They are really taking care of business in a smart way.

I wish the Patriots had done that with Asante. I'm guessing Trufant was reasonable in his contract demands, as that is a lower price than Asante... but he has also engendered goodwill and is more likely to earn all of that money.

Have to agree with #1. Locking up your 2 best defensive players for 6 years at reasonable contracts (esp. when compared with their open market value) is a great thing. Sure does seem like Hill is next in line. Doug, how long are J. Peterson & P. Kerney locked up for, as well as other key players?

Seattle is really doing something with that defense. There's plenty of warm bodies, and definitely some talent. There may not be enough really high end performers just yet, but if they continue to add to their current unit and continue to lock up their guys like they have been, I don't see how we won't be talking about it in the same breath as Chicago, Baltimore, and Pittsburgh.

They've built it a little too much via free agency from what I'm used to expecting from a premier unit, but it's solid at every level, with pretty good depth at every position. To me, it's a welcome change after all those years of talking about it's "west coast offense" and it's "bend but not break" defense

I know Aaron (?) has called Trufant a system player at times. However, interestingly enough, the Giants were very interested in Trufant and Asomugha, but thought Asante Samuel was a product of NE's schemes.

Ruskell really takes a beating from some 'Hawks fans, but moves like this serve as evidence for me that he knows what he's doing. The only major mistake I've seen him make since coming on board was transitioning Hutchinson, instead of franchising him. And I'd say he takes only a partial ding for that, since Reinfeldt had to have been part of that decision as well. Plus you couldn't really count on quite such an effective poison pill as that crafted by the Vikings--it was a first, and based on the rumored league reaction I'd guess it would be the last.

I'm still not sold on the Seahawks in the Super Bowl next year, but they'll at least continue to be a contender for the next few years. Good move all around.

Most of the guys I hang outwith don't blame the Seahawks for the Hutchison thing. Our feeling is he wanted out of Seattle at any price. Sure the offensive line has completely collapsed, but I don't want to spend a lot of money to watch someone who doesn't want to be a Seahawk play for them. His physical gifts and talent might be missed, but he's not.

Seattle DST is definitely my fantasy sleeper.

I'm not sure how much of the Hutchinson thing was actually on Ruskell. As Insancipitory stated it seems as if Hutch wanted out.

Anyways this is a great move. Tim Ruskell has turned a below-average/bad defense into possibly the best in the NFC.

7: I'm not sure that they're that much of a sleeper, though.

A D/ST for fantasy sleeper? Have fun not winning your league.

The Branch move wasn't good, but if Branch was healthy he'd be a legit #1 in the WCO. He was playing a high level before being injured against Pittsburgh (never looked the same after that).

I don't like the trade, but a healthy Branch would be a huge asset for the Hawks.

At the time, I thought trading a first-rounder for a known commodity at WR to be D-Jack's replacement was a good move.

The problem has been in the results:
2006 -- joined season in progress, timeshare w/ D-Jack and growing pains in WCO
2007 -- some flashes, but couldn't stay on the field
2008 -- 1/2 season at best, likely PUP to IR

I don't recall that Branch was injury-prone prior to the trade, although he may have been. I also don't follow drafts closely enough to say who the 'Hawks could have taken with the pick they traded.

I classify the Branch trade as a good move, made for the right reasons, which hasn't panned out for reasons which were unforeseeable.

Full disclosre: I didn't see the sense in the Kerney acquisition. Oops.

great move by seattle. if they get even a replacement level quality RB, they will be a force to be reckoned with.

re 4: Trufant played with Michael (bust) Boulware (drafted 53rd in 2004) for three years until last year when they signed Russell and Grant. Boulware couldn't crack the Texans starting line-up last year and their pass d sucks. I read somewhere that Trufant was trying to cover for Boulware for the those 3 years, hence his probowl season when he could concentrate on corner.

re 15: Guards not being pushed into the backfield will also help the running game. Too many times Alexander was dodging tackles before he got to the Line.

re Branch trade: Not bad, just unlucky. He's a No.1 receiver so worth a late 1st round pick. This stuff happens.

#15
While I don't really like Julius Jones, I imagine him and Duckett will give the Hawks replacement level production..WOO HOO FOR AVERAGE!!!

Re: 17

Sadly, I second your enthusiasm for the 'Hawks ground game to aspire for average-osity. Last season was simply brutal.

The Branch trade:

Gave up your #24, which the Patriots used to grab Meriweather. The bigger influence is then, since they already had drafted someone, they traded the #28 for the #7 this year.

Seattle could have drafted Meriweather, Beason, Spencer, Meachem, Staley.

Actually, looking back, I wish the Patriots had grabbed Beason. Maybe he wouldn't be a great fit for their 3-4, but I like the way he played.

I think the problem with Branch isn't the first round pick, which is close to fair value for him, but the giant contract they gave him.

The Kerney signing is to replace Grant Wistrom. The defensive backs can hold the receivers from 3-5 seconds at the most.If the pass rush can step up the defense will be great. If Kerney can't stop the run we will need more tackle play inside the ends.Trufant is the only corner in the leaguen who can cover pretty good and the best tackler of them all, never afraid to smash the mix. Hutchinson costed Shaun Alexander his career in Seattle but with Jones from Dallas and back up TJ Duckett the running game will be more hard nosed which as we all no helps the defense. 11-5 no problem in cream puff division!

It doesn't matter who the running back is , the o-line needs to step up, Holmgren has to stop passing on every down. Running is an attitude especially in the NFL. Julius jones is better than Alexander at the buffet after his fat daddy contract. He never ran HARD anyway, always sliding down to prolong his career. He should give most of the $ to Hutchinson which is the biggest blunder besides Rick Mirer for the great Walter Jones(used draft pick) and that blunder belonged to Da Bears and Dave Wanndstadt

re: everyone, true, Jones can bring replacement level. Holmgren passed on every down because every non passing down was an automatic failed play. a high pass rate isnt necessarily a bad thing. Either way, considering the other teams in their division, they will be around for a while.

#22

You just had to bring up the Rick Mirer trade.

There are sizable regions of my brain trying to erase the memory of that trade, and you have to bring it up.

In response to earlier queries about Peterson and Kerney's contracts, they are both on contract through 2012, but the contracts are backloaded pretty hard, so they won't last that long without big restructuring.

Here's a scary fact - the average of Seattle's starting 12 defensive players (including nickelback) is 26.3 years of age, and they are on contract for another 3 years on average. This window of opportunity ain't slamming shut for a few more years.

re 19: Seattle could have drafted Meriweather (S), Beason (LB), Spencer (DE), Meachem (WR), Staley (T).

Only Meachem plays WR and i'm glad we didn't get him as he didn't play a down.

When traded, Branch was a no.1 receiver. If a no.1 receiver is available for a first round draft pick, considering the potential for a pick to be a bust its a no-brainer to make the trade.

click my name for WR's taken in the first two rounds since 2001. There are some great ones, but there's enough busts to justify the trade.

sorry, the link doesn't look like its working

3/SocioJoe:

They’ve built it a little too much via free agency from what I’m used to expecting from a premier unit...

How on earth does that matter in the slightest? Only in evaluating their drafting performance is it relevant, otherwise, it's not important how they acquire the talent.

As a separate statement, here, I'll point out that they were a bit under the radar this past year. Look at their VOA, and it was near tops in the league. DVOA is more accurate, but they couldn't help who they played. Drive stats looked really good. Compared to most other top defenses, they did not enjoy the benefit of anything near average or better offensive time of possession, I think San Diego was an exception, and then they faced more drives than near anyone else, I think Chicago being the exception.

Giving up a 1st round pick for the last 14 games of Deion Branch's contract and then giving him eleventy billion dollars was the worst trade in the history of the NFL.

But I repeat myself.