THE CHEAP SEATS WITH STEVE CAMERON: Seahawks' 'weapon' jams at inopportune time
A look at the scoreboard told the sorry truth.
Green Bay and New Orleans were putting crucial games in the bag, thus making the Seahawks’ 26-23 victory over the 49ers meaningless.
Until, suddenly...
It wasn’t meaningless at all.
On a blitz in the fourth quarter, safety Jamal Adams – one of Seattle’s emotional leaders and a bona fide star – got clipped as he was roaring in from the right side of the defense.
The block by San Francisco running back Jerick McKinnon wasn’t a crusher, by any means.
It was like getting jostled in a crowd while trying to catch a bus.
In fact, McKinnon was just trying to get enough of Adams to re-route him away from quarterback C.J. Beathard.
The contact seemed like nothing.
Except…
McKinnon accidentally grazed a terribly unfortunate spot on Adams’ shoulder – causing him to grimace while still on the field, and then act decidedly miserable once off to the sidelines.
LET’S PUT this into perspective.
As background, remember that Adams – for whom the Seahawks handed the Jets a package involving two first-round draft picks – already had missed three games this season with a groin injury.
Adams also had recent history concerning his shoulder, the OTHER one, from a knock earlier in the season.
But despite the injuries, one serious and the other just a little scary, Adams this year broke the NFL season record for sacks by a defensive back with a whopping 9 1/2.
But the timing of this latest problem…
Consider: The Seahawks didn’t get any help on Sunday, as both the Packers and Saints locked up the top two spots in the NFC playoffs – meaning that Seattle faces a rematch with the Rams this coming Saturday.
The Rams have won five of the last seven meetings between these teams, so Seattle didn’t exactly get a lovely favor for winning the NFC West title.
Rams QB Jared Goff (bruised or broken thumb) may or may not play as the teams bang heads again, but the Seahawks obviously assume Goff will go, and…
They fervently hope that Adams – last seen slamming his helmet to the turf near the end of the 49ers game – can tee it up on Saturday.
WITH ALL due respect to backup safety Ryan Neal, who actually has played very well during Adams’ absences, there really is no substitute for Jamal’s combination of versatility, intelligence, and a contagious fire that ripples through the Seattle defense.
Adams, after all, is the guy who rejects the idea of being listed as a strong safety.
“I should just be called a weapon,” he says.
Let’s simplify it…
If Adams can go full speed (along with tackle Jarran Reed, who suffered a painful-looking oblique injury around the same time as Adams was getting nicked), the Seahawks defense has a great chance to stay in rhythm.
This is a gang that played historically awful football for the first few games – mostly with Adams out -- but over the past two months has begun to look like a group with tickets to the Super Bowl.
To play, not just watch it.
So?
IS THERE a prognosis on Adams?
“We’ll see what that means for next week,” coach Pete Carroll said. “I can’t tell you.
“The early stuff from the trainers (is) that he’ll play next week, but we’ll have to see…
“How does he get through the week?”
Needless to say, Adams will insist on playing against the Rams unless he’s confined to a wheelchair.
Until Adams and Reed got hurt on Sunday, everything seemed to be falling into place for the Seahawks – on both sides of the ball.
For instance, QB Russell Wilson decided not to kneel down and let the clock run out in the final seconds against San Francisco, choosing instead to complete a quick, safe little shovel pass to receiver David Moore.
How come?
It turns out that Moore needed one more catch (it was his 35th for the season) to bag a $100,000 bonus.
There is a very, very good feel around the Seahawks, who enter the playoffs with a reasonably legit shot to win it all.
Their formula, however, assumes that Jamal Adams is out there playing safety.
Oh, sorry…
Playing “weapon.”
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Steve Cameron’s “Cheap Seats” columns appear in The Press on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. “Moments, Memories and Madness,” his reminiscences from several decades as a sports journalist, runs each Sunday. Steve also writes Zags Tracker, a commentary on Gonzaga basketball which is published each Tuesday.