Jump to content
  • Welcome!

    Register and log in easily with Twitter or Google accounts!

    Or simply create a new Huddle account. 

    Members receive fewer ads , access our dark theme, and the ability to join the discussion!

     

Seattle: A "must" win?


MHS831

Recommended Posts

The first game of the season?  Is that possible?  I think it is as close to a "must win" as any first game I have ever seen.

 

Why? 

 

Imagine the reaction if the Panthers beat Seattle.  Compare it to another game/event.  It would be equivalent to a playoff victory around here.

 

The biggest problem with this team is actually how losing has rattled the fan base.  We started as a franchise by going to the NFC Championship during the second year.  We played in 3 NFC championship games and a Super Bowl during the team's first 10 years of existence.  We got spoiled.  Even after a couple down years, 2008 happened, and the team won 12 games, earned a bye and home field advantage for the playoffs.  Seems like decades ago.

 

Since then we had Jerry's pie chart, Marty's spending spree, Fox gets fired, rumors that the team was leaving for LA,  an a few double-digit loss seasons.  We watched the new hope, Rivera and company, give away game after game in the fourth quarter.  We watched other-colored jerseys fill our stadium week after week because the fans had reason to lose their commitment to the team--Jerry and Marty became distant and smug, morons whose decisions were ridiculed across the league.

 

Winning this game would wash away four years of humility and restore hope.  It has a ton to do with the atmosphere for the next home game, and players thrive on that positive energy. So does the economy.  So do I.  I am tired of trudging into work on Monday's following a loss wondering what about life is worth living, hoping to avoid the obnoxious co-worker from the North whose drive in featured a one-liner rehearsal designed to get me to take a swing at him.

 

Enough is enough.  I do not want a moral victory.  I am tired of watching Rivera's face on the sideline looking like a third grader at a spelling be who had just been asked to spell "psuedoantidisestablishmentarianism."   Man up, grab your boys by the pouch, and make a tough call.  Screw tomorrow and next week and next year.  Win NOW.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The question is incomplete.

 

Is the game tomorrow a "must win" to what end?

 

Is it a must win in terms of a winning season or playoff birth? Certainly not. If it were, Baltimore would be out of the hunt now.

 

Is it a must win to instill confidence in the minds and hearts of the fans who are hoping for not the same old story? Absolutely.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think a "must-win" can't apply to the first game of the season. We're playing a team that by all rights should be better than us, and we have a historically awful game one.

That being said, a win would be really nice, and could go a long way to boosting the confidence of the team.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Fox wasn't fired - his contract was allowed to expire. And there is a difference between a sense of urgency and a 'must-win'. The team absolutely needs to play with urgency and intent, but implying that a loss on Sunday ruins the entire season is melodramatic.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

It really depends on how you look at it.  If the Panthers lose, I know people will say the Buffalo game is a must win.  So, is the second game of the season a...

 

Part of the point is this:  There will not be a realistic opportunity for a late season turnaround. 

 

Yes, mathematically, it is not.  However, what a loss would do to the fan  base is a different issue.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The only issue I have with a "must win" logic to the first game is that it suggests that a loss ends all hope, and we know it doesn't.  Having said that, it would be huge for this team and fanbase to get this win, bigger than any other season opener I can remember.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think tomorrow's game is a must win for Seattle. The have San Fran next week and with a loss to us they could be looking at 0-2. Statistics show playoff chances are slim after that kind of start.

If we lose we have buffalo next week and if we can't beat buffalo well this season is over anyway.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.


  • PMH4OWPW7JD2TDGWZKTOYL2T3E.jpg

  • Topics

  • Posts

    • Yeah, I could jump right into the unbelievable Bryce debate now that some people are trying to flip the script because Bryce Young has, at most, a handful of decent games as a pro, but that's going to work itself out. Suffice it to say that I've seen better QBs (with an s) in a Panthers uniform, and I've certainly seen better QBs be drafted while we're playing around with Bryce, one of them who beat the crap out of us already this season... Let's forget about Bryce (and his markedly underwhelming play since he's been here); I think that most sane fans will agree that drafting him was an error, but it happens. Sure, it doesn't happen to the tune of King's ransom---including your main receiver---but it happens. You bet, you lose. Speaking of receivers...and betting and losing... Oh, man, we drafted Xavier Legette. Yes, just like with Bryce, I've entered "the dark side." Some Huddlers were telling us from the beginning, and they were right. But, I'm not apologizing for waiting to see what a guy's got before making my decision on him. X was a one-year wonder at South Carolina who parlayed some really nice production that season, a great personality and thick country accent, into becoming a first round pick (but only in Carolina). For Dan Morgan and company, He was a big swing that has turned into a big whiff (and I can still feel the ill breeze from that one). Sh¡t happens, right? Well, not so fast. Ladd McConkey was the decidedly more polished receiver who was literally ready to hit the ground running as soon as stepping onto the field as a pro. Ladd was never the biggest guy (though not the smallest), but he was the guy that could run routes, always seemed to get open---no question---and had the same speed as X, but with legit quickness and nuanced shake and bake. But Dan chose the project. He chose the guy where the game speed looks more like a tractor trailer than a 5.0 mustang. Look, I've supported X (just like Bryce) many many a day, but no more. Now I'm not saying that I won't root for the guy. Just like with Bryce, he seems like a great kid. But as far as giving excuses for the kid, and, perhaps more importantly, waiting for some miraculous breakout, I'm done with that. I've seen enough. You don't draft a project for a project. And yes, Bryce had proven to be a project after his first season. In my mind, drafting a supposedly number one receiver that needs lots of development for a starting quarterback that needs immediate help to try and further his development is not going to lead to good things. Pick the surest guy. Or at least pick the one who appears to be the surest guy, because picking can be tricky... especially when you're too busy tricking yourself. 
    • Winning ain't gonna make my eyes lie to me. Context matters, and it will always matter in the game of football.
    • That TD pass to Legette against Miami. Elite. The play where Bryce rolls right to buy time until Tet can reverse field.  Bryce pumps as multiple defenders close in.  He barely gets it away before he takes a big time hit.  Beautiful off platform throw and great catch by Tet.   The second TD to Tet against Dallas where Bryce dips and turns his shoulder in to evade the pass rusher.  Resets and finds Tet in the end zone. Dude embodies the Keep Pounding mantra.  
×
×
  • Create New...