Seahawks looking forward with Eddie Lacy, Packers not looking back

The Seattle Seahawks finished their first full regular season practice on Wednesday.

So much has happened since the Seahawks won their only Super Bowl following the 2013 season, but one thing has stayed the same – the goal to win it again.

The defense’s success will depend largely on two things: Brooks must show he still has gas in his tank and a large group of first-, second- and third-year players must take a step up. Most of the signees have solid resumes – players who will fill depth but won’t necessarily have starring roles.

The Seattle Seahawks start their 2017-18 campaign on Sunday when they visit the Green Bay Packers. Packers 3-0 at home against Seahawks with Aaron Rodgers as starting QB.

“The preseason definitely helped out a lot because in the first two games, I was real nervous about it”, he said.

Which makes this an opportunity the Packers shouldn’t let slip away, especially with a road trip to defending NFC champion Atlanta, to open a new stadium, looming next week.

“Week 1 is always the unknown”, receiver Jordy Nelson said. “I was there, so I’ll be able to see how it is from the other side”. Like the Patriots, the Packers have had the good fortune to have a quarterback – like Brady, a guy who will go down as one of the all-time greats – who is reliable, consistent and showing no signs of slowing down.

“You know, honestly, I’ve been thinking about that for the past two days”, Lacy said.

Lacy missed most of 2016 with an ankle injury. When asked if Peterson will have a chip on his shoulder, Zimmer responded: “I hope we have a chip on our shoulder”. He went on injured reserve after just three games in 2016 with a torn meniscus. House should be back in his element with the Packers and King is a potential starter at some point.

Green Bay punter Justin Vogel had to compete with only himself during training camp and he held up fine, now’s not the time for nerves to creep in. Accustomed to the homogenous environment the team’s draft-and-develop approach has created, both men are liking the infusion of ideas that come with veterans whose entire careers haven’t been spent in Titletown. Lacy rushed for 360 yards in five games and had a career-best 5.1 yards per attempt. And after a year with New England’s Bill Belichick and Tom Brady last year – and eight seasons with four other National Football League teams – he’s got plenty of them. Each has reached at least the Divisional round in 6 of the last 7 seasons.

The Seahawks have added tackle Sheldon Richardson in a trade from the New York Jets to a star-studded defense that also has All-Pro linebacker Bobby Wagner, safety Earl Thomas and cornerback Richard Sherman. He has 18 sacks in four seasons.

I like Green Bay 26-20.

As for the pass rush, it wasn’t bad, it was just inconsistent. That’s the most in team history. During an eight-game winning streak that extended into the playoffs and brought the Packers within one game of a second Super Bowl berth on his watch, Rodgers was magnificent, completing 195 of 283 passes (68.9 percent) for 2,384 yards with 21 touchdowns and only one interception (117.9 rating).

The Packers also addressed a need at tight end by signing Bennett and Lance Kendricks in free agency. The Super Bowl champions came into Thursday night’s game with a ideal 8-0 record in home season openers under Bill Belichick.