A Grip on Sports: Tonight’s NFL game highlights what the right draft pick – thanks to a bit of failure – can do for a franchise

A GRIP ON SPORTS • Not sure what today will bring, other than an outstanding opponent for the Gonzaga women in the Kennel. Or a Thursday night game on Prime that actually holds some interest. With a couple weeks until Thanksgiving, at least there are a couple things worth being grateful about.

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• Heck, I didn’t even mention the noise the Cougars continue to make in the college football ranks or the Zags’ men doing that same with basketball. Right now, those seem like givens. Though spending a Saturday night in Albuquerque trying to subdue a much-improved New Mexico team seems like a much tougher task for WSU than Gonzaga’s Friday night matchup with visiting UMass Lowell.

But I digress. Let’s focus here.

Any of you have Washington’s visit to Philadelphia tonight as Prime’s best Thursday night game of the season on your NFL bingo card? I figured. When the season began, the Commanders were not on many bingo cards, other than the ones build around teams in the running for 2025’s top draft pick.

Then Jayden Daniels began to run around like a young Russell Wilson, pass like a prime Aaron Rodgers and inject life into staid Washington D.C. not seen since the New Deal.

Interesting how the right quarterback can change everything, isn’t it? Even in the professional ranks.

What would Seahawks’ fans give for a Jayden Daniels-like guy right now?  Pretty sure many of them would offer up their hillside home in Issaquah as sacrifice for such a savior. Or maybe their Tesla Model X.

Instead, the Hawks have to make do with a Cybertruck at that position. Actually, Geno Smith is more like a 2014 Ford F-150. Still serviceable, can get you from here-to-there (most of the time) but not something that you want to drive to the prom.

The Hawks are just good enough right now to destroy any chance of striking gold in the draft. Of finding a quarterback or pass rusher or whatever to lift them from mediocrity back into the NFL’s upper echelon. Though, over the last six games, mediocrity is just an aspiration.

Five losses in that span would be fine – if the darn team hadn’t started 3-0. Flip those results and Seattle would be sitting in the driver’s seat, holding the NFL Draft’s Golden Ticket. Where the Seahawks would select … Shedeur Sanders?

OK, maybe it’s better the Hawks are middle of the pack. I’m not sure Deion would let his son play in Seattle. Not behind an offensive line that seems less protective of its quarterback than Sanders’ Colorado Buffaloes’ group.

Celebrity power plays have happened in the NFL before. Remember the Mannings and Eli’s refusal to play for the Chargers? That worked out well for them. And the league. Seattle could be in the same rowboat as San Diego in that regard. Though, if the Hawks could somehow turn its 2025 top pick into a quarterback with Phillip Rivers’ talent, I’m sure the franchise would be happy.

• Speaking of talent, Gonzaga’s women return home from their shellacking at Stanford on Sunday to play a California squad tonight with nearly as much as the Cardinal throughout its roster.

We’ll say this for Lisa Fortier. After losing four of the best players the school ever produced in one graduating class, GU’s veteran coach didn’t shy away from the challenge of a tough nonconference schedule. There isn’t a true breather from here until the start of the WCC schedule in mid-December.

Maybe if she had known how many players would miss early season time with injuries – two new players who were expected to contribute mightily, Saint Mary’s transfer Tayla Dalton and freshman Lauren Whittaker, have yet to play, while starting guard Esther Little was knocked out of the game at Stanford – she might have pulled back a bit.

California brings a 3-0 record into the Kennel, with USC transfer Kayla Williams injecting some new life into a veteran group that won 19 games last season.

Though none of the rest of GU’s nonconference foes are ranked – currently – only the two Mountain West foes, Wyoming (in the Kennel on Sunday) and New Mexico (in Albuquerque a week later), are under .500 and both have played tough opponents.

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WSU: In recent years there has been an Achilles heel for many Cougar defenses. A quarterback who not only can throw the ball downfield but can carry it there as well. Running QBs have been the defense’s bête noire. This week, the group will have to try to contain New Mexico’s Devon Dampier. Greg Woods has this story on the Cougs’ plan. … Yep, recruiting never stops. Greg shares the group Jake Dickert has enticed to join the program this November. … The meeting in the Bay Area on Tuesday night? It was surreal for Klay Thompson and the Warriors. … Elsewhere in the (new and old) Pac-12, the Mountain West and the nation, it is time to look forward to the weekend, isn’t it? As for looking forward to better officiating, that might be a pipe dream according to Jon Wilner in this Mercury News column. … John Canzano covers some of the same ground. … It’s time for Senior Day games. Washington has its this Saturday. … Oregon is on the road, in Wisconsin, where the Ducks hope to cut down on penalties. … Oregon State faces an Air Force team whose leader is a product of an Oregon upbringing. … Utah has to turn its attention to another tough one, playing this week at Colorado. … Success is built, not given. … USC wants to add pass rushers to next year’s roster. … Arizona State heard some good news on the injury front. … If Arizona wants to snap its five-game losing streak, it has to do many things better. … In the Mountain West, the rivalry between Wyoming and Colorado State is pretty intense. And has a long tradition. … Boise State needs better quarterback play this week against San Jose State. … Fresno State seems to be looking for a new coach. … Playing offensive line takes a lot of skill. And skills. … San Diego State has a running back that can move the chains. … To win the conference title, UNLV will need some help. … In basketball news, Wilner has his Best of the West rankings for the women. … Oregon’s big win this week got a jump start from a transfer. … Washington’s men played better in the second half to defeat Seattle Pacific. … Recruiting never stops, as the Huskies know.

Gonzaga: UMass Lowell isn’t a basketball power. And yet the basketball team is crossing three time zones and playing two games in our state. Friday night at fourth-ranked Gonzaga, Sunday at Washington. Jim Meehan talked with River Hawks coach Pat Duquette about the travel plans. … Wilner has his men’s Best of the West rankings, with Gonzaga on top of his list. … John Blanchette has this story on Gonzaga cross country runner Rosina Machu, whose journey to prominence, and the Northwest, was a long one. … Elsewhere in the WCC, former BYU coach Mark Pope has brought new life to Kentucky basketball.

EWU: The slowly sinking Eagles host an up-and-coming Idaho State squad Saturday in a Big Sky Conference football game that may mark a changing of the conference’s hierarchy. Dan Thompson has more on two programs who may see their futures differently. … Elsewhere in the Big Sky, Northern Arizona should extend its winning streak this week as it travels to last-place Northern Colorado. … Sacramento State hopes to end its season on a high note. … The head coach’s nephew is helping Montana win games. … In basketball news, Weber State struggled against Nevada and fell 88-58 in Reno.

Preps: Dave Nichols has a roundup of Wednesday’s action. It includes State volleyball results from Yakima.

Chiefs: A bunch of WHL players, including two Spokane players, won medals in the recent 2024 U17 World Challenge. That news leads off the S-R’s latest local briefs column.

Seahawks: Will changes on the defensive side, especially at linebacker, bring improvement? It may tell us a lot about Mike Macdonald if they don’t. … Some injured players were back at practice yesterday, including DK Metcalf. … What type of job security does John Schneider have?

Mariners: Does J.P. Crawford have enough left to stay as the M’s starting shortstop? Should he? And can the team sign another Japanese superstar?

Kraken: Seattle is winning games in which the Kraken have trailed. Often. That bodes well for the season.

Sounders: Jordan Morris is healthy enough to give Seattle faith it can continue on in the MLS playoffs.

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• Overslept today. By a lot. It’s not as if I went to bed late last night. Early actually. But like a lot of folks around the area, I have been dealing with a bit of a crud. Nothing major, just run down. Lethargic. The rest was needed. And yet I was able to get everything done by deadline. Please ignore any mistakes. Until later …