Big Comebacks Aren't Seattle's Forte

The recent discussion of the most dramatic Seahawks victories got me thinking: What are the biggest comeback victories in Seattle's NFL history? I spent some time digging through PFR, and here's what I came up with...

My sole criteria is this: How many times have the Seahawks overcome a 2nd-half deficit of 15 or more points to win? Any time a team comes back from a deficit larger than two TDs in the second half is pretty damn impressive in my book.

(Side note: The NFL didn't adopt the two-point conversion until the 1994 season.)

What I found was that over 32 seasons, the Seahawks have had very few "big" comebacks... Here they are:

18 points

12/14/97 Seahawks 22, Raiders 21 (Hawks trailed 21-3 at the half)

The Seahawks were 7-8 and out of playoff contention, so youngster Jon Kitna got the start at QB in Oakland against the pathetic Raiders. Those who turned the game off after the putrid first half missed an electric come-from-behind triumph punctuated by a 49-yard game winner by Todd Peterson. Oh Kitna, so much moxie... such limited talent.

17 points

12/10/95 Seahawks 31, Broncos 27 (Hawks down 20-3 at the half)

For those of you old enough to remember, this memory is probably particularly vivid.

I was going to Western at the time, and living in the Fairhaven dorms. It was final exam time, and instead of cramming I was glued to the Hawks matchup against the hated Broncos. As the game went on, my textbooks started to look more appealing than witnessing another Elway-administered beatdown. Denver led 20-0 at one point, and even after a Peterson FG, it was 20-3 at the half.

Denver was deep in Seattle territory early in the 3rd, about to make it 27-3. The Hawks gambled on D, sending Robert Blackmon on a safety blitz. Blackmon obliterated Mr. Ed and Antonio Edwards scooped up the fumble and rambled 83 yards for a TD that completely shifted the momentum. I leaned out my dorm window and brayed like a farm animal after that one...

Seattle still trailed 27-17 in the 4th, but rallied for two late touchdowns, creating one of the greatest moments in the Hawks/Broncos rivalry.

Yup, that's only twice in 517 games. The upside is they were both on the road against our fiercest divisional rivals, hopefully spoiling the xmases of a lot of Raiders/Broncos fans.

There's a few notable combacks from 13 or 14 point 2nd-half deficits, but that's a story for another time.