Thoughts on Matt Flynn

Let's face it, the Packers are going to use the Franchise Tag on Matt Flynn this off-season. They would be crazy not to. Using the tag ensures that they will receive some sort of compensation for their back-up QB—instead of letting him walk-away in free agency for nothing.

It mirrors the move that the Patriots made with Matt Cassel, trading him for a 2nd round pick after tagging him.

That said, I don't think it is worth it to give up a high pick for an unproven, 27 year old talent. Look what happened to Arizona last year with Kevin Kolb. They gave up a 2nd rounder and a starting corner and got a 2-6 record and a QB controversy in return. The media is speculating that the cost for Flynn could be a first rounder given the fact that 4 to 6 teams may be interested. If tagged, I hope the Hawks sit this one out.

I would be all for signing Flynn as a free agent though, as all you would be risking are salary cap dollars. The Hawks have a ton of room under the cap (30 million?) and will free up more money once Misters Whitehurst and Trufant are no longer with the team. CW's 4 million will be off the books and Tru's 2012 salary is 7.3 million which I didn't think the Hawks would pay (see post) even before Browner and Sherman emerged as bonafide starters.

I would hate to see the front office give up a top pick or picks for a big unknown—given that the team still has room to improve at a number of positions. Maybe the failed Charlie Whitehurst experiment will prevent it from happening again.

Practice Cancelled?!?

So the Seahawks have been practicing for all of two weeks and Captain Khaki (er, Pete Carroll) cancelled practice this afternoon. He says the boys are tired. What makes no sense is the fact that they no longer "hit" twice a day and that most of the practices are essentially walkthroughs with shoulder pads and helmets only. I would hope that such a young team would take advantage of every allotted opportunity to be on the field given the new offense and the youth of this team. Oh yeah, tomorrow is the players day off as stipulated in the new CBA. This is not your father's NFL.

I sure hope we see a full half of the offensive starters Saturday night. They need the work in the new system and it would be nice to get a feel for how Tarvaris manages the game under center. In the next two games I would like to see:

• Q1: Jackson
• Q2: Jackson
• Q3: Whitehurst
• Q4: Portis

I hope T-Jack can excel in this offense as I love his speed, but I didn't see much poise last week when pressured. There will be pressure with a right side of the line being rookies and a Tyler Polumbus in for Okung. If, after game 3, Jackson seems behind Whitehurst, then it's time for a switch and CW can start the last preseason game and head into the season as the starter. I liked the way Whitehurst hung in the pocket last week and made the pass, while Jackson seemed to panic too quickly. It's probably not a fair comparison as Stanback and Tate are not exactly elite receivers.

Seahawks in the news:

Mike Florio's PFT Live interview with GM John Schneider

The mystery, wrapped inside the enigma that is Charlie Whitehurst by Danny O'Neil

The real reason fans bring binoculars to games