Seattle Seahawks

Jim Mora met individually with each of his assistant coaches on his first day as head coach of the Seahawks in what was characterized as the start of a transitional process as he takes over for Mike Holmgren.

Rod Marinelli, recently fired as Lions as head coach, reportedly is meeting with the Seahawks about possibly becoming their defensive coordinator.

Raheem Morris' interviewing skills could make his promotion to defensive coordinator in Tampa Bay a moot point.

Jim Mora conducted his first meeting of the Seahawks staff Monday. What that coaching staff will ultimately look like next season, however...

A groin injury is hurting LaDainian Tomlinson to the point that he might have to sit out the San Diego Chargers' playoff game at Pittsburgh...

Expected to stumble in the franchise’s first home playoff game in 61 years, the Arizona Cardinals continued to prove they belong in the postseason with a 30-24 win over Atlanta in the opening round of the NFC playoffs over the weekend.

No one better understands the perception of the Cardinals as marshmallow soft around the league than the team’s head football coach, Ken Whisenhunt.

“A lot of people coming into this game said we were the worst playoff team ever to get in,” Whisenhunt said. “And nobody really gave us a chance. And I think we rallied behind that.”

Whisenhunt has used that perceived lack of respect as a motivational tool for his young team, which has several players with little playoff experience.

Even though they were the home team for Saturday’s game against the Falcons, the Cardinals were a slight underdog. And Arizona will be an even heavier underdog this weekend at Carolina with a spot in the NFC Championship Game at stake.

But with each postseason victory the Cardinals’ confidence grows, and they establish themselves as having enough talent to be a legitimate playoff team, not a flash in the pan, for years to come.

Two victories this season over Seattle – the former four-time NFC West title holder – helped boost egos in Arizona. The Cardinals went 6-0 against the NFC West for the first time this season, and finished with an overall winning record for the first time in a decade. Whisenhunt acknowledged the importance of defeating NFC rivals during his team’s preparation for the Seahawks in the last game of the regular season.

“They have been champions for so long, and we have been trying to take that from them,” Whisenhunt said of the Seahawks.

But can the Cardinals keep it going next season? Arizona will have to decide if it wants to continue with aging quarterback Kurt Warner or turn to green quarterback Matt Leinart to run its explosive offense. Edgerrin James, angered to be idle at midseason, demonstrated he can still be productive. But he says he will not return after rookie Tim Hightower supplanted him as the starting tailback.

Defensively, the Cardinals can create turnovers and game-changing plays, but still allowed 26.6 points a contest, which ranked 28th overall in the league.

However, playing well at home was the key to Seattle maintaining its stranglehold on the NFC West. And for the first time since 2002 the Seahawks had a losing record at home, finishing 2-6 at Qwest Field.

The Cardinals, however, have been hard to beat at University of Phoenix Stadium, leading the NFC with a 12-4 home record the last two seasons.

Further, the Cardinals have won four of their past five against Seattle, earning an edge in the key rivalry.

While the Cardinals are reveling in their success, the Seahawks are plotting a return to the NFC West dominance they enjoyed before falling to 4-12 this season.

With longtime head coach Mike Holmgren gone, Seahawks president Tim Ruskell and new coach Jim Mora will shoulder the major responsibility for returning Seattle to respectability.

Veteran Seattle players, who point to injuries and a lack of cohesion for the team’s slide in 2008, think Seattle can experience a quick turnaround in 2009.

“Obviously there’s going to be some changes,” linebacker Julian Peterson said. “But the biggest thing is we’re a better team from that. We’re going to have the right character guys who I feel like are going to help us, and then bring some extra guys in to help us to get back to where we need to be.”

Defensive end Patrick Kerney echoed Peterson’s sentiments, saying that his teammates must understand that there is a fine line in the NFL between being a playoff team and staying home for the postseason.

“The difference between a team that’s going to win a Super Bowl and the Detroit Lions is not as much as people think,” Kerney said. “And I think outside sources want to paint it as a mile, and it’s really an inch. I think we as players recognize that. I think it’s important that young guys with less experience recognize that you don’t have too much ground to cover to get back into contention for a world championship.”

Eric D. Williams: 253-597-8437

blogs.thenewstribune.com/seahawks

HAS CHANGE COME?

The Arizona Cardinals won their first NFC West title this season, knocking the Seahawks from atop the division they’d won four times since moving into it in 2002. A look at the NFC West champions since the Hawks joined:

SEASON TEAM RECORD

2008 Cardinals 9-7

2007 Seahawks 10-6

2006 Seahawks 9-7

2005 Seahawks 13-3

The Seattle Seahawks added another name to what is clearly becoming a search for a new defensive coordinator.

Casey Bradley will interview today with Seahawks brass, according to a report in the Tampa Tribune. Bradley served as Tampa Bay’s defensive quality control coach for one season, and for the past two seasons Bradley has been in charge of the team’s linebackers. Bradley does not have a contract with Tampa Bay for next season.

Bradley is the second coach with ties to Tampa Bay to interview for the position. The Seahawks talked recently with fired Detroit Lions coach Rod Marinelli about a possible job with the team. Marinelli was Tampa Bay’s defensive line coach when Seattle president Tim Ruskell worked for the Buccaneers.

New Seahawks coach Jim Mora had his first staff meeting Monday, and also met individually with Seattle’s current assistant coaches. A decision on which coaches have been retained and which ones will be released has not been announced by the team, but it appears defensive coordinator John Marshall’s job is in jeopardy because of the coaching candidates the Seahawks are interviewing this week.

Bradley coached for 10 seasons at North Dakota State University. He served as the defensive coordinator at North Dakota State from 1997 to 2002 and again in 2005.

blogs.thenewstribune.com/seahawks

With Mat Hasselbeck out this weekend against the Bucs, the Seahawks are waiting to see if Seneca Wallace is healthy enough start, if not Charlie Frye will get his second start of the season.

What we're seeing with the Seahawks is reflective of what happens to a football team besieged by injuries and just keeps happening.

The Seahawks signed running back Justin Forsett from the practice squad to the active roster.

Kurt Warner and Larry Fitzgerald sent the Arizona Cardinals into the playoffs as winners. Seattle's Mike Holmgren ends his coaching career -- for now -- with a loss.

The Cardinals have struggled down the stretch after clinching a playoff berth, but looked sharp beating the Seahawks to close out the regular season.

So I've been writing this blog for a few weeks now, and I have absolutely no idea whether anyone is reading this thing.  There was one comment on my second post, but other than that, nada.  Do me a favor if you're reading this and leave me a comment.  I don't care if you tell me I completely suck -- I just want to know that someone...anyone...is actually checking in from time to time.

Thanks.

Ah, Seattle: one thing you can say about Seattle, the winters are pretty easy to get through.  Just clouds and rain, with the occasional hint of snow.  But, see, we're right next to the Pacific Ocean, which keeps us from getting too cold, and the Cascades protect us from the cold air blowing from the East, so it's just smooth sailing all winter long...

Although it does on occasion dump a ton of snow and go into an Arctic deep freeze that leaves everything between the ocean and the mountains under a three-inch sheet of ice.  Imagine a hockey rink with a completely indecent number of hills and you'll have the general idea.  And it's only slated to get worse over the weekend.  This is the weather situation as we head into Mike Holmgren's final home game as head coach of the Seattle Seahawks, and it completely blows for a couple of reasons.

First, obviously, a lot of fans (myself included, unfortunately) probably won't even be able to get to the game.  What should be a jam-packed thank-you/farewell party will be reduced to those folks who live close enough to walk to the game.  I've had my share of frustrations with Holmgren over the years, but he's also the man who pulled the Seahawks from the depths and turned them into a perennial playoff team (this year notwithstanding -- but it doesn't help when everyone on the roster, including the beer vendors and the dude who stands outside the stadium every game selling tickets, is injured).  He is, simply put, The One who put us on the map, and he will be missed.  So, Mike, in case I can't make it, here's to you for everything you've done for the Seahawks and their fans.

Turning to the game itself, the weather is a problem because we're facing none other than the bad-weather wizard himself, Brett Favre (yeah.  Favre is here for Holmgren's last home game.  Couldn'ta planned that any better).  He learned to play quarterback during the last Ice Age, so the weather won't even faze him.  Seneca, on the other hand, is unlikely to fare so well, especially given that we now have NO starting offensive lineman left.  Holmgren's going to have to suit up the stadium peanut vendor and three Sea Gals just to have backups available on the line.  As much as I'd love to say we're going to rise to the occasion and send Mike Holmgren out with a final home victory, this one just isn't lining up for us.  My prediction: Jets 24, Hawks 3.  And team doctors will have to surgically pry the frozen tears off Mike's jowls afterward.

The Seattle Seahawks finally notched their third win of the season, defeating the St. Louis Rams for the eighth consecutive time.  As I anticipated in an earlier post, it was a hard-fought, entertaining game between two teams desperate for a win.  The outcome wasn't decided until the final seconds of the game, with Olindo Mare kicking the winning field goal with two seconds left.  The sense of relief on the Seahawks' sideline was palpable.

There were a number of positives in this game.  First, Mike Holmgren made a series of fantastic half-time adjustments, something that hasn't always happened this season.  He adjusted the defensive approach to mix up coverages and, most of all, he adjusted to a quick-hit, up-tempo offensive approach to neutralize the blitz and let Seneca hit some passes and get some confidence.  The most important thing I saw in this game, though, was the emotion and intensity with which the players approached the game.  At 2-11, with half of the squad injured, it would have been so easy to just mail it in and collect a check.  Instead, our guys absolutely sold out and left everything on the field.  That's the character of this team: keep your chin up, keep working hard, don't complain, and never give up.  It might sound cliche', but there are a lot of teams out there that could learn from it.