The Hawks Are Getting Their Sea Legs

Since 2012, the Seattle Seahawks have been the bullies of the National Football League. The Seahawks have been one of the most physical teams in football which led to them winning Super Bowl 48. The Seahawks made it back to the Super Bowl last season, but there they fell short against the New England Patriots. And in this era in the NFL that has been dominated by the salary cap, it is extremely tough for a team’s core to remain in tact for a long time. Along with the short longevity of keeping a pro football team’s core players together, some folks might believe that the Seahawks title window could be closing, but that is far from the case.

After the Seahawks lost their first two games of the 2015 National Football League season, some critics were beginning to right them off as it appeared to be a classic case of the Super Bowl hangover. Through six games, the Seahawks had a record of 2-4 and every time that they appeared ready to turn the corner, they took a step backwards.

After losing at home to the Arizona Cardinals in Week 10, the Seahawks were 4-5 and that is when they went back to the basics. The Seahawks have won their last four games as in the middle of December, they have figured it out just in time for the playoffs.

What has defined the Seahawks recently has been their running game, strong defense, and a quarterback in Russell Wilson that is taking care of the football.

The first two games of the National Football League saw the Seahawks not have the services of strong safety Kam Chancellor. Chancellor was holding out for more money that never came, but he has returned to help make the Seahawks defense whole again. During the off-season, the Seahawks traded center Max Unger and a first-round selection in the 2015 NFL Draft to the New Orleans Saints in exchange for tight end Jimmy Graham. The marriage between Graham and the Seahawks hasn’t worked due to the fact that Graham is a pass-catching tight end that typically lines up as a wide receiver whereas the Seahawks have used him more as a blocker. Graham and Wilson were finally getting on the same page when he suffered a torn right patellar tendon on November 29 against the Pittsburgh Steelers which abruptly ended his season.

But luckily for the Seahawks, Wilson continues to be on the same page with wide receiver Doug Baldwin as the two are so in sync that they could possibly complete each other’s sentences. In the last four games for the Seahawks which have all resulted in victories, Wilson has thrown 16 touchdown passes without any interceptions with Baldwin being the recipient on 8 of those throws including a trio in Seattle’s win this past Sunday against the Baltimore Ravens.

Over the summer, Wilson and the Seahawks came to an agreement on a four-year, $87.5 million extension and the young quarterback is living up to the deal. In four years in the National Football League, Wilson has built a reputation as an accurate quarterback along with being a leader. And now Wilson is ascending to the status of being an elite quarterback as he has developed more of a presence in the pocket which is good for the Seahawks and bad for everyone else in the National Football League.

The wear and tear of being a running back is beginning to get to Seahawks running back Marshawn Lynch. Lynch has been one of the most physical running backs to ever play in the National Football League. But that style of play is catching up to Lynch as he is currently out now as he is recovering from sports hernia surgery. Lynch has only averaged 3.8 yards per carry this season, but in his absence the Seahawks have been relying on rookie running back Thomas Rawls. Rawls was on the verge of reaching the 1000-yard mark in rushing this season as he’s been averaging 5.6 yards per carry. However in the Seahawks victory over the Ravens, Rawls suffered a broken ankle that will keep him out of the action for the rest of the season. The Seahakws have the top ranked rushing offense in the NFL this year, but Lynch still isn’t ready to return to action which means that veteran running back Fred Jackson should anticipate having a more increased role in the offense.

The Seahawks have the second ranked defense in the National Football League, but in the last two weeks they’ve been extra stingy as opposing offenses have only managed to score a pair of field goals against them. Defensively the Seahawks are not at a loss for swagger as they are a group of supreme alpha males. The Legion of Boom secondary consisting of Chancellor, free safety Earl Thomas, and cornerback Richard Sherman all take pride in being All-Pros along with being game-changing playmakers as the Seahawks defense tends to get on a roll when this unit is clicking on all cylinders like they are right now. And you cannot overlook the contributions of middle linebacker Bobby Wagner who is the anchor of the Seahawks defense along with outside linebacker Bruce Irvin, and defensive ends Michael Bennett and Cliff Avril who know how the rush the passer as the trio has combined for 21.5 sacks this year. The Seahawks defense becomes even more dangerous on third-down situations as Irvin tends to line up more on the defensive line which gives Seattle three defensive ends in a typical pass rush situation.

For Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll, he has had to make many adjustments for his squad. Due to the Seahawks success in recent years, the team has seen a pair of defensive coordinators in Gus Bradley and Dan Quinn leave Seattle to become head coaches in the National Football League. Bradley is currently the head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars while Quinn is the man in charge of the Atlanta Falcons. The Seahawks have also lost linebackers coach Ken Norton Jr., who is now the defensive coordinator of Oakland Raiders. Kris Richard is in his first year as the Seahawks defensive coordinator, but he has been with the organization as a defensive backs coach since Carroll became the head coach in the Pacific Northwest in 2010. Led by Richard, the Seahawks have five coaches on their defensive staff that played in the National Football League as it makes it easier for players to get advice about playing the game from people who have already been there.

The first 10 games of the season saw the Seahawks have a tough schedule that included them facing four current division leaders as they lost each of those contests. But over the past four weeks, the Seahawks have gotten their groove back which has included them defeating two squads in the Steelers and Minnesota Vikings who are in contention for wild card berths in their respective conferences. The Seahawks will host the Cleveland Browns this Sunday before their rematch with the St. Louis Rams at home in Week 16. The Rams knocked the Seahawks off in Week 1 as when these two teams meet, it is just like seeing the Hatfields take on the McCoys. The Seahawks will then finish the regular season on the road against the Arizona Cardinals who knocked the Seahawks off at home by a score of 39-32 in Week 10. The Cardinals only need one more victory over their final three games to ensure themselves of winning the NFC West Title. The Cardinals winning the division would also mean that the Seahawks will only have the option of getting into the postseason as a wild card. With a record of 8-5, the Seahawks find themselves tied with the Vikings for the top wild card spot in the NFC. But with the Seahawks rousing 38-7 victory over the Vikings in Week 13, they hold the tiebreaker as they would the first wild card team.

CenturyLink Field in Seattle has served as a tremendous home-field advantage for the Seahawks since its inception in 2002, but that won’t be the case next month as this team will more than likely be a wild card as they will have to get it done on the road next month if they want to become the first team since the Buffalo Bills in 1993 to play in three consecutive Super Bowls. There still isn’t a timetable as far as when Lynch will return to the Seahawks lineup as they’ll need his physical presence on the field without the services of Rawls. But with a talented secondary, a quarterback that knows how the make big plays, and a 53-man roster that is oozing with confidence, this is a Seahawks team that opponents won’t be lining up to face next month in the postseason.