Podcast Player - Blue 42: Vikings will make Seahawks earn every yardPodcast Player - Vikings DE Danielle Hunter talks about his Pro Bowl-caliber season and the Seahawks' run gamePodcast Player - Seahawks QB Russell Wilson discusses whether he threw a shoeSeahawks Offense Has Been Explosive While Still Taking Care Of The BallThe Seahawks have had the league's most explosive offense over the last month Brett Hundley Color Rush Jersey , but are making those big plays while still emphasizing ball security.Friday Practice Report: Six Players Return To Full Participation For SeahawksDuane Brown (ankle), Dion Jordan (knee), Chris Carson (finger), Tre Madden (chest), Shaquem Griffin (knee), and Shalom Luani (quadriceps) all received a full workload Friday.Fantasy Insider: Players To Start In Week 14Scott Engel at RotoExperts.com returns to offer Seahawks fans fantasy football advice from around the league heading into Week 14 of the 2018 NFL season.Friday Round-Up: Three Takeaways From Pete Carroll's Week 14 Thursday Press ConferencePete Carroll shares thoughts on the final quarter of the regular season, the team's commitment to the run game, and a franchise record the Seahawks head coach could break with a win on Monday night against the Vikings.Seahawks OC Brian Schottenheimer on splitting out George Fant, sticking to the run, and more | The Seattle TimesSchottenheimer says he also knows a Minnesota defense that ranks among the best in the NFL in many statistical categories will be a challenge.Preview: Playoff hopes on the line when Vikings battle Seahawks | FOX SportsMonday night's clash between the Minnesota Vikings and Seattle Seahawks will have a big impact on the NFC playoff picture.Cowboys LB Jaylon Smith fined $26K for hit on Kamara - NFL.comThe NFL fined Dallas Cowboys linebacker Jaylon Smith on Friday for $26,739 for a helmet-to-helmet hit on New Orleans Saints running back Alvin Kamara in Week 13.Joe Flacco questionable, might back up Lamar Jackson - NFL.comBaltimore Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco was a full participant in practice Friday, but it's unclear whether he'll be back on the field Sunday.Jets' Darron Lee suspended four games by NFL - NFL.comNew York Jets linebacker Darron Lee was suspended four games by the league on Friday for violating the NFL's Policy and Program for Substances of Abuse.Injuries: Sammy Watkins (foot) likely out until playoffs - NFL.comKansas City Chiefs wide receiver Sammy Watkins (foot) will not play Sunday against the Baltimore Ravens. NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reports Watkins will likely be sidelined until the playoffs.Isiah Robertson, former Rams All-Pro Richard Sherman Color Rush Jersey , dies in car crash - NFL.comFormer NFL All-Pro linebacker Isiah Robertson was killed in a car crash southeast of Dallas on Thursday night, the Texas Department of Public Safety confirmed to NFL.com. He was 69.Panthers sign K Chandler Catanzaro with Gano out - NFL.comKicker Chandler Catanzaro is back in the NFL. After being released by the Buccaneers last month, the veteran was signed by the Panthers, whose incumbent starter Graham Gano is out with a knee injury.Report: NFL questioned Kareem Hunt about June incident, not February incident – ProFootballTalkThe NFL didn't talk to former Chiefs running back Kareem Hunt prior to last Friday's release of an incriminating video. Unless it did. It became firmly established on Sunday that the NFL did not interview Hunt regarding a February incident at a Cleveland hotel before TMZ published video of Hunt ...Former Pro Bowler Tim Rossovich dies – ProFootballTalkFormer Pro Bowler Tim Rossovich died Thursday in Sacramento, California, after a long illness, the University of Southern California announced Friday. He was 72. The Eagles made Rossovich the 14th pick of the 1968 draft after he earned All-America honors at USC.Kyle Shanahan gives Robert Saleh vote of confidence – ProFootballTalk49ers coach Kyle Shanahan is in the second year of a six-year deal. The team will give him time to turn it around, and Shanahan sounds as if he will give defensive coordinator Robert Saleh the same courtesy. Bobby Wagner’s performance last Sunday against the San Francisco 49ers was monumental. It was historically accomplished from a production standpoint too; his sack, forced fumble, fumble recovery and pick six puts him in small company.Meanwhile, the NFC Defensive Player of the Week set a Seattle Seahawks landmark:His interception return of 98 yards (I maintain it was 99 due to the positioning of his back foot) also broke an existing Seattle record:It’s abundantly clear that the Seahawks’ defense is led by the best middle linebacker in the league. Just look at the Mic’d Up segment. Asides from his excellent uniform trash talk to Richard Sherman “that look ugly on you,” Wagner’s ability to galvanize, focus and instruct his fellow defenders was tangible from the video.The pick-sixHis pick-six demonstrated the athletic and cerebral aspects that combine to make Wagner a future Hall of Famer. Here Duane Brown Color Rush Jersey , we’ll look at the tape and Wagner’s presser to explain how Steve Raible ended up ecstatically exclaiming “somebody bring him oxygen.” The bizarreness that a garbage time situation produces is tough for any defense, particularly for the winning team. The 49ers were passing nearly every snap but letting the clock tick. The game was all-but-over, and for coaches it’s difficult to keep players motivated and competitive. Seattle was playing their Tampa 2 defense, which they run in clear passing situations. It’s soft and tends to give up the short stuff, yet it allows them to rally to the football and not surrender the big play. In the tighter confines of the red-zone, it suddenly becomes a big challenge to pass against. Nick Mullens was lured into a confident mood as he padded his stats in the dying minutes. Unfortunately for the 49ers quarterback, Wagner was still locked in. Asked about what leads to success inside the 20-yard line, Wagner responded: Kyle Shanahan, who once more proved his capabilities as an offensive schemer, gave Mullens pre-snap zone coverage identification by starting with running back Jeff Wilson out wide. The Seahawks had no surprise or disguise for Mullens; the coverage was still their soft Tampa 2. Shanahan ran routes downfield that were designed to nestle in between the zone shells. For Seattle, the cornerbacks squeezed the flats while getting underneath sideline stuff. The linebackers got assigned intermediate stuff approaching the middle of the field—like slants and shallow crossers. The two high safeties were responsible for deep sideline routes.For this reason, any cover 2 coverage is a “middle of the field open” defense as the safeties are playing a deep half. Unlike in cover 1 or cover 3, there is no player designated to the deep middle of the field. To somewhat close the middle of the field, in Tampa 2 the middle linebacker is tasked with dropping deep. Wagner here was no exception; he was the high hole player. His abilities make this a typical assignment when the Seahawks call this coverage.Mullens K.J. Wright Color Rush Jersey , pounded all day, didn’t wait for his deeper routes to come open against the zone. Seattle played their shells very well, something which has really improved as the season has developed. Observe how they close. Mullens therefore progressed to his checkdown—Wilson. Wagner viciously baited Mullens after he had no deep responsibility to execute. Here’s Wagner explaining how this process works: Wagner jumped the shallow hitch, extending his arms away from his frame and keeping his hands tight together to guide the ball into his clutches. He then had the speed to outrun Mullens and score a 98-yard touchdown (99*). His sleeping celebration at the end was almost as clean as Pete Carroll’s fit:Nothing newWhile the pick-six from Wagner was fantastic to witness, his ability playing as the high hole player in Tampa 2 and cover 2 style defense is nothing new. In week 8’s match-up versus the Detroit Lions we saw it down in the redzone too:You can read more about that play here. Against the Minnesota Vikings, Wagner will have to be at his best. He’ll likely encounter some tough cover 3 matching assignments, having to run downfield with fast wide receivers. Yet the versatility of Wagner, who excels in every facet of linebacker play, means he’s going to be an Action Green blur of catastrophe for Minnesota on Monday night. Seahawks fans, players and coaches understand Wagner performs at a consistent level of brilliance. The 90% chance of reaching the playoffs somehow reads even better when you consider Seattle’s defense has an All-Pro leader right in the middle of it. In prime-time, with the nation watching, plaudits for Wagner will deservedly rise. It’s a joy to watch a true great at his peak.
