The Seattle Seahawks will play in Super Bowl XLIX this Sunday and could possibly win their second world championship in a row. In this era, that’s being on the doorstep of a dynasty. The last time a team was able to repeat as Super Bowl champions was when their opponents in this Super Bowl, the New England Patriots, did it in 2003 and 2004. Needless to say it is no easy feat. However, to make a run like the Seahawks are on the precipice of making, it takes a level of building a roster that is extremely difficult and takes years to fine tune.
For the Seahawks it started in 2010. In the previous season the Seahawks went 5-11 under head coach Jim L. Mora. Mora was fired at the end of that season. On January 11th, 2010, it was official that Pete Carroll would be the new head coach of the Seattle Seahawks. Not only was he named head coach, he was also named executive vice president of football operations, basically making him the Seahawks’ general manager as well. At this point, Carroll had the rare privilege for a head coach to be able to hire his own general manager.
One week after Carroll took the Seahawks job he brought in John Schneider as the general manager. While Carroll had the final say on all personnel decisions, Schneider and Carroll worked very closely together. Schneider also took control of salary cap and contract issues. The way it would work was Schneider would scout the players and report back to Carroll, who would then make the final say based on what Schneider reported back to him. Basically, Schneider set the menu and Carroll picked who he wanted off of it.
In their first draft together the Seahawks were able to start setting the foundation of their roster. Seattle was able to draft Earl Thomas (four Pro Bowls and 4x All-Pro) in the first round, Golden Tate (one Pro Bowl) in the second round, Walter Thurmond in the fourth round, and Kam Chancellor (three Pro Bowls, 2x Second-team All-Pro) in the fifth round. In Carroll’s first season with the Seahawks he almost completely overturned the roster. Carroll made over 200 total transactions in 2010. Maybe the most important transaction he made was trading for running back Marshawn Lynch in the beginning of the season. To get Lynch Seattle gave up a 2011 fourth round draft pick and what turned out to be fifth round pick. There’s no question now that Seattle came out on top with that deal. Before acquiring Lynch the Seahawks’ run game was ranked 27th in the league averaging 79.5 yards per game. From 2011-present the Seahawks haven’t averaged less than 109 yards per game in a season.
The Seahawks finished Carroll and Schneider’s firsts season together with a 7-9 record but made the playoffs because they won the NFC West. In the following offseason the Seahawks had another solid draft. The Seahawks were able to land James Carpenter in the first round, K.J. Wright in the fourth round, Richard Sherman (two Pro Bowls, 2x All-Pro, 2014 NFC Defensive Player of the Year, and 2013 NFL leader in interceptions) in the fifth round, Byron Maxwell in the sixth, and Malcolm Smith (Super Bowl XLVIII MVP) in the seventh round. In the 2011 season the Seahawks finished again with a 7-9 record but were unable to make the playoffs.
In the 2012 draft the Seahawks hit another homerun. They were able to draft Bruce Irvin in the first round, Bobby Wagner (one Pro Bowl and 1x All Pro) in the second round, Russell Wilson (two Pro Bowls and 2012 Rookie of the Year) in the third round, Robert Turbin in the fourth round, Jeremy Lane in the sixth round, and J.R. Sweezy in the seventh round. It was the 2012 season that all the trades, all the free agent signings, and all the draft picks started to come together and form something special. After landing Russell Wilson (who beat out their big free agent signing Matt Flynn for the starting quarterback spot in Preseason), they had their franchise quarterback. They finished the season with an 11-5 record earning themselves a spot in the playoffs as a wildcard. Although they were a team no one wanted to face in the playoffs that year, they ended up losing to the Atlanta Falcons in the Divisional Round.
In the following offseason they made some key free agent signings. On consecutive days they signed Cliff Avril and Michael Bennett. Both of these players were integral pieces on their defense in 2013. They added depth to their defensive line, in particular to their pass rush, and allowed them to use a rotation of defensive linemen that most offensive lines couldn’t keep at bay for four quarters.
In their fourth year together, Pete Carroll and John Schneider were able to win the franchise’s first ever Super Bowl. They took over a 5-11 team and are now knocking on the door of their second consecutive title. The only players that were on the Super Bowl winning roster and were also on the roster before Carroll and Schneider took over were Red Bryant, Brandon Mebane, Jon Ryan, and Max Unger. That’s an incredible turn around and judging by their draft history, they’ll be ready to compete year after year.