Last week, after beating the Houston Texans on Monday Night Football, the national media maintained their positive outlook on the Seattle Seahawks. However, with positive outlooks and playoff expectations,
the bar for success has risen for the Seahawks. Has this high bar maintained through the week eight bye week?
As is the case with all news cycles, it is very quick to be forgotten. Between the Monday Night Football game in week 7 that started at 10PM Eastern, and a bye week this past week, the Seahawks all the way out in the Pacific Northwest have quickly become an afterthought to many national media sites. However, for Seattle sports fans, that is only to be expected. To exemplify this, of the five national media sites polled (NFL.com, Pro Football Talk, Bleacher Report, ESPN, and CBS Sports), three had the Seahawks drop in rankings, while two held them at the same ranking. Let’s start with the worst rankings and move out way up.
Both Bleacher Report and ESPN dropped the Seahawks out of the top ten this week. Bleacher Report, who had the Seahawks ranked 10th last week have dropped them down one spot to the 11th spot. Bleacher Report maintained their optimistic outlook on the Seahawks, though it is interesting to note that it was the New England Patriots who leaped the Seahawks (from 11 to 10) this week after beating the Cleveland Browns 32-13. ESPN meanwhile moved the Seattle down two spots, from 9th to 11th on their rankings. ESPN, like Bleacher Report are optimistic about the Seahawks, and also moved the Patriots (along with the Denver Broncos) up in their place.
One other interesting piece about Bleacher Report and ESPN’s rankings are that they both have the Los Angeles Rams ranked higher than the Seahawks still. Pro Football Talk also has the Rams ranked higher than the Seahawks on their rankings. A difference for PFT compared to Bleacher Report and ESPN is that they did not move the Seahawks down their rankings after a bye week, having Seattle stay ranked ninth. One notable statement from PFT in this ranking is that they mention the Seahawks as being a “threat to get to the Super Bowl,” noting their stifling defense and ability to win on the road.
The two national media sites that have the Seahawks as the top ranked team in the NFC West are CBS Sports and NFL.com. CBS Sports, who kept Seattle ranked 7th in the league, also made positive commentary over the Seahawks’ ability to travel and win on the road. NFL.com, who dropped Seattle from 4 to 6 in their rankings, mentioned that fans should not “sweat the short drop”. They continued to rave about the Seahawks defense, and mentioned the soon return of defensive backs Julian Love and Devon Witherspoon.
Overall, as is to be expected, with a bye week, the attention was not on Seattle. So it makes sense that they would remain stagnant, if not drop in their rankings. After week seven, the average power ranking between the five sites (NFL.com, PFT, Bleacher Report, ESPN, and CBS Sports) was 7.8. After week eight, the average power ranking between those same sites is 8.8, still well within the playoff picture.
With this week somewhat being the halfway mark of the season, it was an interesting time to see how the national media ranks Seattle, not only just in the NFL, but within the NFC West. Only CBS Sports and NFL.com believe the Seahawks are the best NFC West Team, with the other three national media outlets preferring the Rams. However, even if the Seahawks lose the NFC West, they have shown their ability to win on the road. Because of that, as PFT put it, Seattle could be a “threat to get to the Super Bowl.” Let’s see if they continue this road dominance this upcoming week in Maryland against the Washington Commanders.
