Are you ready for a weekly blast from the Seahawks teams of the past?
This will be a weekly article series throughout the season looking back on what happened for the Seattle Seahawks 40, 30, 20, and 10 years ago this week.
What a fun, fun game we have to talk about this week. Soak it all in and enjoy it while you can, that’s all I’m going to say about that.
40 Years Ago
*Final 1984 record: 13-5. Lost in AFC Divisional Round*
30 Years Ago
*Final 1994 record: 6-10*
20 Years Ago
*Final 2004 record: 9-8. Lost in NFC Wild Card Round*
10 Years Ago
Sunday, January 18, 2015
Man, has it really been 10 years already? This one is especially sweet for me living in Wisconsin. Green Bay Packers fans still aren’t over it and will carry a hatred of Pete Carroll to their graves.
Things didn’t start off too poorly all things considered. The Packers got the ball first and drove down to the SEA 29 before Aaron Rodgers made the mistake of throwing at Richard Sherman who made him pay with a pick at the goal line. Unfortunately, 3 plays later Russell Wilson returned the favor when he was intercepted targeting Jermaine Kearse. That will be a theme in this one, folks.
Seattle’s defense held GB to an 18-yard Mason Crosby FG and the Seahawks were quickly down 3-0. Doug Baldwin fumbled the ensuing kickoff, giving the ball right back to the Packers. The Seahawks defense again held them to a 19-yard Crosby FG to limit the damage to 6-0 just halfway through the First Quarter. Seattle went 3-and-out and GB drove all the way down the field, scoring on a 13-yard TD pass from Rodgers to Randall Cobb for the 13-0 lead. Things were not looking good.
The Seahawks went 3-and-out again and Rodgers led GB down the field again, this time finishing with a 40-yard Crosby FG to make the score 16-0. Russ threw a pick on the very first play of the next drive on a pass to Kearse and the Packers were in business. Thankfully, Byron Maxwell intercepted Rodgers to give it back to the offense. Seattle finally got things going on offense, taking the ball into the GB red zone before Russ was intercepted targeting Kearse again. No one scored on the next few drives, leaving Seattle down 16-0 heading into the locker room.
Both teams traded punts out of halftime and Seattle got the ball back with about 11 minutes left in the 3rd Quarter. They drove down into the GB red zone again but stalled. Facing a 4th and 10 from the GB 19, Stephen Hauschka liined up for a FG.
Sike, it was a fake! Punter/holder Jon Ryan rolled out, made one of the goofiest faces you’ll ever see, and shot put the ball into the waiting arms of offensive tackle Gary Gilliam to get Seattle on the board, now down 16-7.
GB and Seattle traded punts, with the Packers getting the ball back near the end of the Third Quarter. They used up the first 4 minutes of the 4th Quarter driving down the field and finishing with a 48-yard Crosby FG to go ahead 19-7. Seattle drove to midfield on the next drive but were forced to punt. With just under 7 minutes left in the game things were not looking great for our ‘Hawks.
Don’t worry, it would get worse!
After the defense forced another 3-and-out, Russ was picked off on the first play of the next drive when targeting – you guessed it – Jermaine Kearse. There would be 4 picks, all on passes to Jermaine Kearse. There were 5 minutes left and GB started to run out the clock. They punted back to SEA with 4 minutes remaining. The Seahawks used up about half of that time, with Russ taking it in himself from 1-yard out to make the score 19-14.
After already using a few timeouts, they needed to attempt an onsides kick. And wouldn’t you know it? They freakin’ recovered! Thank you, Brandon Bostick!
A few plays later, Marshawn Lynch broke loose with a (very fitting) 24-yard TD run and the fans went bananas! Seattle lined up for the pivotal 2-point conversion that would put Seattle up by 3 with 1:33 remaining. Russ dropped back to pass and did his usual Russ thing, staying alive and extending the play. He threw up a prayer that seemed to hang in the air for about 75 minutes and somehow landed gently in the hands of Luke Willson for a successful 2-point try. Seattle was up 22-19.
Remember how important I said going up by 3 points was? Yeah, GB drove down the field before stalling at the SEA 30. Crosby nailed a 48-yard FG to tie it at 22-22 with 19 seconds left. Russ took a knee and we were headed into overtime.
Seattle won the coin toss and put all earlier offensive struggles aside, with Russ hitting Doug Baldwin for chunk plays of 10 and 35 yards. Then, came one of the most iconic plays in sports history. On 1st and 10 from the GB 35, Russ dropped back to pass again. He lofted one of the prettiest damn deep balls you’ll see in the direction of Jermaine Kearse, who was up to that point having a very bad day. The pass was placed perfectly and Kearse cradled the ball into his bosom like a proud new mother, sending Seattle to the Super Bowl for the 2nd consecutive year! All Kearse’s transgressions were forgotten as he was etched into Seahawks History as a clutch performer. Seattle’s fans and players celebrated like crazy with Michael Bennett borrowing a police bike for a joy ride around the stadium!
Russell Wilson was 11/29 for 268 yards, 1 TD, 4 INT. He also had 7 carries for 25 yards and 1 TD. Marshawn Lynch had 25 carries for 157 yards and 1 TD. Doug Baldwin led Seattle with 6 catches for 106 yards. I would be remiss if I didn’t mention Kearse who made up for his poor start in a huge way with 1 catch for 35 yards and the game-winning TD.
Richard Sherman and Byron Maxwell both had 1 INT. Cliff Avril had 1.0 sack.
On the AFC side, the New England Patriots battered the Indianapolis Colts 45-7, setting up the Seahawks vs. the Patriots for the Super Bowl. Start prepping yourself for that article however you see fit. Next week, we’ll take a look at media day and a few of the stories heading into the game so you’ll have a bit of time to get ready. I know I’ll need it…