A Grip on Sports: The NFL’s weekend kept us enthralled until the very last turnover – and for good reason

A GRIP ON SPORTS • Where were we? Oh, right. It was a win-win weekend for the Seahawks. Or a win-lose, if that’s the way you want to look at it.

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• We put ourselves through the torture of Monday Night Football on ESPN not because we love to hear Troy Aikman’s commentary. Or want to marvel at that eighth wonder of the NFL, So-Fi Stadium. We did it because we are really interested in the Seahawks’ draft next April.

And one of their picks was playing. Not literally, of course, but every time the Broncos take the field this season, every Seahawk fan worth their 12th-man sweatshirt needs to be rooting for their opponent.

The one living in our house certainly was Monday night. And, as happened Sunday, his voodoo was rewarded. Though it took most of overtime period to happen.

The Broncos and Russell Wilson lost. After scoring – checks notes – all of 16 points. No way. Not with Wilson, the guy whose trade made the draft pick possible, in charge of the offense. OK, well at least they were playing the Los Angeles Chargers, who had the – checks notes, what, really? – 23rd-best defense in the NFL coming into the game.

Huh. The Broncos are 2-4, tied with a zillion other teams for the third-worst record in the NFL. There is a chance their first-round pick could be among the top five. A chance that seems to improve by the week.

Now if only the Hawks could uphold their end of the bargain.

They had a chance Sunday. A chance for a lose-win game. You know, lose to a cruddy team – the Arizona Cardinals certainly apply – and win come April with a higher selection. But no.

Pete Carroll had to go and fix the defense. Play Cody Barton less (though we are no way implying that was the only reason Seattle’s defense played more like Brie than Swiss cheese). Watch rookie cornerback Tariq Woolen pick off another pass. Hold Arizona to nine points.

The 16-9 win lifted the Hawks to 3-3. They are tied for first in the NFC West, though, if you want to be a stickler for such things, the loss to San Francisco costs them a tiebreaker, so the 49ers are ahead. That’s good in one way, of course, but bad in another.

We are going to beat this drum for a while. Unless the Broncos collapse and begin to lose every week – it’s possible – then the Hawks would be better off down the road not finishing 9-8 or 8-9 or somewhere in the muddled middle of the league. Pick 14 in the first round is usually not going to bring a team a player that can win a game by himself. First? Second? Third, even? Sure. But the further down the draft one falls, the more of a crapshoot it becomes.

Though the Hawks’ brain trust of John Schneider and Carroll seemed to do a pretty good job in last year’s draft. Don’t just take our word for it. Read Dave Boling’s column from Sunday’s game. He knows a heck of a lot more about the NFL than we do, so we’ll defer to him.

Five rookies started. Another came off the bench to play a big role. All were either darn good or pretty good – and have been all season.

The Seahawks’ drafts since the early Schneider/Carroll years haven’t been exceptional. Far from it. But the franchise needed one this year. They seemed to have produced it, with help from the Broncos’ picks. They’ll need to do the same next April. And the worse Denver does, the better off Seattle is.

The game plan for the 12s each Sunday is simple. And getting even easier by the week. Head in ready to cheer on the Broncos’ opponent, whoever it is. Send good vibes their way.

And then root for the Hawks. But be ready with your handy, dandy, “well, at least we get a better pick” Monopoly card if they lose. It helps ease the pain. And, actually, is not a bad mantra to live by. Until next April.

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WSU: It’s a bye week for the Cougs. But before Colton Clark heads over the Beasley to watch basketball or takes a day or two off, he spent some time looking back at the indifferent effort in Corvallis. Not Washington State’s best, that’s for sure. … Elsewhere in the Pac-12 and college football, Jon Wilner covers the point spreads for the week and the power rankings, both in the Mercury News. … One of the biggest plays of the win over Arizona for Washington came courtesy of Gonzaga Prep grad Devin Culp. … Will the win at Notre Dame turn around Stanford’s season? … The big game this weekend pits host Oregon against undefeated UCLA. The Ducks may get players back. … Oregon State’s starting quarterback is still out. … There will not be many changes for Colorado this week. … Like Washington State, Utah is also in a bye this week. The two meet after it is over. … USC has to bounce back from loss at Utah. … Arizona also has a bye this week before hosting USC in homecoming … In basketball news, Colorado is halfway through preseason practice.

Gonzaga: OK, there is a lot to unpack today. We start with the Associated Press top-25 poll being released Monday. And the Zags not ranked No. 1. Oh, the horror. Well, they have been in that spot the past couple years, so it seems a bit odd they are – checks note once more – ranked second. What a tragedy. And, yes, we are joking. Anyhow, Theo Lawson has the news GU is behind North Carolina in the opening poll. … Now we get into the meat of the day. A multi-story series concerning former Gonzaga players in the NBA. Theo starts it by looking at the nine players on rosters. Then he delves into Andrew Nembhard’s path. And covers how to watch all nine play this season. He also has one of those fun build-your-own-lineup things. … There is also this Jim Meehan story from earlier on Brandon Clarke and his new contract. … Before we leave this subject, there is also a story on Jalen Suggs, who missed most of his rookie season.

EWU and Idaho: Around the Big Sky, no rest for Montana. Next up is a game on the road at undefeated Sacramento State. … The other great matchup this Saturday has Montana State hosting undefeated Weber State. … Idaho State has not been coming off a win in a while.

Preps: Yes, it is playoff time. First off are the slowpitch playoffs. Dave Nichols has a preview of the postseason tournament which begins today. … Dave also has a roundup of Monday’s action around the area. … The success of local high-school-age swimmers leads off the S-R’s most recent local briefs column.

Seahawks: Yes, the defense played better Sunday. But that doesn’t mean it was perfect. … Matt Calkins thinks the Hawks could be a playoff team. Is that that best thing? … There are a lot of reasons Seattle drafted Kenneth Walker III.

Mariners: The season did not end the way the M’s wanted, but it was an exceptionally fun one.

Kraken: Another home game, another home loss. What, is the ice bumpy in Seattle or what?

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• What a wild few days. A trip to the doctor on Friday for a neck issue that is slowly getting better. A lot of trips to the refrigerator Sunday for a couple gallons of the worst lemonade ever. A trip to the doctor on Monday for the procedure everyone over 40 hates. And now, a Tuesday morning highlighted by the arborist and his group cleaning up our beautiful trees. Hope they don’t have any polyps. Until later …