On Sunday, the Seahawks finish their regular-season home schedule with a visit from the Vikings.
Last Sunday, Lumen Field was infiltrated by Cheeseheads. Will the next game feature an outbreak of the SKOL clap?
“We still need them to come out and be supportive,” Seattle receiver DK Metcalf told reporters on Wednesday regarding the home fans. “I know in the first quarter, second or third play of the game, it got crazy loud in there. I looked around and there were a lot of Green Bay fans. They did a great job traveling, but just wishing us 12s didn’t sell as many tickets as they did to make sure we kept the home-field advantage. But yeah, man, it would mean a lot just to take this last one home and finish off the season strong so we can play again in front of them in the playoffs.”
It’s surprising that Seahawks fans have lost so much of their fanaticism. Given, however, that they got their long-coveted Super Bowl win in 2013, it’s on the team to give them reasons to keep showing up in search of another.
Who on the Seahawks provides excitement? Who’s selling the team locally? Say what you will about Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, but he knows how to generate interest in his team. Seahawks owner Jody Allen doesn’t do that.
Really, the Seahawks have no one who is willing or able to make the case for 12s to not sell their tickets. Who’s the face of the franchise? Who’s the one motivating the fans to show up and get loud?
Winning definitely moves the needle. It helps to have someone move the needle even when the team isn’t a championship contender.
Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald had another positive update on quarterback Geno Smith during his Wednesday press conference.
Macdonald told reporters that Smith participated in walk-through and will participate in the day’s practice.
“Geno feels good,” Macdonald said, via Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times. “We’ll see how many reps [he gets]. We have a plan for practice, we’ll see how it kind of alters his practice reps, but he’ll be out there for a significant capacity today. We’ll see how many reps he takes.”
Smith suffered a right knee injury during Sunday night’s loss to the Packers, with Sam Howell finishing the game at QB.
Smith has started every game this season, completing 70 percent of his passes for 3,623 yards with 14 touchdowns and 13 interceptions.
Macdonald also noted that the team is “optimistic” about running back Kenneth Walker’s availability.
“We’ll see about how many reps today, but [he] did walk-through,” Macdonald said, via Brady Henderson of ESPN. “We’ll probably ramp it up a little bit more tomorrow.”
The Seahawks’ full injury report will be released later on Wednesday.
The Seahawks added some depth to their offensive line on Wednesday.
They announced that they have activated tackle Stone Forsythe from their injured reserve list. Forsythe, who has been sidelined by a hand injury, takes the roster spot that the Seahawks opened by waiving cornerback Artie Burns earlier this week.
Forsythe started eight games for the Seahawks last season and he made five starts at right tackle before this year’s injury. The 2021 sixth-round pick has made 50 overall appearances for Seattle.
George Fant, Michael Jerrell, and Abraham Lucas have also started at right tackle this season. Lucas is currently the starter and Charles Cross is on the left side of the line.
With Kirk Cousins heading to the bench in Atlanta, it’s safe to say his time with the team is over. Unless Michael Penix Jr. suffers a serious injury down the stretch — or unless the Falcons can’t trade Cousins in the offseason and decide to keep him as the backup — he’ll be elsewhere in 2025.
As we pointed out many times after the Falcons shocked the football-following world and used the eighth overall pick not on a player who would help Cousins win but on his eventual replacement, the front-loaded deal gives them an easy out after one year. If, that is, he’s willing to waive his no-trade clause.
The Falcons will pay Cousins $62.5 million for 2024. Cousins has a fully-guaranteed salary of $27.5 million for 2025, with another $10 million that becomes fully guaranteed in 2026 on the fifth day of the 2025 league year. As veteran quarterbacks go, $27.5 million is less than the top of the current market, which hit $60 million with the Dak Prescott deal.
It’s also possible the Falcons would pay some of the money to facilitate a trade.
First, someone has to want to trade for Cousins. Based on his performance this year, that might not be a given. Father Time quite possibly did what he inevitably does to all players after Cousins threw four touchdown passes on November 3 against the Cowboys. In five games since, he has one touchdown pass and nine interceptions. His passer rating has fallen under 80 in each of those games.
Second, Cousins has to be willing to waive his no-trade clause. Maybe he’ll dig in his heels, happily taking $27.5 million to be Penix’s backup in 2025 and otherwise daring the Falcons to cut him.
A trade before June 1 would trigger a 2025 cap charge of $37.5 million. That’s still lower than his $40 million cap number for next year, and it saves $27.5 million in cash.
Cutting him with a post-June 1 designation would trigger a $40 million charge, but the Falcons would get credit for whatever he earns elsewhere, even if it’s only the league minimum.
Not many teams will be looking for a starter in the offseason. The current candidates are the Jets, Browns (if they can get him cheap), Steelers (if they don’t re-sign Russell Wilson or Justin Fields), Titans, Raiders, Giants, Saints, and perhaps the Seahawks.
Then there’s the 49ers. With Brock Purdy not ascending the way many had hoped, coach Kyle Shanahan might finally reunite with the player that Kyle and his father, Mike, drafted in 2012 as the insurance policy to Robert Griffin III.
Finally, don’t rule out the Rams. Cousins is still a younger option than Matthew Stafford, and coach Sean McVay (who like Shanahan worked with Cousins in Washington) has high regard for Cousins.
The Seahawks brought cornerback Artie Burns back to their active roster over the weekend, but it turned out to be a short stay for the veteran.
Burns was inactive for their Sunday night loss to the Packers and the Seahawks announced that they have waived Burns on Tuesday. Burns had been on injured reserve and he appeared in one game earlier this season.
Burns had two tackles in that game and he had 23 tackles in 14 appearances for Seattle last season.
The Seahawks did not add any players to the 53-man roster, so they have an open spot heading into Week 16.
