Seattle Seahawks

Why we’re going all the way The Seahawks have made it past the first round of the playoffs in each of the last five seasons, and I believe they still have the most talented roster in the NFL. They really never lose anyone of note, and that continued in 2017. The talent is there to have 6-8 Pro Bowlers and the competition in the NFC West looks fairly weak. I think there’s an excellent chance for Seattle to lock in the No. 1 seed in the NFC, and remember, they already have the best home-field advantage in the NFL.

The season is hopeless if [THIS] happens It would be too easy to say that the Seahawks are screwed if Russell Wilson or Earl Thomas got hurt, because we already saw last year. But I think the other thing they need to do is apply pressure on the quarterback and then actually sack the QB. They have three premier pass rushers in Michael Bennett, Cliff Avril, and Frank Clark, but it seems like they go weeks without making a notable dent. They need to be more consistent and apply more pressure up the middle of their defense.

Who is your biggest rival and why? As strange as this may have sounded not long ago, I guess right now it would have to be the Packers. Since 2012, the Packers and Seahawks seem to be getting into some of the most intense matchups of any two teams in the NFL, especially the Monday night game in 2012 with Wilson throwing a legitimate touchdown to Golden Tate to win the game legitimately. The two meet again in Week 1 and are probably the odds-on favorites to meet in the NFC Championship game this season.

Tailgate food that best describes your team? The Seahawks are saucy, wet, sloppy ribs that leave you with barbecue sauce all over your hands, face, and clothes. That’s because they’re popular, well-known, satisfying frontrunners and always ready for primetime -- but dangerous with how messy they are because they have no protection.

What does your team do better than anyone else? The Seahawks had the No. 1 run defense in the NFL last season and should continue to rank highly in that category because of players like Jarran Reed, Bobby Wagner, K.J. Wright, and the versatility of Bennett. There’s a lot of focus on the pass defense because of the Legion of Boom, but the Seahawks are extremely difficult to run against, too. Pete Carroll focuses more on the run game, offensive and defensively, than perhaps any other coach today.