Seattle, WA
How long will Seattle Seahawks' rival continue its NFC West reign?
The Seattle Seahawks were the class of the NFC in the early 2010s, back when they reached back-to-back Super Bowls and were a perennial contender with Russell Wilson, Marshawn Lynch and their famed Legion of Boom defense.
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In recent years, however, their biggest division rival has been the NFC’s preeminent force.
The San Francisco 49ers have made four NFC Championship game appearances in the past five seasons, including a pair of trips to the Super Bowl. During that span, they have won three NFC West titles and reached the 12-win mark three times.
How much longer will the 49ers remain atop the NFC West? Pro Football Focus lead NFL analyst Sam Monson was asked that question Tuesday on Seattle Sports’ Bump and Stacy. Seahawks fans probably won’t like the answer.
“I don’t think the 49ers are going away any time soon,” Monson said.
San Francisco remains loaded with talent on both sides of the ball. PFF has the 49ers at No. 1 in their current power rankings with point spread team rating of 6.4, which means they would be a 6.4-point favorite over a league-average team on a neutral field. The Kansas City Chiefs are second at 6.1. No other team is above 4.5.
San Francisco has a whopping eight players who were graded by PFF as top-five players at their positions last season: Tight end George Kittle (No. 1), running back Christian McCaffrey (No. 2), wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk (No. 2), left tackle Trent Williams (No. 2), linebacker Fred Warner (No. 2), edge rusher Nick Bosa (No. 3), cornerback Charvarius Ward (No. 5) and right guard Jon Feliciano (No. 5). And of course, they also have quarterback Brock Purdy, who finished No. 1 in ESPN’s QBR metric last season as a second-year pro.
“I think they’re probably still (atop the NFC West) for a couple of years, and in particular if Brock Purdy continues playing at the kind of level he was playing at last season,” Monson said. “There’s a debate as to how much of it is him, and how much of it is the system, how much of it is (coach Mike) Shanahan, how much of it is the weaponry around him. To an extent, it doesn’t really matter whether he’s a big piece of that puzzle or a smaller piece. As long as the puzzle remains in tact, they’re gonna be phenomenal.”
Purdy still has two seasons left on his rookie contract, which gives San Francisco some salary cap flexibility to continue paying its slew of other top players.
“It only becomes a problem once he signs a big-money contract, and then that starts to have an effect on guys like Brandon Aiyuk and Deebo Samuel, and suddenly they have to start shipping off a couple of those players,” Monson said. “That’s when it does matter if he’s not a huge piece of that overall puzzle. But I think that’s a few years away.”
The Aiyuk drama
There has been a bit of drama in the Bay Area surrounding Aiyuk, who is heading into the final year of his rookie contract.
In a recent video he posted to TikTok, Aiyuk told former college teammate and current Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels on a FaceTime call: “They said they don’t want me back.” As ESPN reported, it’s unclear whether Aiyuk is implying the 49ers don’t want him back this season, or whether they don’t want to pay him for a long-term contract extension. According to ESPN’s Ryan Clark, Aiyuk and the 49ers are meeting this week.
“I think they can probably keep Brandon Aiyuk if they want to do that,” Monson said. “And if they didn’t, I would imagine they would’ve traded him away already at this stage. So I imagine they’re gonna keep that group. Even if they lose one of Aiyuk and Deebo Samuel, they’ve already sort of been drafting for that contingency, with (first-round draft pick) Ricky Pearsall coming in to what is already a ridiculously loaded skill position group.”
Listen to the full conversation with PFF’s Sam Monson at this link or in the audio player near the top of this story. Tune in to Bump and Stacy weekdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. or find the podcast on the Seattle Sports app.
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Seattle, WA
Seattle man sentenced for scheme to abuse Vietnamese children
A 38-year-old Seattle man was sentenced for producing child sex abuse imagery in a scheme to get images of sexually abused children from a coconspirator in Vietnam, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington announced earlier this week.
Richard Stanley Maness Jr. will spend 30 years in prison for two federal felonies: conspiracy to produce child sexual abuse material and production of child sexual abuse material.
“In recommending this 30-year prison sentence, our office is doing everything it can to protect innocent children here and overseas. Mr. Maness remains a danger, unable to accept the harm he has done,” U.S. Attorney Neil Floyd said, according to the attorney’s office. “Instead, he insists he is the victim, but the jury and the judge saw through Maness’s fabricated claims of innocence.”
Law enforcement rescued two young children who had been kidnapped off the street in April 2024, according to records filed in the case.
“The mother of the two sisters was distraught when she could not find them,” the news release stated.
The girls were taken to an Airbnb by Maness’ female coconspirator.
Seattle man directed sexual abuse of young children
Messages Maness sent document him directing the sexual abuse of a young child.
“These victims were not candy in a dish for you to take out the one you liked,” U.S. District Judge Richard Jones said at the sentencing hearing, according to the attorney’s office. “In the mind of that 7-year-old, you were a monster directing the pain she suffered.”
Maness was arrested in a Seattle apartment after detectives in Vietnam contacted Homeland Security Investigations.
Along with 30 years behind bars, Maness was sentenced to 20 years of supervised release.
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Seattle, WA
A Pike Place Market Bar Is Closing After 36 Years
A longtime Pike Place Market fixture is closing permanently: This week the owners of Pike Brewing Company announced that it will be closing Pike Pub and Pike Fish Bar, which share a space inside the market on First Avenue.
Pike Brewing is a venerable craft brewer, established in 1989 (the fish bar opened much later, in 2022). In 2021, after the death of co-founder Rose Ann Finkel, the brewery partnered with the investment company Seattle Hospitality Group. Last year SHG acquired a controlling stake in Fremont Brewing, bringing the two prominent beer-makers under the same umbrella.
Matt Lincecum, who founded Fremont Brewing and is now the CEO of Pike Brewing, says that rising food and labor costs contributed to the decision to close — ketchup has gone up in price “20 to 40 percent,” for instance. He describes the closure as part of Pike Brewing’s “evolution”: The brand will continue to produce and distribute its beers, and is keeping its taproom at the Seattle Convention Center. Fremont Brewing’s beer garden business is “very healthy,” Lincecum adds.
The closure means that about 35 employees, mostly part-timers, will lose their jobs. Lincecum says that they will be paid and receive benefits until the end of the year. The pub and fish bar will be pouring $4 drafts until it closes on Sunday, November 30.
Over the summer, Renee Erickson’s famed steakhouse Bateau temporarily closed for a “reimagining,” and it looks like that process is nearly done. Capitol Hill Seattle Blog reports that Erickson’s Sea Creatures group is eyeing a February reopening date, with a revamped menu. Co-owner Jeremy Price told the neighborhood news outlet that the plan is to invite back all former staff members (who, notably, unionized earlier this year). Meanwhile, Sea Creatures is planning to open its long-awaited three new restaurants in Pioneer Square’s Railspur development in December.
Fire breaks out at Green Lake restaurant
Greenlake Bar and Grill, a restaurant at the corner of Northeast 72nd Street and Green Lake Way, is closed after a fire broke out in the kitchen earlier this week. The Seattle Fire Department told the Seattle Times that the fire was accidental and probably caused by faulty wiring. A worker at nearby Revolutions Coffee has started a GoFundMe fundraiser to support the restaurant and its affected employees.
Plantains are back on the menu at Marjorie
Finally, if you’ve visited the latest version of Donna Moodie’s famed restaurant Marjorie, you may have noticed that its famed plantain chips were missing. Well, they’re back! In a press release, the Marjorie’s says that the crispy spiced chips — which have been a staple since 2003, when Marjorie’s was in Belltown — are now officially available at the Central District restaurant.
Seattle, WA
Seahawks Notebook: Christian Haynes to start if Grey Zabel out
INGLEWOOD, CA – JANUARY 05: Seattle Seahawks guard Christian Haynes (64) walks off of the field after an NFL game between the Seattle Seahawks and Los Angeles Rams on January 05, 2025, at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, CA. (Jordon Kelly / Icon Sportswire / Getty Images)
RENTON, Wash. – Coming off his first appearance for the Seahawks, Christian Haynes will get the start at left guard for Seattle this weekend against the Tennessee Titans if rookie Grey Zabel isn’t able to recover from a knee injury in time.
Head coach Mike Macdonald confirmed on Wednesday that Haynes would get the nod to make his first career start after playing only in relief during his rookie campaign last season.
“We’ve seen it on our football team, if somebody can’t go for a certain amount of time, whether it’s practice or games, the standard stays the same.” Macdonald said. “We expect you to go in and go rip it for us and he did that. He didn’t bat an eye, and there’s things he’s going to learn from the game, and we’re going to need him to play at a high level if he needs to play this week.”
Zabel didn’t practice on Wednesday due to the left knee injury he sustained late in Seattle’s 21-19 loss to the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday. While the Seahawks received good news about Zabel’s status, they still might be without him this weekend.
“It was definitely a surreal moment, but just being ready and locked in,” Haynes said of playing on Seattle’s final drive. “That’s what they need me for, to be ready, to be locked in at all times so I was ready to go out there and then go get a game-winning drive going.”
Haynes missed the first nine games of the season due to a pectoral injury sustained during the team’s joint practice with the Green Bay Packers in mid-August ahead of their preseason matchup.
“I already hurt it once before that and then the joint practice, it got worse,” Haynes said.
Haynes was a right guard in college at the University of Connecticut before becoming a third-round pick in the 2024 NFL Draft by Seattle. Haynes has been working at both guard spots, as well as center, during his time with the Seahawks.
“I’ve been playing a lot of left guard, practicing both, and then I played preseason games at left guard. So it wasn’t nothing new to me when I was out there,” Haynes said.
Haynes played ten snaps for Seattle on their final drive of the game as they were able to move to the edge of field goal range for a last-second, game-winning field goal attempt from 61 yards away for Jason Myers.
“It felt good being back out there,” Haynes said. “I felt confident, and I just felt like I go out there and play my best ball I could possibly play. I felt pretty good out there. I felt in my groove. One thing like Coach Mike always says, like, just be loose and focused, and I felt loose and focused out there. Just go out there and block it and play my game.”
Haynes couldn’t crack Seattle’s lineup last season, unable to unseat veterans Laken Tomlinson or Anthony Bradford, and even fellow rookie Sataoa Laumea had better showings when called upon. But Haynes was challenging Bradford for the starting job at right guard in the preseason before his injury put him on the shelf for two months.
“:Faster with everything I’m doing, with my calls, with my steps, and just seeing things faster as a player,” Haynes said. “Just seeing things before it comes and just then being confident every time in everything that I’m doing.”
Notes:
– Nose tackle Johnathan Hankins won’t play this season for the Seahawks due to a back injury that has kept him out all year. Hankins was placed on the non-football injury list prior to the start of training camp and isn’t progressing to the point of being able to play.
“I’ll probably leave it private right now, what’s going on with his health, but yeah, he won’t be with us this year,” Macdonald said.
“The back is tricky. If it’s not working, it’s not a fun situation to be in, so we wish him the best.”
– Rookie defensive end Rylie Mills is getting close to being able to start practicing with the team. Mills, a fifth-round pick out of Notre Dame in April, has been recovering from an ACL injury in his right knee sustained last December.
“I think we’re getting within a couple weeks now of him starting to practice,” Macdonald said.
Mills would need multiple weeks of practice to get up to speed as he hasn’t been on a football field since college, but he’s getting close to becoming an option.
– Guard Grey Zabel, wide receiver Tory Horton, linebacker Tyrice Knight, and fullback Robbie Ouzts were the four players that did not participate in practice on Wednesday.
Knight sustained a concussion on Sunday, and Horton is still working back from a shin injury that’s kept him out the last two games.
“Some other guys limited that we’re taking care of with reps, but those are the guys that won’t practice,” Macdonald said.
While Ouzts is dealing with an elbow injury, his absence was for non-injury reasons.
Macdonald said Horton’s chances of playing this week will come down to if his shin injury improves in the coming days.
“We’ll see. Really just a matter of calming down, so it could happen tonight, it could happen, not tonight,” Macdonald said.
The Source: Information in this story came from FOX 13 Seattle reporting.
MORE SEAHAWKS NEWS FROM FOX 13 SEATTLE
Mike Macdonald says Grey Zabel’s knee injury showed “nothing significant” for Seahawks
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Seahawks fall to Rams 21–19 after last-second missed field goal
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