Grip on Sports: Seahawks’ Russell Wilson is paying the price for a bargain-basement offensive line

A GRIP ON SPORTS • Ever have a day when you just don’t want to go to work? When it’s hard to get out of bed? To drag yourself to the shower? And then you pick up the newspaper or peruse your phone and viola, some news about the Seahawks gets you revitalized? Me neither. Read on.

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• Right now the Hawks are winning. They have one of the best records in the NFC. They are Super Bowl contenders. It just doesn’t seem like it. And that, my friends, is why offensive lines are so important.

Seattle’s defense is among the best in the NFL. The receiver corps is solid, the quarterback less so, physically right now, but when healthy is a top-five guy. The special teams are usually pro-bowl caliber.

But the offensive line? Here’s all you need to know about that group. With the starting left tackle injured (more on that in about 500 words), the Hawks may start a former college basketball player in his stead. Yes, you read that right. A guy who was defending the paint a couple years ago is now charged with defending Russell Wilson’s back side.

How did we get to this point? Heck, rookie free agent George Fant may just be the best left tackle ever. It’s possible. But we don’t have any past performance to point to, as he really hasn’t played enough to have a “past performance” to point to.

This is the NFL these days, where the salary cap and the demands of the stars mean every team must scrimp somewhere.

The Seahawks decided to do it on the offensive line. It’s worked for the past few years mainly because Wilson was elusive and indestructible. That’s a great combination. But this season he has been destructible and now is no longer elusive. And he may not have a healthy throwing arm, showing up on the injury report yesterday with a pectoral muscle problem. Add that to his ankle and knee injuries and you have one old-man-looking quarterback.

So Seahawks fans dream of Joe Thomas or Joe Staley. They pine for a trade for a veteran left tackle with the potential of improving the offensive line. And they wonder if John Schneider will change his previous practice and, you know, actually spend a dollar or two on the position.

The smart money is on not. So that makes me believe Schneider, who is anything if not unpredictable – Percy Harvin and Jimmy Graham anyone – may just pull a rabbit out of his hat the next week or two. Either that or Bradley Sowell will miraculously heal – maybe Pete Carroll will clap his hands together a la Mr. Miyagi and Sowell will be immediately cured – enough to play.

• The Pac-12 office has been silent this week on the embarrassing actions of Arizona State’s Todd Graham in Saturday night’s postgame handshake.

(By the way, don’t click on this link to the video unless you have no problem with a few barnyard epithets. You can hear them pretty clearly.)

We wrote about this Sunday. Today, Jacob Thorpe throws his thoughts into the ring and uses the conference’s rules of decorum to explain why what Graham was caught doing should elicit a response. A monetary response.

But there has been nothing from Larry Scott, the commissioner of champions.

Maybe he’s busy negotiating with DirecTV. Maybe he’s working on setting up a consortium of western conferences to handle discipline. Or maybe he doesn’t want to anger longtime Arizona State president Michael Crow.

If nothing happens than we know the conference has no problem with its football coaches cussing each other out at midfield after games. On its own network.

Wait, I get it now. That’s how the Pac-12 is going to get DirectTV on board. “The Real Coaches of the Pac-12.” It’s ratings gold.

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• WSU: So what else is going on in Pullman? Jacob has the news Robert Barber (pictured) was not at practice yesterday and it looks as if his appeal of a school-imposed suspension was denied. … Jacob also has his Pac-12 picks, video of post-practice conversations with Leach and assistant coach Ken Wilson, and a transcript of yesterday’s live chat on SportsLink. … Oregon State understands California’s version of the Air Raid is quite a bit different than Washington State’s. … On the basketball front, the Register-Guard examines Ernie Kent’s team heading into his third season in Pullman. … The Times’ Stefanie Loh examines Barber’s case today and compares WSU’s student conduct system to Washington’s.

Elsewhere in the Pac-12, there is a lot of consensus on this week’s games, which begin tonight at USC. California, who hasn’t defeated the Trojans in Los Angeles in years, is coming off a short week while USC had a bye. … When Washington, a big favorite, faces off with Utah on Saturday, it will be after ESPN’s college football marquee show has aired from Salt Lake City. … Will Royce Freeman get back on track against Arizona State’s defense? … Stanford has a tendency to bully smaller teams, something Arizona has had to deal with in the past. … Colorado and UCLA are on a bye week schedule this week. … The conference is known for quarterback play. This season it is known for the quarterbacks who aren’t playing. … Chris Petersen may make a whole bunch of bonus money this season.

• Gonzaga: Hawaii and the Zags go together like chocolate and macadamia nuts. And they’ll come together again in 2018. Jim Meehan has the story of a tournament that will happen in more than two years. … BYU held a fan-friendly scrimmage and four freshmen took the spotlight.

• EWU: Defeating Montana is a tall task every year, but this year, with 6-foot-7 quarterback Brady Gustafson (pictured) at the controls of a potent offense, it is even taller. Jim Allen has more in his Big Sky notebook. … Around the rest of the conference, the Griz also know they are in for a tough one on the road. … Northern Arizona’s starting quarterback won’t return this season. … With basketball season about to tipoff, there are stories from Montana State, North Dakota, Southern Utah and Cal Poly to pass along.

• Idaho: Faith is what powers Vandal linebacker Kaden Elliss. He made that clear to Josh Wright and Josh passes it on as part of this feature about the sophomore.

• Chiefs: Make it two consecutive road wins as Spokane rolled Saskatoon 6-2 last night.

• Preps: It’s Thursday, so Greg Lee has a feature on a local athlete. Today’s introduces us to a four-year starter for Central Valley, a football player who is about to end his career. … The Bears and Travis Hawkins will face seventh-ranked Gonzaga Prep on Friday with the GSL 4A title on the line. Greg has an advance. … Both Greg and Sam Adams expect G-Prep to win. … Idaho’s state volleyball tournaments are this weekend.

• Seahawks: So who are the most underrated, most important guys? Dave Boling nominates two. … Guess what? There was a roster move yesterday and an old standby was brought back. … Richard Sherman, a Hogwarts man.

• Sounders: The MLS playoffs opened last night – I know, no one knew – but the Sounders don’t get underway until tonight against Sporting Kansas City. It’s win or go home. … Real Salt Lake lost to the L.A. Galaxy. … The two Portland players arrested for DUI apologized yesterday.

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• The Hawks’ season may just hinge on if an only somewhat mobile Russell Wilson can survive. That’s scary. Until later …