NFL Playoffs Upset Alert: 5 Reasons Why the Seahawks Will Defeat the Saints
For the Saints, the road to the playoffs was not as easy as the year before. Last year, the Falcons were injured and struggling, the Buccaneers were a rebuilding team lacking a Quarterback, and the Panthers were as mediocre as any team in the NFL.
With the exception of Carolina, every team has been competitive in this division. Atlanta quickly found a rhythm and was unstoppable all year long, finishing with the top seed in the NFC. Tampa Bay was also a playoff contending team, but fell short in Week 17. The Saints, hurt with several injuries, was at one point a team that needing some soul searching. The upset loss to Cleveland showed that this team needed to rebound.
Even though the Saints played sloppy Week 16 against the Falcons, New Orleans pulled out a victory, keeping hope alive. Despite dropping their Weak 17 matchup to Tampa Bay, New Orleans was on the inside of the playoff picture, looking out a teams like New York and Tampa.
Seattle, led by former USC Head Coach Pete Carroll, managed to reach the playoffs with a losing record. The Seahawks are the first in NFL playoff history to reach the postseason with a losing record. Before the reached the playoffs, Seattle was in a win or go home situation on Sunday Night Football.
The last game of the regular season was held at Qwest field, a game that meant playoffs or nothing. St. Louis was the favorite to take the game and the division. Seattle was without QB Hasselbeck, were forced to start backup Charlie Whitehurst. After a back and forth game, including a late interception by QB Sam Bradford of St. Louis, Seattle was victorious, winning the division with a 7-9 record.
In the Wild Card weekend of the 2011 Playoffs, the Saints, despite a better record, must travel to Seattle to play the Seahawks in the toughest stadium in the game.
Reason 5. Super Bowl Curse
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History is one thing you cannot deny. History is the story of the past, and for most Super Bowl Champions, the following year has been harsh. In the past eight seasons, only one team in two seasons has one a playoff game the following year after winning it all: the 2004 and the 2005 New England Patriots.
The Saints have shown affects of the Super Bowl Curse in the regular season. In many games, the Saints offense looked flat, while the defensed lacked energy. Drew Brees has also lacked effectiveness, throwing 22 interceptions, doubling his total from his Super Bowl season last year. He threw the most picks of his career this season.
The Saints have used multiple running backs this year due to injury. Reggie Bush broke his leg early in the season, and Pierre Thomas is now out for the season. The Saints have been short on Running Backs all year.
There is no doubt that the Seahawks defense will step up in times of adversity. If Casey Bradley, Defensive Coordinator, can put together an outstanding gameplan, the Seahawks can hold off the Saints, and punch their ticket to the Divisional Round of the Playoffs.
Reason 4. Head Coach Pete Carroll
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There is no denying the fact that Pete Carroll had large success at USC. Carroll has coached many players who have gone on to great careers in the NFL. Mark Sanchez, Carson Palmer, Reggie Bush, and Rey Maualuga are all huge stars in the NFL, some say because of the leadership shown by Carroll.
Carroll, in his first year as Head Coach of Seattle, has brought success back to the Hawks. The job is not done yet. Carroll also has a duty to put Seattle deep into the playoffs, even though they are expected to lose by double digits against the Saints.
Carroll is an experienced coach who could take any roaster from any team and create a winner out of them. This is one reason why the Seahawks will make this game much closer than what is on paper. Carroll took a 5-11 team into a Playoff contending team.
Sean Peyton also took the Saints, who had never seen a Super Bowl, and made them World Champions. However, the Saints are underestimating the ability of the Seahawks. On any given Sunday, any team can defeat any other team. New Orleans knows how this feels, going back to earlier in the season when Cleveland made a mockery of the Super Bowl champions.
Reason 3. Matt Hasselbeck
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When QB Matt Hasselbeck went down with a leg injury following a Touchdown run, backup Charlie Whitehurst was forced to play. In fact, sometimes Whitehurst would come in late during games to replaced a benched Hasselbeck.
Matt Hasselbeck is now 100 percent, and is ready to lead the Seahawks in their playoff matchup. No starter has been named, but if Matt Hasselbeck is healthy, he will be the man. Hasselbeck has been in the Playoffs before, and lead Seattle to Super Bowl 40. Even though the Seahawks fell short to the Steelers, a Super Bowl appearance shows leadership and dedication from Matt Hasselbeck.
While Hasselbeck may be past his prime, most thought Brett Favre was past his prime as well. Yet, Favre lead the Vikings to an NFC Championship game at the age of 40. Hasselbeck might lose stamina or throwing distance, but he cannot lose dedication to football or lose his leadership ability.
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Reason 2. Momentum
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For the Seahawks, being in the Playoffs is one thing that nobody expected, nor did anybody believe when Seattle edged their way into the playoffs. For the Seahawks, and the city of Seattle, momentum is most definitely on their side.
The Seahawks ended their 2010 regular season with a victory and a playoff birth. As for their opponent, the Saints ended 2010 with a loss to the Buccaneers. Some do not realise that wins or losses carry over to the next week. For example any team can lose by a great deficit in one week, and look flat and lacking the very next week. This is how losing streaks begin.
As for momentum, take the 2010 Jets Playoff team for example. The Jets edged their way into the Playoffs last year, and after the Wild Card week, came in with a head of steam into The Q to face the red hot San Diego Chargers. The Chargers had earned a Bye week for the playoffs, which is sometimes a disadvantage. The Jets, a team who was not expected to even make the playoffs, stormed into Qualcomm Stadium with a great amount of momentum, and took down the Chargers.
Final Score: Jets 17, Chargers 14.
The electricity had been sucked out of the Chargers, the stadium, and the city. The Jets had momentum on their side, and played ten times better than San Diego.
Keep momentum in your mind when you turn on your TV for the start of the Saints-Seahawks game.
Reason 1. Qwest Field and Home Field Advantage
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The main reason every team fight for the first seed in the playoffs is home field advantage. And for the Seahawks, it's is quite an advantage.
The Seahawks play in the toughest and loudest stadiums in the NFL: Qwest Field. Qwest Field is also known as the 12th man, because the sounds in the stadium can become so loud that you cannot hear yourself think.
The Saints should bring along ear plugs and a lot of Tylenol. Qwest field can hold up to 72,000 fans, and can get as loud as 135 decibels. This is as loud as a Jet Aircraft. The Saints can expect an increase in penalty flags.
The special architectural design allows all sound waves to be heard on field. New Orleans could have trouble getting plays to the field, and hearing when to snap the ball.
For Seattle fans, this may be their best tool and advantage against the defending Super Bowl champions. There will be a large turnout at Qwest Field, and hopefully for the Seahawks, all fans bring their outside voices.
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