Sports

POSTED: Monday, Nov. 17, 2008

Hear that thud? That’s wounded Seahawks finally hitting bottom

The king is dead. But not without a fight.

A late rally forged of desperation came up short for the Seattle Seahawks, who were all but officially deposed as the masters of the NFC West Division on Sunday at Qwest Field.

The Seahawks have won four division titles in a row, but Arizona’s 26-20 win moved the Cardinals to 7-3 and left the Hawks a humbling 2-8.

We are left only to wonder now if this is a temporary changing of the guard or the first season of a new regime ready for a lengthy reign.

This had been in the works for months as the injury-diminished Seahawks swooned dramatically and Arizona refused to fall apart as some observers had expected.

“We just haven’t played well enough … they have,” Seahawks coach Mike Holmgren said of this season of change, boiling it down to its simplest essence. “Give them credit; heck, they earned their position, just like I thought we earned our position in the last few years.”

If there had been any question about the legitimacy of Arizona’s record, the Cards’ dominance in so many facets of the game proved them to be for real.

Arizona outgained the Hawks by 262 yards, with spectacular efforts by receivers Anquan Boldin (13 catches, 186 yards) and Larry Fitzgerald (10-151). Thirty-seven-year-old quarterback Kurt Warner continued his MVP campaign by completing 32 of 44 attempts for 395 yards.

The Seahawks’ scoring efforts, in fact, were relatively puny, coming on “drives” of 19, 11 and 14 yards. How they even made a game of this statistical blowout is impressive.

Although the Seahawks had played with laudable effort amid their struggles, the intensity clearly was the best of the season in the second half Sunday.

Blitzes that hadn’t been effective were suddenly pressuring Warner. Cornerbacks who had been abused by Arizona receivers were making diving deflections.

Maybe this was a backs-to-the-wall adrenaline surge, but the Seattle defense came up with a turnover and a couple of stops in the fourth quarter that allowed upset hopes to rise until the third interception of Matt Hasselbeck put the issue to rest at the two-minute warning.

“I think we all feel like we let people down,” Hasselbeck said.

He shouldn’t feel that way. Hasselbeck had been out for five weeks with a back injury, which was symbolic of the Seahawks’ troubles all season. As much as NFL coaches and players are schooled to not offer injuries as an alibi, it’s fairly obvious that the Seahawks’ steep decline was rooted in the injuries that struck key offensive positions early in the season.

Yes, this team has problems – some of them serious. The offensive line is substandard, the secondary inconsistent, and defensive pressure occasionally non-existent.

The offense is among the weakest in the NFL. Not having a healthy Hasselbeck or the heart of their receivers corps most of the season is a large part of that. We may presume that’s not a permanent issue.

“This has been an unusual year,” Holmgren said. “We came in thinking that absolutely we were going to be competitive enough to go for (a division title) again.”

The Cards – under coach Ken Whisenhunt – have a good system and a new attitude. They believe they can win, and that’s crucial to a team that hadn’t captured a division title in 33 seasons. As long as Warner and the receivers stay healthy, Arizona is going to score.

The Hawks? Holmgren is gone at the end of the season, and what happens when Jim Mora takes over is anybody’s guess.

Asked to comment on the Seahawks’ string of titles, Holmgren said he was proud of the effort, and he likes the looks of the banners hanging in the team’s new facilities.

His vision of the future?

“There is not a question in my mind that the Seattle Seahawks will be competitive again,” he said. “I don’t believe they will have to go through the same injury situation we had to go through. We have a lot of pride on the football team. They are good players … they’ll bounce back.”

Considering they’re now at the bottom of the division, down there with the St. Louis Rams, it’s going to have to be a big bounce.

Dave Boling: 253-597-8440

dave.boling@thenewstribune.com">dave.boling@thenewstribune.com

GRADING THE GAME by Dave Boling

Self abuse

We admire the energy of rookie fullback Owen Schmitt, but bashing himself in the head with his helmet as he ran onto the field is to absorb more hits than is necessary.

Josh Wilson

The second-year cornerback and returner was the Hawks’ most valuable player, leading the team with 10 tackles, returning an interception 58 yards, and reeling off 56 yards on a kickoff return.

Matchups

As coach Mike Holmgren said, Cardinals receivers Anquan Boldin and Larry Fitzgerald are going to put up numbers against everybody. But a combined 23 catches for 337 yards? That’s abusive.

Cellar

With a 2-8 record, the Hawks are in the divisional cellar with the St. Louis Rams. Oh, how the mighty have fallen.

O-line

Once again, backs had nowhere to run, and Matt Hasselbeck was under fairly steady pressure. The shoulder injury to guard Mike Wahle adds to the vulnerability of this group.

Returnees

The return of Hasselbeck and receiver Deion Branch (four catches, 54 yards) provided some hope. Hasselbeck had some rust and tried to force a couple of throws but played tough in his first game after missing five weeks.