SEATTLE – On an evening so crazy that it defied explanation, so baffling that words could never paint an accurate picture, only rock-steady fullback Mack Strong could stand within the circle of chaos and provide a sparkle of enlightenment.
“I do believe this is a team of destiny,” the 35-year-old said after his Seattle Seahawks dodged several bullets and came out with a 21-20 playoff victory over the Dallas Cowboys on Saturday night. “I do believe it with all my heart. And we proved it today.”
How else to explain a performance that came down to a safety, a long touchdown pass and a botched field goal – all in the final 61/2 minutes? How else to recap a team overcoming a return touchdown, a patchwork secondary and a struggling quarterback?
Time will tell whether “destiny” is an apt description, but it sure felt right Saturday evening.
“It’s better to be lucky than good, I guess,” Seahawks middle linebacker Lofa Tatupu said as the team celebrated advancing into the divisional round of the NFL playoffs for the second year in a row. “This season, not that many balls have been bouncing our way. Fortunately, it did (Saturday).”
Whether it was due to destiny, karma or just plain luck, the favorable bounces came on two key plays, resulting in a victory that was as improbable as the clear January sky that blanketed Qwest Field.
Clinging to a one-point lead with 1:19 remaining, the Seahawks watched and waited as the Cowboys set up for inevitable victory. Dallas had the ball at the 2-yard line, needing only a field goal to pull ahead, but let the golden opportunity slip away.
Holder Tony Romo, the Cowboys quarterback, caught a clean snap but dropped the ball as he tried to place it for kicker Martin Gramatica’s 19-yard attempt. As Gramatica aborted his approach, Romo scooped the ball from the Qwest Field turf and did the only thing he could possibly do. He sprinted toward the left corner, hoping to score a touchdown or – at the very least – convert the fourth down by advancing to the Seattle 1-yard line.
Seahawks defensive back Jordan Babineaux shed a Gramatica block and lunged from behind, tripping up Romo at the 2. With that, the Seahawks’ win was all but secured.
“If I wouldn’t have dove when I did, he probably would have gotten the first down or a touchdown,” Babineaux said. “It was huge.”
While Babineaux made the game-saving tackle, his corner partner in the starting defensive backfield turned in the momentum-turning play of the day. After the Seattle offense got stuffed on a fourth-and-goal from the Dallas 2-yard line, rookie cornerback Kelly Jennings forced a Terry Glenn fumble that eventually resulted in a safety. The two points put the Seahawks within 20-15 with 6:32 to go, and suddenly Seattle had new life.
The play shifted momentum so fiercely that the Seahawks’ entire team snapped out of its game-long funk. After struggling to find any semblance of consistency, the offense marched 50 yards in four plays, the last of which was a 37-yard touchdown pass from Matt Hasselbeck to Jerramy Stevens with 4:24 remaining in the game. After a botched two-point conversion attempt, the Seahawks led 21-20.
Dallas responded with a long drive of its own, going 70 yards to the Seattle 2-yard line to set up for the game-winning field goal.
After Romo botched the snap in field-goal formation, the Seahawks ran four plays and punted back to Dallas with two seconds left. Seahawks cornerback Pete Hunter knocked down Romo’s hail-mary pass in the end zone to make the win official.
While the Seahawks celebrated another week of postseason life – they’ll play at Chicago or New Orleans next weekend, depending on who wins today’s game between Philadelphia and the New York Giants – the Cowboys were left shell-shocked.
Romo was in tears, and talkative wide receiver Terrell Owens was almost at a loss for words.
“Missed opportunities,” Owens said. “We gave ourselves opportunities; we just didn’t seize them.”
For that, the Seahawks were thankful.
“After all the stuff we’ve been through – the poor play, the injuries, letting games slip away, all that stuff – it feels good,” Hasselbeck said. “It wasn’t a dominating performance, but this is the NFL – it’s tough – and we’ll take it.”
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