SeattleTimes: Christine Michael’s inconsistency proved to be his downfall with Seahawks

[Jarv]

if it doesn't work out, we only gave up a conditional 7th

Dez, Lee and Witten will not allow him to poison the locker room

I hear ya, if he turns out to be a knucklehead, we cut him.

 

[Irvin88_4life]

I think he said it was to auction for a charity, might have that wrong.

Nah it was for a little kid man

 

[Jarv]

Let's see.. He was stuck behind Lynch and is a completely different type of player than Turbin was.

I can say that both Marshall Faulk and Steve Mariucci were absolutely thrilled about him and thinks that he's a great fit for the team and will do great here. They both said that he was instantly the best RB on the team and should easily be the starter. This happened during the segment where Irvin was asking them what they thought of him because he wasn't familiar with him as a player and was trying to figure out what type of player he was.

Lol...Both of those guys hate the Cowboys!

 

[BAZ]

Nah it was for a little kid man

Well now I hate him more.

 

[vaturkey]

Lol...Both of those guys hate the Cowboys!

I was shocked when those two (certainly Falk) said they thought he was the best back we had and would be the reason we were being ranked better then Philly.

 

[dallasdave]

Well at least him and Tashard were pretty funny

Good to have a little fun !

 

[dallasdave]

He has skills... I like the trade... Plus he WANTS to be here...

Good pick up, has good up side !

 

[BlindFaith]

And the All Pro's backup.

He's a young guy with a ton of athletic potential who's had issues with fumbling and with reportedly being a professional. So much so, that an NFC contender traded him to another contender for a conditional 7th rounder. People thinking this guy is going to arrive and be the best back on the roster are deluding themselves. In part because Michael looks really good running the ball. In part because they've been so unhappy with our RB position group for months.

The reality is that it's much more likely Michael comes in and contributes to the group that we've got as he learns the offense and hopefully learns some of the nuances of the game that sound like they held him up so much in SEA. What I like about him is that he's got attributes none of our other RBs have. So, between the four of them, we've got a good chance now of finding a combination that's going to work. We also get redundancy at a position where we've got a couple of guys with a history of soft tissue injuries and a legitimate short-yardage back.

What I hate is that we're carrying four RBs on the roster for at least the time being. Unless they're also going to use Randle on STs coverage, that's a really inefficient use of a roster space.

We've all heard that anyone can run behind this oline. Why is it so absurd to think that the most talented running back that we now have shouldn't see the bulk of the carries once he gets the play book down?

How is Michael any different from Randle in the fumbling/knucklehead department? Michael is a much better blocker and 10 times the athlete. Michael is a better runner than McFadden.

Michael will be our lead dog by week 4 if not sooner.

 

[DFWJC]

Good stuff.

it almost sounded like you were trying to convince me of something. I'm not one that needs convincing....thought it was a nice add with great potential upside.

 

[Stash]

We've all heard that anyone can run behind this oline. Why is it so absurd to think that the most talented running back that we now have shouldn't see the bulk of the carries once he gets the play book down?

How is Michael any different from Randle in the fumbling/knucklehead department? Michael is a much better blocker and 10 times the athlete. Michael is a better runner than McFadden.

Michael will be our lead dog by week 4 if not sooner.

A bold prediction.

 

[erod]

It's only a 7th round pick.

Michael is here for one reason.

The coaches don't trust Randle off the field, they don't trust McFadden to stay healthy, and they know Dunbar isn't a lead back.

Michael is insurance that they know they'll have to use at some point for some reason.

 

[BlindFaith]

A bold prediction.

I predicted we would have a new running back by the start of the season. We do.

I'm not privy to him directly. I don't know how smart he is. I don't know how much of a knucklehead he is.

I do know he's the most talented runner we have. He was showing signs of improving. Hopefully a move back to Texas will be good for him. If he gets his head straight, he will be our guy. And I think he will.

 

[jday]

I don't think I'd go do far as to use the word 'disgust', but I think he looks foolish trying to look like a tough guy and celebrating every small accomplishment he makes. It shows a lack of awareness and maturity to me. He's a third string guy, not the man. Know your role, shut your mouth, and do your job. Focus on getting better and doing the things you need to do to play more and eventually be the man.

Seattle wanted him to do that and to eventually be Lynch's replacement. And because he failed, they're paying Beast Mode big money to stick around, signing Fred Jackson, and holding onto undrafted free agents. Hopefully, being traded away for table scraps and replaced by a guy off the street serves as a wake up call that he's not as good as he seems to think he is and if he doesn't work harder and get better, he might end up as nothing more than unfulfilled potential.

I agree with the majority of what you said. I certainly do hope this situations serves as a wake up call. The one aspect I'm not necessarily concerned about is rather or not he celebrates on the field. Granted, I don't want him to celebrate everything, but to a certain extent I see that as passion boiling over...and the last thing I would want to do as his coach is try to suppress passion. I want him to bring passion to the field. I want him to celebrate the big plays because that passion can wake up the rest of the team...it can be infectious...and that kind of passion can not just carry over to the next play, but also to the next practice and the game after that. I suppose moderation, though, is key in all things.

 

[Stash]

I predicted we would have a new running back by the start of the season. We do.

I think a lot of us agreed on that. Given the injury history of McFadden, and the niche role of Dunbar, mixed in with question marks about Randle, they essentially had to have another option.

I'm not privy to him directly. I don't know how smart he is. I don't know how much of a knucklehead he is.

I do know he's the most talented runner we have. He was showing signs of improving. Hopefully a move back to Texas will be good for him. If he gets his head straight, he will be our guy. And I think he will.

Everything I know says he's an immensely talented player who struggled to develop a complete game at the pro level. His performance and SPARQ numbers are off the charts amazing, so if he can get it together here, he has the potential to be a great addition. And, given the conditional 7th rounder they may give up, they got him for as close to nothing as you can get.

As a fan, I hope it works out great for everyone.

 

[Stash]

I agree with the majority of what you said. I certainly do hope this situations serves as a wake up call. The one aspect I'm not necessarily concerned about is rather or not he celebrates on the field. Granted, I don't want him to celebrate everything, but to a certain extent I see that as passion boiling over...and the last thing I would want to do as his coach is try to suppress passion. I want him to bring passion to the field. I want him to celebrate the big plays because that passion can wake up the rest of the team...it can be infectious...and that kind of passion can not just carry over to the next play, but also to the next practice and the game after that. I suppose moderation, though, is key in all things.

This is just a personal thing and I'm sure others disagree, but I had an issue with the way he celebrated, not that he did it at all. His are the 'look at me' types of celebration, not the 'great job guys' team celebrations. I love it when teammates congratulate and high-five one another on a job well done. But when the guy stands there thinking he's done it all himself? Not a fan.

 

[BlindFaith]

I think a lot of us agreed on that. Given the injury history of McFadden, and the niche role of Dunbar, mixed in with question marks about Randle, they essentially had to have another option.

Everything I know says he's an immensely talented player who struggled to develop a complete game at the pro level. His performance and SPARQ numbers are off the charts amazing, so if he can get it together here, he has the potential to be a great addition. And, given the conditional 7th rounder they may give up, they got him for as close to nothing as you can get.

As a fan, I hope it works out great for everyone.

Hmm, I think a lot of folks still think that Randle, McFadden and Dunbar were more than enough. Unless they've changed their tune now. Which wouldn't surprise me.

Michael gives us a chance to have more than a bottom five collection of running backs. But at least we have a chance now.

 

[Stash]

Hmm, I think a lot of folks still think that Randle, McFadden and Dunbar were more than enough. Unless they've changed their tune now. Which wouldn't surprise me.

I wouldn't expect to hear that, just more praise for the Cowboys "adding even more talent!"

Michael gives us a chance to have more than a bottom five collection of running backs. But at least we have a chance now.

I agree. I applaud the move all around. I'll freely admit that Michael wasn't my first choice (talent's there, but attitude needs adjustment), but I'm very glad that the team has acquired another option. Michael has 'the sky is the limit' level of potential in this offense with this line.

 

[Idgit]

We've all heard that anyone can run behind this oline. Why is it so absurd to think that the most talented running back that we now have shouldn't see the bulk of the carries once he gets the play book down?

How is Michael any different from Randle in the fumbling/knucklehead department? Michael is a much better blocker and 10 times the athlete. Michael is a better runner than McFadden.

Michael will be our lead dog by week 4 if not sooner.

Let's not use 'dumb things we've all heard' as the basis for believing things, for starters. And I said he's not going to come in and be the starter, not that he might not develop into the starter eventually.

He differs from Randle in that he reportedly struggled with his mechanics and his assignments in a way that substantially affected his ability to play in games. Hence, the getting traded for a song prior to getting cut outright. Despite his immense athletic talent, he's lacking in skills in a way that Randle is not, and if he doesn't address those issues, he'll be in the same situation in Dallas he was in SEA.

 

[jday]

This is just a personal thing and I'm sure others disagree, but I had an issue with the way he celebrated, not that he did it at all. His are the 'look at me' types of celebration, not the 'great job guys' team celebrations. I love it when teammates congratulate and high-five one another on a job well done. But when the guy stands there thinking he's done it all himself? Not a fan.

I suppose there is a fine line between the two types of celebrating. To be honest I don't watch other football teams unless they are playing my Cowboys...I simply don't have the time for all that. So I can't speak intelligently on how he celebrates...only that there seemed to be alot of people in the Seattle area who weren't big fans of his brand of celebrating, so there may be something to what you are saying.

Having said that, I don't see him having the same issue here. I certainly could be wrong, but I think having a legitimate shot to be the man here and be the man for the team he grew up loving could make all the difference in the world in his demeanor. Or that could all be wishful thinking. Here's hoping anyway.

 

[Joe_Fan]

Lol...Both of those guys hate the Cowboys!

Although that may be true it makes the endorsement that much better because of their hate for the team. We know they hate the team but they still love the player and feel that the Cowboys are still the team to beat on the East.