Jim Moore: Ranking the top 5 Seahawks teams in franchise history
As you already know, the Seahawks will play in their fourth Super Bowl when they face the Patriots Feb. 8th in Santa Clara.
It got me to thinking - where do the 2025 Seahawks rank among the best teams in franchise history?
Certainly you’d have to put them in your top four. But where exactly? No. 4? No. 3? No. 2? Maybe even No. 1?
Until we try to answer that question, I came up with two candidates that should be considered as the fifth-best team in franchise history, and yeah, at 68, I’ve been alive long enough to have seen every season in the Seahawks’ 50 years of existence.
At No. 5, I’d give a slight edge to the 1983 team over the 1984 team. Both teams were coached by Chuck Knox. The 1983 team, powered by Curt Warner and the Ground Chuck offense, went 9-7 but won its first two playoff games, including an upset in Miami of Dan Marino and the Dolphins. They lost the next week to the then Los Angeles Raiders in the AFC championship game.
Yes, the AFC championship game. After playing its first season in 1976 in the NFC, the Seahawks were in the AFC from 1977-2001, moving back to the NFC in 2002.
In 1984, Warner tore his ACL in the first game of the season, causing Ground Chuck to become Air Knox, with Dave Krieg throwing for 3,671 yards and 32 touchdowns, leading the Seahawks to a 12-4 record. That team beat the Raiders in the first round of the playoffs but flamed out in the division round at Miami.
At No. 4, it’s the 2005 team that made the first Super Bowl appearance in Detroit. Like the other three Super Bowl teams, the 2005 team was a No. 1 NFC seed that won two home games before losing the Lombardi Trophy to the Steelers. The divisional round victory over Washington was the Seahawks’ first playoff win in 21 years.
Let’s put the 2014 team that lost in heart-breaking and controversial fashion to the Patriots in the Super Bowl at No. 4. We all remember how they lost that game on a Malcolm Butler interception in the end zone in the final minute, and if you’ve somehow forgotten, every network will show replays of that game-losing play for the next two weeks.
So now we’re down to two teams who have the best argument for being the No. 1 team in franchise history - the 2013 Seahawks and the 2025 Seahawks.
Undeniably, the 2013 team has the advantage right now. When you’re considered by some to be one of the best teams in NFL history, you have to be at the top of the list. But that race could tighten up if this year’s team beats the Patriots.
There are similarities and differences when you compare both teams.
As good as the 2025 team’s defense is, the 2013 team’s defense was better, allowing 14.4 points a game compared to 17.2 points.
It also had a superior secondary with one sure-fire Hall of Famer in Richard Sherman and another possibility in Earl Thomas. Linebacker Bobby Wagner will also be a Hall of Famer, and their defense had 39 takeaways to the 2025 team’s 28.
Surprisingly, the 2025 defense was better against the run, allowing 94 yards per game to 112 for the 2013 defense.
Ken Walker’s been great down the stretch, but Marshawn Lynch was better, rushing for 1,257 yards and 12 touchdowns in 2013. But would Beast Mode rush for more than 100 yards against the 2025 defense? Likely not.
Russell WIlson had an edge at quarterback with 3,357 passing yards, 26 TDs and nine interceptions along with 539 rushing yards and four more touchdowns to Sam Darnold’s 4,048 passing yards, 25 TDs and 14 interceptions. Darnold rushed for only 95 yards this year, and he led the league in turnovers with 20.
The 2025 team has a better passing offense and might have the edge in special teams with kicker Jason Myers, punter Michael Dickson and returner Rashid Shaheed over Stephen Hauschka, Jon Ryan and Golden Tate. But that’s a tough call.
As you might expect from an old schooler like me, I’m not a fan of AI, but it broke down what might happen if the two teams played each other. The bots predicted it would be a low-scoring game in which the 2013 team would be favored by a touchdown or less.
AI thinks Darnold and the passing game might struggle against the 2013’s elite secondary. Case in point - Peyton Manning threw for a record-breaking 5,477 yards and 55 TDs in 2013 but was completely flummoxed and otherwise stifled by the Seahawks in a 43-8 loss.
But the bots also noted that the Seahawks’ 2013 defense would be “significantly impacted” by stricter NFL rules regarding contact with receivers in today’s game.
Final projected score:
2013 Seahawks 20
2025 Seahawks 13
I don’t know what it would take in the Super Bowl for the 2025 team to overtake the 2013 team as the best in franchise history. Even if they beat the Patriots to avenge the shocking defeat in 2014 and win 56-0, would that be enough?
I’d lean toward thinking not, simply because the 2025 Patriots aren’t recognized as that great of a 15-3 team because it played the easiest NFL schedule this year while the 2013 Broncos were historically hell on wheels until they met the Seahawks.
But it’ll be a fun debate for 12’s at dive bars if the 2025 Seahawks can finish off their unexpected 17-3 season with a resounding victory next Sunday.
Jim Moore has covered Washington’s sports scene from every angle for multiple news outlets. He appears Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 10 a.m. on Jason Puckett’s podcast at PuckSports.com. He writes a Substack blog at jimmoorethego2guy.substack.com. You can find him on X (formerly Twitter) @cougsgo.
This story was originally published January 27, 2026 at 10:58 AM with the headline "Jim Moore: Ranking the top 5 Seahawks teams in franchise history."