Matt Hasselbeck scrambles away from Chargers linebacker Shaun Phillips in the first quarter of Saturday's preseason game. (Getty Images/Stephen Dunn)
If you can't wait to talk Seahawks, this is the place as I'll provide running thoughts on tonight's preseason opener between Seattle and San Diego throughout the game.
Feel free to add your own comments and toss out questions. There's a lot going on in Seattle sports tonight with the Mariners taking on the Yankees at Safeco and the Sounders trying to bend Beckham down in L.A., but hey, if you're a Seahawks fan, it's Go Time!
While we're waiting to go, here's a link to my Five Things to Watch in tonight's game. Let me know what you're excited to see ...
Curt Menefee
6:30 p.m.: Lots of new things this year with the Seahawks and the first you'll notice is Curt Menefee on the broadcast. The host of Fox NFL Sunday will be doing play-by-play on all four Seahawks preseason games as Vern Lundquist opted out this year.
Menefee is in the booth with Warren Moon, who'll provide the color analysis.
7:05: Opening kickoff already reveals one of the interesting competitions: Olindo Mare vs. Brandon Coutu for placekicking duties. One of Mare's strengths is length on kickoffs. Coutu gets the first shot and kicks to the 5. Not bad, but he'll need to be able to reach the end zone with some consistency if he wants to replace the vet.
7:07: Hey, is that a pass rush we see right off the bat from Cory Redding? Three-and-out by first unit, got to like that!
7:12: First offensive possession fizzles when Duckett stuffed on third-and-1. Not what you want to see from your short-yardage back. And then Jon Ryan booms a beautiful 54-yard punt, but as often was the case last year, that's one where you'd rather see a little touch instead of kicking into the end zone.
7:22: Seahawks get lucky on dropped pass by Antonio Gates, but Darryl Tapp returns the favor on ball in his hands. Seattle has been practicing that zone drop by Tapp. Worked great there except he dropped an easy interception. That and Ken Lucas was called for illegal contact on the play.
7:30 Seattle's second offensive possession shows a couple decent runs by Jones, but bogs down when Sean Locklear gets beat by OLB Shaun Phillips and Hasselbeck has to throw it away on second down, then Hasselbeck seems on wrong page with Carlson on incomplete pass on third. That's probably it for Hasselbeck: 3-for-5 for 27 yards. First quarter ends in scoreless tie.
7:44: Seneca Wallace gets a series with the No. 1 offensive line, but isn't helped when Ray Willis called for lining up illegally on 3rd-and-10. Rookie Deon Butler catches two short passes, but dances too much on second one and gets buried. Nice punt coverage by WR Logan Payne though. Looks like it's backup time for defense with No. 2's in pretty much across the board.
7:53: So much for the No. 2 defense. CB Kevin Hobbs looks lost on 32-yard pass down to the 7 and Michael Bennett scores on 2-yard dive moments later. CHARGERS 7, SEAHAWKS O.
7:59: Welcome to the NFL, Deon Butler. Rookie WR blown up on big hit by San Diego DB Steve Gregory. Butler pops right up, which is nice to see, but it'll be interesting to find out if he's big enough to deal with NFL DBs over time.
8:06: Gotta love Housh, who says in sideline interview on TV that he wishes he could go back in game to deal with Gregory after he celebated the hard hit on Butler, but that he probably would have got kicked out of the game if he had. This guy is definitely going to be interesting.
Seahawks tight end John Owens hauls in a touchdown pass from Seneca Wallace. (Getty Images/Stephen Dunn)
8:15: Seahawks put together a 12-play, 61-yard scoring drive, which they should since their No. 1 offensive line is still in against Chargers' backups. But encouraging to see a couple very good catches by Courtney Taylor and an excellent TD catch by blocking TE John Owens on a play-action pass from Seneca Wallace from the 2. SEAHAWKS 7, CHARGERS 7.
8:22: Chargers miss 34-yard FG on what they think is last play of half. Mora notes two seconds still on clock and yelling at refs that Seahawks should have the ball. Apparently he wants to use every play he can get in this preseason, though Wallace then takes a knee. So, uh, exactly what was the point?
8:25: As promised, Mora used rookie Curry through first half as a rush-end in pass situations, but the 248-pounder made little impact. Will be curious to see how long that role continues as it seems he might be more valuable as a LB in the nickel scheme, given his speed and coverage ability, instead of getting lost against massive LTs.
8:44: Second half starts with total second-unit in for Seahawks offense, except starting RG Max Unger sliding to center. Nice pass from rookie QB Mike Teel to Ben Obomanu, but Mike Hass -- who has looked great in camp -- drops ball right in his hands. That one hurts ... as did the crunching shot Justin Forsett just took to his knees on a great open-field tackle.
9:04: First turnover, an interception by Teel. Thought Obomanu could have made a better play on the ball, but it was behind him and he wound up tipping it up to the DB. Teel has made a couple nice throws downfield, but looks a little erratic, as should be expected for a rookie in his first game facing live bullets. Seahawks get the ball back though on a nice strip by DE Baraka Atkins.
9:10: There's the Hass we've seen in camp with a nice 18-yard TD catch on a perfect ball from Teel. Nice bounce-back play by both youngsters. Good to see. SEAHAWKS 14, CHARGERS 7.
9:15: Speaking of bounce backs, CB Kelly Jennings -- who got physically beat by a bigger receiver earlier in the game -- comes back with an interception when he jumps the slant route. No, it won't quiet all his critics, but it was a nice play by a guy who usually is in the right spot, just isn't always big enough to win the battles.
9:29: Nice interception by Nick Reed -- who just keeps making plays at DE -- sets up Coutu field goal. SEAHAWKS 17, CHARGERS 7.
9:49: Another 38-yard Coutu FG. Another sideline interview. Another blown coverage by Seahawks DBs who'll never be on the final roster. Gotta love preseason football. SEAHAWKS 20, CHARGERS 7.
9:55: 69-yard TD drive by San Diego makes it SEAHAWKS 20, CHARGERS 14 with 3:42 to go. I'm more concerned with the indecision of Butler on the ensuing kick return as he's been looked at both on punts and KOs and the Hawks could use a boost there so Nate Burleson doesn't have to do so much.
10:09: It's a final. Seahawks' second-unit defense dodges a couple bullets -- and keeps pretty good pressure on the QB -- on final drive to preserve the 20-14 win.
Quick impressions: Didn't look like any injuries, which is huge. Like most preseason openers, evaluation of first units is limited. None of the young receivers had big nights, but Taylor made two nice grabs and I keep liking what I see from Hass. Teel was better than I expected at QB and Reed just makes plays on D-Line, but neither likely plays much in regular season. Same with Michael Bennett, an undrafted DE.
More important will be continued development of run game, the defensive front and things we only saw briefly tonight. But preseason is preseason. What did you see that you liked or didn't like tonight?
