What Will the 2021 Season Look Like?

[Aseahawkfan]

So evidently you definition of mediocre is "not top tier". And yes, we had a legitimate chance at the Super bowl most of the years we've been to the playoffs. The best team is not always the SB champion. In fact I'd say any given year there are 5 or 6 teams worthy of the championship. and we're one of them as often as not.

Russell Wilson is the main reason we're doing well. If we didn't have an elite franchise QB in his prime, we would be mediocre at best and a bottom dweller most likely.

I'm not of the mind that the drop off on a team is like going off a cliff, but it's more of a slow decay process when your head coach starts getting desperate, such as trading away quality draft picks for players with flash that they don't keep. Not replenishing talent around your franchise QB is part of that slow decay process.

I want to see more of a focus on the draft and cheap free agent talent than this trade for a big splash player, when we're already at the point we can't afford players as it is. I know you think we'll pay Jamal Addams, but what is he going to cost? 18 million a year like Bobby? How will the team feel when a team focuses on a player they trade for rather than developing drafted personnel? Why is that happening? Are we failing to draft well? How much do we have to pay DK? We just paid Tyler Locket 17 million a year, DK going to cost 20 million plus with Jamal Addams costing 18 million plus and Russ 40 million plus?

The cost of these large contracts is why you need to be able to build effectively through the draft on a constant basis, not trade for expensive players that you can't keep because the salary cap. We have a lot of players heading for very expensive contracts and have reached a new low in draft picks with 3 this year. And we don't have our first next year.

To me that is a slow decay process in my opinion. I'm not sure why Pete and John aren't focusing on the tactics that built the best Seattle team in our history. All these trades are just memories now, gone from the team, but the main guys that carried us through were those strong early drafts that formed the core of that amazing team.

[RiverDog]

No, it doesn't, mediocrity is averaging 8 (now 8.5) wins and only making the playoffs when your division is epically bad. We did that as a franchise for entirely too long as far as I'm concerned.

Our definitions of mediocrity are different.

Do you really think this or previous 5 or so teams had legitimate chances to go deep in the playoffs? I don't. We're just a middle of the road team, without an identity, fooling ourselves that we can challenge for a championship. When it comes down to crunch time we can't get it done. So much for "Win Forever".

I tend to agree with North Hawk on this one. We are a mediocre team. Without looking at any reference material, I can think of at least 8 teams that are considerably better than us: Bucs, Chiefs, Rams, Packers, Bills, Ravens, Titans, and Browns. There's another gaggle of teams, like the Cards, Chargers, Fins, Colts, Saints, Steelers, even the mascot-less WFT, that one could easily argue that are better than us. If I were to do a power ranking based on both last season's results and offseason acquisitions, there's no way I would not put us in the top 10. Of the 32 teams, we're somewhere in the middle third of the pack, the very epitome of mediocrity.

Throughout the long regular season, it always feels to me like we're legitimate SB contenders, but once the playoffs roll around, it turns out to be fool's gold and I'm brought crashing back down to Earth by having to confront a stark reality. That Rams playoff game last year was a complete abortion that everyone on the team, from Pete Carroll to Russell Wilson to the water boy, have to take the responsibility for.

Have we become spoiled by success? Absolutely, but you know what? That's life. Doing well one season raises the expectations bar for subsequent years. You expect your team to improve, not tread water. I was not at all pleased with either Pete or Russell's performances last year, and this offseason drama did nothing but create even more questions and doubts in my mind as to the future of this franchise.

I'm not putting a tangible measurement on my expectations of this team's performance for this season such as a W/L mark or playoff success. If my current feeling about this team hasn't changed by next February, then I'm for blowing up the whole God damn team: Fire Pete, trade Russell and get what ever we can for him, and start over again from ground level. I don't give a rip if it results in 3-4 years of cellar dwelling. That's the chance we would have to take if we want to improve.

[c_hawkbob]

That's entirely predictive based on what you think of us and other teams today. Has no basis in how we've actually performed on the field either recently or in the Carroll/Wilson era taken as a whole.

And 3 or 4 years in the cellar is entirely best case scenario. It could easily be decades, not years.

[obiken]

That's entirely predictive based on what you think of us and other teams today. Has no basis in how we've actually performed on the field either recently or in the Carroll/Wilson era taken as a whole.

And 3 or 4 years in the cellar is entirely best case scenario. It could easily be decades, not years.

Wow thats scary coming from you Bob!!

[Zorn2Largent]

The science is clearly showing Covid is an aerosol. So it has super spreader events from indoor gatherings. Indoor settings with strong ventilation and all outdoor settings should be safe.
As for mediocrity, making the playoffs 3 of 8 years is mediocre. 7 of 8 is a contender. Mediocre is making the nfccg 1 in 8 years. We did it 2 in 8 years.
Mathematically, we are nowhere near mediocre.
This year doesn't look good. Last year I thought our first loss would come to Buffalo after a 7-0 start. I was close.
This year I will be happy if we squeak out a 4-4 record at the bye. 11 of 17 games vs top 10 defenses?
No bueno.

[NorthHawk]

Let's look at last years opponents and how we did.
These are the wins only.

vs Atlanta. We played fairly well and beat them as we should.
vs New England. Win, but had to hold them off to do so.
vs Dallas. Again had to hold them off to win.
vs Miami. A bit of a nail biter up to the 4th but we pulled away in Q4
vs Minnesota. Squeaked out a 1 point win.
vs SF 49ers. Won by 10 against a poorly playing Garoppolo and backup Mullins.
vs Arizona. Won by 7
vs Philadelphia. Played well but still only won by 6
vs NY Jets. Won big as expected
vs Washington. Won by 5
vs Rams. Won by 11
vs 49ers. Squeaked out a 3 point win against a backup QB and much injured SF team

Outside of the Jets, did any of these wins build confidence that we are real contenders for a championship?
Good teams would have won against NE, Dallas, Minnesota Arizona, Philadelphia and 49ers in a walk.
Scratching and clawing out a win or hanging on and asking Wilson to reach into his bag of magic tricks to pull out a win isn't a sign of a very good team.
We were far too thin in too many places to really challenge good teams - and we've not improved much since unless a couple of the rookies come up big.

[RiverDog]

Let's look at last years opponents and how we did.
These are the wins only.

vs Atlanta. We played fairly well and beat them as we should.
vs New England. Win, but had to hold them off to do so.
vs Dallas. Again had to hold them off to win.
vs Miami. A bit of a nail biter up to the 4th but we pulled away in Q4
vs Minnesota. Squeaked out a 1 point win.
vs SF 49ers. Won by 10 against a poorly playing Garoppolo and backup Mullins.
vs Arizona. Won by 7
vs Philadelphia. Played well but still only won by 6
vs NY Jets. Won big as expected
vs Washington. Won by 5
vs Rams. Won by 11
vs 49ers. Squeaked out a 3 point win against a backup QB and much injured SF team

Outside of the Jets, did any of these wins build confidence that we are real contenders for a championship?
Good teams would have won against NE, Dallas, Minnesota Arizona, Philadelphia and 49ers in a walk.
Scratching and clawing out a win or hanging on and asking Wilson to reach into his bag of magic tricks to pull out a win isn't a sign of a very good team.
We were far too thin in too many places to really challenge good teams - and we've not improved much since unless a couple of the rookies come up big.

The double digit win during the stretch run against the Rams, a division rival and eventual playoff team, clinching the division and avenging a previous loss, I thought made us legitimate SB contenders, at least at that point of the season. But oh, how wrong I was.

[RiverDog]

That's entirely predictive based on what you think of us and other teams today. Has no basis in how we've actually performed on the field either recently or in the Carroll/Wilson era taken as a whole.

Isn't that the point of the discussion? Aren't you being predictive based on your thoughts of how we measure up against other teams? My perception is that at this point we're no better than the bottom 2/3's of the league. That's mediocre IMO, and not worthy of being mentioned as a true SB contender.

And 3 or 4 years in the cellar is entirely best case scenario. It could easily be decades, not years.

Could easily be decades? How many teams have gone decades, ie 20+ years, without at least making the playoffs? Even the Jets and Lions haven't been that bad. That's a gross exaggeration if I've ever seen one.

Of our 6 head coaches that coached in multiple seasons (Patera, Knox, Flores, Erickson, Holmgren, and Carroll), 3 of them took over teams that were in disarray and built us into legitimate SB contenders. I don't think I'm being unreasonable at all in expecting that we would have a decent chance of a successful make over in a relatively short period of time.

I'll admit that there is a significant risk that if we were to blow up the team and start over that we could end up becoming like a lot of teams, such as the Lions and Jets, where we're changing coaches every 3-4 years. But it's a risk I'm willing to take. I'm tired of seeing us play just well enough to pick in the bottom third of the draft.

[c_hawkbob]

Could easily be decades? How many teams have gone decades, ie 20+ years, without at least making the playoffs?

Who's talking about not ever making the playoffs? Even perennial cellar dwellers have occasional successful seasons (if you're calling us mediocre now you have to classify us for our first 2 decades as cellar dwellers) we did every once or twice in a while before we became the solid, consistently competitive team we are now.

[obiken]

Who's talking about not ever making the playoffs? Even perennial cellar dwellers have occasional successful seasons (if you're calling us mediocre now you have to classify us for our first 2 decades as cellar dwellers) we did every once or twice in a while before we became the solid, consistently competitive team we are now.

That was part of the problem though Bob IMHO, we were not Cellar Dwellers, we would go 9-7 7-9, we were stuck in Football purgatory. We were not good enough to make the playoffs, but yet not bad enough to get a really great player. I remember one year we went 10-6, and at the end we were the team nobody wanted to play, but Denver beat us out of the playoff slot.

[RiverDog]

Could easily be decades? How many teams have gone decades, ie 20+ years, without at least making the playoffs?

Who's talking about not ever making the playoffs? Even perennial cellar dwellers have occasional successful seasons (if you're calling us mediocre now you have to classify us for our first 2 decades as cellar dwellers) we did every once or twice in a while before we became the solid, consistently competitive team we are now.

My definition of mediocre is bottom 3/4's of the league, above average, a B- student, nothing to brag about, not worthy of regaling the family at a Thanksgiving dinner. SB contenders are the 8 or so teams that make up the top 1/4 of the league, a status of which I do not feel we currently are in. "Consistently competitive" is no longer acceptable. It might be for the Browns or Lions, but we've been there and done that. I expect better.

As I've said before, I'm not jumping the bandwagon just yet. I do think that we have the raw materials available to be a SB contender and am willing to see how this season plays out. I want to see what this new OC does and if the tweaks here and there are enough to get us over the hump. I still think Russell is one of the top QB's in the league and that Pete is a very good NFL coach. All I'm saying is that my patience is wearing thin...Damn thin. My confidence in both of them has been waning and is at a 5 year low, a steady slide since the 2014-15 season.

[c_hawkbob]

Mediocre is by definition in the middle. There is no middle if the is only top tier then everybody else. Mediocre is middle third, with contenders in the top third and just plain bad in the bottom third. We're still comfortably in the upper third. Will be as long as we've got Russ and Pete. I'm in no hurry at all to blow this up.

[RiverDog]

Mediocre is by definition in the middle. There is no middle if the is only top tier then everybody else. Mediocre is middle third, with contenders in the top third and just plain bad in the bottom third. We're still comfortably in the upper third. Will be as long as we've got Russ and Pete. I'm in no hurry at all to blow this up.

That's your definition of 'mediocre'. There are other, very imprecise words used in association with the term, including commonplace, undistinguished, average, uninspiring, passable, adequate, fair, and so on. It doesn't have to be associated with a mathematical middle, a .500 record.

And I don't agree that we're "comfortably in the upper third". Our horrid, one and done playoff performance against a team with huge QB issues and absent their defensive MVP that subsequently lost decisively in the next round would indicate that we were one of the worst, if not the worst, of the 14 teams that made the playoffs. There's a very defensible argument that can be made that we're mediocre.

Besides, upper third isn't good enough, at least not for a team that 7 years ago won it all. All it does is guarantee that we'll be selecting in the bottom third of the draft. We're not getting better.

[c_hawkbob]

If you're only happy with perfection you're not a very happy person. I'll take consistently competitive with the occasional great season.

[NorthHawk]

Last year we weren't very competitive against the Bills, didn't show up against the Giants, and weren't very competitive against the Rams in the playoff game.
We haven't been very competitive in the playoffs for the last few years, and that's the real issue. Getting into the playoffs is only half the objective, teams
have to deliver if they want to be considered as challengers for the championship. We haven't delivered for 5 or 6 years.

[c_hawkbob]

Oh BS, you're just taking the only games we lost and acting as though we didn't even show up for them. Only one was by more than one score (at the Bills, a 10 point loss) and another was an overtime loss. We were in virtually every game we played. Our playoff game (also a 10 point loss, but at home) was the only game we played I was actually embarrassed of.

[RiverDog]

If you're only happy with perfection you're not a very happy person. I'll take consistently competitive with the occasional great season.

You're putting words into my mouth. No where did I even remotely suggest that I was only happy with perfection.

The goal isn't to be consistently competitive and it's not even necessarily having a great season. The goal is to win another Lombardi. There comes a point where one has to assess if the odds of achieving that goal are better by staying the current course or by changing directions, and for me, that decision point is this season.

[c_hawkbob]

As I've said before, I'm not jumping the bandwagon just yet. I do think that we have the raw materials available to be a SB contender and am willing to see how this season plays out. I want to see what this new OC does and if the tweaks here and there are enough to get us over the hump. I still think Russell is one of the top QB's in the league and that Pete is a very good NFL coach. All I'm saying is that my patience is wearing thin...Damn thin. My confidence in both of them has been waning and is at a 5 year low, a steady slide since the 2014-15 season.

That does a lot more than "remotely suggest" that you're only happy with perfection. If "jumping ship" is even approached in your thinking you can't be happy.

[RiverDog]

Oh BS, you're just taking the only games we lost and acting as though we didn't even show up for them. Only one was by more than one score (at the Bills, a 10 point loss) and another was an overtime loss. We were in virtually every game we played. Our playoff game (also a 10 point loss, but at home) was the only game we played I was actually embarrassed of.

I was pretty damned embarrassed of the Giants game. Losing at home to a warmed over retread named Colt McCoy who was leading a 4-7 team that hadn't won a single game outside of their weak ass division while Let Russ Cook put up a QBR of 30.0. I'd be less embarrassed if I showed up for my daughter's wedding with my fly unzipped.

[RiverDog]

As I've said before, I'm not jumping the bandwagon just yet. I do think that we have the raw materials available to be a SB contender and am willing to see how this season plays out. I want to see what this new OC does and if the tweaks here and there are enough to get us over the hump. I still think Russell is one of the top QB's in the league and that Pete is a very good NFL coach. All I'm saying is that my patience is wearing thin...Damn thin. My confidence in both of them has been waning and is at a 5 year low, a steady slide since the 2014-15 season.

That does a lot more than "remotely suggest" that you're only happy with perfection. If "jumping ship" is even approached in your thinking you can't be happy.

Stop it! I have not said anywhere at any time, nor am I saying now, that I am only happy with perfection. Of course, I'm not happy, but that doesn't mean that I am only happy with a certain result.

As far as "jumping ship" goes, unless you're a casual fan, we all have our breaking point. I'm not quite there yet, but I'm getting close. It's safe to say that you're threshold is set a bit lower than mine, and that's fine with me and should be with you, too. This is a stupid thing for us to argue about.

[c_hawkbob]

Of course you're unhappy but that doesn't mean you're only happy with a certain result? Whatever, looks to me like you're parsing words a bit too tightly to be clear.

No offense intended, I'll let this conversation go. Just remember I said to be careful what you wish for.

[RiverDog]

Just remember I said to be careful what you wish for.

At this point, all I'm wishing for is a successful season. Everything else I've said on the subject is my personal speculation about a hypothetical situation.

On a personal note, if the pandemic is under control to the point where there are no more Covid restrictions, it looks like my road warrior brethren and I will be going to Indianapolis to watch the season opener vs. the Colts. My nephew's fiancée is from Indiana so the plan is to get them game tickets for their wedding present.

[c_hawkbob]

On a personal note, if the pandemic is under control to the point where there are no more Covid restrictions, it looks like my road warrior brethren and I will be going to Indianapolis to watch the season opener vs. the Colts. My nephew's fiancée is from Indiana so the plan is to get them game tickets for their wedding present.

You buying a block of tickets for that game? I might look into going to that one myself.

[RiverDog]

On a personal note, if the pandemic is under control to the point where there are no more Covid restrictions, it looks like my road warrior brethren and I will be going to Indianapolis to watch the season opener vs. the Colts. My nephew's fiancée is from Indiana so the plan is to get them game tickets for their wedding present.

You buying a block of tickets for that game? I might look into going to that one myself.

Yes, we'll be buying a block of tickets. As of now, there's 5, perhaps 6 of us. I'll keep you posted. FB Messenger OK?

It would be fantastic to finally get a chance to hook up!

[Aseahawkfan]

I don't care about perfection myself. I want to see some of that hunger back that Pete and John had when the first got there and were sifting every rock, nook and cranny, and focusing on the draft for talent. They found so much cheap, amazing talent that way. They built an elite defense that made the record books that way. I'm tired of trading away draft capital that can be used to replenish the team longer-term than these trades seem to bring us for a lower cost.

[c_hawkbob]

Yes, we'll be buying a block of tickets. As of now, there's 5, perhaps 6 of us. I'll keep you posted. FB Messenger OK?

It would be fantastic to finally get a chance to hook up!

Perfect. And yes, it would!

[RiverDog]

Yes, we'll be buying a block of tickets. As of now, there's 5, perhaps 6 of us. I'll keep you posted. FB Messenger OK?

It would be fantastic to finally get a chance to hook up!

Perfect. And yes, it would!

OK, sounds good. We probably won't be buying tickets for at least another 6 weeks, but when the time comes and if you're still interested, I'll create a FB Messenger chat group that includes all the participants. Go, Hawks!

[obiken]

Wow! I have never in 20 years see you two go at it like this!! However I tend to agree with River on this one, we are about a C+/B- team. I would rather go three bad years and one great year than do 5 years of 7-9 8-8 or 9-7. It reminds me of being in the Merchant Marines in WW2 stuck between Heaven and Hell is the worst. Pete's Offense is easy to figure out and old, we need a change, thats why we have gone through all these OC's the last 10 years.

[c_hawkbob]

Obi, we haven't been 5 years of 7-9 8-8 or 9-7 since before Pete and Russ (almost made it between Holmgren and Pete but not quite). You're Wanting a change away the best we've had it as Seahawks fans! Look, I want another Super Bowl too, but I think our best chance of that is with the group we have now.

[NorthHawk]

Here's an article in PFT about why Carroll wanted Waldron as OC:

https://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2 ... e-waldron/

A few of questions come to mind with this change that we will discover the answers during the year.
Does this change mean the Offense is more of a timing Offense and how might that affect Russ who likes to extend plays?
Will Pete be able to keep his hands off of the Offense when things go wrong - and they will at some point?
Is the Offensive line personnel the types that can play well in this Offense? We have become bigger and more powerful up front, but does the new Offense require more athletic players?
Does this mean our Offensive Identity is more finesse than bully as we were in our most successful years?

We'll get a glimpse of it in the pre-season but probably won't be able to understand and answer the questions until about the Bye week or maybe a couple of games sooner.

[RiverDog]

Wow! I have never in 20 years see you two go at it like this!!

We go at it like this all the time, especially over in the OT forum. It's no big deal.

We all have different perceptions. My advancing age has led me to view things a little more objectively than I may have done in the past as I try not to get as emotionally attached to teams/players because they've disappointed me so often, and as a result, I tend to default to the glass half empty side more so than others that are looking at the same thing. If we win when I don't expect it, I get a lot more enjoyment out of it than if I felt it was a slam dunk.

[NorthHawk]

It sort of reminds me of that Curb Your Enthusiasm scene where Larry storms out the door and says F#@& You! And I'll see you tomorrow.

[c_hawkbob]

It sort of reminds me of that Curb Your Enthusiasm scene where Larry storms out the door and says F#@& You! And I'll see you tomorrow.

A good analogy.

[RiverDog]

It sort of reminds me of that Curb Your Enthusiasm scene where Larry storms out the door and says F#@& You! And I'll see you tomorrow.

[obiken]

We go at it like this all the time, especially over in the OT forum. It's no big deal.

Oh okay! I tried to stay outta there for the last 4 years due to Trump. (I am no lefty but I despised Trump for good reasons)

Obi, You're Wanting a change away the best we've had it as Seahawks fans! Look, I want another Super Bowl too, but I think our best chance of that is with the group we have now.

Bob, It's not that I want to change them, we are going to have no choice. We might be able to right the old Ponies of Wagner, KJ, and Dunlap, but they are almost done. RW, who knows what will happen on that front. The problem with Pete is he is outdated until you try to find a replacement.

[c_hawkbob]

Pete's contract runs through 2025, it's likely he'll be here at least that long. We'd have to tank as bad as y'all are saying we will in order for him to get fired while still under contract.

Russ is signed through 2023, it's likely that (it saddens me to say) we'll trade him after the 2022 season. I think the fact that the team didn't restructure he and Bobby this year indicates that they did not want to increase their dead cap hit in future years leaving the team's options open as to whether to re-sign, cut or trade either of them. Bobby BTW is also signed through 2023 with team opt out years for 22 and 23, so this could well be his last year as a Seahawk.

The only two that I see as crucial to our success are Pete and Russ. I just don't know if the two are willing to coexist beyond next year. Not that I buy into the rift as deeply as most here do, but the possibility that all is not completely copasetic can't be ignored. Hopefully Waldron and Russ will have so much success working together that Pete will have to keep them on board. I love Pete but but I do wish he'd stick to the defensive side of things.

[RiverDog]

We go at it like this all the time, especially over in the OT forum. It's no big deal.

Oh okay! I tried to stay outta there for the last 4 years due to Trump. (I am no lefty but I despised Trump for good reasons)

I do, too, and believe me, I ain't no lefty, either. All of the remaining posters harbor mostly the same opinion as you and me, so don't let that scare you away. It's been pretty slow in the OT since Biden took office, so perhaps if you made an appearance it might liven things up.

[Aseahawkfan]

Pete's contract runs through 2025, it's likely he'll be here at least that long. We'd have to tank as bad as y'all are saying we will in order for him to get fired while still under contract.

Russ is signed through 2023, it's likely that (it saddens me to say) we'll trade him after the 2022 season. I think the fact that the team didn't restructure he and Bobby this year indicates that they did not want to increase their dead cap hit in future years leaving the team's options open as to whether to re-sign, cut or trade either of them. Bobby BTW is also signed through 2023 with team opt out years for 22 and 23, so this could well be his last year as a Seahawk.

The only two that I see as crucial to our success are Pete and Russ. I just don't know if the two are willing to coexist beyond next year. Not that I buy into the rift as deeply as most here do, but the possibility that all is not completely copasetic can't be ignored. Hopefully Waldron and Russ will have so much success working together that Pete will have to keep them on board. I love Pete but but I do wish he'd stick to the defensive side of things.

I have never seen such a thing happen before. I'm surprised you would think the Seahawks would be stupid enough to choose Pete, a 70 year old coach, over Russ, a will be 32 year old franchise QB. I really don't want to see that happen myself as it would be one of those team management decisions so stupid that it goes down in the history books of stupid management decisions. Not impossible for Seattle given other dubious honors like not signing Randy Johnson because they thought his back was done or the Sonics losing to the Denver Nuggets after being the number one seed. I would prefer not to see the Seahawks join the club of ridiculously bad sports history by trading away their franchise QB in his prime to appease their 70 year old head coach who is on his way to retirement. It would probably go down as the one of the stupidest management decisions in NFL history.

[NorthHawk]

I doubt he would be fired before the team was sold. It doesn't seem that ownership wants to get into that type of thing, as it seems Jody has just given the reins
to Pete and isn't by and large a hands on owner. Paul Allen wasn't a big hands on owner, either but he did demand accountability. I fear that aspect is no longer part
of the running of this team.

[c_hawkbob]

Pete's contract runs through 2025, it's likely he'll be here at least that long. We'd have to tank as bad as y'all are saying we will in order for him to get fired while still under contract.

Russ is signed through 2023, it's likely that (it saddens me to say) we'll trade him after the 2022 season. I think the fact that the team didn't restructure he and Bobby this year indicates that they did not want to increase their dead cap hit in future years leaving the team's options open as to whether to re-sign, cut or trade either of them. Bobby BTW is also signed through 2023 with team opt out years for 22 and 23, so this could well be his last year as a Seahawk.

The only two that I see as crucial to our success are Pete and Russ. I just don't know if the two are willing to coexist beyond next year. Not that I buy into the rift as deeply as most here do, but the possibility that all is not completely copasetic can't be ignored. Hopefully Waldron and Russ will have so much success working together that Pete will have to keep them on board. I love Pete but but I do wish he'd stick to the defensive side of things.

I have never seen such a thing happen before. I'm surprised you would think the Seahawks would be stupid enough to choose Pete, a 70 year old coach, over Russ, a will be 32 year old franchise QB. I really don't want to see that happen myself as it would be one of those team management decisions so stupid that it goes down in the history books of stupid management decisions. Not impossible for Seattle given other dubious honors like not signing Randy Johnson because they thought his back was done or the Sonics losing to the Denver Nuggets after being the number one seed. I would prefer not to see the Seahawks join the club of ridiculously bad sports history by trading away their franchise QB in his prime to appease their 70 year old head coach who is on his way to retirement. It would probably go down as the one of the stupidest management decisions in NFL history.

If it ever came down to a Pete or Russ decision I'd take Russ every time myself, but I don't think it'll go down that way. Unfortunately I think the decision is going to be Pete's and I don't see him firing himself. Maybe I'm wrong, maybe behind the scenes someone is going to make it clear to Pete that he only stays if he works things out with Russ, I just don't see it.