Seattle Seahawks Beat Green Bay Packers 28-22, One Up Themselves
As a Seattle Seahawks fan, how do you beat the 2013-14 season? I mean yeah, two Super Bowls are obviously better than one, but was this season ever going to be as special as last season was?
A 13-3 regular season, two nail-biting wins over the New Orleans Saints and rival San Francisco 49ers leading up to a blowout 43-8 win over the Denver Broncos for the first Super Bowl victory in our 40 years of existence. It can’t get any better than that, can it?
Well, it just did.
Down 19-7 with 5:13 remaining in the NFC Championship, Russell Wilson threw his fourth interception of the game off the hands of Jermaine Kearse. Morgan Burnett didn’t even bother returning the pick. The game was for all intents and purposes, over.
But little did we all know, that was the final play these impostors posing as the Seahawks would make. The real ‘Hawks had every intention of swooping in to save the day. That play would set the stage for the greatest eight minutes in team history.
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The Hawks would force a three-and-out from a suddenly conservative Green Bay offense and get the ball back at their own 31-yard line.
Three explosive plays from Marshawn Lynch, Doug Baldwin, and Lynch again followed by a 1-yard score from Russ brought Seattle to within five at 19-14.
Then an onside kick recovery and three more big plays from Wilson, Willson, and Lynch gave the Seahawks their first lead of the game at 20-19.
What came next is something you probably won’t see for a very long time.
On the two-point conversion, Russell rolled out to right, where he found no one open. So naturally, he scrambled back to the 20-yard line and without looking threw up a prayer across the field in the general vicinity of Luke Willson.
It was a hail-mary-two-yard-score. Like I said, it’ll be a while before you see that one again.
Finding themselves trailing with 1:25 remaining, the Packers remembered that they have Aaron Rodgers and moved into field goal range in three quick plays. Seattle’s defense stiffened up and forced Mason Crosby onto the field for a 48-yard attempt, which he would make to send the game to overtime.
January 18, 2015; Seattle, WA, USA; Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Jermaine Kearse (15) catches a 35 yard pass from quarterback Russell Wilson (not pictured) for the game winning touchdown ahead of Green Bay Packers cornerback
Tramon Williams(38) during the overtime period in the NFC Championship game at CenturyLink Field. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
Russell Wilson would have an epiphany in the overtime period. He remembered that he is Russell Freakin’ Wilson.
A beautiful third-down touch pass to Baldwin for 35 yards down the right sideline moved Seattle to within striking distance. And on the next play, they would strike.
Wilson changed Kearse’s route at the line of scrimmage when he recognized that Green Bay was in man-coverage with no safety help in the middle of the field.
Kearse ran the deep post and Russ placed the ball right between the one and the five on his jersey.
Somehow, someway, they found a way to reach their second Super Bowl in as many years. And somehow, someway, they kept it just as exciting.