What is wrong with the Seahawks?

It was difficult to watch the Hawks lose another game Sunday night.  The Cardinals are a good team, but we have had such great seasons, that losing a division prime time game at home seemed to be impossible.  I am uninterested in breaking down the game down play by play, or criticizing the refereeing–because there are so many moves that could have gone either way.  Instead, let’s focus on the performance of the players.

The quality of play from certain players, has certainly dropped since last season.  It may be that the off season has hurt some of the players focus and attention. An increased awareness of celebrity-ism, exposure in the media–it has undoubtedly had an effect on the field this season. Studies show that the five people you spend the most time with, influence your life more than anything else.  The occurs, as you begin to believe and act in a similar way as those people believe and act.

Let’s look at the playground, as an example. In middle school, I hung out with friends that played basketball and football all the time–so that is what I did.  A cousin moved into town, and so I naturally began hanging out with him.  He played sports as well, but got into lots of fights.  Less than one month into spending time with him, I found myself getting into fights as well.  A couple of years later, after being sent to a private school where students weren’t interested in that lifestyle; and I surprisingly stopped as well.

Getting caught up in the celebrity lifestyle is difficult to avoid, but will undoubtedly change your view of yourself and others.  The issue with this mindset change, in the context of the team setting, is that it is no conducive to achieving the larger goal. If you’ve ever been on a team where say, the quarterback thinks he has an elevated position over the other team players, you quickly realize that a resistant atmosphere is created. The offensive line may not work as hard to keep him protected, and the defense doesn’t sell out as well.  The quarterback is in fact the most important position on the team–but if he loses the respect and loyalty of the team, there is no way for the team to be great.

The majority of analysts are rating the Seahawks as having the best roster in the NFL. Many picked the team to win it all, again.  No one would have predicted that we would be sitting at 4 – 5 and possibly missing the play offs.

There is still a chance for the Seahawks to make it into the playoffs and do well, once they get there.  Pete Carroll is an amazing coach, and he has the ability to make huge changes that will pull the team back into the spotlight.  Here’s to hoping that everyone’s mindset will return to where it was these last two seasons–if so, everything else will fall into place and they will start playing up to their potential.