The Top Five Defining Moments of the Seahawks 2015 Season
By Ben Renner
2. Week 12 vs. Steelers
The loss to the Panthers and subsequent changes to the offensive line allowed the Seattle Seahawks to win their next two games—one a squeaker against Matt Cassel and the Dallas Cowboys and the other a blowout of the hapless San Francisco 49ers. After a close home loss to the Arizona Cardinals in Week 10 and another easy win over the 9ers, the Seahawks sat at 5-5 on the season with a home date against the Pittsburgh Steelers up next.
We didn’t know it at the time, but this was the stretch in the 2015 season when Russell Wilson posted the best five-game stretch for a quarterback in NFL history. That’s right. And there’re statistics to back me up. During this stretch, Wilson posted quarterback ratings of 120 or higher in five consecutive games, the longest streak in league history. The Seattle Seahawks’ win, mostly because of Wilson’s brilliance, was proof that this was a scary team despite their poor start.
At this point, though, the Seahawks were still only 5-5 and looking up at the Cardinals in the division. They needed a win at home over a quality opponent to right the ship. Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and receiver Markus Wheaton had other ideas. In a game in which yet another star receiver was shut down by Sherman (Antonio Brown had six catches for 51 yards), Roethlisberger still threw for 456 yards—the most ever against the Seattle Seahawks. He would have thrown for more if he hadn’t left the game for concussion protocol with two minutes left.
"Roethlisberger threw for 456 yards—the most ever against the Seattle Seahawks."
The LOB somehow repeatedly looked like this trying to cover Wheaton, who had nine catches for 201 yards in the game. The constant defensive letdowns and blown coverages forced Wilson to go into overdrive, connecting with receiver Doug Baldwin, who had a true coming-out party in the game, for three touchdowns, including the game sealer, an 80-yard catch and run for the ages. This game was only the beginning of a season-saving run by the Seahawks and the extremely productive Wilson-to-Baldwin connection.
Next: Playoff Clincher