If you live under a rock, or maybe you don’t watch Monday Night Football, then you missed one of the greatest games in the shows’ history. It was a classic, one that Seattle won 14-12.
The Seahawks, with the 12th Man in tow, held the All-World Offense of the Green Bay Packers to a meager 12 points. They made Aaron Rodgers look like a crash-test dummy at times. Putting him on the ground an astounding nine times. That’s nine sacks. The ridiculous part? Chris Clemons had four of them in the second quarter alone.
Yes, the game was controversial. Yes the “replacement” officials botched the entire thing, but boy was it fun to watch.
Obviously Packers fans have a different view of this, but that’s water under the bridge. Your team lost, and that’s fine.
Ever since the end of the glorious Holmgren-Hasselbeck-Alexander-Jones Era, Seattle hasn’t really had that many primetime games. At all. We had the playoff-play in game with the Rams to decide the division, but both teams had losing records. Yes, we’ve had playoff games since then, but all the playoffs are on national TV.
This wasn’t some Jacksonville Jaguars or Minnesota Vikings coming to town. This was the Green Bay Packers. A supposed team to beat, with the reigning MVP at the helm of an explosive offense. Yes, the Packers are good. I’m not taking anything away from them, but Seattle won. And it was a statement win.
Yes, the game was controversial, but if you watched the game, the reality is that for the majority of it the Seahawks were in control. This was a Pete Carroll type win. This is the kind of team that opposing teams should expect to see out of the Seahawks week in and week out.
Not only was it a Pete Carroll win, but you saw all of the gems that the ever-energetic Seahawks coach has found. Bruce Irvin, the 15th overall pick in the most recent NFL Draft. The one that all the pundits questioned. The one that made Bryan Bulaga, who is a very good right tackle in the league, look silly. Irvin showed his speed and strength to beat Bulaga on multiple plays and sack Rodgers for his first two career sacks.
KJ Wright was fantastic as well. Wright, a fourth round pick out of Mississippi State in 2011, was all over the field, tying AJ Hawk for a game high 11 tackles. Two of which were for loss.
Clemons was the real star on defense with four sacks in one quarter. Let me say that again, four sacks in one quarter. Four sacks is a decent day on the job for one team in one game, but to have four sacks out of one player in one quarter is completely absurd.
Clemons, Irving and Brandon Mebane combined for eight sacks with a ninth coming on procedural call on a Rodgers’ scramble.
This effort made the Packers’ offensive line, which was featured on a recent cover of ESPN the Magazine — backups and all, look like the offensive lines of Seahawks past. They opened the flood gates and let Gus Bradley’s defense hold a dance party in the back field due to all the sack-induced celebrations.
Yes, the Packers did recover and play much better in the second half, but they’re a good team. That’s what they’re supposed to do. It would be silly to think otherwise.
The offense wasn’t bad either. Though not posting stats that will blow anyone away, Russell Wilson put the Seahawks in a position to win. Say what you will about the controversial Hail Mary, Wilson put the ball in a position where his guy could get it.
Here’s the real kicker, the Seahawks’ offensive line gave up one sack on the day. Yes, the line and Russell Okung in particular was plagued by penalties. They at least kept the sacks from piling up, which is huge progress.
Hopefully this spurs the folks at ESPN, NBC, NFL Network and whoever else picks the primetime games, to choose the Seahawks. Who, after all, have the best winning percentage in league history when appearing on Monday Night Football.
More Good News for Seattle
If Golden Tate’s Hail Mary catch was to win the game, then Chris Hansen’s arena deal getting approved by the Seattle City Council was a Marshawn Lynch run earlier in the drive that should set up the play action pass that wins the game.
The much ballyhooed arena deal was passed by the Seattle City Council on a 6-2 vote. While it still has to jump some smaller hurdles, this is the big one that had to be cleared, and it was.
To put it plainly, Chris Hansen gets to go shopping first. Now he can beat any other owners who are out there looking to relocate a team to the market. He’s got a heads up with the new arena deal approval that lets him start shopping for a team to move back to Seattle.
It keeps getting better and better.
I’m so happy for Seattle sports in general that I’m not even going to throw in a slant at David Stern. I’m just too happy.
