Monday, June 17, 2013 @ 2:20pm

Position aside, who's the Seahawks' best player?

Danny O'Neil's latest column provided a starting point for what would be a spirited debate on Monday's edition of "Brock and Danny".

Earl Thomas

"If we forget about the positional pecking order and just talk about on-field performance, [Earl] Thomas right now is the best Seahawk at his craft," O'Neil writes while noting that a safety isn't as important to a team's success as a left tackle or a quarterback.

Sando agreed with O'Neil's choice of Thomas as Seattle's best player, saying his range is instrumental to what the Seahawks do defensively.

"I did this exercise last year, talked to some people around the league about it and Earl Thomas was the name that we kept coming back to. I think there was a period there where you could make a case for Marshawn Lynch, and I wouldn't argue against that, but Earl Thomas for his ability to let them play that man coverage the way they do with bigger guys works because he's able to get over there," Sando said.

"We saw it all the time. Look at the playoff game against the Redskins. There was an outside matchup that RG III likes and because he doesn't throw the ball absolutely perfectly, Earl Thomas picks it off. Well, having a guy who can do that is such a luxury. You talk about trying to make corners in the Seahawks' image, it really helps to have a guy who can let you play that defense the way you do by being able to get to different places around the field."

Clayton went with cornerback Richard Sherman, saying the "mind-boggling" plays he made during offseason workouts are evidence that he's even better than he was last year, when he earned first-team All-Pro honors. Clayton suggested that Sherman could reach double-digit interceptions in a season if opposing quarterbacks weren't so deterred from throwing his way.

"Just incredible to see how he's able to move toward the ball, his ability to read a play and know where the guy's going to be on the route, it's just a marvel to watch," Clayton said.

Huard shares his take as he and O'Neil continue the debate in the video below.

You can listen to Monday's show here.

Monday, June 17, 2013 @ 1:05pm

Seahawks' Moffitt pleads guilty to disorderly conduct

Seahawks guard John Moffitt pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of disorderly conduct in Bellevue District Court last Friday, paying a fine of $1,407 and receiving a suspended sentence of 24 months in jail.

John Moffitt

Moffitt originally faced two misdemeanor charges, one for criminal trespassing and another for obstruction of a law enforcement officer after a series of three different incidents at Bellevue Square mall in 2012.

Those were amended to a single charge of disorderly conduct, according to the court clerk who summarized the sentencing terms from last Friday's hearing. Moffitt will not have to serve any of the suspended sentence so long as he avoids further legal trouble. Jon Fox, Moffitt's attorney, said via e-mail that Moffitt had no previous legal incidents and as a result received a deferred sentence. If Moffitt complies with the court's stipultions for two years, the verdict will be changed to not guilty and expunged from Moffitt's record. Fox said Moffitt is happy to have the situation behind him. It's very unlikely Moffitt would face further discipline from the league regarding the personal-conduct policy.

The first incident occurred in January, when a member of the mall's security staff stated he saw Moffitt urinating on the skybridge between Bellevue Square and Lincoln Square malls. Moffitt was given an order – which he did not sign – stating that he was not to enter Bellevue Square, Bellevue Place or Lincoln Square for an entire year.

In June, mall security called officers after seeing Moffitt at one of the restaurants at Lincoln Square. The security officers informed police Moffitt was last seen running away from the mall after urinating near a parked car. The officers went to a nearby apartment complex where Moffitt was said to hang out.

Moffitt was seen running away from the apartment complex, and according to the police report, the officer alleged he yelled Moffitt's name while in full uniform, in a patrol car with emergency lights flashing. The officer stated that Moffitt looked back, but continued running.

Mall security later picked out Moffitt from a photo array.

The final incident occurred in August of 2012 and resulted in Moffitt's arrest on a misdemeanor charge of criminal trespass. Mall security again summoned police, stating Moffitt was seated at the bar of a restaurant in Lincoln Square. Two officers responded, arresting Moffitt when they found him on the premises.

Moffitt appeared at a preliminary hearing last month before entering a guilty plea to the amended charge Friday.

Monday, June 17, 2013 @ 7:47am

Seahawks' Earl Thomas is on the cusp of greatness

By Danny O'Neil

He is the shortest member of a secondary known for its size, and one of the softest spoken members of a defense that has a reputation for its swagger.

But overlooking safety Earl Thomas is impossible. At least it is to anyone paying attention because he just might be the best football player on this Seahawks team that's as loaded with talent as it is with expectations.

That's right: the best player.

Because as good as cornerback Richard Sherman played last season and as much of a cornerstone as Russell Okung is at left tackle and as important as Russell Wilson will be as Seattle's quarterback of the future, Thomas is the member of this team who is closest to being considered the best at his position in the entire league.

Yep, he's that good.

"There's no end to the potential Earl has," coach Pete Carroll said, "because he's so fast and he's so tough, but more than that, he's just so driven to be great. He's just driven to be a great player."

And in that way, it's Thomas who best embodies the situation in which Seattle's entire team finds itself entering this season.

There's no doubt about the talent. Not for Thomas, who has been voted to the Pro Bowl as a starter in each of the past two seasons, and not for the Seahawks, whose roster is considered one of the most stacked in this league. Now, the question is about the ceiling because being considered among the best is different from being anointed the best.

But make no doubt, Thomas is in that conversation as a previous generation of playmakers enter the twilight of their careers. Guys like Pittsburgh's Troy Polamalu and Ed Reed, who's now with Houston, are past 30, leaving Thomas, the Chiefs' Eric Berry and the Bucs' Dashon Goldson as the vanguard of generation next.

Thomas isn't at the top of the heap. Not after a year in which he dropped more interceptions than he made, but in three years he has never missed a game and has proven himself as one of the hardest-practicing players his coaches have ever seen. And his interception totals don't show the fact that he put himself in position to make so many plays, and if he starts hanging on to the ball, we could start talking about him as one of this league's game-breaking players.

After all, he just turned 24, entering the prime of his career at a position that has produced three of the league's past nine defensive players of the year.

"He's really just kind of hitting it now," Carroll said. "He's just getting going."

Carroll has got a little bit of history coaching that position, whether it was Joey Browner with the Vikings, a young Lawyer Milloy – who made his Pro Bowl breakthrough while Carroll was in charge of the Patriots – or Polamalu at USC.

"Earl is as good as any of the guys I've ever coached," Carroll said.

Now, location matters as much in football as it does in real estate, and a safety isn't considered as valuable as a left tackle, a position that Okung occupies so capably. And it's certainly not on par with quarterback.

But if we forget about the positional pecking order and just talk about on-field performance, Thomas right now is the best Seahawk at his craft, a fact that speaks as much to his development as it does to the team's scouting.

Thomas was the second player drafted by general manager John Schneider, someone Seattle didn't think it would ever get the chance to choose with the 14th overall pick in 2010. Not after the Philadelphia Eagles vaulted up the draft order, trading into the 13th spot.

Schneider was so certain the Eagles were selecting Thomas to replace the departing Brian Dawkins that Schneider had a trade worked out to move back from No. 14 if Thomas were gone. But after the Eagles chose pass rusher Brandon Graham out of Michigan, the Seahawks picked Thomas, one of the youngest players in the draft and someone who had played just two seasons at Texas.

Three years later, that 5-foot-10 safety stands out not only amid one of this league's most talented teams, but all of pro football.

Friday, June 14, 2013 @ 5:16pm

Where Seahawks-49ers ranks among NFL rivalries

The Seahawks and 49ers have been in the same division for just 11 years. The two teams hadn't made concurrent playoff appearances until last season.

But while nascent, their rivalry is considered by some to already be the best in the NFL.

After 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh fanned the flames earlier this week with comments about the Seahawks' string of PED-related suspensions, Danny O'Neil and Tom Wassell spent part of Friday's show discussing where that rivalry ranks compared to some that have more history behind them.

They share their thoughts in the video below.

You can listen to Friday's show here.

Friday, June 14, 2013 @ 4:17pm

'Hawk Talk' highlights: Tom Cable's coaching future

The Seahawks were worried about losing Tom Cable to a head-coaching job after their 2011 season ended, so much so that coach Pete Carroll joked about cutting the wires on Cable's phone to thwart any interested team's attempt to reach out.

Cable, Seattle's offensive-line coach and assistant head coach, was considered the driving force behind what progressed into a formidable running game despite losing three starting offensive linemen to season-ending injuries.

Tom Cable

The Seahawks lost one coordinator, Gus Bradley, to a head-coaching job earlier this offseason and nearly lost another as Darrell Bevell interviewed with a pair of teams before receiving a new contract to stay in Seattle. There were no reports of Cable, who had head-coaching experience, interviewing for any vacancies despite Seattle finishing the 2012 season with the league's No. 3 rushing offense.

But as Carroll said, it's only a matter of time.

Cable's coaching future was among the topics during the latest edition of "Hawk Talk" with Danny O'Neil. The full transcript of the chat can be found here. Highlights are below.

K Falls asked whether Cable would want to become a head coach again or if he'd rather remain an assistant.

Danny O'Neil: Yes, I think Tom Cable wants to become a head coach again, and I think he certainly has a resume worthy of another head-coaching job. His 8-8 season in Oakland was the one beacon of hope in that franchise's dark decade. Unfortunately for him, that year in Oakland brought out a great deal of baggage. I'm torn on the discussion of the spousal-abuse allegations from his past because he was never charged with a crime, which is usually the barometer for reporting on those. He was never charged, but those allegations were widely reported to the point he had to comment on them. But football-wise, he absolutely deserves another head-coaching opportunity.

Isaac asked whether the Seahawks' defensive backs coach, Kris Richard, could become a defensive coordinator or even a head coach in the near future.

Danny O'Neil: Very much so. He seems like he would wear that very well, and certainly, Seattle's success in the secondary and developing players (not just Richard Sherman and Brandon Browner, but right now, Jeremy Lane).

Isaac later asked which Seahawks have reached their ceilings.

Danny O'Neil: Ceilings? Well, Marshawn Lynch isn't going to get better. The question is how long he can stay this effective. Ditto for fullback Michael Robinson. And for offensive linemen, I would say Paul McQuistan is in the same boat, and I wonder how much room for improvement there is with Breno Giacomini.

Slim Shady asked how rookie wide receiver Chris Harper has looked during offseason workouts before Craig asked for a comparison between Harper's minicamp performance and that of Golden Tate when he was a rookie in 2010.

Danny O'Neil: Chris Harper has not stood out following the three-day minicamp. Golden Tate stood out MUCH more. But that just goes to show you how much (or in Tate's case) how little minicamps and offseason training translates to regular-season success.

Friday, June 14, 2013 @ 8:11am

What we learned from the Seahawks' OTAs, minicamp

By Danny O'Neil

June is no time for conclusions.

Not in the NFL, where players spend two months getting themselves ready for training camp, which is where they'll get ready for the actual season. Yup, these past couple months have been about preparing to prepare for this season of unprecedented expectation in Seattle.

But with the Seahawks' offseason conditioning program for veterans concluding on Thursday, now is as good a time as any to summarize the lessons drawn from the June workouts.

Three things we learned:

I. Right guard will be Seattle's Thunderdome in August.

Two men enter the competition, one will exit the starter.

Right guard John Moffitt is in the best shape he's been in going all the way back to when Seattle chose him in the third round in 2011 while J.R. Sweezy has continued what is nothing short of a remarkable transition from playing defensive tackle at North Carolina State to being an NFL offensive lineman. The Seahawks loved the nasty edge Sweezy showed in the running game, but Moffitt demonstrated a better understanding of protection schemes last season.

They took turns playing with the first-unit offense at this week's minicamp, Moffitt getting repetitions there on Tuesday and Sweezy taking his turn Wednesday. That spot is going to be one of the only starting jobs truly up for grabs in Seattle this August.

II. Tight end Luke Willson looks great in shorts.

That's not a commentary on his legs, but rather how quickly he can move them. As advertised, Willson is the fastest of Seattle's tight ends, and the fifth-round pick out of Rice showed he just might be capable of making an immediate impact as a rookie. Not only that, but the injury to tight end Anthony McCoy opened up the backup position behind starter Zach Miller.

Whether Willson is capable of filling that will depend on his blocking, though, and if he's not stout enough at the point of attack, he might wind up being strictly a big-play option as a rookie. Sean McGrath is bigger this season and might turn out to be a more well-rounded tight end, but it's still very possible Seattle could wind up adding another veteran to provide depth at the position.

III. Cornerback is the single deepest position on this team.

It's not just starters Richard Sherman and Brandon Browner, who've created a new prototype at the position with their size and physical style of play. It's also more than veteran Antoine Winfield, the three-time Pro Bowler signed to serve as the team's nickelback.

Walter Thurmond is completely healthy for the first time in two years and looks like someone ready to make an impact. Jeremy Lane – a sixth-round pick in 2012 – also played well, and given his status as a special-teams mainstay, he is someone who will be impossible to leave off the 53-man roster. Then there's Byron Maxwell, Will Blackmon, Ron Parker and rookie Tharold Simon, who has been unable to practice as he rests an ailing foot.

There is no position that has changed more since coach Pete Carroll and general manager John Schneider took over, and no position on the roster that is better stocked at this point.

Three things we're still trying to figure out:

I. Is Red Bryant back?

That's not a literal question as Bryant was present from the start of the team's offseason training program to the finish. The uncertainty is whether Bryant is back to being the end-line pillar of Seattle's rush defense.

One of the most perplexing facts about last season was that Seattle went from having one of the NFL's very best rush defenses for the first six and a half games to being mediocre, maybe even below average, for the second half of the season. That decline culminated in the playoff loss in Atlanta where the Falcons – who ranked No. 29 in rushing yards during the regular season – ran for 167 yards.

Some of that regression was attributed to the foot injury Bryant played through, and if that's the case, the Seahawks should be able to return to their run-stopping ways since Bryant said the foot feels better. This is a critical question, though, because all the resources Seattle spent to improve its pass rush won't mean nearly as much if the Seahawks can't stop the run.

II. Can James Carpenter can stay healthy?

The fact Carpenter sat out much of the team's offseason conditioning after undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery isn't nearly so concerning as the reality that for the third straight year, his preparation in training camp might be limited.

In 2011, he turned up out of shape after the lockout. Last year, he didn't practice at all in training camp as he was rehabilitating from the season-ending knee injury suffered in November. This year, there's no guarantee he will be ready to go.

Seattle thinks he can be a mauler at left guard, providing a uniquely punishing presence, but his two years as a Seahawk point to the difficulty in counting on the former first-round pick to stay on the field.

III. Where will Bruce Irvin fit into the final picture?

Seattle is trying him at strongside linebacker, a move that is going to be complicated in August because while he'll be practicing with the team, there's also the underlying reality that he will miss the first four games of the season because of a league suspension for a performance-enhancing drug violation.

That puts the Seahawks in a pickle because while Irvin could probably use every rep he could get at a new position that will see him dropping into coverage more, Seattle must also keep K.J. Wright plugged into that spot since he'll be playing there for all of the first four games.

Carroll has praised Irvin's adjustment to the position, pointing out that he'll still largely be a speed rusher off the edge, but this is a new role for Irvin and his preparation for that switch is going to be impacted by the reality of his looming suspension.

Thursday, June 13, 2013 @ 11:09pm

Tarvaris Jackson back with Seahawks on 1-year deal

By Danny O'Neil

RENTON – Quarterback Tarvaris Jackson may not have been on the field for the Seahawks' final offseason workout, but he is in the team's plans after signing a one-year contract with Seattle Thursday afternoon.

"I think it's a great boost for us in a competitive sense," coach Pete Carroll said after Thursday's workout. "We thought of Tarvaris as a tremendously tough football player and competitive kid that battled for us."

Jackson was Seattle's starting quarterback in 2011, signed to replace Matt Hasselbeck coming out of the lockout. Seattle went 7-7 in games Jackson started despite the fact he played much of the season through a torn pectoral muscle, which he suffered in Week 5.

Jackson was part of Seattle's three-way quarterback competition last year, but was traded to Buffalo on the same day rookie Russell Wilson was named the Seahawks' starter.

The rationale for bringing Jackson back is easy. Here is a player who has six years of experience playing for Seahawks offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell, first in Minnesota and then here in Seattle. He also has the respect of Seattle's locker room for the way he played through that injury in 2011 and the fact he was teammates with Sidney Rice and Percy Harvin in Minnesota.

What it means for Seattle's future – and the employment status for Brady Quinn – remains to be seen. Carroll said Jackson will compete with Quinn to be Wilson's backup.

"A really good battle for us to see what happens at that spot," Carroll said.

It's unlikely that Seattle would keep more than two quarterbacks on the roster once the regular season begins. Carroll was careful to point out that Jackson's pending acquisition is no reflection upon Quinn's performance in the two months since he was signed after spending last season in Kansas City.

"In the situation he is in, he has been next to perfect," Carroll said of Quinn. "He has worked like crazy. He knows exactly what we're asking of him. He's a tremendous guy in the meetings room, on the practice field, supporting Russell's efforts to figure out and he's competed really well."

Quinn is a former first-round pick who has played for three teams in his four seasons and has a career record of 4-16 as a starting quarterback. Seattle signed him after working him out along with veterans Seneca Wallace, Tyler Thigpen and Matt Leinart.

Whether Quinn sticks will depend on the head-to-head comparison with Jackson.

"It will be hard," Carroll said. "It will be tough. That's what competition is all about. T-Jack is not going to come in here and just take a back seat. He's going to come in here and go for it. That's exactly how we expect it across the board. It's not different at quarterback."

Jackson has played for three teams in his seven seasons and has a career record of 17-17. He was re-signed earlier this offseason by the Bills, who went so far as to offer a $500,000 signing bonus, but was released last week as Buffalo elected to pair Kevin Kolb with rookie E.J. Manuel heading into the season.

Now, Jackson's former team in Seattle looks like it will be his future opportunity.

"We're seizing the opportunity that one of our guys is out there," Carroll said, "and we can bring him back in and he'll be able to help us. T-Jack's got a strong arm, he understands the system and he's tough as nails. That's a lot of good stuff."

Loosening up at tight end

Tight end Zach Miller again sat out the team's minicamp practice because of a sore foot, but he was out of the plastic protective boot he wore the past two days. Carroll said the injury was not considered serious, and while it was to the same foot that was hurt during the playoff loss at Atlanta, it is a different type of injury.

Tight end is one of the more precarious spots on the roster after the injury to Anthony McCoy, the backup who suffered a torn Achilles tendon and is on injured reserve. That leaves Sean McGrath, who was undrafted last year, and fifth-round pick Luke Willson as the top two backups.

Does Seattle need to add another tight end?

"We're always looking at all spots," Carroll said.

That doesn't mean Seattle will find something better than what it has on hand, though.

"We like what we've seen," Carroll said. "McGrath has made a really obvious elevation. His offseason work has really shown up. He's really stronger and quicker.

"Luke has done a really good job. We're really excited about Luke's addition. We don't see anything that Luke can't do. We haven't seen him in pads yet to really understand the dynamics of his blocking. We know that he's willing and he's got a tough attitude and he looked great in college.

"We're always looking, though."

Avril active

Defensive end Cliff Avril took part in his first full-team drills on Thursday after being limited to individual position activities on Tuesday and Wednesday. Avril has been slowed by plantar fasciitis this offseason, something that had not bothered him previously.

"I've had issues with the foot," Avril said. "But I've never really had what I had this offseason. But I'm bouncing back from it. It's feeling good."

Roll call

Running back Robert Turbin sat out the last two days of the minicamp with a sore foot, something Carroll characterized as more precautionary. He said Turbin wanted to practice, but the team held him out.

Cornerback Walter Thurmond was absent from Thursday's workout, excused to attend a ceremony.

Thursday, June 13, 2013 @ 9:31am

Browner focused on football heading into contract year

RENTON – Brandon Browner was getting dangerously close to being broke when he arrived in Seattle after four years in the Canadian Football League and four months at home during the 2011 NFL lockout.

Two years later, he has two seasons as a starting cornerback, a Pro Bowl on his resume and just one season remaining on his contract. And while plenty of players will tell you that football is a business, free agency is not the bottom line Browner is focusing upon.

"That's something I don't want to think about right now," Browner said after Wednesday's minicamp practice. "Football is my focus, you know what I'm saying. So that's what I'm going to stick with, let my agent deal with the economic part of the game. I'm here to make plays, man. That's it."

"He's probably one of the most tenacious players in the NFL," Richard Sherman said of fellow cornerback Brandon Browner, who's entering the final year of his contract. (AP)

Other items were tabled. Receiver Golden Tate is entering the final year of his contract, Doug Baldwin is scheduled to become a restricted free agent in 2014 and then there's Browner, one of the twin towers in Seattle's secondary.

He is 6 feet 4 and will play at just under 220 pounds, but it's more than just his size that stands out. His steel-toed toughness has helped shape this team's identity as he's the kind of guy capable of putting an opponent flat on his back, sitting on top of the receiver's chest and then standing up to flex his biceps in a bodybuilder's pose.

In fact, Browner did exactly that to Packers receiver Greg Jennings last year in a Week 3 game against Green Bay on Monday night. He also flipped Bengals receiver Jerome Simpson head over heels after a play in 2011 and knocked over three different Arizona players on the same punt return in the final game of that season.

"He's probably one of the most tenacious players in the NFL," said Richard Sherman, the cornerback who starts on the other side of Browner. "He's a rugged, hard-working, hard-nosed football player. If he gets out on the market, I would expect a bidding war to start. I really hope he stays in Seattle. I hope we can find a way to re-sign him."

That's something that everyone will be watching. Browner, who will turn 29 in August, spent his first NFL season on injured reserve in Denver. He then played four seasons in the Canadian Football League before getting another chance in the NFL, and he white-knuckled his way through the league's four-month lockout, tapping almost every bit of his savings.

He claimed a starting spot during Seattle's training camp, playing so well that the Seahawks decided to trade Kelly Jennings only weeks after re-signing him. Two seasons, 28 regular-season starts and nine interceptions later, Browner has become a cornerstone in one of the very best secondaries in the NFL.

"It's not the Legion of Boom if you lose a member," Sherman said.

Assembling that group might be as difficult as preserving it, though, and holding everyone together will certainly be more expensive. Both Sherman and safety Earl Thomas have two years remaining on their contracts, but could seek extensions next offseason.

For now, the group is intact for at least one more season that is loaded with expectations.

"I expect a lot out of us," Browner said. "We've got another year together as a group. I'm looking forward to a great season with this organization."