank" approach, but I don't mean it that way. I'd just like to see the guy get a look.

By the way, at least one play from this game will be seen forever: one of the worst shotgun snaps in history by Shepley. Perfect for the next blooper tape.

[obiken]

That seems to be the problem with Drew Lock. It was the same story in the Steelers game. He looks great until on one play, he makes a huge, fatal mistake that ends up costing his team the game. After watching him in preseason, it's no wonder the Broncos decided to cut bait.

This is what I tried to tell you and HT!

[RiverDog]

Just a few random comments.

If there was a true QB competition, it's over now. Drew Lock did not look good. Three interceptions. One that bounced off a wide open receiver obviously wasn't on him, but he had one that was perhaps half his fault as Eskridge did not come back for the ball along with one that was all on him. This was the rap on him in Denver, and it's easy to see why he had such a poor TD:INT ratio and why Denver was willing to part with him.

Geno was the victim of what has been an epidemic of dropped passes by our receiving corps but also took a bad sack to take us out of scoring position had it not been for a short completion on 3rd and 34. They probably should have given Jacob Eason a shot as neither Smith or Lock has looked particularly impressive, but there just wasn't enough opportunities. Geno wins the job by default.

Michael Jackson may have won himself a roster spot. He made plays all night. DJ Dallas had the best preseason of our running backs. Love the way he runs. Expect him to get a lot of touches in September. Missed tackles didn't seem to be as much of an issue as it has been the previous two games.

Sloppy game in general. 5 turnovers. Fortunately, only one involved players expected to contribute this season. 8 penalties on us, 10 on the Cowboys.

0-3 preseason record. Not many teams are going to be circling like buzzards for us to make our cuts like they did at one time. Very shallow roster. Hope our starters stay healthy.

[Hawktawk]

I missed the 4th quarter so can’t really comment on that . Geno threw 7 passes . 3 were caught . 3 were dropped. 1 Drew a pi against Fant and was a perfect throw in itself which is why the guy fouled Fant . I dunno . Awful sack thought I was watching Russ for a minute

What the hell im optimistic . When I said Geno played starter quality ball probably 9 months ago leading to a boat sized raft of crap I never dreamed he might be starting here . Give him a chance when the games count and he’s got 60 minutes with the 1s . I think you will be pleasantly shocked by our offense .

[RiverDog]

I missed the 4th quarter so can’t really comment on that . Geno threw 7 passes . 3 were caught . 3 were dropped. 1 Drew a pi against Fant and was a perfect throw in itself which is why the guy fouled Fant . I dunno . Awful sack thought I was watching Russ for a minute

What the hell im optimistic . When I said Geno played starter quality ball probably 9 months ago leading to a boat sized raft of crap I never dreamed he might be starting here . Give him a chance when the games count and he’s got 60 minutes with the 1s . I think you will be pleasantly shocked by our offense .

You didn't miss much in the 4th quarter. It was very sloppy, didn't resemble professional football.

There wasn't a lot of takeaways from this game or the preseason in general, and certainly not enough to base any degree of optimism on. I do feel that our two RB's, in particular DJ Dallas, looked good enough to carry the load, which with Penny's injury history and Walker out indefinitely, is a good thing. The OL is going to have their spurts and setbacks as penalties look like they might be a bug-a-boo with this group. Although there were a few diamonds in the rough, like Michael Jackson, our defense is spotty, and our depth seems very shallow.

I was hoping to see more work from our starters as it's 17 days before they'll see another live game. But that seems to be a league wide trend this preseason.

[NorthHawk]

I liked how both Dallas and Homer hit the hole when given the ball. No hesitation like we've seen before from our RB's.
It seems like it was AP's influence that turned that switch on.
We also saw some pre snap motion (which should help younger QBs identify Man or Zone coverage) and throws to the RBs.
Both good signs of progress.
Myles Adams and Michael Jackson looked good enough to keep.
The OL look pretty good in general but Cross was beaten badly by fellow rookie Sam Williams a couple of times. Apparently he had his number in College, too as well as the 1 on 1s at the Sr. Bowl.
Curhan and Lucas look like a good pairing on the right side.
A lot of players drop balls thrown by Geno. Is it something he does differently from other QBs that cause this? Perhaps a lack of touch, but we will see in the regular season how the #1s do.
DL needs work but some flashes of competence. LBs didn't stand out much to me but there was a lot of personnel changes.
ST looked a little better.

[c_hawkbob]

This game was a whole lot better than the last (talk about a low bar!) and gave us some reason for hope, at least as it pertains to our running game. Geno and Lock were 6 of one, half dozen of the other and neither anything to get twitterpated about. Of Lock's 3 INT's only was was truly a boneheaded decision, one was a bounce up from hitting the receiver and the other was a decent ball and a great play by the defender. Geno looked good until taking that sack at the end of his drive almost taking away even 3 points. It's Geno to start the season and I just can't get excited about it, I do suspect it'll be a short run though once SF releases Jimmy G.

Defense plays fast but often out of position. I think we're gonna have to rely heavily on out starting Safeties to be any good at least early in the season.

Still looking like a 6-7 win team to me.

[tarlhawk]

Very disappointed by the QB "competition"...how does a QB gain ability to read when a corner or safety is "baiting" him? Experience but you don't gain experience from not playing and practicing against your better defenders...I'll defer to Pete's judgement that it was a fair trial that Drew lost out on. As a fan my opinion bears no weight of understanding what goes on behind closed sessions. I wish Geno the best and he'll do better on this team than anywhere else because of the strong supporting cast he'll continue to have...my only real knock is I don't find him inspiring. A "point guard" feeds a lot of balls to the play makers...but the occasional 3-point play from your QB would give some spark at times. Go Hawks (please)

[NorthHawk]

I think Pete gave Geno the ball at the start. However, Geno began to fumble it away even though he didn't have much competition.
That's the worrying thing - he doesn't have the ability to seize the moment and make it his. So I expect middling QB play where we will see some good plays and some real bonehead plays.
But that's life without a top QB.

[RiverDog]

Very disappointed by the QB "competition"...how does a QB gain ability to read when a corner or safety is "baiting" him? Experience but you don't gain experience from not playing and practicing against your better defenders...I'll defer to Pete's judgement that it was a fair trial that Drew lost out on. As a fan my opinion bears no weight of understanding what goes on behind closed sessions. I wish Geno the best and he'll do better on this team than anywhere else because of the strong supporting cast he'll continue to have...my only real knock is I don't find him inspiring. A "point guard" feeds a lot of balls to the play makers...but the occasional 3-point play from your QB would give some spark at times. Go Hawks (please)

I can't feel too sorry for Drew Lock. You can't blame him for coming down with Covid, which seems to have been the turning point in the so-called competition as it caused him to miss a game and some practices, but he was guilty of a couple of unforced errors that highlighted the weakness of his that was paper clipped to his resume.

My expectations are that Geno will play much like he did last season, winning one 1 out of every 3 games, which would translate into a 5 or 6 win season or about what you'd expect out of an average backup QB. That's not a prediction as I'm not as confident in it as others are of theirs, just what I'm anticipating out of this season. However, I'd bet a large sack of coins against HT's 10 win/wild card berth guarantee.

[Hawktawk]

I shared an article on Geno in the qb1 thread . If you haven’t read it you should . I was previously unaware that he started every game as a rookie after 2 weeks as 1 when Sanchez got hurt in TC. Went 8-8 and led the LEAGUE in game winning drives . It’s one of the things KJ cited about practicing against him . His 2 minute talent . Threw for 374 and 3 TDs with a 158.3 passer rating in Miami . I hadn’t thought about the fact he backed up 3 HOF QBs in a row . He’s actually deadly accurate , mobile and he has a big arm . He’s 31 but low mileage . Hadn’t been hit too much and doesn’t get rattled when he is .
He’s got potential to deliver a lot more then you all think . Mock me on the 13th all you want . The attitude of the fans towards him , the media it’s just the disrespect cherry on top for him . It’s up to him what people are gonna think but I’m very optimistic .

[trents]

It's Geno to start the season and I just can't get excited about it, I do suspect it'll be a short run though once SF releases Jimmy G. . . . Still looking like a 6-7 win team to me.

My projection as well. Jimmy G. has holes in his game but would likely be somewhat of an upgrade to what we have to work with now.

[Hawktawk]

I think Pete gave Geno the ball at the start. However, Geno began to fumble it away even though he didn't have much competition.
That's the worrying thing - he doesn't have the ability to seize the moment and make it his. So I expect middling QB play where we will see some good plays and some real bonehead plays.
But that's life without a top QB.

He can’t throw and catch it at the same time . Maybe the guys aren’t used to getting it in the seam or between the hashes . Wait till the 12th. Let’s Ride Russ vs dog meat Geno

[NorthHawk]

My projection as well. Jimmy G. has holes in his game but would likely be somewhat of an upgrade to what we have to work with now.

Jimmy is currently expected to get $24M so he would probably want at least that and even more probable he would want a multi-year contract.
Would we be willing to pay him $100M over 4 years with $75M guaranteed? Is JG worth that?
It wouldn't surprise me if Pete panicked and even traded a 1st for him after seeing this off season. And that might mean being out of the top QB sweepstakes next year.

[Hawktawk]

I liked how both Dallas and Homer hit the hole when given the ball. No hesitation like we've seen before from our RB's.
It seems like it was AP's influence that turned that switch on.
We also saw some pre snap motion (which should help younger QBs identify Man or Zone coverage) and throws to the RBs.
Both good signs of progress.
Myles Adams and Michael Jackson looked good enough to keep.
The OL look pretty good in general but Cross was beaten badly by fellow rookie Sam Williams a couple of times. Apparently he had his number in College, too as well as the 1 on 1s at the Sr. Bowl.
Curhan and Lucas look like a good pairing on the right side.
A lot of players drop balls thrown by Geno. Is it something he does differently from other QBs that cause this? Perhaps a lack of touch, but we will see in the regular season how the #1s do.
DL needs work but some flashes of competence. LBs didn't stand out much to me but there was a lot of personnel changes.
ST looked a little better.

Last year he had 72% completion vs Steelers with 3 batted balls 80% vs Jax , 20 for 24. I re watched that game twice along with most of the games . Of his 4 incomplete passes 1 hit Lockett in the hands or I should say he got his hands on it . Same for Swain . Both were very tightly guarded and obviously it went as pass defended in the stat sheet . So the 1s can catch Genos passes fine as his 68.5 % comp shows . But he does throw a heavy ball . The rooks and backups are struggling do with it. I laugh when I keep hearing how he doesn’t have a good arm .

My knocks on Geno are sacks and batted balls . He took 13 in 13 quarters , an astounding number although he played against 3 really good defensive clubs including Pittsburgh who led the league in sacks and the saints with the #3 scoring defense . It’s another reason to start him if you’re breaking in a new line because he can take a licking and keep on ticking .

In a way it makes his stats more impressive other than 1-2 is what it is . Pete saw through it as did I were probably the only god damn people on the planet that see what nobody sees or are this delusional , or something in the middle .

[curmudgeon]

2 to 3 wins at best. Lack of talent is glaring. Time for regime change….

[Hawktawk]

2 to 3 wins at best. Lack of talent is glaring. Time for regime change….

Lol ok

[TriCitySam]

I thought the officials made some really, really bad calls.

[Aseahawkfan]

Jimmy is currently expected to get $24M so he would probably want at least that and even more probable he would want a multi-year contract.
Would we be willing to pay him $100M over 4 years with $75M guaranteed? Is JG worth that?
It wouldn't surprise me if Pete panicked and even traded a 1st for him after seeing this off season. And that might mean being out of the top QB sweepstakes next year.

I don't think John would allow that. That would be one of those times when they both went to have ownership settle it. We are not in position to contend this year. If Pete can't see that, he shouldn't even be head coach any more. There is a discipline to team building that both John and Pete had when they arrived where you know where you are in a rebuild process and don't make desperate moves. This team isn't one junkyard QB away from contention. Pete should want to see his defense perform at a high level before he does anything desperate like trade a 1st rounder away. He's going to need that pick for a QB or a better defensive player.

[TriCitySam]

2 to 3 wins at best. Lack of talent is glaring. Time for regime change….

Lack of talent at QB, but some very nice talent in other areas. I think we'll see improved play at OL, TE, DL and DB. If Walker gets healthy, at RB as well.

[trents]

It's really hard to say when you're only looking at preseason game data but it looks like we may have a better run blocking OL than we've had for some time. Dallas and Homer have both been on the team for multiple years but they both looked like featured backs in preseason so I attribute that to better OL play.

[RiverDog]

It's really hard to say when you're only looking at preseason game data but it looks like we may have a better run blocking OL than we've had for some time. Dallas and Homer have both been on the team for multiple years but they both looked like featured backs in preseason so I attribute that to better OL play.

Actually, our OL in 2020 was pretty decent. We were ranked 6th in the league in yards per attempt and PFF had our OL ranked 14th in run blocking before we slipped to 25th in 2021. I'll be happy if they can match our 2020 performance.

Dallas and Homer both looked great, especially DJ Dallas. Heck, he even looked good on special teams, nearly getting a punt block.

[NorthHawk]

I don't think John would allow that. That would be one of those times when they both went to have ownership settle it. We are not in position to contend this year. If Pete can't see that, he shouldn't even be head coach any more. There is a discipline to team building that both John and Pete had when they arrived where you know where you are in a rebuild process and don't make desperate moves. This team isn't one junkyard QB away from contention. Pete should want to see his defense perform at a high level before he does anything desperate like trade a 1st rounder away. He's going to need that pick for a QB or a better defensive player.

I would hope that wouldn’t happen but we haven’t made great trades of late.
Pete has final say on all personnel and they did make that horrendous Adams trade when Pete panicked, so a
precedent has been made. Maybe they learned something then, but also maybe Pete having seen the QB play this
off season realizes that an upgrade is necessary. Thus they give away the farm again for what might be another marginal player.
I just wouldn’t put it past him.

[trents]

Actually, our OL in 2020 was pretty decent. We were ranked 6th in the league in yards per attempt and PFF had our OL ranked 14th in run blocking before we slipped to 25th in 2021. I'll be happy if they can match our 2020 performance.

Dallas and Homer both looked great, especially DJ Dallas. Heck, he even looked good on special teams, nearly getting a punt block.

With Penny being an injury magnet and Walker out for a while from hernia surgery, Dallas and/or Homer may get their chance to shine this year.

[RiverDog]

Actually, our OL in 2020 was pretty decent. We were ranked 6th in the league in yards per attempt and PFF had our OL ranked 14th in run blocking before we slipped to 25th in 2021. I'll be happy if they can match our 2020 performance.

Dallas and Homer both looked great, especially DJ Dallas. Heck, he even looked good on special teams, nearly getting a punt block.

With Penny being an injury magnet and Walker out for a while from hernia surgery, Dallas and/or Homer may get their chance to shine this year.

Yuppers. Even if Penny is completely healthy, he's not a 3 down back. Besides, as often as he's been injured, the Hawks aren't likely to have the courage to run him 20+ times a game, especially in our first couple of games when he hasn't seen a single snap in the preseason. I expect to see a lot of both Dallas and Homer.

[Aseahawkfan]

I would hope that wouldn’t happen but we haven’t made great trades of late.
Pete has final say on all personnel and they did make that horrendous Adams trade when Pete panicked, so a
precedent has been made. Maybe they learned something then, but also maybe Pete having seen the QB play this
off season realizes that an upgrade is necessary. Thus they give away the farm again for what might be another marginal player.
I just wouldn’t put it past him.

I don't think Pete panicked on the Adams trade. I think he saw a really nice shiny toy he wanted and went and got it. Pete doesn't ever panic. But he gets shiny toy disease. He looked over at that 6'2" 200 plus pound high performing safety doing nothing on the Jets and saw him in his defense doing great things. Pete loves shiny toys like superstar kick returners, TEs that run routes and catch like receivers, and high performing big safeties who can hit. So when they become available, he gets excited and trades for them without thinking about the way his overall team works. He never sees the crazy of Percy, the softness of the receiving TE, or the lack of pass defense ability of the big strong safety. In his football dream they all fit into his offense and defense perfectly and he fixes all their issues.