Seattle Seahawks Can Build a Dynasty
By Todd Pheifer
Feb 2, 2014; East Rutherford, NJ, USA; Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson holds the Vince Lombardi Trophy after Super Bowl XLVIII against the Denver Broncos at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
The Seattle Seahawks can become a dynasty. There, I said it.
Granted, you have to be very careful about throwing around that word. A dynasty in the modern NFL, with all of the challenges associated with the salary cap, is very difficult to create.
Your team has to be good, and young, and inexpensive. The moment a few players get to contract years, the budget can get out of control in a hurry.
Obviously the Seahawks have drafted well, both in terms of talent and in terms of financial commitments. Some of their best players are currently very affordable. Players like Russell Wilson and Richard Sherman come to mind.
That said, everyone wants to get paid at some point. There will come a day when the young core is up for lucrative deals, and that will be a challenging time for the Seahawks. John Schneider and Pete Carroll have drafted very well in the past few years, but there is no guarantee that this will continue.
To build on this momentum, the Seahawks will need to make some tough off-season decisions. Do you re-sign Golden Tate to an expensive multi-year deal? Do you let pricey players like Sidney Rice and Zach Miller go? And, at what point do you try to lock up some of your young defenders?
Based on what we saw in the Super Bowl, the Seahawks do not have any obvious weaknesses at this point. If Percy Harvin can come back strong, the offensive line can solidify and the defense can remain stingy, there is no reason why this franchise can’t compete for another Super Bowl.
Of course, a team can go sideways very quickly in today’s NFL. Even if the Seahawks have another winning season, there are no guarantees in the playoffs.
For the moment, fans can savor this victory. It is a relief to finally have a Lombardi Trophy in the Emerald City. But, this team is not done. There is more that can be accomplished. Before you know it, it will be draft time and the work will begin again.
The Seahawks are Super Bowl champs. Perhaps in the future, they might actually be referred to as a dynasty.