By Scott M. Johnson
Herald Writer
KIRKLAND – The road to the playoffs does not seem overly grueling. Three stops, each of them against teams with sub-.500 records.
But the remaining three games on the 2001 Seattle Seahawks schedule have all the makings of a disaster. Until the Seahawks figure out a way to win on the road – where they will play the next two games – they might as well put their playoff hopes on the back burner.
“We’re better than we’ve been showing,” offensive lineman Robbie Tobeck said of the team’s road woes. “I just think we have to have the resolve and determination to get it done. That’s what it takes. We have to get it set in our mind that we’re going to win these next three games, regardless of anything that comes up. We’re going to get it done. That’s the approach you have to take.”
Road games against the 6-7 New York Giants and 5-9 San Diego Chargers will be more difficult than they look on paper because of Seattle’s recent history away from home.
The Seahawks (7-6 overall) have a 2-4 record on the road and have been outscored by an average of 20-12. They have allowed nearly 100 more yards per game on the road than at home this season, including three games in which they have given up 150 yards or more on the ground.
One road loss, a 27-14 defeat at the hands of the Washington Redskins, could be attributed to an overall lack of readiness. Coach Mike Holmgren contends his team did not appear to have the proper emotion before that game. Later losses at Denver and Kansas City were just as one-sided, but because of other factors. Had the Seahawks pulled out a victory in any of those three games, they wouldn’t be in such a desperate situation right now.
Tobeck was at a loss for answers when asked what has attributed to the road struggles. He refused to blame it on any of the obvious factors like travel or crowd noise.
“Our routine is basically the same as it is at home,” he said, referring to the fact that the players spend Saturday nights before home games at a local hotel. “I don’t know if it’s familiarity, or what it is. We have to get it in our minds that we’ll do whatever it takes. It doesn’t matter what the weather condition is, or anything like that. We have to go out and play our football game. And that’s the way we have to approach it, that we’re going to win the game. That’s not a prediction or anything like that; it’s the way we have to approach the game.”
Mathematically, Seattle doesn’t necessarily have to win both of the next two games to stay alive. But losing one of them would mean the Seahawks would need either Baltimore or New England to drop two of their final three. Rather than rely on someone else, the Seahawks are looking at the three games left on their schedule as must-wins.
“We have had opportunities all year to get things going, and this is just one more opportunity,” quarterback Matt Hasselbeck said. “In some ways, it feels like we shouldn’t have this many opportunities. But we have a chance, and we hold our destiny in our own hands.”
Actually, the Seahawks do need a little help along the way. But if New England loses to Miami on Saturday, Seattle will officially have control of its own destiny.
“We haven’t been the model of consistency, but we have a shot” at the playoffs, Holmgren said. “Everyone can get excited about the fact that we have a shot: players, (media), our fans. This time of year in the league is for the cities that have a chance at the playoffs, so it is OK to get excited about it. That is kind of the fun part of this.”
This time last season, there wasn’t nearly as much excitement surrounding the Seahawks, who had already been eliminated from playoff contention.
“It’s different when you have something to play for,” linebacker Chad Brown said. “I can’t imagine baseball guys, with 50 or 60 games left and out of it. It’s tough when you don’t really have a reason to come to work other than obligation.”
Of course, the fun will be over should the Seahawks lose the two upcoming road games. So they would prefer to continue building excitement with a victory Sunday at New York.
“Winning this game would accomplish so many things for us,” Brown said. “It would give us our first win on the road in a while. It would give us an incredible sense of confidence. We’ve been confident all year, but sometimes I think we wait for something bad to happen. If we win this one, that confidence and momentum will ride us through the last couple. We’ve got to go out and take care of it.”
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