Didn't you post a long paean earlier this year about how unstoppable this team will be for the next five years? All against the reality that the interception in the Super Bowl ruined them forever. They completely blew it and decided to double down on how bad it was.

1) A terrible, indefensible play call costs them a victory in shocking fashion
2) Instead of acknowledging that they should have given Lynch the ball, they decide what they really needed was better people to catch passes from the 1-yd line
3) They trade the anchor of the offensive line for a guy who was great in the Saints' system but terrible in ours.
4) The weakening of the O-Line is made worse by the fact that the player they traded for cannot block
5) This puts much more pressure on Wilson. He starts getting hit more
6) This puts the defense on the field more, tiring them and exposing them to injury.
7) The inevitable entropy and decline.

The decision not to give Lynch the ball was a crime. Rather than confess and move on, they destroyed the team out of pride and ignorance. They have no shot for the foreseeable future.

I don't know why people are even talking about Marshawn Lynch, but the obvious flaw with the team is its refusal to upgrade the offensive line. Maybe you can get away with it as long as Wilson is 100% and young, but eventually you have to protect the man and devote some resources to the O line.

It isn't pretty, but those fat boys are what drive the offense, not flashy pass catchers.

Oh, and yelling at reporters is what it is, but Bennett also tried to gouge Ryan Schrader's eyes out after a play, and they once again tried to rush the victory formation and started fighting after they lost. Why do the Seahawks play dirty and throw such childish tantrums every time they lose a big game?

It's "axle." Not "axel."

The game mirrored their season: one minute they are hot, the next they are not.

Earl Thomas is so good. This season would've been very different if he hadn't gotten hurt. And the fact that he broke his leg by running into a teammate on a beautiful play going balls-out makes it just a little more painful.

On the bright side, the Seahawks won't have to visit the White House this year.

Like the previously exceptional Honda Civic, which has, as the generations have gone on, gotten less perfect and larger for no particular reason ...

Now that's that great sports writing! Ah, I love the great sports analogy and you nailed that one, Spike. Kudos, sir, well done.

As for the Seahawk woes, I think @2 nailed it. In general the Seahawks have been infatuated with highly paid skill players, but unfortunately, the NFL is a zero sum game. If you pay your quarterback really big bucks, then you can't pay other players as much. They managed to keep the defense more or less intact, which is a very good thing. Having a good quarterback and a great defense can get you a long ways. But paying a tight end big bucks only to watch a decent front line get decimated and exposing that mobile quarterback to devastating hits (thus limiting his mobility) doesn't make sense.

A few years ago there was talk of a Seahawks dynasty, because the team was so good and so young. Well, we aren't that young anymore. We are starting to see what happens when guys get to the middle of their career -- they get injured a lot. Without the depth of talent and with a very weak offensive line, the idea of a Seahawk dynasty seems absurd now.

the 'Hawk's season was over when Wilson got hurt. 1st the high ankle sprain, then the MCL. the other injuries: Rawls, Lockett, Thomas - all with broken legs, Bennett with knee surgery, were just icing on the cake. never was going to be their year, shitty O line or not.

losing that Cardinals game was the kicker. they 'Hawks could have beat the Falcons here (yes, they could have), and then they'd be hosting Green Bay.

Kearse is as expendable as Pierre-Louis.

8: "Having a good quarterback and a great defense can get you a long ways."

...just ask Buddy Ryan!

If you're going to use an extended automotive metaphor, you should really know how to spell "axle."

@11 - you mean like the name of that guy from "Guns And Roses"? ;-p