When it happeed it was a like a car crash. One minute everthing is fine and dandy and you're driving happily down the road toward a pleasurible destination--and then crash!! The unexpected happens your car has crashed, and you're sitting in the driver's seat trapped by an airbag that went off.
Strange as that sounds, that's it felt like when Russell Wilson's pass at the goal-line was intercepted by a Patriot defender with 20 seconds remaining in the game and the Patriots CLINGING to a 28 to 24 advantage with Seahawks poised to score the game winning touchdown.
It's amazing how in one moment you're in euphoria, and the next it feels like a grenade just blew up in front of you, leaving you daze in a sorrowful state at a loss of how thing could go so wrong suddenly.
You see I'm a Seahawk fan. Been one since the 1983 season when the Seahawks made their playoff run, winning two game, of of which was a highly victory over Miami--in Miami. And we couldn't be stopped right? Well, the next week we played the Oakland Raiders and got totally rolled. BUT in the years that followed the Sehawks made it back to the playoffs quite regularly, but they never made it the Super Bowl It wasn't untill 2005 that we got there, and even then we lost. Then finally last year we won one. And now this year we were looking to make history and repeat as Super Bowl champions.
I so perfer last year's experience to this year's. Last year we beat the Broncos, and you know what my favorite play of the game was. It was the Bronko center snapping the ball over Payton's head, which resulted in a safety, on the 1st offensive play of the game, by a guy who is know as this perfectionist. Ooh the suprised and scared look in Manning's eyes as the ball is shooting past his head. I could that replay a milliion times and get a chuckle from with each subsequent review.
Sure that's part of the negative nature of man, his sick underside; a propensity to laugh someone elses misfortune. I mean the ball-over-Manning's-head play isn't even a forced error when a Seahawk had to "make a play" for the oppostion to make a mistake. But it's a stand alone sketch, where a clown does something funny and unexpected that solicits a totally mean-sprited laugh.
Payton Manning is a sure-fire, 1st ballot hall-of-famer. Going into last year's Super Bowl I remember worrying about the Bronco's short passing game. We ended up beatting the Bronco's quite handily, and with this year's Super Bowl I was HOPING for a simular outcome, as Brady and Manning are often considered peers and run similar styled offences. YET this year's game nothing like last year's game. We lost, and I just feel aweful inside. Like someone died. Like a girl I liked rejected me. As wierd as this sounds losing a Super Bowl IS like a death. It IS like romantic rejection. After the game I was in a daze, I felt like a time about 10 years ago when I made play for a girl I was working with in an office setting, and it ended poorly.
On the outside this girl was very close the ideal girl I was looking for: she was flirty, she had a very feminine voice, and I could tell I'd have no problem getting intimate with her. Being at the time I was working on my first romantic comedy screenplay, which was entittled"Cupid's Helpers" (a story about an award winning writter who goes to his high school reunion and meets the girl who was the inspiration for the writing that made him famous. In the script the writer makes a play for his high school crush and gets rejected not only by that girl--but by her husband as well who beats the writer up several times) I thought sharing this script with her would be a nice in, and suave way of making my intentions known. So I gave my script and wrote her a very personal message about who I was. She kept it for about a week, then suddenly gave it back to me claiming she had never read it. I was crushed. My dream had ended abrubtly. For about two days I was in a daze: laying on my bed in fedal position, just feeling miserable inside, feeling completly rejected.
So what I end up doing about it? I got the fuck outta Dodge, I quit the job and got away from my failure. Which leads to the number one tip in surving when your team suffers a Super Bowl collapse:
Turn of the TV: Tip #1 in Surving After Your Team Suffers a Super Bowl Collapse.
You don't need to watch the TV commentators laud the enemy, and critisize your guys. You think I want to watch the ceremony as Tom Brady hoist the Lombardi trophy over his head?! Fuck no! I want my guy, Russell Wilson hoisting the trophy and smiling for the camera. Which leads me to lesson # 2:
Be a Good Sport: Tip #2 in Surving After Your Team Suffers a Super Bowl Collapse
Nobody likes a sore loser. So when your team chokes the game away and finds a way to lose a game they should have won, dig deep and still do the right thing: congradulate the other guys.
It may pain you greatly, but it's the right thing to do. In saying this I almoast feel like Benjamin Barry (as played by Matthew McConahuey) when he runs down the fire escape of his aparment so he can fake appologize to Andie Anderson (as played by Kate Hudson) after his friends convince him to try to use Couples Therapy as means to keep Andie as Ben's girlfriend so he can secure a luxrative diamond add campaign for the agency he works for.
Anywho, acting on my own advice, I'm going to use my blot to congraduate Tom Brady, Robert Craft, Bill Belicheck and the rest of the New England Patriots. You were better team in the Super Bowl, and you deserved to win. You beat us fair and square. Which now leads to tip # 3:
Focus on the victors not your own team: Tip # 3 in Surving After Your Team Suffers a Super Bowl Collapse
Face it, your team wasn't competing against air. There was a foe on the other side of the line of scrimage, and they must have been doing something right to beat your team.
First off, let me single out Tom Brady. I was very impressed by his toughness. In the 3rd and 4th quarters he took some shots from Seattle deffenders, but Tom kept getting back up, battling away. I was also impressed with Tom Brady's grit. He didn't stop paying or get overly conservative even after throwing his second interception of the game. And for most of the game, Tom's passing was right on the money. I can appreicate good quaterback play, even from the opposing team, and Tom Brady played well in the Super Bowl.
So is Tom Brady the best ever? Well, after the way he surgically cut through my top ranked Seattle Seahawk deffence, he's got my vote. Look, a lot of people like to compare Tom Brady and Payton Manning. Well the last two Super Bowls may well be the tie breaker in such a discussion. Do titles matter or what? Brady has four, and Manning has one. Both played the Seahawks, only Brady was able to defeat them--in the post season.
Maybe the biggest suprise of this game was how good New England's recievers played as a group. Julian Eddleman was nails all game. Danny Amandola had his moments. And Shane Vereen just made good catch after catch, a silent killer who move the chains. Gronk was Gronk, nothing overly spectacular, he was just solid and surehanded. Overall I think it was the Patriot recievers who won this game more than other position group on the field. They contantly made catch after catch, nothing flahsy, just good solid, move the chains football--and that's what you need to be able to do to beat the Seattle Seahawks. Which leads me to the next guy I'd like to congradulate--
Josh McDaniel, the New England Patriots offensive cordinator. New England was able to move the ball against the Seahawks on a fairly regular basis--except for maybe a stretch in the 3rd quarter. That was possible because of the game Josh McDaniels called and his pre-game preparations. Good job, Josh, you were able to do what really I can only remember the Dallas Cowboys and San Diego Chargers doing earlier in the year, that being move the ball on a fairly regular basis against the Seahawks.
And the Patriot defense, though not especilally flashy, held its grit when it mattered the most. Do you know how easy it is to give up when a team has the momentum and is driving for a potential game-winning touchdown? Very easy, and I really thought they weren't going to be able to hold... but then came that deciding interception at the goalline. Only saw the play once. Diddn't have the heart to watch it again, it was heartbreaking from this Seahawk fan's prospective. BUT you gotta give the much malighned Patriot defence a lot of credit for that head's up play at the end of the game. The Patroits kept battling untill the end. And that's something a defeated foe can give you a tip of the hat for. Russell Wilson didn't lose this game. The Patriot defence preserved their win.
Okay, so am I feeling better yet. Yeah, a little I guess. But in my heart-of-hearts I have the feeling that it's all over for the Seattle Seahawks. Definatley this highly fun to ride on rollercoaster ride came to scretching halt. But I really feel the Seahawk run of excellence is over. I think they are now going to fall back to the rest of the pack, and I don't see any more Super Bowls in their near future. It's over.
For a team that's been to back-to-back Super Bowls they really have a lot of holes.
For starters that bum they have returning punts, Brian Walters, needs to go. Everytime he comes on the field I boo the shit out of him, and I was doing this LONG before the Super Bowl. Brian Walters in not an NFL caliber punt returned. He gives the Seattle Seahawks ZERO, and I mean ZERO threat of good runback. I think his long for the year was 19 yards. And that, my friend, is pitiful. Fair catch, fair catch, 5 yard run back, fair catch. Lotta sucking going on back there right now.
Also the Seahawk recieving core is a joke. Sure, Jermaine Kearse makes an occasional big play, and so does Doug Baldwin, but from what I'm seeing neither of them are very good at getting open on a consistent basis so Russel can get them the ball. Yes,
Doug Baldwin is fiesty and he tries, but he is not an eliete #1 wide reciever. You might think I'm completely crazy, but you know what stands out the most to me in this year's Super Bowl; two pass plays in the 1st half when Russell had all day to throw, but couldn't because NO ONE got open. Look, Doug you're a GREAT slot reciever, but you are not a top-plight, starting # 1 or # 2 reciever. We gotta get our Dez Bryant, or Calvin Johnson. Personally, I'd love it if the Seahawks drafted that stud wide reciever from Alabama, but I don't see that happeng. Harvin's gone, and his replacement, a guy named Paul Richardson is out have ACL surgury, so we're like totally depleted starting over at block zero again.
And of cource I'm not happy with our offensive line. Yes, sometimes they show flashes of being good, but they're not consistnetly good and reliable, hence an upgrade is needed.
So now the season is over, and I'm totally feeling bumbed. Next season is so far away, and once we get there this team has so many holes, and I haven't even begun to adress Marshawn Lynch and his constant parade of jeuvinille behavior. Right now me and my dad have $10 bet. I say Marshawn is NOT on the Seahawk opening day roster, while my thinks the Seahawks will keep Marshawn for the the 2015 regular season.
What will happen next? Well, for me I'm turning off sports talk radio. God knows I could care less about the Mariners this season. Maybe around time for the NFL draft I'll be in a better mood. But right now, I've had it. My team lost in the Super Bowl, and it sucks! It hurts like a girl that you like, who has rejected you. It hurts like a car that got crashed and some casualties.
But even in losing their are lessons to be learned, and opportunities for personal growth. Hey, at least we're not a sorry franchise like the Buffalo Bills, who weren't satisfied losing one Super Bowl on a last second field goal kick by Scott Norwood that went wide right, they went on to loose three more! The Cleveland Browns are also a sorry bunch of losers as are the New York Jets, who now have our old cancer, Percy Harvin, we couldn't even get him to finish out the game with the Cowboys, but I'll bet ol' Percy has a good excuse for that. Good luck with that.
Sometime it hurts so bad that you can't do anything else but laugh. We were soo close to winning our 2nd Super Bowl championship. And these chances don't come around everday. Even when you're a dominant team like the Atlanta Braves were for so many years in the 90s and early 2000s, I think they only won one world championship. Not good.
It's hard to win the Super Bowl. So many things have to go right for your team. And you can be a great and eliete player like Joe Montana was, but guess what? Not even the great Joe Montana went to the Super Bowl every year. And you know why? Because their are a lot of other good teams, and they're fighting tooth and nail to get there too!
And now it's over... (Sigh). The 2015 NFL season is over, the Seattle Seahawks were not able to reapeat as Super Bowl champions, as Tom Brady and the New England Patriots came back from a 10 point defecit in the 4th quarter to score two touchdowns, and then turn back the Seattle Seahawks and Russell Wilson on a goal line stand that ended with a Darius Butler interception of a passed intended for Riccardo Lockette, which sealed the victory for the New England Patriots.
Still find myself shaking my head, no, when I say it, but it's now part of the historical record. A historical heartbrake felt by many people in Seattle.
Sincerely, a distraught and heartbroken,
E.C. Henry from Bonney Lake, WA
Comments