The Seahawks: An Early Look

There is something odd about this match up. Maybe it's because of the fact that I still think of the Seattle Seahawks as being in the same conference as the Steelers, even though they are not anymore. Or perhaps it's because of Seattle's non-descript franchise history (they were one of seven teams never to make it to a Super Bowl before last week). Or possibly it's the fact that there is no history whatsoever between these two teams (they have only played each other 14 times, and none of those meetings were games of real significance). Or maybe it's because I still find it hilarious that they slightly altered the bird on their helmet to make him look "angrier" (by the way, that became a trend as the Falcons and Cardinals did the same thing with their bird logos; also, we learned that all you have to do to make a bird look angry is make him point at a downward angle rather than having him stare straight ahead). Regardless, the Seahawks clearly established themselves as the best team in the NFC this season.

You could look at this team two ways. First, you could focus on the negatives. The NFC has been a joke for quite some time now. It's telling that they had to move an AFC team over to the NFC just to balance things out! The Seahawks only lost three times all season, but they played a weak schedule. In the playoffs, they took out the #5 and #6 seeds in the conference, and they did that while playing at home. Their road to the Super Bowl had a nice smooth pavement, while our road was uphill and bumpy.

However, you have to look at the positives. The Seahawks have won 13 out of their last 14 games, with the only loss coming in a meaningless season finale in which they rested all their starters. Yes, the two teams they beat in the playoffs were low seeds, but as the Steelers know, low seeds can catch fire in the post-season. The Redskins had won 6 in a row and were dominating teams with their defense, but Seattle easily disposed of them. The Panthers were even hotter, having shut out the Giants in New York and making the vaunted Chicago defense look silly. Jake Delhomme was developing a Brady-like quality of always winning post-season games, and Steve Smith was making the argument that he should have run away with the league's MVP award. Many of the NFL media types picked Carolina to pull the upset, but the Seahawks hammered them in the NFC Championship Game. Even if the NFC is indeed a joke, all Seattle has to do to crown themselves champions is beat one team from the AFC, not three.

This is a very good team. Their offense features the league MVP (and the guy who helped me win the overall points title in my fantasy league this year) in Shaun Alexander. Their QB is severely underrated. Other than making that ill-fated "we're gonna score" prediction in Green Bay a few post-seasons ago, Matt Hasselbeck has had a very successful career and is playing better than ever right now. I didn't think much of their defense until I watched them shut down Steve Smith. So yes, it's not going to be easy. Let's hope the Steelers can keep the momentum going over the next two weeks and that the coaches will be as prepared for the Seahawks as they have been for the other playoff teams.

Steelers vs. Seahawks: Recent Meetings 2003: Steelers 16, Seahawks 23 1999: Steelers 10, Seahawks 29 1998: Steelers 13, Seahawks 10

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