SEATTLE — You may scoff, you may mock, you may heap derision upon the Seahawks’ status as a nine-loss playoff team.
But first you should speak with Lawyer Milloy.
“It doesn’t matter,” Seattle’s strong safety said when asked about his club’s 7-9 record. “You can ask all the other teams that are sitting at home if they would like our chance.
“This is the opportunity of a lifetime. No matter how we got here, we need to take advantage of it.”
How the Seahawks got here, how they landed a playoff berth by winning the NFC West with a losing record, will be a matter for much scorn — er, um, discussion and analysis — over the coming week.
But the fact is that with a division title on the line and win-or-go-home stakes at play, Seattle actually maybe kind of somewhat looked like a playoff team during Sunday’s 16-6 victory over the St. Louis Rams.
The defense allowed 184 yards and no touchdowns; Jon Ryan delivered five punts inside the St. Louis 20-yard line; and fill-in quarterback Charlie Whitehurst completed 22 of 36 passes with no interceptions.
It was an NFL game with a lot on the line, and it was played as such — close-to-the-vest, grind-it-out football, avoid mistakes at all costs.
And in the end, the Seahawks earned this playoff berth. If, you know, you don’t count the first 15 games.
“We hung together, we hung together, and at the end we had a chance,” Milloy said. “I don’t know how, but we’re the champs.”
Or, as coach Pete Carroll said: “The thing I’m so proud of is this team stuck together through a lot of messy games. It all came together on this championship night.”
Championship night.
That’s what Carroll called it.
Which presumably sounds more impressive than Clash of Mediocrity.
All of which brings us back to Milloy.
Now in his 15th NFL season, Milloy understands the highs and the lows of the sport as well as anybody. He has started 214 games in his career, the second-highest total among active players — or the highest if you don’t count players who retired Sunday.
Milloy spent his first seven seasons in New England, playing for teams that compiled a 63-49 record, made four playoff trips, and appeared in two Super Bowls, winning one of them.
In the eight seasons since then, he has played for teams that are 20 games below .500 and have appeared in one playoff game. Until now.
“It means I have another shot to be a champion,” Milloy said. “That’s why I play the game; I don’t play to be mediocre. I know what it means to be a champion. I know what it can do for a city.”
And, after coming out of Lincoln High School in Tacoma and the University of Washington, he knows what the Seahawks mean to the region.
So maybe the naysayers should take a cue from Milloy. Maybe there is reason to celebrate the Seahawks’ division title, or the fact that they will host the New Orleans Saints in a playoff game on Saturday.
And if Seattle sets some sort of record as the biggest home underdog in NFL playoff history, so be it.
“The game isn’t won on the blogs or in the analyst booths,” Milloy said. “It’s won on the field.”
Scoff if you must.
Greg Jayne is Sports editor of The Columbian. He can be reached at 360-735-4531, or by e-mail at greg.jayne@columbian.com. To read his blog, go to columbian.com/weblogs/GregJayne
