The Oakland Raiders are on their way to an AFC West title and look like a legitimate Super Bowl contender. Rich Gannon is having an MVP-type season and the two-headed running game is wearing down opposing defenses.
The Seattle Seahawks, meanwhile, are coming off a loss in which they allowed the opposition to run all over them, and fans are already starting to look toward next season. Besides, an earlier meeting with the Raiders was so one-sided that the upcoming contest looks like another blowout waiting to happen.
… But enough about last year’s game.
Yes, the similarities are hard to ignore. When the Seahawks and Raiders face off at Husky Stadium this Sunday night, expect to feel a sense of deja vu.
Of course, the Seahawks won last year’s game, a 27-24 comeback victory in Week 15. At the time, the Raiders were grasping to a fragile one-game lead over the Denver Broncos atop the AFC West, while Seattle was out of the playoff picture altogether. No one outside of the Seahawks’ locker room expected Oakland to lose that game.
This time, the Seahawks still have a mathematical chance of making it to the postseason, but computing their chances would take what our beloved president might call “fuzzy math.”
Are the Seahawks capable of pulling off another improbable win over the AFC’s top team?
On paper, it seems unlikely. But they did it last year, when Seattle was a much worse team.
That was almost 11 months ago, and the game still defies explanation. It took a rainstorm that Raiders coach Jon Gruden compared to “an Old Spice commercial,” and an odd fumble/safety call in the final 2 1/2 minutes to put the Seahawks in position to pull off the upset. But when the game was on the line, they went down and scored the game-winning touchdown against a solid Oakland defense.
The only difference this time, other than the Seahawks’ plethora of personnel changes, is motivation. While Seattle was playing last year’s game simply for pride, the Seahawks are close to must-win mode this season. The Raiders were mired in a tight race for the division title last December, whereas their 1 1/2-game lead this week means they can afford to stumble.
The Seahawks’ improbable victory over Oakland late last season further showed how inconsistent this team has been. Every time the Seahawks look like they have hit rock bottom, they pull out an improbable victory. And when it looks like things are beginning to take a turn for the better, the Seahawks trip and fall.
This team still hasn’t put together a three-game winning streak since the 1999 season. (Remember that 8-2 start? Seems like a lifetime ago.)
“Getting on one of those runs where you get over the hump and win three in a row, we still haven’t done that the last two years,” coach Mike Holmgren said this week. “And we really have to do that to get the feeling of winning.”
That feeling hasn’t been in Kirkland for a while. Even during the improbable 8-2 start in 1999, you never went into a game feeling this team was a lock to come away with a victory.
Sunday’s game against the Redskins seemed like Seattle’s best chance at a victory in a long time. The Seahawks were coming off three consecutive games in which they played well – wins over Jacksonville and Denver, and a tight loss to Miami – and were playing a struggling team with just two victories under its belt. A win over the Redskins could have put Seattle into the thick of the playoff hunt.
But then they looked very, um, Seahawk-like against Washington. One step forward, two steps back.
This isn’t a franchise like the Arizona Cardinals or the Cincinnati Bengals, where fans for years have gone into each week expecting a loss. No, the Seattle Seahawks represent a different level of frustration altogether. Their history, especially recently, has been to lose to a bad team one week and then knock off a top team the next week – leaving fans wondering why the latter Seahawks team doesn’t show up more often.
It happened last year, when Seattle rallied from a 2-7 start to win four of its next six games – including the win over the Raiders. And it might just happen again this week.
But that wouldn’t necessarily mean this team has turned it around. Not with Buffalo and Kansas City and their combined 3-12 record ready to expose the “Same Old Seahawks” again.
Kickoff: 5:30 p.m. Sunday at Husky Stadium.
TV: ESPN (subject to blackout if game isn’t sold out).
Radio: KIRO (710 AM).
Stars to watch: Raiders – QB Rich Gannon leads the AFC with a 98.7 quarterback rating. RB Charlie Garner, a former San Francisco 49er, has rushed for 331 yards as the Raiders’ feature back. WR Tim Brown had nine receptions, including two touchdowns, in Monday’s win over the Denver Broncos – and he made a rare appearance as a punt returner. DT Rod Coleman leads the team with 3 1/2 sacks and held his spot in the starting lineup even after Darrell Russell returned from a drug suspension.
Seahawks – RB Shaun Alexander’s rushing production has gone down each week, but he has five touchdowns in the past four games. WR Darrell Jackson leads the Seahawks with 25 receptions, but he was plagued by dropped balls last week. LB Chad Brown is one sack away from equaling his best season in Seattle (7 1/2, in 1998). CB Willie Williams has three interceptions in the past two weeks.
Breaking down the game: Provided the Seahawks can avoid injuries to two quarterbacks and their top running back, this one shouldn’t be quite the one-sided affair we saw six weeks ago.
That said, the Raiders are clearly a better team than Seattle. Having cornerback Shawn Springs on hand could benefit the Seahawks, but Tim Brown has had good games against Seattle even when Springs has been healthy in the past.
The only thing the Seahawks did well in the first meeting was stop the run, but that part of Seattle’s defense caved in Sunday against Washington. If Charlie Garner and Oakland’s running game can move the chains, the Raiders should control the game.
And unless Matt Hasselbeck turns into Brett Favre overnight, the Seahawks’ offense will have its hands full as well.
Pick: Raiders 27-17.
Injury report: Raiders – QB Bobby Hoying (elbow) is out; LB Elijah Alexander (knee), G Mo Collins (leg), FS Anthony Dorsett (knee), WR David Dunn (quad), FB Jon Ritchie (groin), RB Tyrone Wheatley (knee), G Steve Wisniewski (ankle) and CB Charles Woodson (toe) are questionable; DT Tony Bryant (hip), RB Randy Jordan (toe), Barry Sims (foot), Josh Taves (knee) are probable. Seahawks – RB Ricky Watters (shoulder) is out; DT John Randle (knee) and FS Marcus Robertson (hamstring) are questionable; TE Russell Stewart (ankle) is probable.
Little-known fact: This game marks the last time until 2006 that the Raiders will travel to Seattle for a regular-season game. The Seahawks will move to the NFC West when the league realigns next season.
Green Bay (5-2) at Chicago (6-1), 10 a.m. Sunday: For as storied as this rivalry has been over the years, it hasn’t made for much of a matchup lately. Only twice since the 1970 NFL-AFL merger have both teams finished above .500. Barring an unexpected freefall, this year should be an exception. Mike Brown’s overtime streak should come to an end this week, at least if Brett Favre has anything to say about it. Pick: Packers, 24-20.
Pittsburgh (5-2) at Cleveland (4-3), 10 a.m. Sunday: The second installment of two-rivals-who-are-unexpectedly-competitive. By all accounts, this should be a battle of two teams atop the AFC Central, but Chicago’s unbelievable comeback last week ended Cleveland’s run. The Browns know the Steelers will try to run the ball down their throat, but the question is whether they can stop it. Pick: Steelers, 10-7.
San Diego (5-3) at Denver (4-4), 1 p.m. Sunday: A Denver victory here could all but wrap up Oakland’s AFC West title. Considering the Chargers’ record at Mile High over the years – they’ve won just twice there since 1987 – the new stadium will be a welcome change. Neither team looked like a playoff contender last week. Pick: Broncos, 23-21.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
