Seahawks new Unis to be revealed tomorrow, might look something like this

The picture above is a mockup that has been posted in numerous Seahawks spots over the last few days. If Seattle's new uniforms look like this, I'll be pretty satisfied. I'm still rather unhappy at the missed opportunity to add green to the lower stripe as dictated in this post, but anything resembling the threads above would make up for it. Marshawn will look good streaking up the sidelines in these.

Zakuani 2 Pole?

If someone were interested in making this for themselves, I'd be delighted. I might try my hand at it myself some time.

For those not in the know, the disembodied head below is that of a Zaku. And like Seattle's lightning fast midfielder, Zakus can be rebuilt and repaired, stronger than ever.

Cascadia + Sounders + Chrome

Use Chrome? Love Sounders? Then check out this sweet theme! You're welcome.

Zakuani hits the pitch in reserve match

Best birthday present ever.

I'd be utterly shocked if it happened, but maybe Zakuani can come in for just a minute or two against Colorado, only a week from the anniversary of his horrific "accident".

MdKathon Via Sounder@Heart

In which I create a new, better Hawks logo.

Courtesy of SgtSasquatch over at Field Gulls, this appears to be the final result. It's awfully plain without the lighter blue (I'm hearing it was scrapped because Reebok owns "Seahawks Blue". Blueshit(sic)). and I could see myself frequently mistaking it for black and white in low lighting, but I don't hate it as much as I did when the concept was first leaked. Still, it really makes one pine for the old Hawks colors.

So I did a little photoshopping and came up with a few new schemes that I like far more than what we seem to be getting. Thats right Mike Williams, I don't care how "ish" the new kits are!

First is the logo we've become accustomed to over the last decade.

I like the "serious Hawk" but I've never been one for so much white, and the addition of grey like in the hat picture above makes the logo nearly colorless, save for the eye. 

Now the following would have probably been the easiest, slickest fix the Seahawks could have performed, taking the wildly popular green and returning it to where it was in the original "Native Hawk" logo. 

It replaces the Seahawks blue while still keeping some semblance of color in the logo. 

This is the new Hawks logo in the old Hawks colors, and it's a pretty nifty look if I do say so myself. The retrieval of Seahawks history is one that I believe would be greeted with parades among many of the Hawks faithful. I never liked the navy blue they used anyway. 

Now, to take it a step further...

It's a little jarring at first, I admit, but there are few things I would like more than to return silver to the Hawks color pallete. Silver helmets with the Hawk face on them would be one of the best looks in the NFL. I'm not sure which of the two above variations I like better though.

I think I prefer just the beak to be silver, but this is a nice look as well. 

Is there one you prefer? If so, which?

Carp hurt, recalls memories of Mike Morse

Deja Vu for the Mariners in a number of different senses this morning. No scoring, a flimsy bullpen, and a non-natural outfielder being put in the outfield and getting hurt.

No, Carp isn't expected to be out more than a week or two, unlike Mike Morse half a decade ago. But both are natural infielders who, thanks to a combination of players blocking their natural positions and improperly used DH slots, were shoved into the grass out in front of the hand operated scoreboard.

Morse was coming off an absolutely stunning spring that year, hitting .492 with a slugging pct. of over 1.3. But his natural position of SS was filled (Morse didn't have the range for it in MLB anyway), first base was filled by a declining Richie Sexson, and our DH was one Jose Vidro. Morse wasn't even the starting left fielder, with the Mariners dead-set on putting BRAD FREAKING WILKERSON out in the field. (Wilkerson was cut less than a month into the season.)

So, despite the fact that Mike Morse had only sparring played outfield in his previous baseball career, someone in the Mariners coaching circle decided to spend half a summer trying to adjust him to the outfield.

Morse played in 5 games that year before taking an awkward slide going after a pop fly and hurting his leg bad enough that the rest of the season was out of the question. He has since been traded and, while note elite, is playing better than the majority of first basemen in the league.

Carp isn't coming off a blazing spring training, but instead a rather promising second-half of 2011. He also has a little more experience with the outfield than Morse did. But his position today is ostensibly being filled by Miguel Olivo. I won't compare him to Brad Wilkerson or Jose Vidro, but the fact is that we have a catcher on the roster that would make more sense for this team actually playing behind the plate, rather than filling the DH position on an interim basis. Jesus Montero should be catching, and Mike Carp should be the starting DH. Casper Wells, Carlos Pegeruo, or Chone Figgins should be out there, and Kyle Seager, Alex Liddi, or Vinnie Catricala should be at third.

Carp seems to have a decent bat, but he is a straight-up liability on defense. The Mariners have a potentially good lineup on their roster, they just need to put the right puzzle pieces out on the field in the right spots. Carp's piece does not fit in left.

Ideal Lineups for 2012: Seahawks

Free Agency has started, and now that we're a few days into things, the picture is becoming a little clearer for our Seattle Seahawks. The starting-caliber chips are visiting their options, or deciding not to take phone calls with 206 area codes.

At this point in the rebuilding process, it's becoming increasingly unlikely that rookies will be filling any roster spots on this Seahawks team. There's certainly room for improvement up and down Pete Carroll's big board, but the lack of talent that Tim Ruskell left this team with is long gone. With Robert Gallery gone (THANK YOU) the only real openings are on the offensive line and linebacking corps (unless they draft a stud of a wide receiver).



Offense:
QB:
Matt Flynn (Free Agency-Green Bay)
Tavaris Jackson
Josh Portis

From the top I'd just like to point out that I still don't really believe that our FO wants Matt Flynn all that much. From what I understand, John Schneider has already made it clear he doesn't think all that much of the Green Bay backup. That said, I didn't think he'd be flying out to the great northwest for a visit, and suitors don't seem to be willing to pay as much for him as I assumed. If Schneider's comments were nothing more than a smokescreen, and he can be had for a reasonable price, then by all means pick that kid up!

I'm not going to be all that disappointed if we don't get Flynn though. I think he can be very good, but he's far from a guarantee, and Jackson with another year getting to know is teammates behind a gelling offensive line could produce very strong results.

HB:
Marshawn Lynch
Trent Richardson (Draft-Round 1)
Leon Washington
Justin Forsett

HB is not a position of need, but Trent Richardson would anchor the position for years, and make Seattle's rushing attack unstoppable in the fourth quarter. What defensive player would want to defend against a rested Lynch or Richardson in the fourth quarter of a game? It's a lot of money to sink into one position, but if Richardson is available at 12 and if Pete is really serious about pounding it on the ground, Seattle would be sure to have one of the top rushing attacks for a decade (assuming our young offensive line continues to gel and improve).  Brandon Jacobs is a fun possibility as well, but rather unlikely considering the price he'd demand and the expectation that he would be a number one back.