Mariners, Garko agree on one year contract

Not the biggest bat available but Ryan Garko fits the Mariners perfectly. On Monday the former Indian and Giant came to an agreement with the Seattle Mariners on a one year contract worth 550,000.

Garko can earn another 525,000 in bonuses if he makes 600 plate appearances, something Garko has never done in his career.

With the addition of Garko to the Mariners roster he figures to be in competition with Casey Kotchman for the starting first baseman in 2010 as well as a platoon in LF, DH, 1B and a last ditch catcher should the M's need one, which doesn't look likely.

In a conference call with the Seattle media Monday Garko explained his reasoning for choosing Seattle.

"It's pretty obvious I'm here to help against left-handed pitching, whether as a first baseman or DH, and be around to catch if the situation comes up."

Garko is a career .278 hitter with 55 career homeruns and a .351 OBP to go along with a career .441 slugging percentage.

With the addition of Ryan Garko to the Mariners lineup, they now have created a log jam of outfield/infield talent going into spring training.

Currently on the projected bench would be Michael Saunders, Ryan Langerhans, Ken Griffey Jr. (DH), Jack Hannahan, Matt Tuiasosopo, Mike Carp, and either or Ryan Garko/Casey Kotchman, unless they decided to split time this season at first base.

The Mariners still have one or two more moves to make regarding their starting rotation with Erik Bedard and Jarrod Washburn still unsigned free agents.

Bedard looks to do what Ben Sheets did. Take a year off from baseball, get 100 percent healthy and then sign a $8-$10 million dollar contract in 2011.

Jarrod Washburn on the other hand has been linked in recent days to be high on the Mariners list, and Washburn would prefer to reup with Seattle considering his first half stats before being traded to Detroit last season.

He turned down a one year, $5 million dollar offer from the Minnesota Twins so it could be that he either ways $6+ million on a one year deal OR he wants to sign with Seattle for $5 million.

So the next move to watch out for is Jarrod Washburn to the Seattle Mariners.

NOTE: the Mariners designated RHP Gaby Hernandez for assignment to make room for Garko.

Seahawks add Richard, Ulbrich to coaching staff

As the final touches are being made on Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll's coaching
staff there are two more names being added on.

Former Seahawk and USC Trojan DB coach Kris Richard will join Carroll as the assistant defensive backs coach to Jerry Gray (Seahawks DB coach).

Also joining the staff is former San Francisco 49ers linebacker Jeff Ulbrich who will serve as the teams assistant special teams coach to Brian Scheider.

As of now here is the current coaching staff under Pete Carroll.

Offense:

Offensive coordinator: Jeremy Bates
Quarterbacks coach: Jedd Fisch
Running backs coach: Sherman Smith
Wide receivers coach: Kippy Brown
Tight ends coach: Pat McPherson
Offensive line: Alex Gibbs
Assistant offensive line: Art Valero

Defense:

Defensive coordinator: Gus Bradley
Defensive line coach: Dan Quinn
Linebackers coach: Ken Norton Jr.
Secondary coach: Jerry Gray
Assistant secondary coach: Kris Richard

Special teams and strength and condition:

Special teams coach: Brian Scheider
Assistant special teams coach: Jeff Ulbrich
Strength and conditioning coach: Chris Carlisle
Assistant strength and conditioning coach: Jamie Yanchar

Now all the pieces have been put in place on Pete Carroll's coaching staff. Next up for the head man along with GM John Schneider is to begin scouting and evaluating their own players, senior bowl players as well as possible free agent targets.

NOTE: Patrick Kerney has not retired according to two sources in Seattle. There was no retirement party and no papers have been put through the league office.

You can follow Lars at Twitter http://twitter.com/larshanson

Check out Lars’ sports blog: http://hansonsportsblog.blogspot.com/

Mariners, Byrnes agree on one-year contract

On Friday the Mariners and GM Jack Zduriencik went back to his "buy low, end up high" mentality when the team came to an agreement on a one year contract with free agent outfielder Eric Byrnes.

Byrnes, who turns 34 in February of this year, will be entering his tenth year in the majors, with his third team in his career.

The signing of Byrnes gives the Mariners a much needed right-handed bat to most likely come off the bench this season.

In 2009 Byrnes played in only 84 games for the Arizona Diamondbacks with eight homeruns, 26 runs, 54 hits and 31 RBI's.

Byrnes has a career .321 OBP, .442 slugging percentage and a .763 OPS.

Eric Byrnes is out to prove to the Mariners and the rest of the league that he is once again healthy, something he hasn't been in two years since he signed a three year $30 million dollar contract with the Diamondbacks.

Byrnes said in a conference call with Seattle reporters that he was "I just needed a team to believe in me half as much as I believe in myself".

With the Seattle Mariners Brynes he feels like he has that belief.

The addition of Byrnes adds another notable name to the list of top off season acquisitions with the likes of Chone Figgins, Cliff Lee, Milton Bradley, Casey Kotchman as well as the extensions of Felix Hernandez and Franklin Gutierrez.

With this "believe big" motto for 2010 it's clear that Don Wakamatsu and Jack Zduriencik are doing more than aiming for a division title in 2010.

NOTE: The Mariners designated Tommy Everidge for assignment to make room for Byrnes on the roster.

You can follow Lars at Twitter http://twitter.com/larshanson

Seahawks draft prospect: CB Joe Haden

As Pete Carroll, John Schneider and the rest of the Seahawks scouting department prepare for the senior bowl this Saturday in Mobile Alabama to get a look at some of the top seniors in this draft class I’ve decided to go break down a highly touted junior, corner back Joe Haden.

The Seahawks currently have major needs in their entire defensive backfield, mostly at the second corner position and safety.

Marcus Trufant was placed on the PUP list to begin the season which meant that he would miss the first eight weeks of the season, which inevitably wound up hurting his overall play. Trufant was flagged at least eight times for pass interference calls this season, the highest in his career.

However with Trufant being 100 percent healthy now and moving forward the Seahawks don’t really have a stand out corner opposite of Trufant.

Here is the current list of corners’ for the Seahawks.

Marcus Trufant, Josh Wilson, Kelly Jennings, Ken Lucas (UFA) and Roy Lewis

When you look at that list the only real name that jumps out as a great corner would be Trufant. Josh Wilson I see a much better fit as a safety because he can cover and tackle but between Haden and Wilson Haden is a much better shut down corner.

So with that being said, the second player on “my list”(my list of draft prospects for the Seahawks, first started with Russell Okung) Joe Haden and my break down of his game.

Physical stature and Skills:

5-11, 191 lbs, great hips, great shut down cover skills (like Darrell Revis), quick feet (get’s flat footed now and then but Carroll will help with that), great hands and electric speed with a 4.40. Only missed one game in his college career, back in 2007 against Florida State.

Character:

Great leader on and off the field. In 2009 Haden was semifinalist for the Jim Thorp award which is given to the best college defensive back that has great skills as well as great character on and off the field.

NFL comparison:

Well I already gave that one away above, CB Darrell Revis. Still has some work to get up with Revis’ complete shut down corner package but he’s got great intangibles and has the same make up as Revis does. Great cover shut down corner, great hips, great hands and great speed.

The only thing he has a problem with is a little foot work and getting the little things right but one he’s in the NFL, possibly under Pete Carroll should the Seahawks draft Haden at either No. 6 or No. 14 overall he’d be able to work out those small problems with Haden.

ESPN Scouts Inc Todd McShay has Haden as the fourth best player in the draft giving him a 96 overall grade. For the Seahawks they seem like the first team that would get a crack at Joe Haden being sixth overall.

Tampa Won’t take a CB that high and no other team before Seattle makes sense. Now the Seahawks do have a lot of needs (LT,LG,DE,QB-long term, CB and S) so if the Seahawks and Pete Carroll feel that Haden is the best player on the board and they really like him the I believe he could be the pick at six.

However Jimmy Clausen, Sam Bradford, Russell Okung and Suh would have to be off the board for the Seahawks to have Haden as a plan because those four come before Haden.

You can follow Lars at Twitter http://twitter.com/larshanson

Check out Lars’ sports blog: http://hansonsportsblog.blogspot.com/

Seattle Seahawks: Five players to watch at the Senior Bowl

The first official task that head coach Pete Carroll and GM John Schneider will be working on together is evaluating players this Saturday at the Senior Bowl in Mobile Alabama.

Carroll, the former USC head coach is considered the best at scouting college players and that will be very crucial as the Seahawks look to build their organization through the NFL draft as well as picking up a few players through free agency.

Overall the draft is how you build the core of your team for the long term and the Seahawks plan on rebuilding mainly through the NFL Draft. With the Seahawks having three of the first 40 picks in the 2010 draft this will be the most important draft in Pete Carroll’s short era so far in Seattle.

With that being said here are five players that the Seahawks and Pete Carroll will have their eyes on come Saturday.

Taylor Mays, S USC

Examination: Taylor Mays has been and will continue to pop up in tons of mock drafts as the draft process continues to move along. Mays is not being targeted just because Pete Carroll use to coach him at USC. It’s because the Seahawks are missing a huge presents in their defensive backs, especially at safety.

Jordan Babineaux recorded over 100 tackles this season which looks good on paper but when it comes down to the entire game he gave up way to many bit plays this season. He used to be great as a hard hitting situational safety/cornerback and now he’s really a hit and miss starter which has weakened the Seahawks defense.

Mays was not known for making interceptions but he was known for being a hard hitting cover safety that could cover without giving up big plays.

Mays is a name that every Seahawks fan needs to keep their eyes on as the draft moves closer.

Mike Iupati, OG Idaho

Examination: With out any doubt Iupati is the best offensive guard in the 2010 NFL draft. However that’s all he is fitted for is being either a left or right guard depending on team need, which for the Seahawks would be left guard.

Iupati has great quickness, power and is a gritty player that will be a future Pro Bowler, like former Seahawks OG Steve Hutchinson.

The Seahawks need to build the the majority of the offensive line in order for the entire offense to start clicking once again. That would start with adding an offensive guard like Mike Iupati in the 2010 NFL draft.

He’s not hard to miss so here is another name to keep your eyes on.

Tim Tebow, QB Florida

Examination: The selection of Tebow for me is two fold. One Tim Tebow is going to have everyone looking at him except for the Colts who have Peyton Manning. Two because the Seahawks have a solid starter in Matt Hasselbeck who has been banged up recently due to poor offensive line production and bad coaching ala Greg Knapp.

As ESPN’s Todd McShay pointed out he is starting to get better taking snaps under center but still has a lot of improvement to make in order to be an NFL starting quarterback.

The Seahawks don’t have a long term answer at quarterback but I think with Carroll being a high energy coach who wants winners and the best players, along with offensive coordinator Jeremy Bates who is great with any quarterback can turn him into an NFL starting quarterback in two years.

Maybe like Vince Young except in the second round. He’s got speed and talent but needed/needs the time to develop into a true NFL starting quarterback.

Myron Rolle, S Florida State

Examination: This one might shock a lot of people but the reason I have him as one of my five players to watch for the Seahawks at the senior bowl is because he still is a very hard, aggressive player who will always come up in the run support from his safety position to make those hard tackles.

However there is some down side to Rolle, who was the number one rated high school player coming out in 2006 ahead of the likes of Taylor Mays and others.

Rolle has been considered a slacker and not that enthused when it comes to playing but when he does play and play at a high level he’s a very talented player.

The only question I would raise in this case is can Pete Carroll get Rolle into mental shape if he decided to select him between the 4th and 5th round of the draft.

Brandon Graham, DE Michigan

Examination: It was clear to the entire country that Michigan’s defense was horrendous this season but their was one bring spot this season and that was defensive end Brandon Graham.

Graham was always hustling to the ball on every play and was very aggressive and strong both against the run and pass. The Seahawks lack a talented pass rusher and even though Graham would be a fifth option behind the likes of Derrick Morgan, Jason Pierre-Paul and others he’d still be a good selection late in the draft.

So those would be my top five players to watch this Saturday at the senior bowl but the Seahawks will have a lot better choices coming from the junior class and other seniors that aren’t at the senior bowl like Sam Bradford and C.J Spiller among others.

You can follow Lars at Twitter http://twitter.com/larshanson

Brett Favre or Kurt Warner? Who has had the better NFL career?

In the NBA you have Kobe or LeBron. In the NHL you have Crosby vs Ovechkin. For the most part in the NFL it’s always been Brady vs Manning deciding who’s the best quarterback in the NFL.

I decided to go beyond the usual comparison of who is the best quarterback in the NFL right now with Manning and Brady. I decided to compare two forty year old quarterbacks who’ve been making “comebacks” for three years now.

Warner with Arizona and Favre with Green Bay, NY Jets and most recently Minnesota.

I’ve never heard someone compare Brett Favre and Kurt Warner so I decided to be the first and even though I was born and raised by my father (Randy Hanson) who was a Green Bay Packers fan now turned Oakland Raiders fan I don’t have a bias for or against either quarterback.

Adding the two future HOF’s together you get two Super Bowl titles, five MVP’s, 16 Pro Bowl selections, 101,673 passing yards, 705 TD’s and 445 Int’s along with tons of other milestones and stats.

Just the shier volume of those stats says a lot about the two quarterbacks. However the question is which one has had a better NFL career?

Before I break down both players I would like to explain the question. When comparing who has had the better career I’m going by stats, Super Bowls, awards and team success (determined by win/loss record).

With that being said it’s time to break down arguably two of the best QB’s in NFL history along the likes of Joe Montana, Joe Namath and John Elway among many others.

Brett Favre:

69,329 passing yards (1st all time)
497 passing touchdowns (1st all time)
6,083/9,811 completions
86.4 QB rating

11 Pro Bowl selections
3 first team all pro selections
3 second team all pro selections
3x NFL MVP
2x NFC champion
Super Bowl XXXI winner (31)
181 career wins
13 playoff wins
Madden 2009 cover boy(just for humor)

Examination: The good old boy from Gulfport Mississippi was a second round draft pick of the Atlanta Falcons in the 1991 NFL draft. Favre only lasted one year in Atlanta, attempting only four passes in that time. He was traded to the Green Bay Packers for running back Tony Smith and a first round draft pick. Favre’s NFL career started off unlike any other.

After being traded to Green Bay he replaced starting quarterback Don Majkowski in the second game of the 1992 season and after Majkowski had to be finished for the season by week three Favre became the starting quarterback and finished his first season in Green Bay with a 9-7 record missing the playoffs by only one game. He was elected to his first Pro Bowl that season.

Favre led the Packers to their first playoff birth in 1993 while earning his second consecutive Pro Bowl selection. That off season Favre agreed to a $19 million dollar, five year deal.

In 1994 Favre led the Packers to consecutive playoff appearances. A first since the Vince Lombardi era.

From 1995 to 1997 Brett Favre won three consecutive MVP awards in which was arguably one of the best times in his career, which also came at a price.

In May of 1996 Favre went into rehabilitation for Vicodin addiction, which caused a seizure during a hospital visit for various injuries.

From 1998-2002 Favre was entering the middle portion of his now storied NFL career and in 2001 Brett Favre signed a “lifetime contract” with the Green Bay Packers. $180 million, ten year contract to remain a Green Bay Packer, essentially for the rest of his NFL life. Something that would eventually be broken.

On December 21st 2003 Brett’s father died of a heart attack. The next day Favre elected to play on Monday Night Football in one of if not the most memorable games in NFL history, if not at least for Brett Favre. On that night, a day after Favre lost his father he threw for four touchdowns in the first half, 399 total yards in a 41-7 win over the Oakland Raiders.

After the game he said “I knew that my dad would have wanted me to play. I love him so much and I love this game. It’s meant a great deal to me, to my dad, to my family, and I didn’t expect this kind of performance. But I know he was watching tonight”.

2007 could be nicknamed Brett Favre’s milestone year for the simple face that he broke at least three major NFL records in one year. Favre passed John Elway on the all time wins list with 149 against the Giants. Favre passed Dan Marino’s all time touchdown record on September 30th against the Vikings in which he connected with Greg Jennings on a 15 yard slant route to give Favre his 421st touchdown pass in his career.

Favre’s first attempt at retirement came in 2008 when the Packers decided to go with Aaron Rogers as the starting quarterback, at the same time keeping Favre’s contract and not granting him his release.

On August 7th 2008 the Packers traded Favre to the New York Jets for a conditional fourth round pick. In New York Favre started out hot but that diminished toward the end of the season when he was having problems with his throwing shoulder.

One year after trading for Favre the Jets released the quarterback and he was able to sign with any of the 32 NFL teams should he decide to. However Favre made it very clear which team he was going to play for if the deal came right.

That team was the Minnesota Vikings.

After informing Vikings officials that he was retired he later changed his mind and on August 18th 2009 the Vikings and Favre came to an agreement on a two year $25 million dollar contract.

Now five months later the Vikings wait has paid off with the team only one win away from a shot at Super Bowl title.

So reflecting on Brett Favre’s illustrious, history and towards the end controversial career, it’s without a doubt in anyone’s mind that Brett Favre is a sure lock for the NFL hall of fame in Canton Ohio. The only thing standing in the way is Favre’s retirement which no one knows when that will truly happen.

However, is Favre’s career better than Kurt Warner’s? Let’s see.

Kurt Warner:

32,344 passing yards
208 touchdown passes
2,666/4,070 completions
93.7 QB rating

5 Pro Bowl selections
2x MVP
2x first team all pro
Super Bowl XXXIV champion
Super Bowl XXXIV MVP

Examination: Starting out as an undrafted free agent in the 1994 NFL draft being signed by the Green Bay Packers. When Warner was signed he was the fourth quarterback on the depth chart along with Brett Favre(wow two HOF QB’s on the same team), Mark Brunell and Ty Detmer.

Warner was released before the start of the 1994 season. However Steve Mariucc, who at the time was the Packers quarterbacks coach with Mike Holmgren told Warner that he had a lot of potential but was not ready to be an NFL quarterback, not yet.

After Warner was released by the Packers a well known part of his life his the fact that he was working at Hy-Vee stocking shelves.

Warner signed on with an Arena Football league team called the Iowa Barnstormers where he had great success in his short tenure with the league. He’s 12th on the all time list of best AFL players of all time.

In 1998 Warner signed on with the St Louis Rams and was then sent to the NFLE Amsterdam Admirals where he excelled to the top of the league. He returned to the NFL as the Rams third string quarterback.

Warner, much like Favre got the opportunity to start in 1999 when newly signed quarterback Trent Green went down with a torn ACL during the pre season. Warner was named the starting quarterback with the support of Marshall Faulk, Torry Holt and others on the Rams offense.

What do you know the luck of these two quarterbacks continued an in 1999 Kurt Warner exploded onto the scene throwing 41 touchdowns and 4,353. That was the beginning of what was nicknamed the “Greatest Show on Turf”.

In the following season Warner continued his top performance by leading the Rams into the playoffs but due to their poor defensive team the Rams lost to the New Orleans Saints in the first round of the playoffs.

In 2001 Warner led the Rams to an NFL best 6-0 start for three years in a row and a 14-2 record to end the season. The Rams would wind up losing a heart breaker in Super Bowl XXXVI when Adam Vinatieri kicked the game winning field goal to give the Pats the win and the title.

For the next two seasons Warner fell off the table, dropping from his Super Bowl caliber talent down to eventually being replaced in 2003 by Marc Bulger.

In 2004 the Rams elected to release Warner and in two short days later he signed with the New York Giants. He was named the teams starting quarterback in 2004 but was eventually replaced by Eli Manning due to two game losing streak. Before that Warner had the team winning five of their first seven games.

In 2005 Warner’s career would take him to the desert out west when he signed a four million dollar one year contract with the Arizona Cardinals and Dennis Green. Warner was mediocre at best and due to a groin injury he was replaced as the starter by Josh McCown.

Green named McCown the starter for the rest of the 05 season but with McCown struggling two games into his new role as the starter Cardinals head coach Dennis Green gave the job back to Warner. Warner finished the season on a high note defeating his former Rams team before he went down with an MCL injury in week 15.

On February 14th 2006 the Cardinals and Warner came to an agreement on a three year $22 million dollar contract.

To start out the 2006 season Warner broke 20,000 passing yards in only his 76th game becoming the second fastest to reach 20,000 yards.

However two weeks later Warner was replaced by rookie quarterback Matt Leinart where he would remain the start until he went down with a shoulder injury in week 16 giving Warner another start to finish the season.

To start 2007 Matt Leinart was named the Cardinals starting quarterback but due to poor performance in both week three and week four Warner had to finish both games for the struggling quarterback. Leinart was placed on IR and Warner finished out the 2007 season with almost all career highs in touchdowns, yards and completion percentage.

Starting 2008 new Cardinals head coach Ken Whisenhunt named Matt Leinart the starting quarterback for the third year in a row but this time Whisenhunt said that Warner could be the starting quarterback come week one.

And that’s exactly what happened.

In 2008 Warner led the Cardinals to their first division title and playoff birth since 1998. The Cardinals where the biggest underdog in the playoffs and not one person, analyst or fan outside of Arizona gave them a shot but they did what any underdog did and prove everyone wrong.

Warner’s career year kept on going and he led the Cardinals to their first Super Bowl appearance against the Pittsburgh Steelers. For about five minutes in the fourth quarter the Cardinals had the lead but Ben Roethlisberger pulled a miracle in the last minute of the game.

Roethlisberger connected on an amazing reception with Santonio Holmes with :42 seconds left in the game to give the Steelers the lead.

In the off season he contimplated retirement but said he would only play for the Arizona Cardinals. Warner eventually resigned with the Cardinals on March 4th 2009 on a two year $23 million dollar deal.

Warner led the Cardinals back to the playoffs and another NFC West title in 2009. Warner became apart of NFL history when he led the Cardinals to a 51-45 win over the Green Bay Packers. The two teams combined for 96 points, the highest combine total in NFL playoff history.

However the Cardinals lost to the Saints in the divisional round of the playoffs, knocking the team out of another shot at back to back Super Bowls.

Now with Kurt Warner out of the playoff picture it’s time to move into his decision to either retire or come back in 2010 to finish out his contract.

With Matt Leinart still on the roster and Warner being battle tested at the age of 38 some question if he will comeback and that last week Warner hinted that he might retire this off season.

Conclusion: As I’ve been writing this article I’ve gotten to see the two greatest stories in NFL history in my opinion. Favre being drafted and traded to the Packers where he was the third string QB turned hall of famer. Warner went from being an undrafted free agent signie with the Packers to stacking shelves for $5.50 an hour at Hy-Vee before turning into a Super Bowl and NFL MVP quarterback with the Rams and later the Cardinals.

Both of these two quarterbacks are going to be hall of famers but for now both still remain in the game, Favre still fighting for another shot at the Super Bowl.

So what’s the answer to the question at hand? Who has had the better NFL career? Brett Favre or Kurt Warner?

For me it has to be Brett Favre. The guy has broken all major quarterback records and is still playing at an extremely high level at the age of 40. Jerry Rice retired at 41. Will Favre give it another shot? Well I’m betting that will depend on if he’s lifting the Lombardi trophy on February 7th.

To you, who has had the better NFL career? You decide.

You can follow Lars at Twitter http://twitter.com/larshanson

Should the Seahawks look at Aaron Kampman?

With only four teams in remaining in the playoffs it means one of two things. One, Brett Favre is this much closer to a Super Bowl, but at the same time that much closer to another off season of "am I retired? I don't even know what that word means". Two, it means that free agency is inching closer and closer which starts the best time of the year.

Speculation time.

However with the NFL's collective bargaining agreement still i limbo not to many free agents know their status, in terms of restricted or unrestricted free agents.

One of those lucky free agents to be, Green Bay Packers OLB/DE Aaron Kampman is most likely going to become an unrestricted free agent come March 1st. Yes that's a little less than three months away but the time goes by fast.

Kampman, a product of Cedar Rapids Iowa and the University of Iowa Hawkeyes could be a target for the newly reconstructed Seattle Seahawks organization led by Pete Carroll and newly hired GM John Schneider, a former front office executive of the Green Bay Packers.

Now some people might question the move from the Seahawks point of view with Lofa Tatupu, Leroy Hill, Aaron Curry and David Hawthorne already in the Seahawks linebacking corps.

Well on paper and to the average scout or fan it might seem like the Seahawks wouldn't sign any linebacker but indepth it's not that clear.

Lofa Tatupu, a three time consecutive pro bowler missed the majority of 2009 with a torn pectoral muscle but should be completely recovered for next season.

Lofa signed a six year $42 million dollar contract last year so there is absolutely no truth to the random rumors about him being traded, especially not with Pete Carroll running the show.

Aaron Curry had an average rookie season but has a lot of work still ahead of him before he can reach that top tier level of linebackers in the NFL. Curry missed the last two games of the season due to injury but it was nothing serious.

Curry could fit in as a rush DE if the Seahawks move to a 3-4 defensive scheme. However even though Pete Carroll said he likes the 4-3, he's scheme sounds more like a 46 defense and not a 4-3. Either way Curry will be a starting linebacker in 2010 for Pete Carroll.

David Hawthorne did a phenomenal job filling in for Lofa Tatupu at middle linebacker racking up 117 total tackles, four sacks, two forced fumbles and three interceptions. However with Lofa coming back in 2010 Hawthorne will most likely move around or stand up next to Tatupu in a possible 3-4 defense. Either way I see Hawthorne coming back in 2010 and beyond.

Leroy Hill is almost done as a Seahawk. Now nothing is official but with Hill having a down season right after he was questionably rewarded with a six year $36 million dollar contract last year it leaves the door wide open for the Seahawks to package him for another player that would fill a need and also be productive.

So getting back to Kampman, the question would be posed. Why bring in a 30 year old veteran on a crowded linebacking corps?

Well there are three reasons why I see Aaron Kampman being a nice fit on a one year contract to prove himself that he can still play at a high level.

1) Mentoring the young linebackers and defensive ends on the team. Right now the Seahawks have a lot of young talent in the front seven. Tatupu, Curry, Hawthorne, Jackson, Tapp as well as others. Kampman could come in and teach these young guys how to help find their roles and improve them at their positions as well as bring in his own talent.

For example ESPN had a piece on Colts wide receiver Reggie Wayne and how he's helped Pierre Garcon and Austin Collie become more complete wide receivers as well has helping them grow off the field.

It would be the same for Kampman. He would be able to help the Seahawks defense from a pass rushing stand point at a low one year cost and also be able to help the younger defensive ends and linebackers grow as NFL players.

2) The Seahawks can use some help at linebacker and defensive end. Kampman would not be the every down answer for the Seahawks at defensive end like say a Julius Peppers would be but knowing that Kampman is versatile and can stand up at outside linebacker as well as be a pass rushing defensive end it bods well for the Seahawks to at least give him a shot on a one year deal.

Kampman finished 2009 with 42 tackles and 3.5 sacks before he missed the rest of the season after week 11 with a knee injury.

For the Seahawks it's a good move and in a way its a money ball move. Plus knowing how well Pete Carroll is defensively he'll find any way to use Kampman.

3) The Seahawks could use some veteran presents on defense. Outside of Lofa Tatupu I can't recall a true leader on the Seahawks defense so brining in a proven veteran who as I said above can help the younger players as well as bring his own bread to the table is always helpful in the NFL.

Patrick Kerney is done and he wasn't really a true leader more as a motivator. So Kampman would be replacing Kerney in a sense if the Seahawks decide to cut ties with him or Leroy Hill.

However there is another major part in this Kampman idea. The Seahawks would first have to part ways with one of or both Patrick Kerney and Leroy Hill in order to make a position open for Kampman. He can play both Hill and Kerney's position so if the Seahawks decide to move on from Hill and Kerney then Kampman would be a nice replacement.

I would like to note that this is not a report more as an interesting idea that could benefit the Seahawks in the short term and also long term. With free agency still a few months away a lot has to happen in order for anything to come true.

It is an intriguing idea about having Kampman in Seattle.

You can follow Lars at Twitter http://twitter.com/larshanson