Which outcome to end a season would you prefer?

Some of the disagreement here on whether we have had a successful season or not centers on a lot of subjective judgments on what a successful season even is.

So just curious - which would you rather have?

1) 11 - 5 season, no post-season wins with a loss by 10 in wildcard game (we are assuming div winner was 12+ wins)

2) 10 - 6 season, win by FG in the wildcard game, beaten by 21 in the divisional round

3) 9 - 7 season, close win in the wildcard game, close loss by FG in the divisional round in a tightly fought game. (Nothing soul-crushing like giving up a big lead in the playoffs or coming back from a big deficit only to fall short.)

Assuming the regular season games are relatively similar quality, I would actually prefer #3. But I imagine there are some here that would prefer #1 (especially if those are extra wins you get to enjoy at home - for the purposes of this one, let's assume those extra wins come on the road.)

Just curious - which one is better? why?

Scenario 1 sucks because you feel like you wasted a great year only to blow it in the "real" season. I would never pick that one.

Scenario 2 sucks also because blowout losses makes everyone around here go batsh*t and want to blow it all up and start over. Wouldn't want that one either.

Scenario 3 best case but harder on the blood pressure, I pick this one hands down. I tend to want to avoid "soul-crushing" scenarios.

TwistedHusky":121kbzmx said:

3) 9 - 7 season, close win in the wildcard game, close loss by FG in the divisional round in a tightly fought game. (Nothing soul-crushing like giving up a big lead in the playoffs or coming back from a big deficit only to fall short.)

Click to expand...

I'd chose this because it's a WC playoff win and close Divisional loss, which is way better than getting spanked and showing that we still have a long way to go to compete for a Division Championship again.

Think how deflated Cowboy and Charger fans feel right now, after they got ran over and destroyed.......as opposed to Eagle's fans who are bummed but took the #1 team in the NFL to the wire.

Much rather would have the latter, then the former.

None of them are acceptable.
If we don't go 16-0 and win the superbowl with double digit wins then I feel like I've wasted an entire season of watching games.

Truthfully though, it depends on the season as a whole. Compare our 2015 and 2018 seasons - same regular season record, though 2 of our losses were in OT in 2015 whereas this year we've probably been a worse team, and didn't even win our playoff game, but surely you'd be hard pressed to find a fan that preferred the 2015 season to this one.

Likewise, making it to the superbowl is the aim of every team, but would anyone ever want a repeat of 2014, versus, say the 2012 season?

I'm not so quick to interpret the first two cases as "signs we didn't belong". There are all kinds of reasons a game can get away from a good team.

I'd prefer 3) simply because it might keep .NET sane through the winter, rather than constantly looking for a scapegoat.

Would the opinion on #1 change if we only lost by a FG in a game with inclement weather?

themunn":16o3fx9x said:

None of them are acceptable.
If we don't go 16-0 and win the superbowl with double digit wins then I feel like I've wasted an entire season of watching games.

Truthfully though, it depends on the season as a whole. Compare our 2015 and 2018 seasons - same regular season record, though 2 of our losses were in OT in 2015 whereas this year we've probably been a worse team, and didn't even win our playoff game, but surely you'd be hard pressed to find a fan that preferred the 2015 season to this one.

Likewise, making it to the superbowl is the aim of every team, but would anyone ever want a repeat of 2014, versus, say the 2012 season?

Click to expand...

It's all about expectations.

When we were rolling the expectations were SB's or bust. This year expectations were much lower so these scenarios are more acceptable, and even considered a success.

Next year we'll have higher expectations, so getting punched in the face by the Cowboys in the WC round and not seriously challenging the Rams for the Division won't be considered a success.

Sgt. Largent":2r2dj29e said:

themunn":2r2dj29e said:

None of them are acceptable.
If we don't go 16-0 and win the superbowl with double digit wins then I feel like I've wasted an entire season of watching games.

Truthfully though, it depends on the season as a whole. Compare our 2015 and 2018 seasons - same regular season record, though 2 of our losses were in OT in 2015 whereas this year we've probably been a worse team, and didn't even win our playoff game, but surely you'd be hard pressed to find a fan that preferred the 2015 season to this one.

Likewise, making it to the superbowl is the aim of every team, but would anyone ever want a repeat of 2014, versus, say the 2012 season?

Click to expand...

It's all about expectations.

When we were rolling the expectations were SB's or bust. This year expectations were much lower so these scenarios are more acceptable, and even considered a success.

Click to expand...

You sure?

I mean, you know I agree, but it would seem the "Russell Wilson's career is being wasted" cries are still alive and well.

I don't know that I agree.

SB or bust is really arbitrary. Football is a game of matchups. There is a paper, rock, scissors element to it that can leave even a great team struggling against a team that perfectly matches up to it - even when that other team is nowhere near as good overall.

But you grow up watching the 'good teams' make playoff games so you root for those. SB is the holy grail but it isn't a failure to fall short. Even the good teams or great teams have to knock a few times on the door. And sometimes middling teams somehow stumble their way forward into a SB (I am looking at you Carolina vs Denver). I can think back to some pretty unimpressive teams that somehow made the SB.

To me, making the playoffs regularly and getting at least a few playoff wins in regularly is the sign of a great team. Even if you miss the SB. (Obviously Buffalo Bills fans might disagree with me here....)

SB or bust would be hard to demand, unless your team was literally loaded with HOF players. Even then that is a tall order.

TwistedHusky":2g9b32vb said:

SB or bust would be hard to demand, unless your team was literally loaded with HOF players. Even then that is a tall order.

Click to expand...

We were loaded with HOF players, and that's why from 2013-2016 that was the expectation of this team, SB's.

Was it realistic? Probably not.

Hypothetical questions like this are fun to discuss, but expectations have to be taken into account when we start comparing different teams and years.

Any of these scenarios have to be weighed against expectations. If the expectation was like it was going into 2018, then pretty much any of the three would be mostly acceptable. If the expectations going into a season were that they were the prohibited favorite to win it all and they then came up short, then they are all a disappointment.

Win the SB or 0-16.

themunn":p5wvm6do said:

Compare our 2015 and 2018 seasons - same regular season record, though 2 of our losses were in OT in 2015 whereas this year we've probably been a worse team, and didn't even win our playoff game, but surely you'd be hard pressed to find a fan that preferred the 2015 season to this one.

Click to expand...

LOL, Imagine that, the 2015 Defense still had most of our All Stars playing, + Russell Wilson was flying without his Co-Pilot, Marshawn Lynch, and still managed to be successful under Darryl Bevell, & Tom Cable's messed up systems.

With the Coaching changes, Key Star players gone, and the rebuilding and injuries that took place, the 2018 Seahawks weren't expected to win enough games to even sniff the playoffs..... They exceeded all expectations.
There's a lot of grumbling & griping about Coaching mistakes that were made this season, but all things considered, I think the 2018 Cast & Crew did an extraordinary job.

scutterhawk":qpp5e9ew said:

themunn":qpp5e9ew said:

Compare our 2015 and 2018 seasons - same regular season record, though 2 of our losses were in OT in 2015 whereas this year we've probably been a worse team, and didn't even win our playoff game, but surely you'd be hard pressed to find a fan that preferred the 2015 season to this one.

Click to expand...

LOL, Imagine that, the 2015 Defense still had most of our All Stars playing, + Russell Wilson was flying without his Co-Pilot, Marshawn Lynch, and still managed to be successful under Darryl Bevell, & Tom Cable's messed up systems.

With the Coaching changes, Key Star players gone, and the rebuilding and injuries that took place, the 2018 Seahawks weren't expected to win enough games to even sniff the playoffs..... They exceeded all expectations.
There's a lot of grumbling & griping about Coaching mistakes that were made this season, but all things considered, I think the 2018 Cast & Crew did an extraordinary job.

Click to expand...

Agree forgotton in all this is this was a rebuild year, we were looking for guys as potential starters to step up, most did and they got a golden learning experience going to the playoffs, what people forget is when your rebuilding you tend to have a lack of depth which we do especially on the O line.

I would always pick scenario #1 because home field in the playoffs is such a huge advantage. Even the Belichick/Brady duo have a losing record in road playoff games. In my view most sports have good playoffs but the relative importance of every regular season game is what separates the NFL and makes it great.

It does suck if your team loses as a favorite, but most people recognize that can happen to any team on any day. The ones who can't will end up unhappy 97% of the time but that's entirely their problem.

3 is the one one I would be least bothered by.

MontanaHawk05":351x3oxw said:

I'm not so quick to interpret the first two cases as "signs we didn't belong". There are all kinds of reasons a game can get away from a good team.

I'd prefer 3) simply because it might keep .NET sane through the winter, rather than constantly looking for a scapegoat.

Click to expand...

Replace "scapegoat" with "the focus to improve the team" and you will be starting to get it.

It's not that we lost that wildcard game, it's how we lost it.

On this board all 3 are awesome seasons. Onward.

johnnyfever":2jrutgm7 said:

It's not that we lost that wildcard game, it's how we lost it.

Click to expand...

We lost it trying to do the same thing that won us 10 games, trying to establish ball control to chew clock to keep our injured and mediocre defense off the field to open up play action, which allows our QB to take advantage of what he does best...........which is make explosive plays downfield.

That's how we went 10-6 and made the playoffs, and unfortunately it's how we lost to Dallas, not being able to do the things that helped us get there.

Should we have opened it up earlier in the Dallas game once we saw how ineffective the run game was? Yep. Should we now think that equates to needing a wholesale offensive philosophical change? Nope.

Sgt. Largent":uphdsi6c said:

johnnyfever":uphdsi6c said:

It's not that we lost that wildcard game, it's how we lost it.

Click to expand...

We lost it trying to do the same thing that won us 10 games, trying to establish ball control to chew clock to keep our injured and mediocre defense off the field to open up play action, which allows our QB to take advantage of what he does best...........which is make explosive plays downfield.

That's how we went 10-6 and made the playoffs, and unfortunately it's how we lost to Dallas, not being able to do the things that helped us get there.

Should we have opened it up earlier in the Dallas game once we saw how ineffective the run game was? Yep. Should we now think that equates to needing a wholesale offensive philosophical change? Nope.

Click to expand...

The issue I have is that we do have a mediocre defense and our approach relies upon a dominant defense. Our approach was never going to get us far without a defense we don’t have