Mike Holmgren's Seattle Seahawks did absolutely nothing to disturb the greatness of the NFL's most historic venue at Lambeau Field Saturday (1-12-08) in Green Bay, Wisconsin, home of the advancing Green Bay Packers.
Packer Quarterback Brett Favre (pronounced Farve) had a 7-2 postseason record at home that is now 8-2. He had a 4-2 record in the playoffs against Seattle that is now 5-2.
Favre is statistically the greatest signal-caller in National Football League history with a record 253 consecutive regular-season starts (second best in history at ANY position), a record 61,665 career passing yards, a record 442 career touchdown passes, and a record 160 career wins, the most by any starting QB.
And, oh yeah, Favre is the only 3-time NFL Most Valuable Player. He won in 1995, in 1996 when Seattle coach Mike Holmgren coached the Packers to the Super Bowl 31 title by beating New England, 35-21, and in 1997 when the Holmgren-led Packers lost Super Bowl 32 to Denver, 31-24.
The Packers record for playoff wins at Lambeau Field was 14-2 before Saturday. Now it is 15-2, thanks to Seattle. In a 2003 survey by ESPN The Magazine, the Packers ranked as the No. 1 franchise among the 121 major sports teams in North America.
The Seahawks also did absolutely nothing Saturday to advance their chances of getting into their second Super Bowl appearance in 3 years. After jumping out to a 14-0 lead by converting two fumbles by first-year running back Ryan Grant into touchdowns during the first 4 minutes of the game, the Seahawks laid down and died a slow death among the falling snowflakes at Lambeau Field.
The (we thought) vaunted Seahawk defense allowed the Packers to get back into the game and dominate it by giving up 6 straight touchdown drives to Green Bay. It was game, set, match, period, end of season.
Oh, the guy that fumbled twice to start the game, he finished with 201 yards rushing and 3 touchdowns. Favre? He was 18-of-23 for 173 yards and 3 touchdowns. Seattle put on a pathetic rushing display with a total of plus 28 yards to 235 for the Packers. Same field, same snow coming down, same slippery turf, same clogged cleats.
Green Bay will now advance to play the New York Giants (21-17 winners over the Dallas Cowboys Sunday) in the NFC Championship Game next Sunday. I hope the Packers dominate the Giants the same way they did the Seahawks.
The Seahawks will be watching television from here on out, wondering why they could not handle the snowflakes in Green Bay. The answer, of course, was Brett Favre in snow-crazed conditions having the time of his life playing football.
In short, the Seahawks defense did nothing but lose, 42-20. They did not fight off blocks. They did not tackle. They did not cover. They did not react. They did not bring their A Game against Green Bay's "hogs" up front who dominated the line and the game. Forget the charity trip. If the 'Hawks did anything at all, why did Green Bay score touchdowns on 6 STRAIGHT possessions?
Mike Holmgren, the Seahawks, the Seattle fans, the owners, the brain trust, the Seattle media and myself did not get what we wanted. I asked for too much. I wanted a game in which no one gets hurt on either side of the ball that comes down to the last play in a classic confrontation between two worthy teams.
Watching this playoff game was painful for me. After suffering through an entire season watching the Washington Husky defense raise ineptitude to an art form, I had to endure the Seahawks' supposedly much improved defense get demolished. This is not how you increase your fan base.
In the meantime, the San Diego Chargers waltzed into the Indianapolis Colts' playground Sunday and walked away with a 28-24 victory against the defending Super Bowl Champions on the road to advance to the AFC championship game against the New England Patriots (31-20 winners over the Jacksonville Jags Saturday).
Do not give me all of this crap about how hard it is to win on the road. Tell it to the San Diego Chargers, who had injuries to their stars, played some scrubs and won anyway. That is called desire. That is called attitude. That is called guts. That is called, "I do not want to win this game, I NEED to win this game."
And now for two disclaimers: 1) Brett Favre has been my favorite NFL player since I was knee-high to a grasshopper. Favre is a gamer. 'Nuff said. 2) I am one of the few Green Bay Packer stockholders who was not totally uphappy when Holmgren moved from coaching Green Bay to coaching Seattle.
I was born and raised in Michigan and distanced myself from my family by following the Green Bay Packers closer than the Detroit Lions. Let me say that the Packers have let me down less over the years than the Lions.
I moved to the Puget Sound Area of Washington 34 years ago and so, of course, I have become a follower of the Seattle Seahawks. The only difference is that I am a fair-weather follower of the Seahawks, as you can tell. I do not apologize for it, I take pride in it. I hate losing. It takes no talent to lose, it takes talent to win. Any no good can lose.
Holmgren has done well in Seattle. He has taken the Seahawks to the playoffs 5 straight seasons, has won 4 consecutive NFC West titles, and has taken them to the Super Bowl in 2005, winning an NFC title along the way.
Seattle needs more and better players, and it is not Mike Holmgren's job to get them. That chore falls on the shoulders of President of Football Operations Tim Ruskell and Seattle Seahawk Owner Paul Allen.
Copyright © 2008 Ed Bagley
Ed Bagley's Blog Publishes Original Articles with Analysis and Commentary on 5 Subjects: Sports, Movie Reviews, Lessons in Life, Jobs and Careers, and Internet Marketing. My intention is to inform, educate, delight and motivate you the reader.
Read my 11 Washington Husky articles including "Meet the Nation's Most Statistically Incredible Team - The University of Washington Huskies", "Anatomy of a Team on the Rise: Washington Will Get Over Freshmanitis and Really Thrive" and "College Football Mayhem: Flagrant Helmet-to-Helmet Shots Need to Stop Before Someone Gets Killed".
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