Hawks Flying Low

by: Michael Steffes

After the majority of team building is done, it is only natural to start ranking the teams. Peter King's MMQB article does just that this morning. If you recall, last year King picked the Seahawks to go to the Superbowl. It didn't happen. Maybe that has made him a little more skeptical this season. Either that or the Hawks lack of "sexy" acquisitions has left them flying under the radar.

King has the Seahawks ranked at #15. Pretty much square in the middle. He sites uncertainty about Mike Holmgren's dedication as part of the reason. I think that is ridiculous, but only coach would really know. Regardless, the one thing King obviously doesn't put too much stock in is quarterback play. Dallas is ranked 4, which is fair, but behind them he has the Giants(6), Vikings(7), Packers(8), Carolina (10), and Philadelphia (11) ahead of the Hawks. I only looked at NFC teams. The teams mentioned all would love to have the Quarterback stability that Seattle has. Eli Manning, yes, but has he put together a decent regular season? McNabb is great too, but when did he last make it through a season intact? The others are self-explanatory.

In a league where quarterback play is so crucial, unless these teams see dramatic improvement at that position, the Hawks will finish ahead of them again. But for now, the Hawks are going to be flying low, under the radar again, just where they like it. END