Hawks Sound Wake-Up Call For Their Fans

This one game, so devastating, so unexpected, so satisfying in its dominance of a hated rival, served as an almost immeasurable step for the Seattle Seahawks.

It meant - in the wake of several other credible victories - that the difficult trek from laughable to respectable was complete.

In one massive blowout of the Oakland Raiders, the Seahawks finally buried all that 2-14 nonsense - shoved it back into dim history.

It awakened dozing fans, legitimized the hiring of coach Dennis Erickson, and in one 60-minute outburst of athletic excellence, it signaled a rebirth of the Seahawks franchise.

Making too much of this one game?

Don’t think so.

The eight wins the Hawks now boast are more in a season since 1990 and mean that they head into the final week of the season with a realistic shot at a wild-card playoff berth.

The fact that it came against the Raiders made it only that much sweeter.

For years, the Raiders actually raided Seattle, coming to town with their eye patches and crossed swords, ripping the heart from the chests of the Seahawks, torching Pioneer Square, leering at the Sea-Gals and chopping up the Space Needle for parts for their Harleys.

Or at least winning the game convincingly.

Sunday, in a 44-10 win, it was the Seahawks who had the swagger, the confidence, the talent.

And they played with an emotion and intensity and a sense of purpose that hasn’t been seen in the Kingdome in so many seasons.

The quality of play energized the fans, who reflected it back to the team, generating a degree of synergy that hasn’t flowed in years.

“When we win and the fans are making that kind of noise, I can tell you, that other team doesn’t want to be here,” tight end Trey Junkin said. “It’s not a nice place. You’ve got 11 guys trying to kick your butt and you can’t hear anything and you can’t communicate; it’s definitely a homefield advantage.”

As encouraging as anything to come from this game for Seahawks fans was the continued excellence of quarterback John Friesz, who repeatedly made the right decisions and put the ball where it needed to be.

Yet his success, as the team moved to 8-7, evokes almost a sense of sadness - which requires at least a long and critical look back - at what might have been if Friesz had been in the lineup all season instead of millionaire starter Rick Mirer.

It doesn’t take a giant leap of faith to believe that the Hawks could have won two San Diego games, the game against the Jets, and also the overtime loss to Arizona, if Friesz had been in the lineup from start to finish.

Friesz has the offense clicking so well that it has scored 65 points in the last five periods of play.

“Really, he’s playing great, getting the ball where it has to be and being real calm and not making any mistakes,” receiver Joey Galloway said of Friesz.

On at least two occasions, it was very obvious Friesz made the right decision in circumstances that might have bumfuzzled Mirer: once throwing it out of the end zone rather than waste a scoring chance, and another firing one out of bounds under heavy pressure when an attempted pass might easily have meant an interception going 80-some yards the other way.

So, from here, Mirer looks pretty darned attractive holding onto a clipboard on the sidelines.

Yes, the wording of Mirer’s contract means that the Seahawks might end up to paying him several million a year to stay on the sidelines.

That’s fine.

This sort of thing has been done before. It was perfected by those government subsidy programs where they pay farmers NOT to grow corn.

The Hawks could pay Mirer NOT to play and throw interceptions.

Seems like a good deal right now.

“It takes a period of time for a team to get used to a new staff and it takes time for the coach to get used to the players and see what everyone does best,” Friesz said. “We’re still working out the kinks, but I think only good things are on the horizon.”

That seemed to be the consensus in the locker room, as was the unqualified support for the play of Friesz.

“Now, we’re starting to make things happen,” Junkin said. “It’s time to get on the boat, because we’re sailing.”

Which is a promising prospect as long as John Friesz is at the tiller.

You can contact Dave Boling by voice mail at 459-5577, extension 5504.

, DataTimes