A Grip on Sports: It may have been stressful and not the most-dominant but Sunday’s Super Bowl LX win is the best game the Seahawks have given their fans – this decade

A GRIP ON SPORTS • It may not have been the most beautiful Super Bowl the Seahawks ever won. Not the most glamorous either. But it was, without a doubt, the most recent. And that, on the Monday after, makes it the best.

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• And that’s what Monday mornings are for. Ratings. Judging. Celebrating. And looking ahead.

Sunday’s 29-13 victory in Santa Clara was nothing like the Seahawks’ other NFL title-game win. That one was over 10 seconds into the second half, though it might have actually been decided 10 seconds after the opening kickoff. The 43-8 win over Denver was mostly stress free. A welcome change after their Super Bowl loss a few years before to the Steelers. And in marked contrast to one the franchise – and all of its followers – would suffer a year later against Tom Brady and New England.

Stress? It was back yesterday. Heck, it’s been a constant companion all season. That’s what happens when the defense is superb, the offense is not and your quarterback has spent a career throwing the ball to the wrong uniform color. Add it up and no lead seems safe, especially one built by field goal after field goal.

Then again, maybe it’s more because we are slow learners.

Sam Darnold played 17 regular season games and threw 20 interceptions. He played three playoff games and threw zero. When the going was the toughest, he stepped up and was even tougher. Took care of the ball. Understood the old maxim that, with a defense as good as Seattle put on the field, any time his offense ended a possession with a kick was a win.

In the biggest game of his life, every offensive possession ended that way for Seattle. Five Jason Myer field goals. One point-after (and another after the defense scored). Seven Michael Dickson punts. No turnovers.

That’s the only list of numbers that mattered. And led to the best Super Bowl win Seahawk fans have ever seen. This decade.

• By the way, the Hawks have two Super Bowl wins this century. That’s more than the host team Sunday. The 49ers last won a Lombardi Trophy in the 1990s. You don’t think that burns in the throat of Seattle’s biggest rival? That it came in their stadium is another blow.

• Kenneth Walker III was the MVP, sure. His 135 rushing yards on 27 carries earned it. But everyone in the Northwest knows where the credit lies. As it was the first time the franchise won the trophy, with the defense.

With Ernest Jones IV. With Byron Murphy II. Josh Jobe. Devon Witherspoon. Julian Love. DeMarcus Lawrence. Jarran Reed. With Derick Hall, Drake Thomas and Coby Bryant. With everyone who took a snap on that side of the ball.

No nickname is needed. Super Bowl domination is enough.

• We also typed out this list of quarterbacks for you yesterday. Jalen Hurts. Nick Foles. Joe Flacco. Brad Johnson. Trent Dilfer. All of them Super Bowl-winning quarterbacks. Mentioned there were not Hall of Fame types. And all they had to do was their job during the biggest game of their career.

That’s what Darnold did Sunday. He wasn’t at his best. Hit just 50% of his passes. Missed a handful of open guys, mainly because he seemed to be rushed some, resulting in inaccuracy that could have spelled doom. Mainly because his misses weren’t in awful spots. A little behind, maybe. A little long occasionally. But no awful, oh-my-goodness throws. And that was enough for him to be able to ascend the trophy platform stars and hold the Lombardi above his head.

• Darnold’s story reminds me of another strong-armed, well-built Pac-12 quarterback with a connection to the Bay Area as well as the Pats.

Jim Plunkett won the Heisman at Stanford. Seemed a lock for NFL greatness. Was the first pick in the 1971 draft, taken by the then-terrible Boston Patriots. And disappeared, just like the city’s name. New England was so bad even Plunkett’s skills could not translate. He was an unmitigated disappointment. And an injured one as well.

In 1976, the Pats got rid of him, trading him the 49ers. He didn’t shine there either and was released after two years. He crossed the Bay to Oakland. Spent two more years doing little. An injury opened the door in 1980 and Plunkett burst through. In the next four seasons, he led the Raiders to two Super Bowls. He was MVP in the first, a game manager in the second. A winner in both.

Maybe Darnold will match his total.

• One last thought. In nine months the Northwest may well be celebrating another title. The Mariners are not the favorite to win the World Series but then again the Hawks were 60-1 about this long before the NFL’s season began. The M’s odds are a lot better than that. 

If things break right, the region might just do something not that common in pro sports. Hold two title parades in one year.

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WSU: Around the (current, old and future) Pac-12 and the nation, the Washington women picked up a much-needed win. … Oregon turned the ball over too often to defeat No. 9 Ohio State. … Colorado upset No. 14 TCU. … Second-ranked UCLA finally had a battle but triumphed over No. 8 Michigan. … Next up for the Oregon men? Ohio State. … Colorado has to hit the tough Big 12 road for a while. … USC struggled but won on the road at last-place Penn State. … San Diego State is happy with its win over Air Force. 

• In football news, North Dakota State is going to leave the FCS ranks, where it has dominated for years, and join the Mountain West. For football only. … Arizona is happy with its incoming class of freshmen and transfers. 

Gonzaga: Speaking of day-after stories, Theo Lawson has his from the win in Corvallis. … There is a second-day look from the Oregon State point of view as well. … In a little while we’ll know how far the Zags’ loss in Portland pushed them down the polls.

EWU: Cooper Kupp’s performance Sunday earned mention in two S-R stories this morning. Greg Woods has an entire piece on Eastern’s best receiver. And Colton Clark’s NFL locals column today leads off with Kupp’s performance in Santa Clara. … Elsewhere in the Big Sky, North Dakota State’s decision to join the Mountain West impacts the Big Sky schools as well. 

Seahawks: Yes, there are a lot of stories out there. I am going to keep the links focused, mainly on the stories the S-R writers put together. I start, as always, with Dave Boling’s column. He focuses on the defensive performance, one of the best ever in the biggest game of the season. … Greg Woods has the game story as well as his piece on Kupp, also linked in the EWU section. … Garrett Cabeza made contact with local Seahawk fans in attendance at the game for this story. … Colton Clark’s NFL locals piece is also linked in the EWU section. … There is a notebook in the S-R, an analysis and a numbers story originally in The Athletic, a Times piece on Klint Kubiak acknowledging what everyone knew, he is moving on, and everything Darnold said. … Wait, there is more in the S-R. Instant impressions. … And more stories in the Times than even I can link, though grades are here. … Other places too, including from writers looking for work. … For old times sake, I also found a Sam Darnold story or five to pass along. … And one from the New England locker room. … Did you enjoy the broadcast? … John Canzano had some Super Bowl-related thoughts. 

Olympics: As we shared yesterday, Lindsey Vonn crashed just seconds into her downhill run, was airlifted to a hospital and had surgery for her ACL and a broken leg. American Breezy Johnson won the gold medal. … The U.S. also won gold in the figure skating team competition. … The Olympics have been a place for athletes to speak out as long as I can remember. 

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• I’m sure I will have more Super Bowl LX thoughts as the week rolls on. But right now I’m suffering a little from a food hangover. Chilis (yes two types), lobster rolls (a nod to New England), those little hot dogs wrapped in dough, veggies, chips, dip, more little dogs in barbecue sauce and on and on. So much food the fryer sat idle all day, hoping to burn some mozzarella and onion rings. Until later …