Big special teams plays help make win a blowout.
by Steve Saslow
Here are our position by position grades:
Quarterback:Trent Edwards overcame a slow start to have a solid game. He finished 19 of 30 for 215 yards and hit Robert Royal for a touchdown. He was hitting passes downfield on occassion and had good control of the team. Grade B+: Nice way to start the season.
Running Backs:Marshawn Lynch had a nice 21 yard touchdown run on an inside draw but he didn't do much else after that. He finished with 76 yards rushing on 18 carries that is still good for 4.2 yards per carry. He also caught three passes for 18 yards. Fred Jackson just played sparingly in this game and finished with 10 carries for 31 yards. Darian Barnes had some nice blocks as he was on the field when the team was playing it close to the vest. Grade C: Will need more production from this unit down the line.
Receivers:Lee Evans made some big catches as he finished with 102 yards on just four catches. He did drop two passes. Roscoe Parrish had three catches for just six yards. Josh Reed had three catches go for 37 yards including a huge 24 yard reception that setup a field goal. James Hardy was used sparingly and did not catch a pass. Robert Royal had a career high six catches for 52 yards and a touchdown. Grade B-: There were some big plays made.
Offensive Line:The line played well without Jason Peters. They gave up one sack as Kirk Chambers was beaten by Patrick Kearney. For the most part he held his own against a great pass rush. Langston Walker played well on the left side but there weren't too many big holes in the running game. Grade B: Gave Edwards time to throw.
Defensive Line:Aaron Schobel had four tackles and a sack as he was near the ball all day. Chris Kelsay was quiet with just one assist but he did have two quarterback hits. Marcus Stroud was in on six tackles, had a half a sack, and knocked down two passes. Kyle Williams had a big day with 1 and a half sacks. Ryan Denney also had a sack. Spencer Johnson had an assist. John McCargo was a surprise inactive. Grade A: Four sacks from this unit just the way they drew it up.
Linebackers:Paul Posluszny had six tackles and defended a pass. Kawika Mitchell was very active with four tackles, a sack, and a quarterback hit. Keith Ellison was quiet in his first start in place of Angelo Crowell. He was in on three tackles. Grade A-: Solid day in holding the rushing attack to 85 yards.
Secondary:The unit shut down the passing game for the most part. It was made easier because the top two recievers for the Seahawks were out and a third got hurt in this game. Terrence McGee had six tackles and an interception. Jabari Greer gave up the only Seahawks touchdown but was solid in coverage all game long. Ashton Youboty picked up where he left off in the preseason, he led the team with eight tackles. Donte Whitner had six tackles and Ko Simpson had four. Grade A: Shutdown Matt Hasselbeck giving up less than 200 yards passing.
Special Teams:Brian Moorman was a busy man as he punted nine times for an average of 46.6 yards per punt. He also threw a touchdown pass on a perfect deception play to Ryan Denney. Rian Lindell hit field goals from 35 and 38 yards out. He had a 52 yarder blocked but did recover a fumble forced by Jon Corto . Terrence McGee had one kickoff return and it went for 27 yards. Roscoe Parrish had the big 63 yard punt return for a score. He averaged 20 yards on his six returns in all. Grade A+: The most dominating unit on the field.
Coaching:Dick Jauron had his team ready and disciplined. They were flagged for just one penalty. Turk Schonert kept things a bit wide open despite the weather. The blocking schemes compensated nicely for the missing Peters Grade A+: Nice way to start the season with a win.
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