THE CHEAP SEATS with STEVE CAMERON: One thing Seahawks aren't worried about
Coeur d'Alene Press | UPDATED 5 years, 9 months AGO
Big week for the Seahawks.
Yep, it’s the screaming, hollering build-up to the Super Bowl.
“But wait,” you say, “we’re not IN the Super Bowl.”
(I’m writing this mostly for Seahawks fans, but the rest of you might recognize yourselves, too.)
OK, back to those Seattle supporters…
No, you’re not in the Roman numeral celebration this year, but there’s some really good news.
“We saw that loss to the Rams,” you reply. “What news could possibly even be decent?”
That’s easy.
The Seahawks are not busy inquiring about Deshaun Watson, Matthew Stafford or Aaron Rodgers.
Now, you say: “Huh?”
Fair enough, but I’m making a point here.
The one thing that every NFL team understands is that you can’t make it to the Super Bowl without a big-time quarterback.
The last time it happened was two decades ago, when former Seahawks backup Trent Dilfer led Baltimore to a Super Bowl victory following the 2000 season.
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YOU CAN make a case that Dilfer wasn’t too bad – he was the No. 6 overall pick by Tampa Bay in the 1994 draft – but Dilfer himself joked that coach Brian Billick told him that his role in the Super Bowl was not to blow it.
Dilfer followed orders, throwing for 153 yards and a touchdown without an interception, as the Ravens’ awesome defense shut down the Giants in a 34-7 waltz.
However…
If you’re making the case that Dilfer wasn’t an elite QB and that the Ravens won despite him, you can point to the fact that our old friend Trent was the only quarterback ever released following a Super Bowl victory.
Right, back to the current Seahawks.
It’s fair to celebrate this week, Seattle fans, because there is no argument about Russell Wilson being a top-tier quarterback.
Obviously, it’s impossible to say he can’t lead a team to the Super Bowl, either – since he’s been to a couple of them with the Seahawks.
So, yeah, the end of the season was disappointing in Seattle.
Fans were down, and Pete Carroll actually seemed shocked.
Pete really believed this team would make a deep playoff run.
Still, there’s our happy news.
Pete and GM John Schneider are not inquiring about any of the quarterbacks on the market.
All those teams looking for a Super Bowl quarterback?
Want to know one thing they have in common?
They’d all LOVE to have Russ.
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MEANWHILE, I suspect the Seahawks will be scanning the landscape for a tight end, another threatening wide receiver, and most definitely…
Help along the offensive line.
That last one might be the most critical.
The good news (remember, that’s what we’re cheering this week) is that solid offensive linemen will be easier to acquire than, say, Deshaun Watson.
I know, I know.
The defense needs to stay intact, which is no sure thing with corner Shaquill Griffin testing the free agent market -- and star safety Jamal Adams needing to be locked up with a long-term deal.
There’s always work to be done in the shifting landscape of NFL personnel.
But believe me, this season’s Seahawk team might have been in action last week (or even this week) if Wilson had any time at all to throw the ball.
Or if the Seahawks could run.
Assuming you have the QB you need…
Games are won and lost at the line of scrimmage, and the Seahawks were lacking in the trenches – especially on offense.
There won’t be hysterical national headlines concerning Schneider’s hunt to fill the correct positions.
It isn’t going to be the talk of Tampa this weekend.
It won’t be Watson or Rodgers.
The only interest the Seahawks have in those elite quarterbacks is whether they become replacements in the NFC West – like Stafford going to Los Angeles for Jared Goff.
I’m sure Carroll would rather not have to defend against Watson and Rodgers in the same division, but…
That’s the Seahawks’ only quarterback problem.
Which is just fine.
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Email: [email protected]
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Steve Cameron’s “Cheap Seats” columns appear in The Press on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. “Moments, Memories and Madness,” his reminiscences from several decades as a sports journalist, runs each Sunday.
Steve also writes Zags Tracker, a commentary on Gonzaga basketball which is published each Tuesday.