Commentary: For the Seahawks, back to square one - and a chance to overcome the odds yet again



SEATTLE -- Just like that – we’re done here, folks.

Barring a playoff miracle, tonight was our last time here at CenturyLink Field this season.

And hopefully, a loss like today leaves a really bad taste in the Seahawks mouth heading into the postseason.

I understand the last thing anyone wants to talk about tonight is a Super Bowl run after an incredibly irritating loss like earlier today. But the fact of the matter is this: Seattle is still alive, the Rams are not, and the Seahawks fortunately don’t have to face the Rams in the postseason. And for the first time since November 15, the doubters are out in full force, calling the Seahawks soft and weak and every other name in the book.

Given the way many feel tonight, wouldn’t it be great if we looked back at this night a month from now, after a win in the NFC Championship Game?

It might seem unlikely now, but it could be considered one of the most impressive runs to the Super Bowl in franchise history.

Remember, the Seahawks have reached the Super Bowl three times. All three times, they’ve won their division, had a first-round bye, and needed to win just two home games to get there. The prospect of winning three straight games on the road seems daunting - but not as impossible as it might have felt in the past. Not with this group of players. Not with their mindset.

So keep doubting them. And while there are no excuses for a flat effort like we saw earlier today, they just might surprise you. After a five-game win streak, we know that somewhere, the spark is there.

To be honest, I kind of like this challenge. Sure, we’d all prefer the easiest path. But the road to the Super Bowl is likely entirely on the road, providing the biggest challenge this team has faced to date. And for a team that has made its money by overcoming adversity and challenges, why not test it with the biggest hurdles of all?

I understand that it’s a shame that those unforgettable playoff moments won’t be here in Seattle this season. Those indelible moments like Beast Quake and Richard Sherman’s tip. Like Kam Chancellor’s pick six against Carolina and Jermaine Kearse’s game-winning catch against Green Bay. But the impact of game-defining moments won’t lose their luster whether they come here in Seattle or on the road.

And while this team will rightfully continue to view it as “one game at a time,” I don’t mind looking big picture, and raising the hypotheticals as we go. That’s what makes it fun.

So remember this awful feeling tonight. And revisit it if they somehow find a way – somehow carve that path through a postseason riddled with obstacles, and do it on the road.

That team would go down as one of the best – if not the best – in a 40-year franchise history.