The 2007 Defense and Wavering in my Super Bowl Prediction

[drdiags]

Maybe the D gets tired of reading their headlines and need a challenge of a top-flight QB to pick their game up? The D has shown they can be ran on, and a Top flight QB can attack them. The Pass rush investment had trade-offs, and that was going to be the run defense. The players are blaming not wrapping up, I don't know what it is but they are getting handled the past few games.

Maybe they lose in a shoot-out or some team runs it down their throat and bottles up Wilson? I think you pretty much have to roll with what you have, since they have invested heavily into both the offense and defense with their off-season moves. I am not sure who I would say has the inside track on what it takes to win it all right now. For the longest folks thought the Broncos on the AFC side and Seattle/Saints/9ers/Packers on the NFC side.

I wonder how this convo looks like after the Saints game heading into San Fran? If it is still the same, then just adjust your expectations because the fight is on.

Nice piece but you used to get me concerned about our QB hopes and we got a nice surprise out of that. Maybe the same can happen with this team's destination?

 

[davidonmi]

I agree with everything except 1, I do not believe wilson is having a sophmore slump

 

[amill87]

Oh and I'd like to add the texans are currently beating the colts by 12 points in the 4th. You know that same elite quarterback is being held to 12 points by the same defense that got torched by Sam Bradford and the rams.

We gotta stop looking at every game as a potential blow out. The bucs are better than their record and they are gonna give everything they got to knock us down. And they did

 

[formido]

While that's an impressive analogy, I'm going to go with Football Outsider's analysis, since it's time tested and predictive. Seattle is #2 in DVOA.

 

[TwistedHusky]

There is a simple test for this.

We have to play the 49ers, the Saints and the Giants.

If we lose any of those games we probably deserve to stop complaining because we will have a much tougher climb after that.

If we win those games, then we can breathe a little easier.


I am worried that we have gotten ridiculously lucky this year too but sometimes the winning team is the lucky one. We have had a pretty phenomenal run of missing QBs when they are good, facing backups in games that might have been losses otherwise, and the rest. Surely, if the drop at the goal line in the Rams game was not a sign I do not know what is.

We have to play better against the good teams though. Thus far this team has looked remarkably average when facing some bad teams.

 

[volsunghawk]

Never called you a troll, man. But if you want to be sensitive about our disagreements, I suppose that's your right.

So, out of curiosity, how did that uber-awesome Drew Brees do today? I'm guessing that juggernaut Saints team probably just rolled through whatever opponent they were facing.

 

[MontanaHawk05]

There is a simple test for this.

We have to play the 49ers, the Saints and the Giants.

If we lose any of those games we probably deserve to stop complaining because we will have a much tougher climb after that.

If we win those games, then we can breathe a little easier.


I am worried that we have gotten ridiculously lucky this year too but sometimes the winning team is the lucky one. We have had a pretty phenomenal run of missing QBs when they are good, facing backups in games that might have been losses otherwise, and the rest. Surely, if the drop at the goal line in the Rams game was not a sign I do not know what is.

We have to play better against the good teams though. Thus far this team has looked remarkably average when facing some bad teams.

Good post. It's true that luck is a component of a Super Bowl season as much as empirical quality. What I wish we knew better, is the current proportions we're seeing. I agree that it's actually kinda nice to have stronger tests ahead of us, and I'm not saying we're going to get blown out by them.

 

[MontanaHawk05]

Oh and I'd like to add the texans are currently beating the colts by 12 points in the 4th. You know that same elite quarterback is being held to 12 points by the same defense that got torched by Sam Bradford and the rams.

Managed to pull it out nicely, though. Luck is going to be a heavyweight.

 

[amill87]

Oh and I'd like to add the texans are currently beating the colts by 12 points in the 4th. You know that same elite quarterback is being held to 12 points by the same defense that got torched by Sam Bradford and the rams.

Managed to pull it out nicely, though. Luck is going to be a heavyweight.

Just like we did? And have done? So the colts and luck are. Juggernaut when they do it but we are destined for failure in the playoffs?

 

[DavidSeven]

Oh and I'd like to add the texans are currently beating the colts by 12 points in the 4th. You know that same elite quarterback is being held to 12 points by the same defense that got torched by Sam Bradford and the rams.

Managed to pull it out nicely, though. Luck is going to be a heavyweight.

Did you even watch that game? Texans were jobbed. That was some of the worst officiating I've ever seen, and Luck played awful.

 

[amill87]

Oh and I'd like to add the texans are currently beating the colts by 12 points in the 4th. You know that same elite quarterback is being held to 12 points by the same defense that got torched by Sam Bradford and the rams.

Managed to pull it out nicely, though. Luck is going to be a heavyweight.

Just like we did? And have done? So the colts and luck are a juggernaut when they do it but we are destined for failure in the playoffs?

 

[MontanaHawk05]

Oh and I'd like to add the texans are currently beating the colts by 12 points in the 4th. You know that same elite quarterback is being held to 12 points by the same defense that got torched by Sam Bradford and the rams.

Managed to pull it out nicely, though. Luck is going to be a heavyweight.

Just like we did? And have done? So the colts and luck are. Juggernaut when they do it but we are destined for failure in the playoffs?

Colts have played more impressive teams than we have, though I wouldn't quite call ours a cakewalk when it comes to the defenses.

 

[amill87]

Oh and I'd like to add the texans are currently beating the colts by 12 points in the 4th. You know that same elite quarterback is being held to 12 points by the same defense that got torched by Sam Bradford and the rams.

Managed to pull it out nicely, though. Luck is going to be a heavyweight.

Just like we did? And have done? So the colts and luck are. Juggernaut when they do it but we are destined for failure in the playoffs?

Colts have played more impressive teams than we have, though I wouldn't quite call ours a cakewalk when it comes to the defenses.

Huh? Because of the broncos? We can't count as a better team than them by your logic. Their other games were the raiders, chargers, jags, giants, niners, and texans.

 

[MontanaHawk05]

Never called you a troll, man. But if you want to be sensitive about our disagreements, I suppose that's your right.

"And you damn well know that. You're just using an inflammatory soundbyte for effect, and it's a load of crap."

^^^Your words a few weeks ago, back when the uncharacteristic gaffes and unit-wide lapses were still uncharacteristic. They've been a trend for a while now.

So, out of curiosity, how did that uber-awesome Drew Brees do today? I'm guessing that juggernaut Saints team probably just rolled through whatever opponent they were facing.

Are you REALLY trying to nitpick your way out of the idea that we'll face more complete teams in the playoffs than what we've seen this year? I'm thankful that Brees devolves on the road, which will be fine as long as we lock down HFA.

 

[MontanaHawk05]

Huh? Because of the broncos? We can't count as a better team than them by your logic. Their other games were the raiders, chargers, jags, giants, niners, and texans.

And Miami. And SEATTLE, of course.

I don't see why you are trying to deflate Indy in order to push the idea that the playoffs will be easy for Seattle. Even if you won that argument, is it really all that flattering to Seattle?

 

[Hasselbeck]

I think comparing the 2013 Seahawks to the 2007 Seahawks is a major stretch. The comparable similarity is a favorable schedule.. though even in 2007 with that favorable schedule.. they were losing games they should lose. This team is winning the games they should arguably be losing (Rams, Bucs, Texans, Panthers).

It's a walking on egg shells approach and I'm not going to sit here and say this team played great today.. because for 3 1/2 quarters they didn't. But this team is ravaged on the offensive line and still winning games. Down two starting WR's now and still winning games. Down an elite pass rusher for 2 games, another one for 4 games, down a starting pro-bowl corner for 2, down an all-pro inside LB for a couple.. etc.. and they're still 8-1

The 2007 Seahawks? They played great at home, and got slapped around on the road. Including in the playoffs.

 

[volsunghawk]

Never called you a troll, man. But if you want to be sensitive about our disagreements, I suppose that's your right.

"And you damn well know that. You're just using an inflammatory soundbyte for effect, and it's a load of crap."

^^^Your words a few weeks ago, back when the uncharacteristic gaffes and unit-wide lapses were still uncharacteristic. They've been a trend for a while now.

[/quote]

That ain't trolling, and I don't consider you one. I did, however, think you were exaggerating and being intellectually dishonest ("We almost lost to Ryan Fitzpatrick"). Today, we did almost lose to Mike James. Glennon looked sharp early, and then we seemed to limit him as the game went on. James was impressive throughout. I'm officially concerned over our run D.

So, out of curiosity, how did that uber-awesome Drew Brees do today? I'm guessing that juggernaut Saints team probably just rolled through whatever opponent they were facing.

Are you REALLY trying to nitpick your way out of the idea that we'll face more complete teams in the playoffs than what we've seen this year? I'm thankful that Brees devolves on the road, which will be fine as long as we lock down HFA.

[/quote]

Nitpick? Did the Saints lose or not? How did that "more complete" team fare against subpar competition? Not so good, huh?

The point is that there's not a team in this league that isn't susceptible to games where they fail to hit on all cylinders. There's not a team in this league that is consistently playing complete games. Not one. Not even Denver. Not even San Francisco. Every team has weaknesses and flaws - some of them more than others. And as we get further into the season, some teams will fix those flaws by getting better play or getting key guys back from injury. Other teams will find those flaws exacerbated by losing key guys to injury or simply being unable to fix them.

In this game against Tampa, our protection issues looked like they were improving. Our run offense was better. Our run D wasn't good. Notice that we keep working on offense, and keep trying to fix issues as they arise. Against Arizona, our offense was more dynamic, but we turned the ball over on fumbles by Wilson. So in the next game, the protection was bad, but we never turned the ball over as Wilson was eating the sacks rather than trying to do too much and putting the ball at risk. Now, in this game, it seemed that they were trying to address the protection/sack issues by having Wilson get the ball out much more quickly. So it's clear to me that the team is putting work in on getting various issues addressed. Maybe not as quickly as we'd like, and maybe not as thoroughly as we'd prefer... but they ARE working on it.

Meanwhile, as ugly as they've been, we've got 8 wins, which is something that no other team in the NFC can claim. Go look at some of those other "complete" teams' boards. The Saints fans are seriously worried about an inability to run the ball. They're worried about teams that can rough them up physically. They're worried as hell that Carolina is going to catch them. They're concerned about their O-line. Niners fans are still concerned about their WR situation, and you can find plenty of heated discussion about both of their coordinators. Broncos fans have been worried about their defense (secondary, in particular) and are wondering if Manning's still got any long-ball ability. Chiefs fans are up in arms over their offense and are worried about their D being decimated due to fatigue because their offense is ineffective.

There isn't a fanbase out there that isn't concerned about some element or other about their team. Everyone's worried about something. And the thing is, that's just fine. It's reasonable to be concerned over areas that need work. But it's not reasonable to paint some doom-and-gloom picture about how we'll inevitably lose to this anonymous juggernaut of a team that seems to be waiting for us. There aren't any juggernauts this year, man.

 

[amill87]

Huh? Because of the broncos? We can't count as a better team than them by your logic. Their other games were the raiders, chargers, jags, giants, niners, and texans.

And Miami. And SEATTLE, of course.

I don't see why you are trying to deflate Indy in order to push the idea that the playoffs will be easy for Seattle. Even if you won that argument, is it really all that flattering to Seattle?

I'm not trying to deflate the Colts. I think they are a bit like last years Seahawks, a team on the very very very thin cusp of being a great team. But just because the Colts have played a tougher schedule does not make them a juggernaut and the Seahawks a paper tiger.

I was saying it last week and but until we play a bad game vs a good team, how can we possibly predict we will play a bad game? The NFL is a crazy magic beast and its why we all love it. Trying to predict the future based off what happened today is a pointless effort. Everyone said the Ravens were done. The Giants in both their championship years. The Packers fought back through a ton of injuries and got hot in the playoffs. The Steelers. The Colts. All these teams struggled at some point in their Super Bowl winning season and their fans probably felt that if they played the same way again in the playoffs they were toast.

Oh and the reference to Denver's easy schedule and their exit from the playoffs, the Ravens showed they had more heart than the Broncos. They were able to overcome and close the game out. Something our team is becoming down right elite at.

 

[SonicHawk]

This seems like a long winded post to say that you don't think we can beat good QBs. Yet there has only been one true dominant QB that is consistent all season and that's Manning, and we know Manning's problems in cold weather.

We have played good enough to win every single game, and it's not like we've played minor league teams or FBS schools. As much as we have looked like garbage eventually 8-1 really does come into play. Look at Kansas City, that offense is pathetic yet, 9-0. You think anyone over there is really saying 'well eventually we're going to lose' or are they saying 'god damn, we're going to luck this all the way through'.

I don't find this offense special, not even a little. I don't find this defense special either. I do find our ability to win games special though, and that's what matters. Stats only matter when preparing for a game, guessing tendencies, weaknesses and strengths, it doesn't prove outcomes (as today very much proves).

I don't compare this team to past seasons because that's ridiculous. NO Seahawks team has gone 8-1, we should compare it to the 8-1 teams of history to get a barometer, not past Seahawks teams which have little relation.

Tampa Bay was inches away from beating New Orleans, should have beaten the Jets (a team that beat NE & NO) and have played mostly close games.

What I trust is Russell Wilson with the ball in the 4th quarter, whether it's handing it off to Lynch or making something happen with his legs or arms. This team as awful as they are for most of these games shows something in 4th quarters that is undeniable. Maybe they will solve the issues they have in the first 3 quarters, maybe they'll give us heart attacks, but as quickly as you dismiss 8-1 I'll bring it back up.

8-1

PS I apologize if I missed a point, you know I can do such things Montana .

 

[amill87]

How many people remember the Chiefs and Ravens game last year when the Ravens won 9 to 6. How about when they were blown out by the Texans 43-13? Or when they went 1-5 in December?

How about 2012 when the Giants lost 34-0 and 33-14 in Weeks 15 and 16?

2011 Packers blown out 38-10 by the Giants

2010 Saints blown out 52-27 by the Giants

Catch my drift yet?