Comeback victory sends Seahawks to second round
Published 3:12 pm Sunday, January 6, 2008
SEATTLE — Matt Hasselbeck promised a playoff victory four years ago at Green Bay and wound up eating those words. Saturday, after the Seattle Seahawks beat the Washington Redskins 35-14 at Qwest Field in the first round of the NFL playoffs, Hasselbeck couldn’t help himself.
“We want the ball, and we’re going to score!” the Seahawks’ quarterback said again. “There. I said it. And I mean it.”
The victory sent the Seahawks into a second-round game at 1:30 p.m. (PST) Saturday at Green Bay, site of one of the Hawks’ biggest playoff disappointments — and some infamous words by Hasselbeck.
On Jan. 4, 2004, the Seahawks and Packers were tied 27-27 at the end of regulation, and the Hawks won the coin toss before overtime. Hasselbeck, overheard on the referee’s open microphone, didn’t utter the usual, “We’ll receive.”
Instead, he shouted, “We want the ball, and we’re going to score!”
Moments later, Hasselbeck threw a pass interception that Packers cornerback Al Harris ran back for a touchdown, ending the Seahawks’ season.
Saturday, the Seahawks clinched a playoff rematch with the Packers when Hasselbeck threw a touchdown pass and the defense returned two interceptions for touchdowns in a wild fourth-quarter comeback.
Washington led 14-13 before Hasselbeck threw a 20-yard touchdown pass to D.J. Hackett, then a two-point conversion throw to Marcus Pollard, to take a 21-14 lead with 6:12 remaining.
On the Redskins’ next play, Seahawks cornerback Marcus Trufant intercepted a pass and ran it 78 yards for a touchdown, making the score 28-14. Linebacker Jordan Babineaux ran back another interception 57 yards for a touchdown with 44 seconds to play to complete the Seahawks’ amazing fourth-quarter turnaround.
As time expired, the Seahawks celebrated with the boisterous crowd of 68,297, the largest playoff crowd in stadium history, and then looked ahead to their next challenge: the Packers.
“You wish you could enjoy the victories longer, but the only game you get to do that with is when you win the Super Bowl,” coach Mike Holmgren said.
