Never Has A Team Made Me Question My Rooting Interest Quicker Than After The Seahawks won the NFC Championship Game

I watched the NFC championship game strongly rooting for Seattle to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl for the second straight year. In part because Aaron Rodgers personality, or lack thereof, strikes a nerve, and in part because I thought that they posed a greater threat to yet another Patriots Super Bowl victory. For about 55 minutes and change of gameplay that seemed to be for naught. You simply are not supposed to have five turnovers and win a conference championship game. Whoever you make the scapegoat, one thing is clear. The Packers did a far better job of losing the game than the Seahawks did of winning the game. So I was happy that Seattle pulled out the victory, that mindset was quickly questioned by a variety of post game actions.

Immediate regret. That's exactly what I felt when I watched Russell Wilson crying like a little boy that had to put his puppy down. Truth be told, I have never been much of  Russell Wilson fan. I don't question his talent, or his ability to win, but his entire aura seems disingenuous. The holier than thou goody two shoes act seems duplicitous for the quarterback of one of the cockiest teams in NFL history. I, unlike most, love Seattles' swagger. I love their confidence. I love their brashness. I think it translates well to the football field. It's entertaining, and for as long as they can back it up, it's impressive. That's why I don't want to see their leader crying after a game in which he threw four interceptions. I don't think athletes have to walk around with some impenetrable shell when it comes to their emotions. Sometimes it's actually refreshing to see a guy break down when he is overcome by the situation. It's a reminder that they are human too, despite their otherworldly athletic abilities. I just don't think a third year quarterback that's headed to his second straight Super Bowl, despite playing an awful football game, should be shedding any tears. This isn't John Elway finally winning the big game after an entire career of paying his dues. This isn't Peyton Manning being traded to the Broncos after being the face of the Indianapolis Colts for more than a decade. This isn't Dick Vermeil winning his first Lombardi as the oldest coach in the sport. This isn't a player that has faced a ton of adversity throughout his career, whether it be on or off the field.  Sac up Russ. There should be one, maybe two, acceptable reactions in this scenario. One would be shock and awe, an emotion that almost everyone watching the game felt whether they maintained a rooting interest or not. The second would be to laugh it off and enjoy the moment despite doing your best not to earn it. 

Nope, not this time. Sorry Doug, we don't believe you. Listen, we have seen this act before. When Richard Sherman went on a tirade insulting Michael Crabtree after making the game winning play to send his team to the Super Bowl last year it was one thing. It was in the heat of the moment. Whether it was the the classy thing to do is questionable, but it certainly didn't feel forced. It felt like it came from a place of passion in the heat of the moment. A majority of athletes can attest to that being a logical reasoning.  While Doug Baldwin losing his shit on reporters after an extensive on field celebration is ludicrous, the content of his rant gave a new meaning to the term. If you counted the Seattle Seahawks out, raise you hand…Wow, that's a desolate response. Sure, after a 3-3 start in the toughest division in football, some experts questioned whether or not the Seahawks lacked the fortitude that made them so unbeatable just a year prior. That's what analysts do. They analyze what goes on in the NFL on a weekly basis, and some weeks the Seahawks looked like a shady of their former selves. However, to say that anyone counted out a team that was coming off a Super Bowl victory and was widely accepted to have the best defense in the league, isn't debatable. It's just flat out wrong. It wasn't just 16-0 at the end of the first half that had people skeptical Doug. It was that your entire team looked like garbage, and it didn't stop after a half of football. To not admit that are lucky to be in the position you are, after the Packers delivered a victory to you on a silver platter is flat put ungrateful. I don't mind athletes 'creating' bulletin board material. It happens all the time. Whatever gets the locker room riled up to bring their best to the field is fine by me, but don't throw it in anyone's face like you proved the 'doubters' wrong when your receiving core is responsible for three turnovers and one touchdown. That's the very definition of average and mediocre. You want to talk shit, at least back it up, that's why I have far less of a problem with Richard Sherman's antics than those of Doug Baldwin.

Holy shit, it's not just the players that are delusional. The Seahawks fans and social media team are too. Sure, this post was quickly deleted, but can we get a little self awareness. Comparing a football game to the Civil Rights movement is as close to full blown retardation that you can get. Not only that, but it is relatively ironic given the reports earlier in the season that Russell Wilson's teammates didn't think he was 'black enough'. Pretty sure Martin Luther King Jr. wasn't concerned with the credibility of anyone's 'blackness', but I guess that's besides the point. Show a little respect for the man, the holiday, and it's place in history. This quote doesn't even really relate to what transpired in that game either. If you are going to over step your boundaries and border on the offensive, at least have it pertain to the situation. 

Not only that, but the use of the word 'faith' is hysterical given the the members of the '12th man' who were already in the parking lot with 5 minutes remaining in the game. Who pays the price of a ticket for an NFC championship game and leaves down 12 with five minutes remaining? Sure, it looked pretty bleak at that point, but as football fans we have all seen more miraculous finishes. Every successful team has bandwagon fans, but let's leave the word faith out of the conversation when members of supposed the most die hard of  fan bases are missing history to avoid a little traffic. 

Act like you've been there before. That's a phrase that gets thrown around a lot in sports and it holds true here as well. The Seahawks won a championship less than 365 days agp, and they are already acting like it's their first time. The "we told you so's" and their inability to be realistic is nauseating at this point. There are groups of people clamoring that the Seahawks may be one the best teams in history, and they are all crying, literally and figuratively, on the field about how they aren't receiving their due respect. Take notes from the team that you play in Arizona in two weeks. They received far more scrutiny after a dreadful four game stretch that saw them start the season 2-2. You don't see them demanding respect, or calling out the media. Act like a winner. Act like you expected to be there the whole time. The same team that refuses to give legitimate interviews to the  media is the same team that pounds their chest in front of the camera when everything is going well. Quite frankly, that act is wearing thin. Given the happenings of Sunday's games I am pretty torn on who I will rooting for in the Super Bowl. Unfortunately, I think it is still the Seahawks. But just like you shouldn't expect to hear them Doug Baldwin and company run their mouth if they lose, you shouldn't expect me to watch any post game coverage if they win.

That's what happens when you leave a game early.... #GBvsSEA pic.twitter.com/K3cNtevOI7

— Chris Daniels (@ChrisDaniels5) January 18, 2015