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Norm Johnson is the all-time leading scorer in Seahawks history. He kicked for them for nine seasons and amassed 810 points, 138 more than second place Shaun Alexander. He was the kicker for Seattle during its previous great run in the mid-1980s, with the best coming in 1983 when they lost the AFC Championship to the Raiders. He lofts one deep into the end zone, and Danny Amendola has to think about bringing it out before taking a knee.
Deflate-gate. Ugh. Someone please explain how it is easier to throw an under-inflated football.
Meanwhile, let's hope that discovering a possible soft football isn't the high water mark of D'Quell Jackson's career.
The good people of Green Bay now know what it was like to be a Red Sox fan in October of 1986.
Simply stated, this loss will eat at Packer Nation until they win their next Super Bowl.
If that ever happens.
Richard Sherman might be a big mouth who loves to run smack with the best of them. But he is a gamer. He is tough. When Bill Parcells says "In the fall, football players play football", he's talking about guys like Sherman.
Bill Belichick used to take Peyton Manning to school. What would you call his handling of Andrew Luck? Out to the woodshed?
Geek of the week: I am not copying you, Peter King, but I decided on this long before you wrote your outstanding MMQB article. Brandon Bostick learned a very tough lesson on Sunday. Do your job. At least he's not alone.
Geek of the week II: How in the world does Luke Willson catch that two-point conversion? Talk about a play that negates two picks earlier in the game. Ha-Ha Clinton-Dix perhaps did more to lose that game by jumping up without raising his arms to bat down the pass, a play even I could have made. The Alabama rookie will also do some brooding over the spring and summer.
Marshawn Lynch is a man-child of the highest order. But he can run. He looks nothing like he did in Buffalo.
Right up there among the more enduring memories of Sunday night's blowout was Adam Vinatieri's missed 51-yard field goal. You had to feel a little bit for a guy who is still immortal in the eyes of many fans in these parts.
It is gratifying to see Davante Adams make the transition from a super wideout with Derek Carr in Fresno the last three seasons to a budding NFL star in Green Bay.
That said, who is a more potent receiver corps, Adams, Jordy Nelson and Randall Cobb or Julian Edelman, Brandon LaFell and Danny Amendola?
Nate Solder used to be a tight end in grade school. Why has it taken so long for him to become the next Mike Vrabel? All he does is catch touchdowns, you know, that sort of thing.
We all now know that 58 minutes of solid football against Seattle won't get it done.
The 12th man is awesome. It won't be there in Glendale, Arizona. Thank goodness, sighs Patriot Nation.
Back to school: The people of Fort Worth, Texas and Waco, Texas can complain all they want about TCU and Baylor not getting into the first ever college football playoff tournament. They need to shut up. Ohio State proved that they got it right.
Now, next year, get it even more right and make it eight teams. Bring in the Cotton, Orange, Fiesta and Peach Bowls as the quarterfinals. Teams nine and ten will be the new complainers, but team 69 will complain at March Madness. Someone always gets stiffed. Oh well.
Can't you just picture Pete Carroll trying to game plan for all sorts of exotic offensive line packages the Patriots might throw at them? He'd better get pumped and jacked for that job.
You love it when guys like Darrelle Revis, LeGarrette Blount and Brandon LaFell are going to their first show, and it's with the Patriots that they're going.
Even more fun is Brandon Browner going up against the team he won the whole thing with last year.
Let's get fanciful for a second. Instead of Mike McCarthy, it's The Old Man.
The Packers go for it both times inside the Seattle five-yard line in the first quarter.
Morgan Burnett takes the punt and scampers about 20-25 yards, and doesn't fall down.
Eddie Lacy rushes for 183 yards thanks to the power sweep.
Clinton-Dix doesn't make a play on that two-pointer because Bostick makes his block and Nelson covers the onside kick.
Yes, folks, there was only one Vince Lombardi. But so many fundamental errors by Green Bay on Sunday would have been absent if he were there.
Remember him: Any of you remember what a big choice Bill Parcells had in 1993 when he took over the Patriots and had the top pick in the draft? The choice was Drew Bledsoe from Washington State or Rick Mirer of Notre Dame, the top two quarterbacks and players available. Parcells took Bledsoe, and Seattle took Mirer with picks one and two. Back then, there was actually a large faction of experts who thought Mirer was the better choice. You all know how Bledsoe did. Mirer lasted only four seasons in Seattle, compiling a 20-31 record and a passer rating of 65.2. He would last four more seasons with four different teams and had a 4-13 record. Parcells got it right. True, more prosperity was in the offing with Tom Brady, but in 1993 Bledsoe was the man and Mirer most certainly was not.
Glendale, Arizona. In Boise, Idaho, University of Phoenix Stadium is known for the watershed victory in Boise State football history, when the Broncos beat Oklahoma 43-42 in overtime, winning the game on a Statue of Liberty two-point conversion.
In Chicago, it is known as the place where the Bears made a terrific comeback against the Cardinals in 2006, prompting the famous Dennis Green "They are who we thought they were!" rant after the game.
In Gainesville, Florida, it is known as the place where Florida beat Ohio State in the 2007 BCS Championship Game, 41-14.
But in New England, it is known as the place where the perfect season died. Several players are still here who played on the 18-1 2007 team that lost Super Bowl XLII to the Giants, 17-14.
The 2014 Patriots will have to draw inspiration from the 2001 Patriots, who won Super Bowl XXXVI in New Orleans after having lost two Super Bowls in the Superdome prior (XX, XXXI). The loss in XLII was the most painful in team history. Coming back to this stadium for those who remember that game will be re-living a bad memory.
Brady was one of the guys who played in XLII. But he also was one of the guys who played in XXXVI. Make of it what you will.
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