Patience, Seattle

One year later, I can now hear "Bittersweet Symphony" without becoming anxious or cranky. Certainly not at the Seahawks. The fact that they're a bunch of tough, crazy misfits who enter a stadium to orchestral music instead of 1980s metal makes me smile every time I think about it. No, I'd get cranky at the maddening circumstances surrounding Superbowl 49.

At this point it is bittersweet, though.

This past season ended up being pretty great even though it wasn't supposed to be (there wouldn't have been anything to forgive if they had not made it to the playoffs), but the coming season is going to be awesome. 

If I'm right, this season was never intended to be a full-throttle year. Sure, Wilson and everyone else wanted to win because that is part of what makes them great. They'll never take the easy way in favor of the better way. They want to do the best they can for the fans that love them. Sure they want prove that the loss to the Patriots was not definitive. That isn't even a question.

Remember the way Carroll treats Marshawn Lynch? He gives superhuman effort, then gets to rest on the sidelines for a bit. Also, we've all noticed Russell Wilson's "baseball slide" and his penchant for self-protection. He is one of those rare individuals who somehow manages to give 110% even though that's statistically impossible... it is what they mean when they say he "makes something out of nothing"... but he is very careful not to put himself at risk. This isn't just Wilson's idea. He and Pete Carroll have had conversations about it.

All effort is not created equal. There is a clear boundary for Carroll and his Seahawks between constructive vs destructive effort.

In order to get the best out of people, Carroll pushes them to be better but doesn't burn them out. Everything in nature has periods of rest, which is important because during these periods the plants, animals etc. go through processes they can't perform while fully active. For example, you can force plants to bloom out of season in a hothouse but it isn't good for them because they're not gathering the nutrients and recuperating the way plants should be allowed to do.

People who grow commercial hothouse flowers don't care about that, though, because they just want a big bright bloom. Similarly, most coaches would force their players to "bloom" all the time, which uses them up quickly. Remember the brilliant but woefully short blooming of RG3?

Carroll isn't like that. Lynch is a microcosm but the same principle applies to the team as a whole. We all want to see our boys return to the Superbowl and would love to see them win. It will come. Patience, Seattle. 

I'll bet you I'm right about this as an intention. Oh, sure, I have a couple of concerns about the mechanics of how it will work-- keeping different players, their roles evolving and so on--  but we can discuss those another time.

Maintenance

Dear 12s, 

Remember how this was supposed to be "a rebuilding year?" 

Remember how we were so busy getting our feet back under us from x2 Superbowl appearances that we weren't even supposed to be in the Playoffs? 

To be honest, OsQ is relieved. Without question, our guys hate losing and will play as hard as they can for the 12s. However, there is a difference between shining bright and burning out.

See, football teams that pound themselves to pieces grasping for the Superbowl year after year quickly burn out and become a joke. Athletes know this. To quote L, "I don't pound my own training hard year after year, week after week. I use what's called periodization. Periods of higher intensity and periods of maintenance fitness throughout the year. I'll burn out otherwise." 

This is a valid concern for football teams as well as for athletic individuals. Did you ever wonder why we worry about very few teams from the East divisions? Here is the Way of It. 

The Giants, Cowboys, Eagles, Bills and so on tore each other to shreds in the 1980s. They slugged it out in the post season and grasped at the Superbowl year after year. The result was that they collectively burned out and the East still hasn't recovered. I mean, who in the NFL really thinks about the Bills or Eagles right now, let alone worries about them?  

Seattle is new to being a force in the NFL. Let's ask ourselves an important question. 

Do we want our Seahawks to burn themselves out and then go back to being ignored? Or do we want to accept that in order to have a legacy of greatness, there are going to be maintenance years? 

 The Seahawks do not have irreparable issues. They do, however, need to take some time to work on communication and clicking together faster. That's the way Carroll Mode is set up.  They need some time away from the media frenzy and intense stress and possibility of injuries in order to stay mentally and physically healthy. 

This was a maintenance year. For all that, they gave us an exciting season and a Playoffs appearance. I hope the 12s will be smart and acknowledge this. 

Sincerely, 

OsQ

P.S. Remember how our Superbowl victory came after a short season...?

Oh, Kap

Does anyone remember how Kaepernick stepped in to replace Alex Smith for the 49ers? 

I'm glad that Alex Smith has gone on to have such a bright career with the Chiefs. 

Although trading Smith seemed like a sound business decision at the time and there was no way to see the future, right about now the 49ers are wishing they hadn't traded him. 

Oh, Colin Kaepernick.

A 49ers fan recently remarked to me that even though he doesn't like the Seahawks, he still respects them. He especially respects Russell Wilson. Further, he thought that the media's constant, artificial comparison of Kaepernick to Wilson didn't do Kap any psychological favors. 49ers Fan said there was no comparison, not even two or three years ago when it first started, and he thought smart fans should have known that.

It was sad because left to their own devices, Kap and Russ didn't think about each other all that much. They certainly didn't dislike one another.

Kap was a competent quarterback. He showed promise. But thanks to the artificial buildup plus Wilson blowing the doors off the NFL, Kap got it into his head that he was already a great quarterback. 

Late in 2015, right before Kap's haitus, the Packers' Clay Matthews taunted him by saying "You ain't Russell Wilson, bro." That's the thing, though. No one should have expected Kaepernick to be Russell Wilson or anyone else for that matter. When, for many different reasons, Kap could not deliver what the hype had promised, it affected him badly. His own city turning against him has not helped either.

This is why I think Colin Kaepernick got short-changed before he ever came up short.

See, it's one thing for a player to be dismissed as bratty and semi-talented and then mature into great talent, the way Cam Newton recently did.  

It's another to prove yourself great by winning a Superbowl and then have people doubt if you can measure up to your own greatness again... and then prove it by winning another Superbowl... and now have people doubt if you can measure up to your own greatness again, like Eli Manning. There will always be Eli Doubters.

It's yet another thing to be great and have it constantly questioned or belittled, like Russell Wilson. Wilson knows who and what he is. He isn't trying to define himself based on anyone else's hype. Neither Wilson nor Manning typically listen to the "noise."

The "noise" is irritating to true fans who know how talented these people are.  We love it when our favorites prove the haters wrong.  

However, Kap wasn't fighting to prove anyone wrong. He was told constantly that he was better-than. Those around him built up an unrealistic image, which got into his head. Then people were angry and derisive with him for failing to measure up to that image.

That's sad. I don't know how much potential Kaepernick would have had without all the hype, but it certainly didn't do him any good.