The Open Field: Do you even want the Seahawks to make the playoffs?

How many of you were around for the 2010 Seattle Seahawks season? It was Year 1 with Pete Carroll, and the team was in the middle of an extreme makeover. An unexpected 4-2 start gave way to the harsh realities of 6-9, with Matt Hasselbeck steadily crumbling and famously hurting his back walking untouched on a rushing touchdown.

I remember at the time that there was serious consideration over whether the Seahawks should essentially cede the turgid NFC West to the St. Louis Rams and focus on the long-term of getting a better draft pick instead of a playoff hammering. After all, literally all of the Seahawks’ losses that year were blowouts.

Then Charlie Whitehurst threw it deep to Ruvell Martin and I had the urge to get into the playoffs. Seattle did the damn thing, got the Beastquake game the following week, and then they took their hammering versus the Chicago Bears .

Seattle didn’t have a franchise quarterback, still needed to fill a ton of other roster holes, and there wasn’t exactly widespread belief in Pete’s vision.

Well here we are again, but the situation is not identical. The Seahawks are 6-5 but their playoff hopes are dwindling thanks to their own losing skid and the hot streak of the Green Bay Packers . On current form, Seattle probably misses out, but the NFC still is weak and it’s possible the Seahawks sneak in anyway.

Unless you’re the biggest Geno Smith or Drew Lock believer, the Seahawks don’t have a long-term franchise quarterback, still need to fill several roster holes, and there isn’t exactly widespread belief in Pete’s vision. Oh yeah, and their cap situation is much, much tighter than it was in the 2011 offseason.

Are you at the point where you have no interest in seeing the Seahawks in the postseason, even just for the slightest hope of a surprise Super Bowl run? We’ve seen our fair share of early playoff exits since 2015, and another playoff appearance may just be paper over the cracks of a crumbling team.

Selfishly, of course I’d rather Seattle make the playoffs. I like watching my favorite team play into the postseason, and it’s great for Field Gulls when the Seahawks have more games. However, I’m very conflicted about this squad and find them teetering on 2017 levels of unenjoyable. As a fan of the NBA’s Portland Trail Blazers (same ownership as the Seahawks), I’m also well aware of a roster and/or coach/front office that has run its course. Years of trading first-round picks for good, not great talent, handing out awful contracts to free agents, all while getting soundly beaten in the playoffs finally led to the reset button getting pressed. With Damian Lillard gone they’re one of the worst teams in the NBA, as opposed to a perennial first-round exit with him. The expectations have lowered and there is a process in place to be a contender again, even if there’s no guarantee it works out. It’s a different feeling than sitting just above mediocrity before the massive talent gap gets exposed by the big boys.

A hard, brutal, messy ending may force the type of hard reset some have been crying out for.

Tell us your take in the comments!