At home, Seahawks have Redskins right where they want them

By Chris Cluff  |   Thursday, January 03, 2008  |  Comments( 0 )

Seattle Seahawks
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The Seattle Seahawks have the Washington Redskins right where they want them -- at Qwest Field.

Sure, the Seahawks lost two of the last three games -- embarrassing three-point defeats at Carolina and at Atlanta. But the Seahawks were quick to dismiss both, particularly the 44-41 debacle against the Falcons last week in which the defense blew a chance to set a franchise record for fewest points allowed in a season.

Those games didn't matter, which probably explains why Seattle played like it. But as they prepare to play in the postseason for the fifth straight year, the Seahawks know the game against the Redskins on Saturday means a whole lot more. And they are surely happy to be playing it at Qwest Field, where they were 7-1 this season and have a three-game home winning streak in the playoffs over the past two years.

Aside from a hiccup against the then-winless New Orleans Saints in Week 5, the Seahawks dominated at home this season. They outscored their seven victims 200-83, an average margin of 29-12.

Granted, only one of those teams made the playoffs -- Tampa Bay, which the Seahawks punished 20-6 in the season opener. But the Seahawks blew out most of the others in a way that left no doubt that they play their best at Qwest Field.

The Seahawks also showed they could win close games at home, beating Cincinnati 24-21 and Chicago 30-23. That is the kind of game Seattle can expect against the streaking, improving Redskins.

The Redskins have won four straight games and are riding an emotional wave as they play in honor of their murdered teammate, Sean Taylor. So the Seahawks will have to overcome that sentimental incentive and try to do what they did to Washington in 2005, when Seattle overcame the early injury of NFL MVP Shaun Alexander to beat the Redskins 20-10.

The Seahawks then knocked off Carolina in the NFC title game that season, and they escaped with a win against Dallas last January, giving them a three-game home winning streak in the playoffs. That's what Washington is up against.

Sure, the Seahawks haven't played a meaningful game in three weeks, but they will be playing for something Saturday, and they have the Redskins right where they want them -- at Qwest Field.
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About Chris Cluff

Chris Cluff spent 10 years as an editor and sportswriter for The Seattle Times. He was a key figure in the newspaper's coverage of the Seahawks, particularly during their Super Bowl run in 2005. He also has written two books on the Seahawks: "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: Heart-Pounding, ...
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