TERRY MOSHER
Well, I’m back at the Boneyard again today. Just too much going on for me and I got to get rid of some thoughts so I can move forward without a struggle. Although, to think about it, struggle and me go together like bread and butter.
First of all, it occurs to me now that the Iowa Caucus has been held that this presidential race will likely come down to Hillary Clinton and Marco Rubio, which is a little like having to vote between the Devil and Satan, which is not saying much. Do you want to continue to be controlled by big money (Clinton) or vote in a guy (Rubio) who would get rid of all the safety nets for the middle and poor classes?
The sad thing that we have come to in our country is that we have to pick between the lesser of two evils – the Devil or Satan.
If it comes to push or shove, I guess my vote will probably go to Clinton just because she is a woman and it’s about time we have a woman for president. But I will hold my nose if it comes to that. Besides, I can rationalize, I would not be forced to move to Canada if Trump became president. Of course, I would have to find a way over the wall to get to Canada if Trump gets in the White House.
That’s enough of that.
I was thinking before Russell Wilson and Michael Bennett were named MVPs (offense and defense) at the Pro Bowl that if you take more than a few minutes of deep thought you can safely say that the Seahawks were probably the best NFL team this past season and will likely be the best next season. That does not guarantee them a Super Bowl championship, but I believe they should be favored, unless, of course, something tragic happens such as Wilson breaking a leg or an arm in the off-season.
They should not have lost to the Panthers in the second round of this year’s playoffs. It was obvious that having to make two long flights back East and play in the early time slot (10 a.m. on the West Coast) wore the Seahawks out and t hey were not ready to get after the Panthers to start the game, and the Panthers were more than ready.
To fall behind 31-0 is so unlike the Seahawks, but to shut out the Panthers and rally for 24 second half points shows me that the Seahawks are a championship team. I would have bet anything that if those two teams had played the following week the Seahawks would have demolished the Panthers.
But that’s life. You get one shot in the playoffs and sometimes the best team does not win. I do expect the Panthers to swallow Peyton Manning and the Broncos in Sunday’s Super Bowl. It would be a fitting way for Manning to end a Hall of Fame career if he could lead the Broncos to victory, but I just don’t think he has enough left to score enough to do it.
I know a lot of people around here don’t like the Panthers simply because of Cam Newton’s antics, and I admit I don’t like them either, but he has the talent and size to do what he wants and if he wants to act that way the only way to stop him is to beat him up one side and down the other.
If I was playing that would be all the motivation I would need to play at the top of my game. When I was a young lad and playing I always used fan reaction against me as a motivator so I could shut them up.
You know, the sad thing about the NFL is also the good thing about the NFL. And that is the salary cap, which is a product of bargaining between the player’s union and ownership. It’s a boon to ownership because it creates parity in the league, meaning any dummy owner can get lucky – every dog has its day – and make the postseason
But it’s also sad for loyal fans because often a team has to get rid of a good player who is not only good on the field but off the field because under the salary cap they can’t keep him and at the same time keep others who deserve a raise.
The Seahawks have 31 players who are in various stages of free agency. Now, a lot of them are not considered prime time players, but they still need to be attended to or they will be lost.
There are two kinds of free agency – restricted (they can sign with any team but their original team can match the offer and keep them) and unrestricted (their contracts have expired and they are free to sign with any team).
The big unrestricted Seahawk free agents are OT Russell Okung, DT Brandon Mebane, OLB Bruce Irvin, WR Jermaine Kearse, OG J.R. Sweezy, OLB Michael Moran and CF Jeremy Lane.
The salary cap limit is estimated to be around $154 million for the 2016 season, which is about a $10 million increase. The Seahawks estimated payroll for 2016, based on current contracts, is about $125 million. So at this point the Seahawks are $29 million under the estimated salary cap for next season.
That is good news, I guess. But where do you spend that money? Who gets it and who doesn’t?
I’m not going to guess on what Pete Carroll and John Schneider will do. But I will say that they should cut ties with Okung, who always seems to be injured. Okung plays the very important left tackle spot, but because his salary this past season was just over $7 million I think that money can be better spent bringing in a free agent to play his position
They need to keep Mebane, Morgan, Lane and Irvin, all of whom will cost more. But they could lose Kearse and Sweezy and I would not cry. Sweezy seems to get beat more times than I like and Kearse, while he has had big catches, is too inconsistent for me.
It would be fun to run a NFL franchise and mull over who to keep, who to pay and who to trade for or sign as free agents. It’s the one challenge that would really excite me to see if I could build a winning team.
Of course, it takes more than one person to build a team. I’m sure Carroll and Schneider rely on capable people around them, including scouts, to bring in the best talent possible.
And I like that Carroll is a defensive-minded coach. Defense wins championships, no matter the sport. I was a good Ping Pong player in my youth and I was good because I had great hand-eye coordination, fast hands and built a good defense with those abilities.
I got that good defense by playing as a young kid against my older and very athletic older brothers who took no mercy on their kid brother, so I had to learn how to defend myself, and not just in Ping Pong but also in basketball and football.
The Denver Broncos under John Elway have learned their lesson about not having a good defense. After the Seahawks hammered the Broncos 43-8 in Super Bowl 48, Elway quickly rebuilt the Broncos’ defense and now they are one of the best in the league.
Enough of the Seahawks
What is going on with the Mariners? New general manager Jerry Dipoto has overhauled the roster faster than Carroll did with the Seahawks and now I don’t know any of the players.
Dipoto has said his overhaul was to build a team suited to the large confines of Safeco Field where speed, quickness and being a contact hitter works to the advantage the place gives you.
So I’m assuming he used the Kansas City model that the Royals used to climb out of the baseball graveyard to wreck havoc with speed, quickness and making contact with the bat and avoiding strikeouts.
We will see how that all works out, but I have no clue how good this Mariner team will be. I don’t think you can become a post-season contender in the first season of a rebuild with a new manager and new coaches and new people in the baseball front office. To think otherwise would be unwise.
I do know that I was right about the former Mariner general manager. While media types fell in love with Jackie Zduriencik, his seven year term with the club proved to be a disaster. The farm system took a huge hit and it’s going to take a few years not only to build that back up, but to get the big club squared away.
So don’t expect miracles this season.
You know, I kind of have lost touch these past few years with local high school sports. I try to keep in touch, but as I have aged I seldom get out to their games anymore. It’s sad because I love high school sports and I try to stay abreast of things as much as I can. But I don’t have the handle on it as I once did when I kept all the high school statistics in baseball, basketball and football.
The one thing I do believe in is Scott Orness, who moved across the Agate Pass Bridge from Bainbridge to North Kitsap to coach basketball. He moved away from his Root Basketball feeder program on the Island, but birthed a replacement for it in Drive Basketball in Poulsbo.
Orness has already had an impact and has North Kitsap primed for a long run in the post-season. If he can continue his exceptional coaching it’s possible that other area schools will have to kick themselves in the butt to keep up, and that will make for better overall basketball in local high schools.
I think in time Miah Davis at Bremerton will also get the Knights back in the regular post-season schedule, He has the credentials and he has the passion to get it done. So we will see.
One other thought: Isn’t it crazy that the county has raised the fees for its recreational fields so high? What are they thinking over at the county? I think fields ought to be free. When I was a young kid – way before the informational age lured kids inside into their little caves – we had free reign on all fields, without adult supervision I might add, and those were some of my best memories.
Sadly, that seems to be all gone.
Oh well, it’s all progress, I’ve been told.
Try to see all the good out there. And keep on keepin’ on.
Be well pal.
Be careful out there.
Have a great day.
You are loved.