Pro Football - Does Seattle Have Too Many Stars and Not Enough Football Players?

 Any bloom was on the Seattle Seahawks football team seems to have officially faded with the soon to be falling leaves about autumn. It was nice while it lasted. Fans were good with 4 consecutive National Football Conference West Splitting titles, a NFC championship and a Super Bowl looks.

The apex player of Seattle's rise to prominence was basically 2005 when the Seahawks went 13-3, won the NFC Division title, won the NFC championship and portrayed Pittsburgh in Super Bowl 40 (XL for the Aventure numeral freaks), losing to the Steelers 21-10.

This year the very Hawks started the season with an eye on returning to the main Super Bowl and winning, which would have given Deb Holmgren his second Super Bowl victory in his latter season before leaving Seattle to take a year off. Holmgren would have gone down as the only NFL head coach taking two different teams to the Super Bowl and be successful.

Here is what Seahawks have done so far: They traveled to Buffalo and also their tails whipped by the Bills 34-10. They sacrificed 33-30 in overtime in their home opener against Bay area. They managed to beat St. Louis at home 37-13 (an almost turnaround). They took a bye week. Some people traveled to New York and got humiliated by the Giants 44-6. People spent last Sunday (10-12-08) losing to Green Gulf at home 27-17.

I was at the Green Bay game paying attention to the current mess called the Seattle Seahawks. After Green Fresh scored a touchdown to go up 24-10 with approximately 4 minutes left in the 4th quarter, I got up in addition to left with my friend. Thousands of fans literally got away and left with me.

After 50+ years of watching hockey games, covering football as a sports editor for a day to day newspaper and being a lifelong fan, I can tell when competitors have tanked it in and could not come back plus win if their life depended on it. I was right, people eventually lost 27-17.

Whatever magic Seattle has had up to now has gotten up and left the franchise. The main Seahawks are terrible right now. They could get better but they definitely will still stink.

Some fans think the Seahawks' dying is because of an inordinate number of injuries to wide receivers or a banged up quarterback Matt Hasselbeck who is quite possibly lucky to be able to get out of a chair at the moment.

The team charged back all 11 starters from last year's defensive machine, but someone forgot to tell them that they still have to play repeatedly this year. They are not where they need to be, they look dazed and even confused, and even All-Pro, lock-down cornerback Marcus Trufant cannot stop Green Bay's Greg Jennings from scoring for the 45-yard touchdown pass.

All of which causes me to ask a question: Does Seattle have too many stars and not a sufficient amount of football players?

Think about it. There is Walter Jones, arguably one of the best left tackle in the history of the NFL. There is Nick Hasselbeck, one of the best quarterbacks. There is Lofa Tatupu and Julian Peterson, two of the best linebackers in the NFL. There is Leroy Hill, who many fans think is as good simply because Tatupu or Peterson, and some think even better. There is Marcus Trufant, a lock-down corner.

At least 5 of these super stars have big time contracts, only Leroy Hill, who will start working as a free agent this year, does not.

Noticeably missing from the 2005 banner team is guard Steve Hutchinson (gone to Minnesota Vikings in a salary tiff) and running once again Shaun Alexander (former NFL Most Valuable Player in july 2004 who just signed with the Washington Redskins as a back-up).

It is easy to get caught up in the press clippings and even more straightforward to ease up when you make big money. It takes no abilitie whatsoever to blow assignments. It takes a lot of talent to stay abreast year after year, game after game, and play after have fun.

No one goes very far without talent, and some online players do not go very far with talent. What cuts the great players from the good players from the average game enthusiasts?

Consider at least 4 things: 1) Talent. 2) Totally focus. 3) Consistency. 4) A white heat, deep off burning inside to be the best of the best and ahead of the rest. If you have had no idea what I am talking about, watch some game roll film of Brett Favre (pronounced Farve).

There have been more proficient quarterbacks than Brett Favre, but non-e have been more powerful, played harder or gone farther. The statistics tell situation, but there is no measure for Favre's heart, desire together with pure joy on a football field. No wonder the person cannot stay retired.

The Seahawks might need a little less within the "it's all about me" attitude and a little more of the "we are one" mentality. Teams win games and post title, not individuals. There is no sport that requires so much teamwork to succeed as football.