As of right now, the Seattle Seahawks are 8-7, possess the seventh NFC playoff seed, and are in charge of their own fate.
Rost: What is noteworthy about the Seattle Seahawks’ return to above-500?
They will qualify for the playoffs for the 11th time in 14 years under Pete Carroll and for the second year in a row after benching their franchise quarterback if they win their final two games of the season—one against a bottom-feeding Cardinals team that hasn’t improved since Kyler Murray returned and the other against a Pittsburgh team with a similar record but starting their third quarterback of the year.
Now, this has been a confusing year. This team has occasionally appeared to be utterly outmatched, unruly, outmuscled, and ready to crumble. On other occasions, they have demonstrated the capacity to persevere, perform at their peak when it counts, and make the most of their knowledgeable staff.
On that roller coaster, it’s easy to believe that the Seahawks are the only team. But, hey, what do you know? It’s incredibly common. Perhaps more prevalent than before.
There can be no NFL club that is at.500 after 15 games played by any team. Surprisingly, though, twenty-four clubs remain in postseason contention with two weeks remaining; 44% of the league is either 8-7 or 7-8.
Although that could satisfy the NFL’s need for parity, we could also characterize it as mediocre.
In the NFL, or really any sport, being in the 500 has always been a bad position. Sometimes, young teams that are rapidly improving will plateau at 500 and then improve to their maximum potential the following season. But for teams lacking something, the middle has all too frequently become a wasteland.
Perhaps they lack the proper coach, the right talent, the right scheme, the right quarterback, or the right mood. Perhaps they simply lack the clutch DNA needed to win the close ones. They are too good to impose significant change, yet not good enough to contend for championships. Using this concept, my colleague Mike Lefko wrote a great article (see below) that specifically addresses the quarterback position.
Lefko: The Seahawks should search for a future quarterback since they run the risk of being mediocre.
As it happens, I completely agreed with him at the time he wrote it (Week 14—after Seattle had lost four straight games).
I’m not in the business of hoping for the Seahawks to fail; they have a solid chance of making the playoffs. Not at all. Though the Eagles’ collapse was the main storyline surrounding the primetime victory over Philadelphia, something seemed to be ignited in these Seahawks as well. It breathed new life into them and may have even resolved some underlying difficulties.
Thus, the first key question is this: How likely is it that any of the 44% of teams in No Man’s Land will win the Super Bowl? To be honest, that looks incredibly low. True, every now and again we witness a rising contender who grows into a mature player and enters the postseason with a bang. Perhaps the Bucs will enter the game on February 11 and ride that momentum to Las Vegas after winning six straight games. However, I would not risk my own money on it.
It appears far more plausible that the Niners, Lions, Cowboys, Eagles, Dolphins, Ravens, or perhaps the Chiefs or Bills will make it there. All those clubs have at least a 10-5 record, and many of those defeats have come from playing one another.
The Seahawks could arrive there with a storyline that you write. With the loss of Jamal Adams and some open competition around the corner, their defense has improved. It appears that their offensive is getting some traction, particularly when it comes to passing. They might have learned some important things from their four-game losing streak.
They have defeated the Rams and Niners, played close to Dallas, and defeated Detroit and Philadelphia. Since it’s difficult to defeat a team three times in a season, they might even defeat one of their division opponents. To do all those things, though? It looks like a big request.
Now, for the evident follow-up: If the Seahawks aren’t already among those elite teams, are they headed that way? Might they succeed this year? The following year?
I’m not sure of the response yet. They could have strong proof that they are improving and could even have a few pieces from an outstanding season if they can finish 10-7 and make some significant noise in the playoffs. If not, they will only have one playoff victory since 2016 and will have missed ten consecutive seasons of going past the divisional round.
Answers to those questions are postponed until the conclusion of the season. However, it enables us to view the remaining games with two sets of eyes. We can support this underdog tale as they try to prove themselves and make it to the playoffs. The narrative is entertaining, particularly when they come up with novel ideas like they have over the past two weeks. Simultaneously, we can keep an eye on the long-term requirement to rise above the lowered bar of qualifying for the playoffs and return to the genuine objective of winning the league and winning the Super Bowl.
