Hey guys, thanks for showing up last night. What a great effort in an important game against a mighty team. You should be proud. And two weeks in a row, too. That's tough to do when you play two games in four days. Kudos.
Please let Matt Hasselbeck know how impressed I am. How does he sling such a perfect pass on one throw and then float the ball into the stands on the next? His versatility is impressive and something usually seen by much younger quarterbacks, like Alex Smith, actually. His decision making is particularly impressive. I was under the impression that locking onto a receiver and staring him down as he runs his route is a no-no. But Hasselbeck did it all night and he only threw two interceptions. Now that's quarterbacking. Nice haircut, too.
Also, please extend my admiration to Shaun Alexander for his dance moves. He danced so much behind the line last night, I thought he was practicing to take on Emmitt Smith. Emmitt might a Hall of Famer, but Shaun would go John Travolta on him on the dance floor. Sure, hitting the hole on 3rd-and-1 is what most backs do, but you never know when Alexander will break one if he just waits long enough to find a crack of daylight. I like his courage, too, in taking on those big bad defenders instead of following his block. Impressive. That kind of cunning and bravery is what championship teams are made of.
Where can I get a pair of those green gloves Deion Branch wears? My Bostonian pals told me about these greats hands of Deion Branch. I haven't seen them yet, but I guess it's because he just wants to keep them safe and dry under those neon green mittens. Hey, he's the new Neon Deion! (OK, go ahead and use that for marketing.)
I was glad to see kicker Josh Brown not get many opportunities last night. He's been hogging too much of the limelight this year. Without his four game-winning field goals, the Seahawks might be 4-10. But we can't have a kicker -- a kicker -- be the team's MVP! What would the Chuck Knox say about that?
Are Grant Wistrom and Bryce Fisher still on the team? I see them on the roster, but I have't seen them on the field lately. Maybe my depth chart is out of date. (I'll contact Our Lads and let you know.) Bryce is in the National Guard. Did he get called to duty? You guys haven't had any sacks in the last two games, so I thought the two defensive ends might have already headed to Hawaii for the Pro Bowl or something.
I absolutely loved Kelly Herndon's hit on Alex Smith last night. Fourth quarter, third down, ball on the Seattle 20 and the Seahawks desperately needing a stop. Then I see Herndon coming -- unblocked -- on a corner blitz. He drove his shoulder into Smith so hard that I thought Smith was going to re-eat his pre-game meal. It reminded my a little of Chuck Bednarik's legendary hit on Frank Gifford, except that, well, Gifford almost died whereas Smith scrambled away and threw a touchdown pass. My Pop Warner football coach constantly preached about wrapping up the ballcarrier. Hit, wrap, drive the legs. What an absolute ninny. I guess he just didn't know that going for the knockout blow is more exciting than an ordinary proper-form tackle. How unsophisticated.
Before I let you go, I also wanted to commend you on your Christmas spirit. You guys were pretty stingey with Alex Smith and Frank Gore for three quarters. (I saw them on the sidelines and I swear they had tears in their eyes. OK, it might have been the rain. But they looked bummed just the same.) Anyway, you guys finally threw them a bone and laid down in the fourth quarter. How inspiringly charitable. Most teams, especially teams playing for a division title, would have nutted up for one more quarter and played like Grinch. Was Cincy Lu Who on the sidelines?
Enjoy the 10 days off. Can't wait to see what Christmas gifts you have in store for LaDainian Tomlinson on Christmas Eve. It looked like you were going to break that string of Super Bowl losers missing the playoffs the following year, but you're doing your best to uphold the tradition. And what is the NFL without its traditions?
Happy Festivus.
P.S. Does Mike Holmgren need to apologize to the team this week? I only bring it up because I know after the last game against San Francisco he apoligized the next day for being so hard on the guys. He looked pretty grumpy on the sideline last night, so I was wondering if his post-game lockeroom speech might need a apology this time, too. I wonder if Vince Lombardi ever apologized for being mean.
Posted by Jason Thornbury at 12/15/2006 10:52:00 AM
