A.D.I.D.A.S. (All Day I Dream About Seahawks)

(Whoever you are JuniorVarsity33, you are a hero for making this)

My preemptive apologies to my friends and family haven't seemed to work.  I told them that I wouldn't be the same this week.  I told them that, even though it might not seem like it, everything is okay and I still love them.  My girlfriend keeps wondering why I'm so deep in thought and ignoring her.  It's not you, it's not me, it's the Seahawks baby!  They're the only thing on my mind right now.

My production at work is slipping.  I'm not my usual outgoing, happy go lucky self.  All I want to do is watch Seahawks highlights and prepare for this game.  No, I'm not a coach or a player, so my preparation means absolutely nothing to the outcome of the game.  Think that's gonna stop me?  There's something inside me that demands more.  Call it obsession, call it love.  Either way, whatever it is, I'm going all in on it.

This isn't too far from the norm.  Everyone from my grandmother, to my boss, to my little sister has heard my sometimes crazed Seahawks ramblings over the years.  Funny thing about the ramblings is, they don't seem so crazy anymore.  I rant and I rave less, only stopping to point out how fraudulent the sports media and Roger Goodell are because those two things still rub me the entirely wrong way.  I don't have to rant and rave about the Seahawks anymore because their play does it for me.  They took my pre-season 10-6 with a Wild Card berth prediction, which my friends laughed at, and added a win to their real record just for kicks.  Nobody laughs at me anymore.  Not after Brandon Browner or Kam Chancellor devastates a receiver's central nervous system.  No, no one laughs anymore. 

The conversation has shifted from "why do you like the damned Seahawks?!" to "the Seahawks are nasty!"  Funny how quickly that happened.  Give Pete Carroll 3 years and he can work miracles.  That's why I have the utmost confidence that he will have this team prepared this coming Sunday.  Prepared for the great unknown. 

After all, that's the biggest thing we are up against this Sunday, is the unknown.  Will the team play up to it's full potential, on the road?  Will Shanahan outsmart Carroll?  Will Brandon Browner be rusty?  Will Russell Wilson continue his superb play in his debut game in the playoffs?  So many questions and all of the answers will have to wait until Sunday.  It's important to remember that the Redskins are facing most of the same, if not similar question marks.  However, what we do know is that if the Seahawks play their A game, the Redskins simply will not stand a chance, even if RGIII and company bring theirs.   

The Redskins are an exceptionally talented young squad, there's no denying that.  There's also no denying that the only way they can win this game is if the Seahawks have a letdown of Seahawk proportions.  They are the only ones who can stand in their own way.  It was supposed to be a 4 Year Plan, but sometimes plans change, which can be a good thing if you're ready to take the opportunity and run with it.

We all we got, we all we need isn't just a rallying cry for this team.  It represents the truth.  When Lawyer Milloy first uttered the now trademark phrase, it was meant to represent the "us against the world" mentality that the team needed to win in spite of it's lack of elite talent.  Now, it's morphed into some greater.  It still rings true with "us against the world" but it also now means that the team doesn't have to rely on anyone else to win as long as they do their thing.  They really are all they need.  This team is loaded with talent and leadership, oh, and a remarkably talented leader at quarterback.

It's been 30 years since the Seahawks last won a road playoff game.  Sure, that sucks.  It sucks a whole lot.  However, it's time for the insanity to end. This team deserves to put this skid to bed.  They are good enough to do it.  I'm expecting a tough one down to the wire but I think the Seahawks should walk away victorious.

It's time to leave the "Same Old Seahawks" in the rear view window.  The sense of impending doom, the ability to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory, and the rare ability to always come up just short need to become a thing of the past and there's no better time than now.  There was a time where I would be full of despair right about now.  The prospect of stopping RGIII and Alfred Morris on the road would seem to big a task.  Not anymore. My heart's telling me that the Seahawks might let me down but my brain just won't seem to agree.  This is new to me, I've never felt that before with regards to our Seahawks.

I know everyone around me is feeling ignored and probably can't believe that this team means this much to me.  I could care less right now.  It DOES mean this much to me as I'm sure it does to all of you.  I can already tell what a bitch "sleeping" is going to be on Saturday Night.  I'll probably get an hour or so, that's probably an hour or so more than some.  This disease called being a Seahawks fan already had it's hold on me for the better part of my 25 years on this earth.  Now it's infected my brain, my heart, and my soul a little more than it already had.

2012 was supposed to be the year of the 12, and for the Seahawks it was.  For yours truly though, it was a rough one.  I dealt with a lot of personal hardships along the way and a lot of real life pain and heartbreak, as I'm sure many of you did as well.  No matter how bleak things looked in reality, watching this team on Sunday's has been a shining light that I could look forward to.  Even if I don't remember everything come Monday, it was the highlight of my week.  It's always been one of the joys of my life, there's honestly not many things I enjoy more, but this season holds a special place in my heart.  If I could thank every single one of these guys individually, I would.  The fact that I've been able to take in a game in Seattle, my own personal mecca, and take in so many games with fellow 12's has only made this season that much more special.  Thanks for the amazing times.

I just don't want it to end.  Not now, not Sunday.  Forget me, a few weeks of solitude and loads of alcohol probably still won't erase the disaster that a loss on Sunday would cause.  Somehow, I'd deal with it.  It's the players, coaches, front office, Paul Allen, and the rest of the 12th Man that will be in my thoughts if things don't go as planned in DC. 

Enough of the negativity though, we're goin out on a high note.  Wherever you watch the game this Sunday, at home, in a bar, wherever...  don't stop yelling, don't stop screaming.  You honestly shouldn't even have a voice come game's end.  If you're lucky enough to be at FedEx Field you absolutely MUST be loud, supportive, and proud.  This young team needs all the confidence and support it can get.  

After the Patriots game I told myself that I'd never doubt this team again.  I told myself that I'd never doubt Russell Wilson, ever.  Might sound silly but I guess that's what comes with being a fanatic.  Sure, there's been points where I've wanted to throw myself through my TV set or chain smoke a pack of cigarettes after downing a Double Jameson, but it's been worth it.  Hell, there might come a point on Sunday where I contemplate doing this very thing.  Regardless, I'm never going to stop believing.  I'm not going to doubt this team.  It's time to go rewrite history.  I'll have my war paint on and I refuse to sit down and shut up.

John Schneider mentioned how he wants his team to be able to win a street fight.  It's time for the Seahawks to show John that they are everything he, and we, have ever wanted.

GO HAWKS!