There are 14 banners hanging beyond the end zone at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center’s indoor practice field. The Seahawks’ successful seasons are split into two rows, with room at the end of one of them for future entries.
NFC WEST CHAMPS 2014
2014 NFC CHAMPIONS
NFC WEST CHAMPS 2016
NFC WEST CHAMPS 2020
A massive 15th banner is unmissable at midfield, saluting the Seahawks’ 2014 Super Bowl win. Wild-card berths, apparently, are unworthy of the wall.
On June 5, linebacker Ernest Jones IV stood on the opposite end and explained why so many veterans chose to attend the Seahawks’ voluntary minicamp.
“I think we’re bought into the goal and the mission, and the goal is to put another banner up in here,” Jones said, motioning to the team’s biggest banner. “I think everyone believes in that.”
Well, not everyone.
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Seattle Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald walks through the tunnel before the start of a game against the Kansas City Chiefs Friday, August 15, 2025 in Seattle. 230762
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Not the Las Vegas sportsbooks, which set the Seahawks 2025 over/under win total at 8.5 — below the 49ers (10.5) and Rams (9.5) and tied with the Cardinals in the NFC West. Not ESPN, which slotted Seattle No. 17 — below L.A. (No. 8) and San Francisco (No. 15) — in its most recent power rankings. Not NFL.com’s Eric Edholm, who dropped the Seahawks to No. 19 and last in their division in his own rankings. Not ESPN’s Football Power Index (FPI) metric, which assigned the Seahawks its 20th highest score, again under each of their division rivals.
And yet, despite the doubt, the mission should remain a 16th banner.
Not a wild card. Go win the NFC West.
“I think the NFC West is probably the most wide-open division in football,” ESPN NFL analyst Mina Kimes told The Times last week. “The four teams could finish in any order and I wouldn’t be particularly surprised. They’re all decent, so there’s no obvious bottom-dweller, but they’re all flawed.”
In this division, the flaws aren’t hard to find. After going 6-11 last season, is this version of San Francisco — with creaky 29-year-old Christian McCaffrey, 31-year-old George Kittle and an unconvincing cast of wide receivers — finally past its prime? Can 37-year-old quarterback Matthew Stafford, whose back injury might linger, lift the Rams yet again? Given that the Cardinals have only made a single playoff appearance since 2015, have they done enough to hurdle their history?
The Seahawks, too, are teeming with question marks. The defense made strides in its debut under Mike Macdonald, finishing 14th in the NFL in total defense (332.7 yards allowed per game) and 11th in scoring (21.6 points). That group should be even better in 2025, after returning 10 starters and adding defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence and second-round safety Nick Emmanwori.
But as for the offense? Your guess is as good as mine. The Seahawks’ hopes are tethered to their maligned offensive line, which added first-round left guard Grey Zabel this offseason. It’s also unclear how quarterback Sam Darnold will perform under new offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak, as the Seahawks attempt to frantically reinvent themselves.
Still, the early returns have been encouraging, as evidenced by the Seahawks’ 268 rushing yards and 5.6 yards per carry in a preseason win over Kansas City.
“I think the thing that made me the most excited watching the preseason was how good the offensive line looked in run-blocking, particularly when they had a chance to go up against most of the Chiefs’ starters,” Kimes said. “That, to me, has always been the variable on which this whole Seahawks season hinges.”
Added second-year tight end AJ Barner: “We know what the expectation is. We know the physical brand of football that we’re trying to play. There’s egos, and everyone has their swag. But there’s no pointing fingers. There’s no: ‘I need this. I need that.’ It’s: ‘Let me do my job. Let me play the style of football we’re going to play, and let’s win games.’”
The outside expectation is that the Seahawks won’t win many — that they’ll be average, again, missing the playoffs for a third consecutive season.
But if you believe that the offensive line is actually improved, that Darnold can operate Kubiak’s offense while minimizing mistakes, that 32-year-old wide receiver Cooper Kupp can still separate and that Macdonald’s defense can be among the NFL’s best …
Then you believe they’ll be better.
But are they banner better?
“You’d want them to make the playoffs, especially since they were so dang close last year,” Kimes said, on what Seahawks fans should consider a successful season. “Not making it this year would be a step back. That doesn’t necessarily mean the division. It could be the wild card, although I think that’s going to be hard in the NFC, with as strong as the North is in particular. But you’ve got to be a playoff team to feel good.”
I agree, it’s not banner-or-bust. Considering the question marks, and two straight seasons that were “so dang close,” a wild-card berth would be acceptable. Consistent snubs can’t afford to quibble. Same as with the neighboring Mariners, playoffs — any playoffs — would be welcome.
But someone has to win the wide-open NFC West.
So, serious question: Why shouldn’t the Seahawks hang another banner on the wall?
Mike Vorel: mvorel@seattletimes.com. Mike Vorel is a sports columnist at The Seattle Times.