Monday 2 March 2009

Path to the draft - Crabtree concerns?

Perhaps coincidentally, the NFL Network's path to the draft today discussed the latest on Michael Crabtree and his current stock. Drawing reference to Seattle's signing of T.J. Houshmandzadeh today, the suggestion was made that the Seahawks would no longer be interested in adding another wide receiver via the draft. But as Charles Davis says, "this guy's big league". Seattle might not 'need' to aggressively pursue Crabtree, but he shouldn't be ruled out completely.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Rob...do u think the Seahawks would have a greater chance of winning the superbowl if we took a O-Linemen or Michael Crabtree with our 4th pick, or trading down and getting Moreno? Im thinking Crabtree or Moreno since they are more of an impact player, but Im not very sure.

And also, with whoever u think would help us the most(crabtree....moreno...OL, etc), what do u think our chances of winning the superbowl?
im thinking that if we sign Crabtree and he has no lingering effects with his foot, I think we have about a 1 in 11 shot in winning the superbowl. Does that sound about rite?

Thanks

Anonymous said...

As I stated in my previous post, I hope signing Houshmandzadeh is only step one in the rebuilding of the offense. I'm praying they still draft Crabtree, if he's there, and also take an interior OL in the 2nd round. Ruskell always preaches drafting best available rather than drafting for "need." Now that we have TJ, it has simply put us on the other side of the coin, but the theory still applies. Now, instead of worrying about "reaching" for Crabtree out of "need," we need to make sure we don't pass him up because we don't have that need anymore (which I still think we do, as you stated in your post about the need for depth at WR). If he's the best available player, you have to take Crabtree. The Vikings didn't "need" Adrian Peterson, but I don't think anyone would say they made a mistake in taking him (this is just one example mind you). Also, ask Arizona if having 2 or 3 stand out WR's is a bad idea. With TJ and Crabtree on the outside, move Branch into the slot, along with Carlson, that's a suddenly explosive offense. Plus, we still need a deep threat (TJ is not a field stretcher) to help open the run game, and keep opposing defenses from stacking the box. Crabtree is explosive and can make the big plays (regardless of his 40 time, he's someone you have to gameplan for). Hopefully the minds in the Seahawks organization are thinking along the same lines as myself. Thanks for all the info Rob, keep up the good work.

Anonymous said...

yea nice post Chris....i have been in love with Crabtree ever since i saw his numbers in during mid season and although it killed me to do so, i actually rooted for us to lose that last game of the season against arizona. Although im a die hard Seahawks fan, i think that lost did better than a win would. A win in a meaningless season doesnt really do much, but a loss was the difference between a 4th overall pick and a 6th overall pick...I too am praying that the Seahawks will pick Crabtree. If they somehow trade out of the top 5 which i seem is unlikely because not a lot of teams would be willing to trade up because there really isnt a clear choice at 4th, but if we can I would rather get Moreno + another pick if we cannot get Crabtree.

Anonymous said...

Tight...i just made a new blog bout the seahawks!

http://seahawks2009.blogspot.com/

=D

Anonymous said...

I would love to see Ruskell get Crabtree at #4. We need to look to the future. If we don't get Crabs then I would hope we trade down if possible.

Rob Staton said...

Louis, I think it's hard to predict whether going for an offensive linemen or a wide receiver will actually help the team more in terms of getting to a Super Bowl. You could argue the case for either - but essentially getting to the Super Bowl is all about peaking at the right time.

T.J. Houshmandzadeh has proved that playing alongside another talented (yet outspoken) receiver he can be ultra productive. In all fairness to Deion Branch and Nate Burleson, if you put Crabtree and Houshmandzadeh together and perhaps had Branch in the slot - throw Carlson into the mix and a problem from last year is very much a strength. But not many teams carry that much cap room at wide out. It seems a stretch to expect Crabtree, Houshmandzadeh, Burleson and Branch to be on the same roster mainly because each would be coming at a premium price. But the Seahawks didn't want to be hand cuffed going into the draft and now they are not. If Crabtree is top of their board when they are on the clock, I expect they will still pull the trigger.

To win the Super Bowl, the Seahawks need to get healthy, recharge their offense completely and get the defense playing to at least a 2007 level. That will be a tall order coming off a 4-12 season.