This Sunday Qwest Field will be buzzing like the electrical transformers your parents warned you as a kid to stay away from.
Caution: High Voltage!
The electricity generated from the match-up between the Seattle Seahawks and the San Diego Chargers, all obvious puns aside, will be palpable.
The Chargers enter this week beat-up at runningback which means it is up to star quarterback Phillip Rivers to shred the already questionable Seahawks secondary. San Diego's first round pick, Ryan Matthews, has a high ankle sprain and is out for Sunday. Despite the lack of a solid running option, the Chargers would look to pass often anyhow.
San Diego will pass early and often for two reasons; the Seahawks have proved they can stop the run and the Chargers wide receivers all stand at least two inches taller than any Seahawks defender. Their top two receivers, Legedu Naanee and Malcom Floyd are 6'2 and 6'5 respectively and San Diego's dynamic tight end Antonio Gates stands at 6'4.
Did I mention that the quarterback Rivers is 6'5? That height is very impressive and a huge challenge for the vertically challenged Seahawks secondary who can't boast anyone over 6' tall. Look for lob passes and routes where Chargers receivers can use their athletic ability to jump straight up and snag the ball out of the air over helpless defenders.
Much of the electrical current will pulse from the stands at Qwest Field. The Seahawk players are fortunate to have the best fans in football because they literally provide energy to the team for all four quarters. Seattle fan's impact on the game is no joke considering the team's high home winning percentage and the excessive false starts incurred by the visitors (3.2/per game).
An interesting side note to San Diego being in town this week is their recent trade with Seattle involving the much-ado-about-nothing, Charlie Whitehurst. The Seahawks traded for Whitehurst during this year's NFL Draft as an insurance policy for oft injured quarterback, Matt Hasselbeck.
The timing is quite dramatic because of Hasselbeck's struggle to pass to the right colored jersey recently. The easy answer for fans is to call for a change at quarterback but it is hardly that simple. Smartly, head coach Pete Carroll said this week that "Matt is our guy". You just can't convince me that Whitehurst should step in when Hasselbeck is healthy.
Fortunately for the Chargers, their quarterback is young and capable of great things every time he steps onto the field. Thus, they didn't sweat the "loss" of Whitehurst to a desperate team like Seattle.
The Seahawks have their hands full this weekend but as it's been proven time and time again; Seattle is capable of short-circuiting opponents at home behind an electric crowd.
No comments:
Post a Comment