According to ESPN’s new survey of NFL executives and scouts, the popular pick to win offensive player of the year was Seahawks rookie Jadarian Price.

Even though Price did not start at Notre Dame and backed up fourth overall pick Jeremiyah Love, Price had a good amount of talk about him heading into the draft. Price ended up going at 32 in the first round, which the Seahawks probably saw as a steal.

With Kenneth Walker III heading to Kansas City this season, Price is the clear choice in the Seattle locker room to start this year and is their best option; many people believe this even outside of Seattle.

Price is under a lot of pressure because if he doesn’t work out the way Seattle hopes, the Seahawks will have a big problem at running back. This was the talk in the offseason when Walker left for the Chiefs, but getting Price in the first round is a glimmer of hope for the Seattle backfield.

The defending Super Bowl champion Seahawks open up their season on Wednesday Night Football, a rare concept, in a Super Bowl rematch with the New England Patriots.

Fantasy owners could look to Price if they are in need of a running back, as he is expected to get a majority of the snaps for the Seahawks in Week 1.

The Seahawks are still a top choice to win the Super Bowl this year and retain the trophy, and they will not be able to repeat without filling Walker’s shoes; Price is that answer.

Veteran George Holani is Price’s backup, as the Seahawks’ other option, Zach Charbonnet, is recovering from an ACL injury and is expected to miss at least four weeks.

If Price has a good four games before Charbonnet gets back, he could solidify himself as the Seahawks’ starter.

Despite missing practice Wednesday with a hand injury, Seahawks wide receiver DK Metcalf has been very vocal with the media this week ahead of a matchup with the Dolphins. His statements indicate that he plans to play on Sunday.

There were no reports of Metcalf’s injury coming out of the team’s game against the Patriots, when he caught 10 passes for 129 yards and a touchdown. Missing practice Wednesday was somewhat unexpected as a result, but in a press conference the same day, the injury was clearly not his focus. Instead, he claimed to be preparing for yet another matchup against Dolphins cornerback Jalen Ramsey.

“I’ve had a good chance to go against two good corners in [Christian] Gonzalez and [Patrick] Surtain in the first two weeks,” Metcalf said. “Looking forward to another battle. Nothing different, still football at the end of the day though.”

After a middling Week 1 showing, Metcalf made the difference in an overtime win against the Patriots last weekend, scoring on a massive 54-yard touchdown early and making several key catches in the late stages to set up a game-winning field goal.

The Seahawks, led by Geno Smith, are currently 2-0 after earning a pair of close wins against the Broncos and Patriots, generally considered weaker opponents. Miami would have been a more difficult matchup, but without quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, it’s difficult to assess how the Dolphins will size up now.

After years of mutual success with Tyler Lockett, Metcalf is now working in tandem with second-year standout Jaxon Smith-Njigba in a similarly successful manner. The pair combined for 246 yards on 22 catches in Week 2 and figure to be just as imposing for Miami in Week 3.

Metcalf and Ramsey, a former Ram, have squared off many times during their careers. Ramsey won several matchups earlier in Metcalf’s career, but the wide receiver has produced more in recent outings against the seven-time Pro-Bowler.

Several Seahawks players contributed to a fight-fueled team practice Wednesday, leading new head coach Mike MacDonald to temporarily stop practice. Though MacDonald had to take time to talk sense into his players, he still expressed optimism about the team later in the day.

“We’ve been getting after it,” MacDonald said. “I’m proud of how we responded today. We came out and we were ready to practice. I don’t know what the numbers are, but we’ve been out here, I don’t know, 14 of the past 16 days … I think we’re tired of going against one another, but the guys are spirited.”

The first hints of a larger altercation began when an interaction between wide receiver Jake Bobo and cornerback Tre Brown went to blows, with Brown eventually giving Bobo a bloody nose.

Later on, possibly in a moment of attempted retribution, wide receiver DK Metcalf approached Brown in the end zone and removed the defender’s helmet. Metcalf then swung the helmet, hitting safety K’Von Wallace. Macdonald said that the star wide receiver eventually calmed down after practice stopped, and even delivered a uniting message.

“Definitely don’t want people fighting out here and stuff, especially against our own teammates,” Macdonald said. “DK gave a great message at the end of practice, just kind of putting everything into perspective. The guys finished out the right way. Proud of our guys.”

The Seahawks are coming off a frustrating season in which they played well enough to earn a 9-8 record but missed the playoffs. The team has benefitted from high-caliber quarterback play from Geno Smith, and Metcalf and running back Ken Walker are also efficient offensive contributors. Seattle’s defense suffered costly lapses, however, leading to inconsistent results. The team is expected to be a contender again in 2024, but the areas of improvement are clear.

Seattle Seahawks running back Chris Carson plans to retire after just five seasons in the NFL. The Seahawks released Carson with a failed physical designation but it is widely believed that the 27-year-old will ultimately decide to retire.

Last month, Seattle head coach Pete Carroll speculated that Carson would have to retire due to constant setbacks due to a neck injury he sustained last season. “We visited — it was about 10 days ago now — here and had a real good chance to hang out with him and feel him,” Carroll said. “He’s concerned because he wants to play, and he loves the game, and he’s a worker. He wants to work and push and all that, and there’s some things that he was still a little but restrained to do, so he wasn’t quite ready to do everything at that time.”

The seventh-round pick out of Oklahoma State in 2017 has been very productive for the Seahawks despite his late-round status. He’s rushed for 3,502 yards and 24 touchdowns in his career, topping 1,000 yards in both 2018 and 2019.

Due to the designation included in the release, Carson is set to receive “several million in injury protection benefits” from the team. Similar outcomes occurred with the retirements of Cliff Avril and Sam Chancellor.

“It’s just hard on him,” Carroll said of Carson’s impending retirement. “Our guys love this game that they grow up playing, and when they sense that there may be an end to it, it’s hard. It’s difficult and it’s real. We’re going to love him through it and help him as much as possible if that’s the case, like we do with everybody when it comes to the end of it. It’s inevitable. It’s coming. But it’s always too soon. We’re trying to fight that off, and he knows that. He’s battling. He’s doing everything he can, and he wants to compete all the way until the last word, and so he’s going for it.”

The Seahawks will not be without help on the field, however. Former first-round pick Rashaad Penny will be backed up by the Seahawks’ second-round pick Kenneth Walker III from Michigan State. Walker finished top 5 in Heisman voting this past season with the Spartans.

According to what a source told ESPN‘s Adam Schefter on Wednesday, the Seattle Seahawks are giving wide receiver Tyler Lockett a $69.2 million contract extension over four years, including $37 million guaranteed.

Lockett, 28, was a third-round pick by Seattle in 2015. He made the Pro Bowl and was a first-team All-Pro as a returner in his rookie season. After returning from a compound leg fracture late in 2016, he earned the starting wide receiver role in 2017. Since then, he has been a staple of Seattle’s aerial attack.

Last season, Lockett and D.K. Metcalf became only the second pair of Seahawks receivers in team history to each top 1,000 yards in the same year. Since 23-year old Metcalf is one year away from being eligible for his next payday, there was no guarantee that Seattle would pay Lockett with a third contract.

Lockett was set to have the third-largest cap hit of any Seahawks player in 2021 with $14.95 million. However, his extension lowered that number to around $7 million, according to ESPN’s source.

Lockett was entering the final season of a three-year, $31.8 million extension signed in 2018. Since then, he has had the best three seasons of his career and has 28 receiving touchdowns and 3,076 yards.

Lockett is also known for improbable catches. According to NFL Next Gen Stats, among players with at least 200 targets, he has the second-highest catch percentage over expectation since 2018 at plus-12%. This was clear during an overtime loss against the Cardinals last season, as Lockett turned in the most productive game of his career. He showed his best stuff with 15 catches for 200 yards and three touchdowns.

Lockett will continue to be one of the go-to offensive weapons at quarterback Russell Wilson’s disposal in 2021 and beyond.

Greg Olsen has a new home after mutually agreeing to part ways with the Panthers in early February. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the 13-year-veteran signed a one-year contract worth $7 million with $5.5 million guaranteed to join the Seahawks Tuesday afternoon.

In an appearance on WFNZ’s Wilson and Parcell show in early February, Olsen revealed his interpretation of the “mutual” agreement the two parties decided on before free agency began.

“I told them all along that if they wanted me back obviously I would have been back,” Olsen said. “The ‘mutually parting’ might have been a little bit overblown. The reality is, they weren’t going to bring me back at my current contract, and with my age, and with the direction of the team. I understood it, but I didn’t force my way out of here.”

He later added, “I told them, I said, ‘If you guys want me back, and I have a place on this roster come July, then that’s a whole different story.’”

In a career that has spanned 13 seasons thus far, Olsen is ranked fifth all-time among tight ends in catches with 718, and yards, with 8,444. In Panthers’ franchise history, the 34-year-old is the leading tight end in receiving yards (6,463), receptions (524) and 100-yard receiving games (10). From 2014-2016, Olsen became the first tight end to record three straight seasons with at least 1,000 yards receiving and made the Pro Bowl three straight years.

Panthers’ GM Marty Hurney praised Olsen in a statement on the team’s website after the decision to cut ties with Olsen was made.

“Greg’s meant so much to this organization and we have a tremendous amount of respect for him. He earned a reputation as one of the best tight ends in the League and served as a great leader and team captain. As special as he was for us on the field, his impact on the community is just as impressive. We are proud that he wore a Panthers uniform.”

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The Seahawks spent last season dealing with injuries to three tight ends and hope that Olsen becomes a reliable option for Russell Wilson and Seattle’s offense. In 14 games last season, Olsen compiled 52 catches, 297 yards receiving and two touchdowns while averaging 11.5 yards per catch.

The conclusion of the NFC Divisional Round ended with a nice moment between two former college teammates, Packers quarterback, Aaron Rodgers, and Seahawks‘ running back, Marshawn Lynch. The former Cal Golden Bears swapped jerseys following Green Bay’s 28-23 victory over Seattle. Lynch and Rodgers had previously played one season together at Cal in 2004.

Following the game Lynch walked into the Packers’ locker room with his signed game jersey that he gave to Rodgers. The future hall of fame quarterback signed his own jersey and gifted it to Lynch. The two were then seen talking privately in the corner of the room, according to ESPN.

“He is one of my all-time favorite teammates, and I only had to play one year with him,” Rodgers told the media. “But he has just an incredible personality and charisma, and he’s just so fun to be around. There was, obviously, conversation years ago about picking him up in a trade that fell through that would’ve been a lot of fun to play some more years together. But I just have a ton of respect for him in his career. He’s one of those transcendent players that is so likable and so respected by so many people, and I’m just fortunate to have gotten to play with him for a year. And so we were just catching up, talking about some silly stuff that happened back in the day and seeing where he’s at. He’s a lot of fun to be around, and it’s fun to see him.”

Lynch signed with Seattle for the last game of the season following the team’s loss of three running backs due to injury including Chris Carson, Rashaad Penny and C.J. Prosise. In three games Lynch finished with 12 rushes for 26 yards and four touchdowns.

Lynch was asked about his future with the team but danced around the question and said, “It’s a vulnerable time for a lot of these young dudes, you feel me? They don’t be taking care of their chicken right, you feel me? If they was me or I had the opportunity, the opportunity to let them know something, I say, ‘Take care of y’all money because that s— don’t last forever.’ Now I’ve been on the other side of retirement, and it’s good when [you] get over there and you can do what the f— you want to, so I tell y’all right now while y’all in it: Take care of y’all bread so when you’re all done, you go ahead and take care of yourself. So while y’all at it right now, take care of y’all bodies. Don’t take care of y’all chicken, don’t take care of y’all mentals, ’cause we ain’t lasting that long.

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“I had a couple players that I played with that they no longer here no more, they no longer — so you feel me? Start taking care of y’all mental, y’all bodies and y’all chicken for when you’re all ready to walk away, you walk away and be able to do what you want to do, but I appreciate it. Thank you all and have a good day.”

The NFL Wild Card games concluded Sunday setting up for must watch television in next week’s Divisional Round.

NFC Divisional Round: 49ers vs Vikings, Saturday, January 11, 4:35 pm ET on NBC

The six seed Vikings are coming off an upset win over the Saints on Sunday and look to ride their momentum into Levi’s Stadium. Quarterback Kirk Cousins hit wide receiver Adam Thielen with a deep pass in overtime to setup Minnesota at the Saints’ goal line and followed it up with a touchdown pass to Kyle Rudolph to win the game 26-20. Cousins threw 19 of 31 with 242 yards and a touchdown. Thielen finished with seven receptions for 129 yards and averaged 18.4 yards per catch. Dalvin Cook ran the ball 28 times for 94 yards and two touchdowns.

San Francisco is coming off their first NFC West title in seven years and finished the regular season with a 13-3 record. They have a lot of weapons on offense including quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo. In his first full year behind center Garoppolo compiled 3,978 passing yards with 27 touchdowns and 13 interceptions. Greg Kittle‘s numbers at the tight end position were good enough for top five in the league. He finished the regular season with 85 catches for 1,053 yards and five touchdowns. Minnesota was able to keep Brees in check, but they will have their hands full against a 49ers team that ranked fourth in total offense, according to NFL Team Stats.

AFC Divisional Round: Titans at Ravens, Saturday, January 11, at 8:15 pm ET on CBS

In Saturday’s second game the Titans travel to Baltimore to take on Lamar Jackson and the Ravens. Tennessee is coming off a shocking upset over the Patriots in Foxborough Saturday. Derrick Henry ran the ball 34 times for 182 yards and a touchdown, averaging 5.4 yards per carry. Despite only eight completed passes and one touchdown from Ryan Tannehill, the Titans were able to hold strong on defense limiting Tom Brady to 209 yards passing and one interception with no touchdowns. It will be interesting to see how their defense handles an elusive quarterback like Jackson.

Baltimore finished the season as the top seed in the AFC with a 14-2 record. In his first full season as quarterback, Jackson threw for 3,127 yards with 33 touchdowns and only six interceptions. He also broke Mike Vick‘s single season rushing record for a quarterback. He finished the year with 1,206 yards and seven touchdowns while averaging 6.9 yards per run. Mark Ingram also had an exceptional season compiling over a thousand yards rushing and ten touchdowns while averaging five yards per carry. Unlike New England, look for this high power offense to put up more than 13 points.

AFC Divisional Round: Texans at Chiefs, Sunday, Jan. 12, 3:05 p.m. ET on CBS

The Texans were able to figure out their offense late in the game against Buffalo behind stellar play from Deshaun Watson. After being shutout in the first half, the Houston quarterback lead his team down the field in overtime escaping a big hit from two Bills’ defensive linemen before throwing a pass that setup the Texans’ game winning field goal. Watson was a very efficient 20 of 25 for 247 yards. He finished with one passing touchdown and one rushing touchdown.

The Chiefs finished 2019 as the AFC West Champions with a 12-4 record. The team was off to a shaky start at 6-4 amid an injury to Patrick Mahomes, but they were able to win their last six games setting up a first round bye. In 14 games played Mahomes finished with 4,031 passing yards with 26 touchdowns and five interceptions. Travis Kelce is coming off a record-breaking season that saw the tight end become the first player at his position to record four straight seasons with at least 1,000 receiving yards. Look for this game to be a shootout between two quarterbacks that were both selected in the first round of 2017’s draft.

NFC Divisional Round: Packers vs Seahawks, Sunday, Jan. 12, 6:40 p.m. ET on FOX

Green Bay displayed dominance in the regular season capturing a first round bye and winning the NFC North with a 13-3 record. Aaron Rodgers had a very efficient season throwing for 4,002 yards with 26 touchdowns and just four interceptions. We didn’t know what to expect from first year head coach Matt LaFleur, but an improved defense and a healthy Rodgers seemed to be the recipe for success in Green Bay. Look for their offense to score a lot against a team that ranked 26th in total defense, according to NFL Team Stats.

The Seahawks are coming off a tough battle against Philadelphia who saw Josh McCown replace Carson Wentz in the second quarter of Sunday’s game. The Seahawks didn’t look great. They only scored 17 points and they head into next Sunday’s match up with the Packers still without their top three running backs. Marshawn Lynch scored a touchdown in the win, but only had seven yards rushing. Lynch will try to contribute more, but most of Seattle’s offense will have to come from Russell Wilson and the receiving core.

The 49ers found themselves two yards away from losing the NFC West title to the Seahawks Sunday. On the fInal play of the game Seahawks’ tight end, Jacob Hollister caught a pass from Russell Wilson and tried to reach for the goal line. After what seemed like an eternity for the review to be complete, the 49ers and their general manager, John Lynch, celebrated as the call on the field was confirmed, no touchdown.  The defensive stand crowned San Francisco atop the NFC West as they defeated Seattle 26-21.

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The final play reminded Head Coach Kyle Shanahan of the game against Atlanta on December 15. On the last play in regulation, the Falcons were initially ruled short of a touchdown, but a booth review overturned the call granting Atlanta the final touchdown and the victory.

“I wasn’t ready to celebrate anything. [The Atlanta game] kind of ruined my celebration, to tell you the truth. I wanted to wait until I saw it on the scoreboard,” Shanahan said.

49ers’ rookie, Dre Greenlaw, was able to keep Hollister out of the endzone for the game winning tackle. “I just made sure that I kept my feet on the goal line … and just made a tackle that my coaches and teammates will be proud of. I’m just thankful to be able to make the play,” Greenlaw told ESPN.

The victory gave San Francisco their first win in Seattle since Christmas Eve 2011, finishing the season 13-3, their best record since 2011.  San Francisco also clinched the number one seed in the NFC, a first round bye and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. This marks seven years since the 49ers have been division champions.

“We worked for this all year,” Shanahan said. “That’s always the goal going in, just to get in the tournament. To get in there with the No. 1 seed feels very good. We were going to be ready to deal with whatever we had to tomorrow, whether if we had to go play three games, but I know we’re much happier that we can stay at home now when you’re two games away from the big one. We’re going to enjoy this bye week, but very proud of the guys. We’ve had to win a lot of different ways this year. I keep feeling like we’ve done it every way possible, and then we find a way to do it.”

Jimmy Garoppolo, who was 18 of 22 with no touchdowns or interceptions and a passer rating of 118.5, said, “This whole season has been complementary football between our offense, defense and special teams, and tonight was no different,” Garoppolo said. “They’d step up and make a huge play, we’d step up and make a huge play. It was just everyone stepping up when their number was called.”

The 49ers will enjoy a week off to get healthy and rest as Seattle preps themselves for a road game in Philadelphia next Sunday in the NFC Wild Card round. If New Orleans beats Minnesota and Seattle gets past the Eagles, the two rivals will face off again in the second round.

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Former Seahawks‘ running back Marshawn Lynch was reportedly meeting with the team in Seattle Monday to discuss reuniting with a team he left in 2015. By the afternoon, it was announced that Lynch would return for this season only.

Head coach Pete Carroll sat down for an interview on 710 ESPN in Seattle and claimed, “”We’re going to give him a really good chance to come back and play for us.” Carroll also mentioned that he has kept in contact with Lynch, which could be a strong reason why they would consider bringing him back.

“He’s an extraordinary individual… I’m hoping for him — he loves this city and this team,” Carroll told 710 ESPN.  The Seahawks are 11-4, one game behind the division leading 49ers who they play next week at home. Besides those two teams, the Packers and Saints are also fighting for the top two playoff spots in the NFC.

Seattle really needs him right now considering their current lack of healthy running backs. C.J. Prosise is out with a broken arm and Chris Carson suffered a hip injury Sunday against the Cardinals. Both players are out for the rest of the season. Rashad Penny has already been ruled out for the rest of 2019 with a torn ACL he suffered two weeks ago making Travis Homer the only back on the roster.

Lynch became a household name for the Seahawks after he was traded from Buffalo. He made the Pro Bowl four times while in Seattle and helped the team win Super Bowl 48. He originally retired from the team in 2016 after only seven games played that season. Originally from Oakland, the Raiders were able to lure him out of retirement in April 2017 when the Seahawks, who controlled his rights, traded him there.

30 SPORTS FIGURES WHO DIED IN 2018 – TRIBUTE SLIDESHOW 

He lasted two seasons in the silver and black compiling 1,267 yards and ten touchdowns on 290 carries. He also had 35 catches for 235 yards.

The man known as “Beast Mode” is now 33 years old, but he may be the last resort available at this stage of the season.

Seattle had their five-game winning streak snapped on Sunday by the Rams in Los Angeles by the score of 28-12.

Newly acquired safety Quandre Diggs played well in his third game with Seattle intercepting Jared Goff twice in the game including a pick six return for 55 yards. Diggs was surprisingly traded by Detroit for a fifth round pick four weeks ago. He had just signed a three-year extension and was one of the team’s captains.

“He helps others. Guys around him play better,” Seattle Head Coach Pete Carroll said.

Running back Rashad Penny left the game on Seattle’s first drive and was later diagnosed with a sprained ACL. “We don’t know how serious it is, but it’s significant,” Carroll told ESPN.

Penny had just caught a screen pass from Russell Wilson for 16 yards before getting tripped up. Penny is usually second string behind Chris Carson, but his usage rate has picked up the last couple of games rivaling Carson in snaps over the last two games, 65-70. He had a career-high in yards with 129 and a touchdown against Philadelphia two weeks ago and followed that up with two touchdowns last week against Minnesota. Carrying the ball 14 and 15 times in those match-ups were both career highs.

“Well obviously it’s disappointing losing Penny. I feel for him. He’s such a great competitor. He’s been tremendous the past several weeks, so that’s just unfortunate. It’s part of the game unfortunately. I got to talk to him afterward and he had his head up, he’s looking forward to where he’s going next and just fighting through the rehab of it all and we’ll be right there with him, but yeah, it was tough when you lose one of your key players — a guy that you love to play with like Penny. He’s been playing good football, too, for us, but Chris did well tonight. He made some key runs. Made some nice plays, some nice catches and stuff like that, so I thought Chris played well,” Wilson told ESPN.

Penny was a first round draft pick by the Seahawks in 2018, but his playing time was limited behind Carson who just surpassed 1,000 yards rushing in last night’s game. This makes Carson the first Seahawks running back since Marshawn Lynch to rush for over 1,000 yards in back-to-back seasons.

“To be honest, I wasn’t even thinking about it. A couple players came up and congratulated me, but on a night like this, you lose one of your close friends, you don’t get the win, I don’t really pay too much [notice],” said Carson.

Seattle is 10-3 and one game below the NFC West leaders, San Francisco.

By one point, within a few inches, in the last 30 seconds. The only way to describe Thursday night’s NFL game between the Seattle Seahawks and L.A. Rams.

Seahawks won 30-29 after a missed field goal by the Rams, automatically turning the ball over with 30 seconds to spare, deciding the game.

Both teams came in 3-1 and with a ton of buzz. Eyes were on both quarterbacks as Russell Wilson entered the game on pace to break the completion percentage record with over 71%, and Jared Goff has been looking to rebound from an uncharacteristically bad season after coming in listed as a top 5 quarterback in the league and Super Bowl hopes.

Defense was strong on each team early on, as Wilson and Goff were both rushed and the score low. Todd Gurley has been under scrutiny also having a bad season and with rumors that arthritis in his knee has kept him averaging around 40 yards per game, 16 last week. He looked like he was past that during the first half, as he rushed and scored twice, pushing through multiple defenders more than once to reach first downs; twice twisting his body around almost horizontally against the opponents, pushing with that knee. He was not the main back during the second half.

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For his part, Goff looked much better this game going 29 for 49 and passing for 395 yards, with one touchdown and one interception.

Wilson once again completed most of his passes, going 17-23 (74%), keeping his record setting pace. And the passes were not all short distance, close throws for small yardage. He threw all over the field for 268 yards and4 touchdowns. Chris Carson outran Gurley with 118 yards. But the game kept going back and forth, score for score.

The score went from 3-0, to 6-0, to 7-6, the 14-13, until the last minute, when the Seahawks took the lead after scoring on an interception bobbled and scooped from the floor on a dive by Tedric Thompson, to set up a score and make it 30-29. Goff and the Rams had one last drive that led them to a field goal attempt that was missed inches away from the top right of the pole to seal the game and give the ball back to Seattle with 30 seconds to spare and seal the win.

The Seattle Seahawks (4-4) had a good amount of fun on Sunday due to a few creative touchdown celebrations, but they didn’t get enough chances to visit the end zone and dance their way to a win over the Los Angeles Chargers (6-2).

Seahawks Choreograph Masterful TD Dance

Despite the untimely loss, the Hawks made the most of their first trip to the end zone, capping off a score by receiver Jaron Brown with a coordinated number, channeling the “Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy” scene from The Nutcracker. The score, a ten-yard dart from quarterback Russell Wilson, put the Hawks up first at home over the Chargers.

Another celebration from the Hawks came against the Lions, where receivers Ricardo Lockette and Doug Baldwin impressed with a baseball reenactment.

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he Seahawks are winners of four of their past five games, and a hiccup against the rolling Chargers can be made up for next week when Seattle takes on its biggest challenge of the season in Los Angeles against the Rams.

Le’Veon Bell and several other NFL players have famously been penalized in recent years for excessive celebration.

Former Minnesota Vikings head coach Bud Grant was one of the most prolific football minds while actively coaching. While doing this, he would have to endure freezing temperatures because of Minneapolis’ location and its frigid winters every year.

Yesterday before the Vikings wild-card playoff game against the Seattle Seahawks in Minneapolis, the temperature read a freezing minus-6 temperature with a wind chill set at minus-25. This was recorded as the third coldest game in NFL history and the coldest in Vikings franchise history. When the coin toss was about to be performed, it was to the utter surprise that the 88-year-old Grant walked onto the field only wearing a polo shirt.

The temperature would become the biggest factor of the game in terms of play calling for both teams. The Vikings lost in heartbreaking fashion after a missed field goal in the finals seconds by kicker Blair Walsh resulting in a 10-9 loss, thus having the Seahawks advance to the Divisional Playoffs next weekend.

Photo: MINNEAPOLIS, MN – DECEMBER 29: Former head coach Bud Grant speaks to the crowd during the ceremony celebrating the last game at the Metrodome on December 29, 2013 at Mall of America Field at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Adam Bettcher/Getty Images)

With the St. Louis Rams leading the Seattle Seahawks in their home field in Seattle 16-3 at halftime, a certain play was needed to show that the Rams were taking care of the Seahawks throughout the game.

After punting his second punt of the game, Rams punter Johnny Hekker had started running down the field to play defense for the punting team. While doing this, Hekker had intentionally pushed Seahawks defensive end Cliff Avril with a blindside block, resulting in a 15-yard penalty personal foul. “I’m jogging down the field and somebody comes and hits me in the back,” Avril said. “It happened to be the doggone punter. But it is what it is.” This caused both Avril and defensive end Michael Bennett to have some words with the punter and revenge to be heard. On the very next punt play, Hekker had performed his punt when a raging Avril came running for him and caused Hekker to spin and duck away from the defensive end. A few seconds later, Bennett would also run for the punter and Hekker eventually fell to the ground to avoid contact. “Yeah, he was scared,” Bennett said. “He squealed like a little girl.”

“It was a bonehead play,” Hekker told the Seattle Times. “I had to deal with the consequences, and I don’t know if I did that too well. I was just trying not to get my stuff rocked. That’s football. That’s what happens when you hit a guy like that. I’m not happy with what I did. I’m definitely not going to do that in the future.”

This play did not hinder the rest of the game for the Rams won in surprising action in a 23-17 victory over the Seahawks.

Photo: GREEN BAY, WI – OCTOBER 11: Punter Johnny Hekker #6 of the St. Louis Rams looks to pass against the Green Bay Packers in the third quarter at Lambeau Field on October 11, 2015 in Green Bay, Wisconsin. (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)

In a bitter cold CenturyLink Field yesterday in Seattle, the Seattle Seahawks and Pittsburgh Steelers were set to face each other in what was promised to be a game filled with both teams having impressive offensive outcomes in past games.

This was definitely the case for the Seahawks with quarterback Russell Wilson completing 21 of 30 passes for 346 yards, throwing five touchdowns, and having no interceptions. Wilson’s number one target was to wide receiver Doug Baldwin, who caught three touchdowns including an 80-yard touchdown that sealed the game for the Seahawks with a 39-30 win. The other two touchdown passes from Wilson were to wide receiver Jermaine Kearse with running back Thomas Rawls scoring a touchdown of his own while subbing for hurt star running back Marshawn Lynch.

The Steelers were in it as well throughout the game with quarterback Ben Roethlisberger throwing for 456 yards and only one touchdown which was delivered to wide receiver Markus Wheaton. Roethlisberger was taken out late in the game with 2 minutes to go because of a possible concussion and had to be brought into the locker room for protocol, resulting in backup quarterback Landry Jones throwing an interception to Seahawks safety Kam Chancellor to end the game, despite the “Legion of Boom” secondary having problems guarding the Steelers passing game all game.

With the win, the Seahawks are now at 6-5 and back in playoff contention with a tough game against the Minnesota Vikings next week, especially with the loss of tight end Jimmy Graham, who suffered a torn patellar tendon in his knee and is out for the season. The Steelers have dropped to 6-5 as well and are fighting for a wild card spot in the AFC playoff picture.

Photo: SEATTLE, WA – NOVEMBER 22: Quarterback Russell Wilson #3 of the Seattle Seahawks warms up prior to the game against the San Francisco 49ers at CenturyLink Field on November 22, 2015 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Otto Greule Jr/Getty Images)

In a NFC West division battle, all hands were on deck for both the Arizona Cardinals and the Seattle Seahawks, who were both first and second place in the division, respectively, going into Sunday night’s matchup. At first, it seemed that the Cardinals were going to run away with the game during the first half but the Seahawks came raging back to give this game a game worth fighting for for both teams.

With the Cardinals leading 22-7 at halftime after two touchdowns caught by wide reciever Michael Floyd, the Seahawks would come rumbling back with their defense looking strong coming out in the second half. Seahawks linebacker Bobby Wagner scored a touchdown off a fumble lost by Cardinals quarterback Carson Palmer and later, linebacker K.J. Wright returned a fumble to the 3-yard line before running back Marshawn Lynch would run it in for a score on the next play, having the Seahawks take a 29-25 lead going into the fourth quarter.

Palmer had a sudden surge in him to take his offense down the field for a 83 yard drive, ending it with a 14-yard touchdown pass to tight end Jermaine Gresham and taking the lead on the Seahawks with a 32-29 lead. With six minutes to go, the Cardinals looked to extend their lead and surely did that with an impressive sprint draw play to running back Andre Ellington, which resulted in a 48-yard touchdown run and a 39-29 lead. The Seahawks went on to score on a field goal to bring it within a touchdown but an unsuccessful onside kick was executed with Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald sealing the football in his grasp with 57 seconds to go and having the Cardinals winning 39-32.

With the victory, the Cardinals are in a sole position in the division with a team record of 7-2 but a tough game coming next Sunday night against the current undefeated Cincinnati Bengals is in front of them. “We took care of business here,” Cardinals head coach Bruce Arians said. “We got another game next week, a big one. It’s Cincinnati at home. It’s just one at a time. There’s no stretch runs or none of that crap, it’s just one at a time.” Meanwhile, the Seahawks drop to 4-5 in the division and will have the San Francisco 49ers come to Seattle next week for another division battle.

Photo: SEATTLE, WA – NOVEMBER 15: Andre Ellington #38 of the Arizona Cardinals rushes for a 48-yard touchdown as Kam Chancellor #31 of the Seattle Seahawks attempts to tackle him during the fourth quarter at CenturyLink Field on November 15, 2015 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Steve Dykes/Getty Images)

Seattle Seahawks running back Marshawn Lynch has been sidelined for the past two games with a hamstring injury, his first time being out in consecutive games since joining the Seahawks in 2010.

Head coach Pete Carroll has stated that Lynch had a good workout on Monday and “he should be on track for Thursday.” Lynch did not travel to the team’s last game that was in Cincinnati against the Bengals, where they lost 27-24 in overtime bringing their team record to 2-3 for the season.

While Lynch was out, the Seahawks turned to rookie running back Thomas Rawls who rushed for 169 yards with a touchdown last week and Carroll has not ruled out the running back in future plays. “Normally, Marshawn comes in and out pretty regularly, so we’ll just pump Rawls in there and see how many carries that amounts to,” Carroll said. “Usually it’s about eight or 10 carries on a regular game. We’ll see how that goes.”

The Seahawks play the undefeated Carolina Panthers at home this Sunday at 4:05 p.m.