Seattle Sports Week in Review
Seahawks and Sounders win. Mariners end 60-game season. Pac-12 football announces return in November. Crazy, crazy week.
Teams Playing for Real
Seahawks
Results
· Defeated Dallas Cowboys at home 38–31
· 3–0 tied for 1st place in NFC West
A typical heart attack game for Seahawk fans, despite the Cowboys attempting to enable an easy win with poor special teams plays, turnovers and missed extra points. The defense continued to struggle giving up more than 400 yards for the second time (giving up 397 in the third game) with no pass rush and questionable secondary play. But the defense was able to get a safety, force two turnovers and get pressure on Dak late to hold on for the win. Not the prettiest of games for Russell Wilson who threw more incompletions in this game (13) than in the first two games combined (11) and looked a bit confused holding on to the ball too long on multiple occasions. Despite Wilson not playing his best (hard to say when he went 27–40 for 315 yards and 5 TDs), a lack of touches for Chris Carson and DK Metcalf giving away 6 points, by pulling a Leon Lett and putting his guard down and letting Cowboys DB Trevon Diggs knock the ball out of his hands and through the back of the end zone for a touch back, the offense was still able to accumulate 38 points. The Seahawks gave up a 15-point fourth-quarter lead, but Wilson once again led a fourth quarter comeback by driving the offense 75-yards on 8 plays while picking up a fourth-down conversion. The only question was if the Hawks left too much time on the clock as the Cowboys had 1:47 to drive for a TD, however, Alton Robinson came up with a huge sack on 2-and-10 from the Seahawks 22 with 16 second remaining in the game forcing the Cowboys to use their last timeout. Then Benson Mayowa nearly sacked Dak Prescott, who after escaping, heaved up a ball towards the end zone that DB Ryan Neal (recently brought up from the practice squad) intercepted to seal the victory.
In the end it wasn’t pretty, but the Hawks are 3–0 and lead the very difficult NFC West which any Hawks fan is more than happy to take.
Top 3 Takeaways
1) Get out of the injury tent: A great start to the season, but a team that already had some significant injuries potentially suffered more against the Cowboys. S Jamal Adams, RB Chris Carson, OG Mike Iupati and OG Damien Lewis all left the game with injuries. None appeared to be serious, however, with the other 3 teams in the NFC West at 2–1 the Hawks have no room for error moving forward — which means the team will need to survive without a few of these key players for a short period of time and hopefully avoid any more serious injuries for a while.
2) Defense must get better: The defense is giving up more than 497 yards of offense, 430 yards passing and 28 points per game. Crazy bad numbers — especially for a 3–0 team. The defensive line really struggled to get pressure until the last drive (I am not sure Dak even got hit before then) and the Cowboy WRs were consistently able to beat the Hawks secondary over the top, which is not exactly what anyone expected from a unit many were calling the second coming of the Legion of Boom. While a 3–0 record is fantastic this defense will need to improve (and probably quite a bit) if the Seahawks hope to be playing deep into January.
3) The offense can’t be all Russ: Despite averaging 4.5 yards/carry the Hawks ran the ball 26 times compared to 40 passes — and 6 of those runs were by Wilson, only one of which was designed, meaning Schottenhemier called 45 pass plays to 21 runs. I am as big of a fan as anyone about getting the ball into Wilson’s hands more, but the offensive line isn’t good enough to pass protect with no threat of a running game. Furthermore, in games where Wilson isn’t at his best (such as today), Carson and Carlos Hyde need to be trusted to carry more of the load — particularly when they are being effective. This offense is really dangerous; but it is nearly unstoppable when it is balanced and the running game is too good to be abandoned.
Coming Up
· Sunday October 4 @ Miami Dolphins (1–2)
Notes
· Phillip Dorsett placed on IR meaning he can’t return to the team until at least week 7 (why did this take so long — Dorsett sucked up a roster spot for 2 weeks)
· Placed DE Bruce Irvin on IR and promoted DT Anthony Rush
· Placed DB Marquise Blair on IR and promoted CB Linden Stephens
· Pete Carroll was 1 of 5 coaches to be fined $100K for not wearing a mask during last Sunday’s game against the Patriots
· S Quandre Diggs reached out to N’Keal Harry to let him know the hit that led to Diggs’ ejection from the game was unintentional. Good to see players take safety seriously.
· DE Rasheem Green placed on IR, which means we won’t be eligible to play until week 7. Not good news for a defensive line that is already thin and has lacked any type of pass rush through the first 2 weeks of the season.
Sounders
Results
· Lost 1–0 @ Portland Timbers
· Won 3–1 @ LA Galaxy
· T-1st Place with Portland in West with 24 points. 6 points behind Columbus for Supporters Shield
Losing to the Timbers sucks, but it sucks even more when you completely outplay them, and the loss puts you in a share for the lead in the West with Portland. The Sounders controlled the ball and pace of the match but couldn’t find a way to finish with Ruidiaz putting an uncontested shot wide from the top of the when he had Timbers GK Steven Clark completely out of position. The Timbers, however, took advantage of its one opportunity with Leerdam ball watching Yimmi Chara slipped in behind him and was able to slip a shot by Frei into the left side netting. Tough loss, but Sounders can take solace in how they really controlled the match.
The offense continued its dominant play on Sunday controlling the ball and pace of play throughout against the LA Galaxy. However, despite playing without top scorer, Raul Ruidiaz, the Sounders were able to find the back of the net this time. The Sounders opened the scoring in the 13th minute with Jordan Morris blazing down the left-side and finding an unmarked Christian Roldan on the far post for a tap in goal. Then 7 minutes before the half Nicolas Lodeiro played a fantastic 30-yard ball that split the LA Galaxy right-back and center back leaving Morris to easily slot the ball past the Galaxy GK to give the Sounders a 2–0 lead at the half. Roldan then put the game away in the 61st minute as he took a great 20-yard ball over the top from Joao Paulo and chipped the Galaxy GK. The Sounders made a couple of defensive blunders late — one of which led to a goal in the 88th minute — but were able to coast to a 3–1 win on the road, which keeps them tied for first with the dreaded Timbers while still having a game in hand on the Timbers. The dominant performance without a top player once again highlighted how well the Sounders are setup to succeed in this truncated season because of the strong depth the team possess in every phase. Really looking forward to watching how that depth plays out.
Top Takeaway:
1) Defensive Communication Needs to Improve: The Galaxy could have easily equaled the Sounders tally of 3 goals had Cristian Pavon not struck two balls inside 10-yards directly at Stefan Frei. Chara was also able to score the lone Timbers goal on a Leerdam mental lapse. It is difficult to find defensive continuity with so many lineup changes to the back four, but the players need to adjust quickly because the truncated schedule will require using different lineups and the Sounders have too much skill to allow themselves an early playoff exit because the of sloppy defensive mistakes.
Top offensive players of the week:
· Nicolas Lodeiro (1 assist): Not a lot of glitzy stats but was the maestro in both games this week; disturbing the ball all over the place and getting everyone involved. His assist to Jordan Morris for the second goal of the game was the best play of the week. Honorable mention to Morris who continues to give teams headaches with his speed and improved crossing from the left wing.
Top defensive players of the week:
· Yeimar Andrade-Gomez: Has been a great asset at center back this year. Strong in the air, physical tackling and always seemed to be in the proper position. Also, appears to be taking a leadership role in the back as he is constantly talking to guys about positioning. A large part of the credit for only giving up one goal in two road games belongs to Andrade.
Notes
· MLS released the final schedule giving the Sounders 10 more matches to play (5 at home and 5 on the road). This will leave the MLS regular season at just 22 matches and has the Sounders playing Vancouver, Real Salt Lake, LA Galaxy, LAFC, San Jose and Portland. This means there will be 4 teams in the Western Conference the Sounders will not play in the regular season.
o The schedule looks good for the Sounders who play 3 of the teams currently out of the playoffs and have a lot of depth on the roster, which will come in hand when play 2 games every week in October.
· Raul Ruidiaz was given a one-game suspension for attempting to kick Timbers defender Pablo Bonilla after Bonilla pulled Ruidiaz down by the jersey. Ruidiaz needed a day off anyways so may not be the worst suspension to absorb.
Coming Up
· Saturday October 3rd vs. Vancouver Whitecaps (15 points)
Mariners
Results
· 2–1 vs. Houston Astros (10–9)
· 2–2 vs. Oakland A’s (20–13)
· 27–33 3rd Place in AL West. 9 GB 1st Place Oakland A’s and 2 GB 2nd Place Houston Astros for Wild Card position.
The up-and-down play of the M’s this week represented the team’s season. A few games with some pop, but too many strikeouts and not a lot of pop for the most part. The team had 49 hits, 19 BBs and 69 — yes 69 Ks. They had 2 games with 10 Ks, 1 with 11 and 1 with 16. Kyle Lewis had a 3 K game one Sunday and Evan White had a 3 K game on Wednesday and a 4 K game on Sunday. Just can’t win a lot of games that way.
The Kyle’s carried the offense at the beginning of the season, but really struggled the final month-and-a-half of the season. With that said, Lewis gave Mariner fans a lot of hope for the future and the late season additions of Ty France and Luis Torrens are intriguing.
The starting pitching also gave fans a lot of home with a 1.56 ERA this week — and really strong performances all season long. Marco Gonzalez, Justus Sheffield and Nick Margevicius showed they can form a solid middle of the rotation; while Justin Dunn could be a good back end of the rotation arm. If the M’s can find an ace, then this rotation can be extremely dangerous. team ERA for the week was 3.17. Imagine what it could be if they could get a couple of arms who can get outs?
All said, with such a strange season the Mariners played better than expected and gave fans hope for the 2021 season, which is really all Mariner fans could have hoped for anyways. Let’s just hope now some of these young guys take another step up and the Jarred Kelenic, Julio Rodriguez and Logan Gilbert’s are ready to contribute so the M’s can finally break that 20-year playoff drought.
Top players of the week:
- Position Player: J.P. Crawford: 13–29, .448 OBP, 0 HR, 5 RBIs, 6 RS, 1 SBs and 0 no-hit games
Crawford had an up-and-down season, but love to see a guy with the potential to be an upper echelon leadoff hitter and good defensive shortstop. Also brings speed to the leadoff spot. At only 24-years-old Crawford is certainly a reason to be excited for the future.
- Pitcher: Marco Gonzalez: 2 Appearances, 13 IP, 2 R, 2 ER, 13 H, 11 K, 2 BB, 1–0, 1.38 ERA
Gonzalez has been a bright spot in this shortened season and this week was not different. Threw an 8-inning gem against Houston early in the week and followed it up with a grind-it-out performance in the season ender despite not having his best stuff. A 5.5 K/BB ratio is damn good — but might be one of his worst weeks of the season with how little he walks anyone. Looking forward to seeing what he can do with a full season next year.
Worst players of the week:
- Position Player: Jose Marmolejos: 1–17, .158 OBP, 0 HR, 0 RBIs, 2 RS, 2 BBs, 1 E, 9 Ks and 4 no-hit games
Marmolejos was a feel-good story after spending so long in the minors, but this might be who he is. Good power bat when he connects but too slow of a swing to consistently hit major league pitching. At a minimum can’t be someone the Mariners use in the middle of the lineup next season if they want to be a contender.
- Pitcher: Yoshihisa Hirano: 2 Appearances, 1.1 IP, 5 R, 5 ER, 6 H, 2 Ks, 3 BBs, 1 HR, 1 Save, 33.76 ERA, 0–1
Nearly blew a 3–0 lead on Wednesday but held on for the 3–2 save and then gave up 3 in just a third of an inning on Sunday. Doesn’t have good enough stuff to be in the majors let alone a closer. Hirano getting important innings spoke volumes about how badly Dipoto needs to upgrade the bullpen in the offseason.
Transactions
· Placed UF Dylan Moore on IL (Concussion) and recalled OF Jake Fraley (Wouldn’t Jarred Kelenic)
· Placed OF Jake Fraley on IL (Quad) and recalled Braden Bishop (No offense to Fraley and Bishop, but they aren’t making it so why isn’t this Kelenic)
· Claimed RHP Ian Hamilton off waivers from Chicago White Sox (Can Dipoto identify good relievers? Not excited by any he signs)
Coming Up
· End of Season
Teams Waiting to Play for Real
Husky Football
Notes
· The Pac-12 announced it will start a 7-game football season on November 7 with a Championship game being played December 18. The date of the title game is important because it is right before the BCS Committee announces the 4 teams that will participate in the playoff.
o Unlikely a Pac-12 team qualifies for the playoff, but awesome, awesome news nonetheless.
Husky Basketball
Notes
· The Pac-12 was in a good mood this week as they also announced college basketball would start on November 25, which means the majority of the season will be played.
