This is a brainstorm list of ideas how Seattle can cope with the loss of Bobby Engram. Egnram can't be placed on the PUP list and therefore counts as a "dead" man until he is able to return. That, obviously, is a bit of a kick in the teeth.

PUP List Deion Branch

Branch could return at the start of the season. It's not likely, but the notion is swirling, so it must be accounted for. With Engram out, it is now that much more important that Seattle prudently places Branch on the PUP list. That might sound counterintuitive. Branch is, after all, a wide receiver on a team in need. But two things must be considered.

First, Seattle is not in a position where they have gross wide receiver needs. Seattle has net wide receiver needs. They don't need wide receivers on the roster, they need wide receivers that can play and contribute. If Branch rushes his recovery, he might reinjure himself. An injured Branch is a second dead player. Better then to put Branch on the PUP list and activate him later in the season, when he has a better chance to maintain health and a better chance to contribute.

Second, going forward, Seattle shouldn't count on contributions from Engram or Branch. For the entirety of the 2008 season, Branch will be less than a year removed from surgery. Even if he can meet the minimum requirements to take the field, that does not guarantee effectiveness. Branch should not be counted on to contribute this season. Engram, 35, has already suffered the first of what could be a slew of career ending injuries. Engram should not be counted on to contribute this season.

Free up a roster spot and give Branch the best chance of maintaining health by placing him on the PUP list.

Take a Hard, Merciless Look at Logan Payne

Without an accrued season in the NFL, and only one season on the practice squad, Payne should be eligible for a second tour of duty. But that same spot could go to Michael Bumpus. Does Seattle take up a quarter of its practice squad with wide receivers? And how then do you fill out the other six spots? Certainly depth at offensive line is a must. Depth at defensive line and in the secondary is always wise. How about Brandon Coutu should Seattle think Olindo Mare their best bet this season? Retaining Joe Newton could allow for Seattle to keep only two tight ends on roster. Justin Forsett must be retained somehow. It might be that Seattle must sincerely consider what they have with Logan Payne and if his potential is worth retaining. He's not a contributor on special teams. And his value was always weighted more towards producing now than potential. If Payne can't earn his spot in the preseason, it might be best to cut him or place him on IR.

Start Ben Obomanu at Slot, Sub with Bumpus

As is, Courtney Taylor is likely to play flanker. Among Seattle's remaining wide receivers, Obomanu, Payne and Bumpus are best suited for Engram's slot duties. Accounting for skill set, performance, health and experience, that should read Obomanu, Bumpus and then Payne. Obo should play with the first team offense. He's not really like Engram, not surgical carving zones, not steady converting receptions, but he does have the minimum skills needed with some nice addendums: speed, agility and big play ability. Bumpus offers Seattle its best shot of Engram 2. He has good hands and an ability to read zones, and though Bumpus isn't fast, it's reasonable to think he's at least on par with the contemporary Bobby Engram. Put it to the test. Throw both into the fire and see who survives. Give each a half of strictly slot play. If Bumpus plays well in the second half, see if he can do it with the first unit. If Payne can take the field, throw him right out there with the first unit and see if he survives. The key is, audition the three strictly playing the slot. Without Bobby, the luxury of open tryouts is lost. Someone on this team must be able to produce now, and it's best that's decided in the preseason.

Rework your Base Offense

On Friday, Seattle employed 3 wide on 33 plays, mostly in both 3 WR, I and 3WR, TE, RB. Seattle relied heavily on those formations last season, in its pass first offense. A healthy and productive Bobby Engram, an old and regularly spelled tight end and a non-existent run game forced the move. Well, things have changed, and what were once weaknesses are now strengths and what were once strengths are now weaknesses. Depending on what Taylor shows and how Obo develops, John Carlson is Seattle's second to fourth best receiver. Theoretically, 2 WR, TE, I is the formation Mike Holmgren prefers. He maximized it in 2005, deftly exploiting its balanced qualities, and riding it to career seasons by Jerramy Stevens, Joe Jurevicius and Shaun Alexander. It's time to dust off the old playbook, because the talent is again better suited to Holmgren's former, more structurally conservative formation.

Entertain Signing a Veteran

It's clear Tim Ruskell believes in continuity. Continuity of talent. Continuity of evaluation. And continuity of leadership. That's one reason Seattle hasn't been involved in many rent a player contracts and why potentially helpful additions like Terry Glenn and Eric Parker have been ignored. But now is not the time for rigidity. Seattle's young corps has earned some respect, but should they flub or Taylor's hamstring (etc.) flare up, it would be foolish not to consider adding a hired gun; another option to the mix to keep Seattle from making any rash moves (like rushing Branch) or being hamstrung by a particularly underperforming unit. A mid priced free agent helps Seattle win now without mortgaging the future.

Update:

I wanted to point out some really good work being done by Eric Williams over at Seahawks Insider. It's good to see that blog with a pulse again. I think a healthy Seahawks Insider is good for the entire Seahawks blogosphere.

I really like the Holmgren transcript. A couple quotes stood out to me.

(On Branch’s return date…) “You don’t [know]. It’s—when we get into the injury things—and I’ll say it now, and I’ll say it after game six, and I’ll say it after game twelve during the season—we’re hopeful that we will have him for the first regular season game. And we’ll see. We’ll see how that goes.”

You might notice that this quote doesn't make sense. Holmgren kind of hems and haws and then says "and I’ll say it now, and I’ll say it after game six, and I’ll say it after game twelve during the season—we’re hopeful that we will have him for the first regular season game."

Why would you say "after game six" that "we're hopeful we will have him for the first regular season game"? You wouldn't. Nor would you say it after game twelve. Game six, not coincidentally, is the game players can come off the PUP list. You can book it-- that's where Branch will be.

(On the kicking game…) “I’m always concerned about the kicking game. I believe we have a great snapper, a young guy who can really snap the ball. And last year, it was like Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride, the wind blew us. You never knew what was going to happen. So, that’s an encouragement to me.

...And

(On Herring…) “Well, he’s got a little bit of a sickness that we have to kind of, we have to do some more work on. It’s causing some of the things that are plaguing him right now, the pulls and different things. It’s kind of a little different deal. So we have to play it that way with him, see if we can, he’s got to do some more testing and things like that.”

Don't know what that's about, if Holmgren is being colorful or if Herring is suffering something more serious, but it's not an encouraging quote.

. . .

Not much to report, really.

Here's the quick hits:

Dave Boling at Seahawks Insider is reporting that Kelly Jennings made a nice leaping interception. This matters for one reason: Kelly Jennings needs to develop something in the way of ball skills to take the next step as a corner. At the moment, he's very good in coverage, but without the threat of an interception, quarterbacks will eventually target Jennings man regardless whether he's covered. An incomplete just isn't so bad. A couple picks and Jennings will be not just sound, but fearsome.

Danny O'neal at Seahawks Blog is reporting that Seattle's goal for Marcus Tubbs is for him to be back by the regular season. That probably means he'll be held out of preseason. With a player as injury prone as Tubbs, it might be smart to save his snaps for when it counts.

Mike Sando of ESPN is reporting:

Rookie Lawrence Jackson blew up one play in the backfield. After practice, he said he thought getting into camp on time was important because it showed veterans he was serious about his job. It's always refreshing when the rookies know their place.

That's a good attitude. And if you read between the lines, it's not just about knowing his place, Jackson is after respect.

The overlap on these three training camp reports is...curious. As they're all reporting almost the exact same information.

Offense/Defense

Split End	Slot	Left Tackle	Left Guard	Center	Right Guard	Right Tackle	Tight End	Flanker
Nate Burleson Ben Obomanu Jordan Kent	Ben Obomanu LoganPayne	Walter Jones Sean Locklear FloydWomack	Mike Wahle Rob Sims MansfieldWrotto	Chris Spencer Chris Gray Steve Vallos	Rob Sims Chris Gray RayWillis	Sean Locklear Ray Willis SteveVallos	John Carlson Jeb Putzier Will Heller	Bobby Engram Courtney Taylor DeionBranch

Fullback	Quarterback	Running Back
Leonard Weaver Owen Schmitt David Kirtman	Matt Hasselbeck Seneca Wallace Charlie Frye	Julius Jones Maurice Morris TJ Ducket JustinForsett

Deion Branch

Stats

Highlights

Lowlights

Outlook

*Includes all games minus Week 10, Divisional Round and the second half of Week 3 and the first half of week 1.

Highlights

9/16/07

On the fifth play of the Hawks' first drive, the one that resulted in a 27 yard reception by Deion Branch, you see some of the same confusion that led to the later fumble. The Hawks are in the same formation, 3 WR, I-back. Following the snap Shaun Alexander runs up behind Matt Hasselbeck like he's either accepting a hand-off or faking play action. Meanwhile, Calvin Pace has run into the backfield and is steps in front of Hasselbeck about to convert the sack. Alexander breaks off his little shuffle behind Beck and runs towards the defender, but he's easily twice as far from Pace as Pace is from Hasselbeck. Luckily, Beck shows the presence of mind to throw out to Branch and even more luckily Branch catches, shakes a tackle and is off for a big gain.

9/30/07

Branch did everything right. One thing I never hear enough about is a receiver's ability to track a ball in flight, Branch is excellent at that. He is also tremendously agile, has sure hands and knows when to be tackled. That last one might sound a little off, but sometimes your not going to break a tackle, three guys are closing in on you or you're abutting the sideline and its vainglorious to put a pop to a defender or attempt to rip through the pile. Especially when you're slightly built and 5'9". Branch falls forward in front of sure tackles. It's a smart move that protects the ball and protects his health. Actually, for years I complimented Alexander on doing the same thing, too bad that caution has turned into yel--ah, forget it.

12/10/07

Deion Branch had two big receptions this quarter, one for 31 yards that set up a score and another for 15 and a score. What you see on both receptions is Branch's excellent ability to track the ball in flight and control his speed without breaking stride. In both abilities he looks a bit like a lesser Jerry Rice. Like Rice, Branch makes passes look impossibly accurate, as if the ball appears in his hands. On the 31 yard reception down the sideline, Branch is never able to get much separation from Roderick Hood, but he doesn't break stride or come back to the ball. He runs under it. That's because he knows exactly where the ball will fall and has a clutch crafted in Modena. He changes speeds seamlessly. We get a second look at Branch's potential on his touchdown reception, where he looks to be almost behind the defender at the time of reception. Yet the ball hits him square. It's been a disappointing season so far for Branch, but he could be a monster in this system. His route-running and hands are both excellent, but it's his ability to run into every catch that makes him so deadly on timing routes. One of these weeks, dude's gonna go off.

Lowlights

9/16/07

The Hawks slant attack hasn't been working recently and Eric Green's near interception on the third play of the Hawks' second drive might explain why. The slant works best when the corner gives enough cushion for the receiver to keep a step ahead. The way to do that is to take a false step forward before breaking into a slant. The false first step opens the possibility of a downfield route and gets the cornerback's momentum moving backwards. On this play Deion Branch made a cardinal mistake, he began moving laterally off the snap. Green had little trouble reading slant and immediately broke down on the route. I would like to think that this is something that could be resolved by the Hawks over the next week in film study, because the slant pass is a staple of the Walsh offense, but recently it's been anything but beneficial for the Hawks.

9/30/07

It's funny that I mentioned Hasselbeck underthrowing Branch in the first quarter for a 65 yard strike and how the result was fine but Beck still screwed up, because they ran the same play in the second half. This time Nate Clements didn't bite on the fake---Branch was doggin' it a little bit too--and when Beck delivered the pass Clements had only to turn around to be in position for the pick. It's an important lesson in not taking results and working backwards to a conclusion. Hasselbeck underthrew the first pass despite the excellent outcome. When he did it again in the third, things didn't work out so well.

Outlook

Things didn’t work out so well for Branch, and the only thing that went off was his anterior cruciate ligament. When Branch collapsed, outside of the man, few suffered as fully as I. It’s not simply that I’m loyal, or that I’ve long been one of Branch’s staunchest defenders, it’s that I truly believe that, healthy, Branch could be a beast in this system. His mix of awareness, precise route running, ability to track the ball in flight, agility, seamless acceleration, deceleration and timing make him an ideal fit for a traditional West Coast offense. Assuming Branch can return at a nearly identical level as to where he left, and that’s not a far fetched assumption, we may yet find out—In 2009. Branch would have to buck some well substantiated historical trends to contribute much in 2008. Of course, the last time I wrote "buck…historical trends" I was writing of Patrick Kerney in 2007.

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