***As most of you know, Cigar Thoughts is also a podcast. Check out this week’s conversation with MINA KIMES:

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***Keeping this here for the rest of the season — just want y’all to know how much I appreciate y’all over all these years***

Guys, I can’t tell you how much I’ve enjoyed writing this column over the last 13(!) years. It is with equal parts gratitude and sorrow that I announce this will be my final season writing Cigar Thoughts.

Few things have given me greater joy than recapping Seahawks games for y’all over the years and I am eternally grateful for the incredible support y’all have shown this column over the years. I am proud, appreciative, and satisfied.

The podcast will continue.

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The Seahawks vs Rams rivalry has become one of the coolest in the NFL— a true new-school version of old-school divisional showdowns that the NFL was built on. These two teams had faced each other 53 times before today, with the Rams leading the series by one game and three points over all.

Recently though, the battle has belonged to Los Angeles, with the Rams triumphant in 10 of the previous 14 matchups. Those results correlate strongly with the advent of Sean McVay— a wunderkind whose neo-football approach has bedeviled the majority of the NFL, but no team more so than the Seahawks.

Here’s the thing— Seattle outplayed LA today overall (and I say this knowing many of you are ready to pounce on this statement in the replies), but high-leverage mistakes undid them. I’ll list them here because when you lose a winnable divisional game, that’s what we all wanna focus on. So fuck it— let’s do this:

In the first quarter, Conner Williams and Geno Smith carried last week’s lack of chemistry into this game, botching two snaps that cost Seattle 40 yards in the first quarter. Then, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, who objectively had the best game of his career, followed a 22-yard catch-and-run on 2nd & 31 by bobbling a first-down catch into the hands of a defender for a brutal interception. Later, former Rams captain Ernest Jones dropped an easy pick of his own, allowing Los Angeles to score a game-script-saving touchdown early in the 3rd quarter.

Later in the same period, Mike Macdonald’s first bad challenge of the season cost the team a crucial timeout when every couch-sitter watching the game knew Cooper Kupp dragged his toes on a sideline catch. Minutes later, a (bullshit) holding call on Conner Williams erased a game-changing 40-yard JSN catch that could’ve led to a seismic score for a home team whose season was on the ropes.

Shortly before that, after Tyler Lockett scored on a beautiful pass from Smith on a free play right before the half, the latest in a season-long comedy of errors from the O-line led to a tipped extra point that ended up affecting decision-making for the rest of the game. Then Geno, who was pressured on a preposterous 59% of his dropbacks, had his arm hit on a redzone pass that turned into a 103-yard pick-six, the longest in the history of the Rams franchise. That mistake turned a 13-13 tie into a 20-13 deficit and one drive later, Smith did it again, turning a blocked punt into another green zone interception in the 4th. Sure, the intended receiver was held on a first-read slip screen but when the vibes are bad, it’s hard to look beyond consecutive monumental picks regardless of what led to them. Mix in a dubious roughing-the-passer call against Derick Hall on a 3rd down incompletion and you’ve got a real uphill battle.

Smith-Njigba had receptions of 31 and 40 yards erased by holding calls late in this game and still notched a preposterous 180 yards receiving. Then, after Geno’s miraculous game-tying touchdown drive in the final two minutes saw Seattle’s QB drive them into scoring range in overtime, they malfunctioned again. Facing 3rd & 1 just outside the redzone, they unsuccessfully ran Ken Walker twice, giving the Rams license to go when the game. Not getting it on 3rd down is one thing, but going jumbo package when you’re the worst run-blocking team in the NFL is flat-out malpractice. Why on earth would you draw all 11 defenders into the box and then try to slam it up the middle?

Then you get a pass interference on 3rd and game, and allow an (albeit awesome) game-winning catch on 3rd & short from midfield. This was a matchup the Seahawks could have won a dozen different ways ,but they didn’t, and now they’re 4-5.

The problem with modern sports discourse is that nuance is on life-support and a loss on the scoreboard erases all the good we saw. The fact that Smith completed 21 of 34 passes for 364 yards and 3 TDs gets lost in a reactive maelstrom focused on his interceptions— all three of which are easily excusable. Add in the plays brought back by penalties and Smith could easily have had close to 500 yards passing but instead, half of y’all are calling for his head.

No one is going to want to talk about the 30-yard dime he threw to JSN on 4th & 5 with a minute left, or the laser he completed to JSN on the next play to tie it. Nobody is going to spend the week heralding the incredible call-up performance from Cody White that included two catches for 44 yards, a blocked punt that should have won them the game, and a 20-yard pass interference that he drew. Hell, Jaxon Smith-Njigba had seven catches for 180 yards and two TDs with another 71 yards called back by flags.

The defense played their best game of the season, holding one of the best full-strength offenses of the last 30 years (as defined by EPA/play when Matthew Stafford, Cooper Kupp, Puka Nacua, and Kyren Williams are all healthy) to 2.8 yards per carry and 6.8 yards per pass. Riq Woolen, who came into this game allowing the lowest passer rating in the NFL among CBs when targeted , had one pick and almost had another but he got beat by a one-handed catch on an overtime prayer and now he’s a bum.

One thing that NFL football does is expose just how short-sighted most of us are. At the end of the day, it all comes down to wins and losses but reducing our opinions to those same wins and losses sells our cognitive abilities short. That’s how the discourse surrounding a team that is supposed to bring us joy can become so toxic. And with that in mind…

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SMOKE RINGS

There’s only one smoke ring tonight, and I’m exhaling it on myself. I’ve been writing about this team after every game for well over a decade so despite what you might read from @firstnamebunchanumbers on Twitter, I’ve been in the trenches for the highest highs and the lowest lows in this franchise’s recent history. And I’ve engaged with feedback from the most optimistic and pessimistic fans over that entire timeline. It is with that context that I say the following:

I too have been sucked into a deleterious online discourse surrounding this team. We’re sports fans because watching our favorite team allows us to vicariously experience a dim reflection of the intensity that our favorite athletes go through in a way that we were never able to achieve ourselves. We have gotten so comfortable leveling criticism— not only of the players on the field but towards each other online as well.

I’ve seen the full spectrum of fan response during my time writing this column and man, I get it. Losing sucks but also, it’s not us losing. Winning rules but I truly feel that the greatness of the LOB-era Seahawks unintentionally poisoned us in a way that makes it difficult to respect just how hard it is to win at the NFL level.

I’m as guilty as anyone. Look no further than the way I interacted with people on Twitter during today’s game. The most common feedback I’ve gotten from the years writing these articles is the one I’m most proud of— that Cigar Thoughts is something of a de facto therapy session for Seahawks fans. It’s never been my explicit intent to provide that service but it makes me happy that a good portion of y’all feel that way.

It’s within that context that I have talked myself into being some sort of keeper of the flame— a protector of good and right Seahawks takes. Do I believe the things that I put in front of the public? Absolutely. There’s not a single take on my record that I haven’t already played devil’s advocate against before putting in print. That doesn’t make me infallible, it simply makes me right in my own eyes.

To my own shame, I regret that I have occasionally been as obtuse and ham-fisted in my presentation as the folks that I’ve argued against. And that’s not super fun.

I value level-headedness and whether I’ve successfully portrayed that or not, it’s always been my intent. And yet, today I found myself dragged into fruitless online debates about which aspects of this team are #good and #bad. And that’s on me.

Arguing whether Geno Smith should be extended or whether DK Metcalf should be traded or whether Mike Macdonald was the right hire are short-sighted and small-minded. That’s not to say that there shouldn’t be room for debate on these, or other, issues but I bring it up to acknowledge my role in narrowing a discourse that should remain much broader than it’s become.

I can’t look at a game that saw my favorite team’s quarterback complete 62% of his passes for nearly 11 yards per attempt while being pressured at the highest rate any NFL QB has been all season and come to the conclusion that he’s the issue. Especially when four of his incompletions were dropped and that each of his interceptions comes with a story that exists outside the box score. And when another 70+ yards are called back on penalties, it only strengthens my position. My position.. But I’m wired in a very specific way, and I see the game through a lens that would be unfair to project onto everyone else.

If anything, my blind spot is in not giving adequate oxygen to opposing viewpoints and five losses in six games amplifies disagreements about which areas the team needs to focus on improving the most. I’m not going to delete any tweets from my personal account or the Cigar Thoughts account because they reflect how I felt at the time and I’m willing to stand by them. To be completely honest, I still do.

But if I’m willing to be critical of others, I need to be willing to be critical of myself and the fact that my favorite team— an entity whose performance I have no influence on— has lost a few games recently probably shouldn’t affect my overall mood to the degree it has. This is supposed to be fun, and lately it hasn’t been. That’s on me and, if we’re being entirely honest, it’s on some of you too. But who gives a shit? Like, if this makes us miserable then what are we even doing?

It’s time I owned up to my role in that. NFL football is fucking cool as hell and the game between the Seahawks and Rams today was a perfect example of what should be considered a wildly entertaining game. I want the Seahawks to win as badly as you do— I promise you that. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t spend 3-4 hours every Sunday hammering out these articles instead of making out with my smokeshow wife on the couch while The Real Housewives of New Jersey plays in the background.

I guess what I’m saying is that if the performance of an arbitrarily collected group of athletes we’re unlikely to ever know personally doesn’t add up to a win ruins our mood, that’s on us. I’m not saying we shouldn’t care, or that losses shouldn’t bum us out. What I’m saying— and I’m doing so recognizing that we all care deeply about the Seahawks— is that if them not getting a yard in overtime alters the way we view each other, we’re approaching this all wrong. And I own my guilt in that.

Hopefully the Seahawks win a bunch of games after the bye and make the playoffs and give us all reasons to celebrate. But if that doesn’t happen, I hope I can be better about accepting that capital-T Truth is a white light shone through a prism each of us can only view through a single facet. The same text can take on different hues depending on which angle each of us receive it through.

The Seahawks are 4-5 and that sucks. But at the end of the day, we’re all still waking up tomorrow and going about our business regardless. I hope we do it with grace and understanding. Lord knows that’s advice I can take myself. The conversation is important because if you’re reading this, you care about the Seahawks and when things are going well, this dumb team has the ability to bring people together in a way that transcends personality, outlook, and political affiliation. It’s what allows us to see a complete stranger in the grocery store wearing a ‘Hawks jersey and feel kinship with them.

The Seahawks are a connective tissue that spans the entire Pacific Northwest and beyond and I rue any effect I’ve had on fraying it. My goal has always been to try and, if nothing else, ever so slightly elevate the discourse surrounding this team. And if done correctly, provide a conduit to a better understanding of the game we all love.

I don’t know what awaits the Seahawks after their bye next week, but I do know the path to the playoffs won’t be easy. I clearly have strong opinions about certain aspects of this team but I can’t predict the future any better than you can. All I can do is try to be better about providing an avenue for a more nuanced and respectful discourse surrounding our favorite franchise.

Also, just go win some fucking games, Mike.

We’re off next week but we have a killer show with a truly amazing guest on the pod in a few days. Until then, onward and upward my friends.

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And if you didn’t know, we also have our own cigars now, which you can order below:

~~ORDER YOUR OFFICIAL CIGAR THOUGHTS CIGARS HERE~~—

I’ve been obsessed with the new release of Cigar Thoughts RedZones but today I went back to the Cigar Thoughts Originals and man, I forgot just how smooth these are. A touch darker than the RedZones, so we’ve got you covered for whichever mood you’re in.

We’ve linked up with one of the premier cigar manufacturers in the world to offer a special 13-year-aged blend of Dominican tobacco leaf to Cigar Thoughts readers for less than half of MSRP. These cigars, banded and branded by their creator, sell for $35-$40 per stick but we’re able to offer them to you for just $149 for a bundle of 10. They come with a Mylar bag and Boveda humidification pack so they’ll stay fresh whether you have a humidor or not. Just use the link!

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We’re also on YouTube, where you can catch video clips from the podcast, entire video episodes, and the audio recordings of the articles. Go watch our latest episode where yours truly gives my honest perception of the team so far. This is maybe the best way to support Cigar Thoughts, so I appreciate the few seconds it takes to like and subscribe.

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This is the 6th year of our incredible partnership with Seattle Cigar Concierge. They have the plug on some of the most insane stogies on the market and they’re offering them to Cigar Thoughts readers for 20% off. These are extremely special sticks, and among the most enjoyable I’ve ever smoked. To get the hook-up, just email [email protected]. They are carrying over 70 cigar brands with many rare releases, including Davidoff, Opus X, and Padron. You can also hit them up on Twitter: @SeattleCigars. Just be sure to mention that you’re a Cigar Thoughts reader. Many of you have taken advantage of this incredible opportunity and for those who have always wondered what elite cigars are like, this may the best chance you’ll get to step into that world.

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We’re also thrilled to partner with The Balvenie, one of my favorite distilleries. Popped open their Doublewood today, which has earthier tones than some of their lighter fair. Very complex, and strong enough to hold up against the Cigar Thoughts RedZone series I was smoking..

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The 2024 season of Cigar Thoughts is also proud to be sponsored by Fairhaven Floors in Bellingham, WA.