Being located in the Seattle area, I’m more aware of the Seahawks than other teams. And it occurs to me, after Sunday, that for the first time in their 50-year history, they’re definitely an above-average team (in the grand scheme of things).
Seattle joined the league in 1976. Since that time, they’ve won 40 more regular-season games than they’ve lost. Only 10 teams since 1976 have won more games.
| WIN-LOSS RECORDS, LAST 50 YEARS | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | Games | Win | Loss | Tie | Pct |
| Pittsburgh | 793 | 480 | 310 | 3 | .607 |
| New England | 793 | 470 | 323 | 0 | .593 |
| Denver | 793 | 459 | 333 | 1 | .579 |
| Baltimore | 485 | 276 | 208 | 1 | .570 |
| Dallas | 793 | 450 | 342 | 1 | .568 |
| Green Bay | 793 | 440 | 346 | 7 | .559 |
| San Francisco | 793 | 441 | 350 | 2 | .557 |
| Philadelphia | 793 | 438 | 350 | 5 | .555 |
| Minnesota | 793 | 430 | 359 | 4 | .545 |
| Miami | 793 | 429 | 363 | 1 | .542 |
| Kansas City | 793 | 424 | 367 | 2 | .536 |
| Seattle | 793 | 416 | 376 | 1 | .525 |
| Buffalo | 792 | 399 | 393 | 0 | .504 |
| Indianapolis | 793 | 397 | 394 | 2 | .502 |
| Chicago | 793 | 395 | 398 | 0 | .498 |
| LA Chargers | 793 | 395 | 398 | 0 | .498 |
| New Orleans | 793 | 391 | 402 | 0 | .493 |
| Washington | 793 | 388 | 402 | 3 | .491 |
| LA Rams | 793 | 388 | 403 | 2 | .491 |
| Tennessee | 793 | 386 | 407 | 0 | .487 |
| Las Vegas | 793 | 377 | 416 | 0 | .475 |
| NY Giants | 793 | 374 | 416 | 3 | .474 |
| Atlanta | 793 | 360 | 431 | 2 | .455 |
| Carolina | 501 | 227 | 273 | 1 | .454 |
| Cincinnati | 792 | 354 | 434 | 4 | .449 |
| Houston | 389 | 174 | 214 | 1 | .449 |
| Jacksonville | 501 | 215 | 286 | 0 | .429 |
| NY Jets | 793 | 336 | 455 | 2 | .425 |
| Detroit | 793 | 328 | 462 | 3 | .416 |
| Tampa Bay | 793 | 326 | 466 | 1 | .412 |
| Arizona | 793 | 323 | 466 | 4 | .410 |
| Cleveland | 745 | 300 | 443 | 2 | .404 |
But ultimately, it’s about winning championships. You want to get to Super Bowls, and you want to win in that game.
After Sunday, Seattle is now also above average on both fronts. There are 32 teams in the league. So to be average, you want to be showing up in a Super Bowl every 16 years, and you want to be winning one every 32 years. With two championships and two other Super Bowl appearances, Seattle is now ahead of an average pace for the first time in both of those categories.
In Seattle’s 50 years, only nine teams have won more Super Bowls, and only nine have appeared in the big game more times.
Only 15 teams have won multiple Super Bowls in the last 50 seasons, and only 13 have played in at least four of them. Seattle is among the dozen teams that have done both.
Where they go from here, we’ll see. The roster seems to be set up nicely, and they’ve got a coach who seems to be the defensive version of Sean McVay or Kyle Shanahan. But they’re in a tough division, and they need to find an offensive coordinator. Kenneth Walker and Rashid Shaheed are both headed for free agency.
| SUPER BOWLS, LAST 50 YEARS | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | G | W | L | Pct |
| New England | 12 | 6 | 6 | .500 |
| San Francisco | 8 | 5 | 3 | .625 |
| Pittsburgh | 6 | 4 | 2 | .667 |
| Dallas | 5 | 4 | 1 | .800 |
| NY Giants | 5 | 4 | 1 | .800 |
| Denver | 8 | 3 | 5 | .375 |
| Kansas City | 5 | 3 | 2 | .600 |
| Raiders | 4 | 3 | 1 | .750 |
| Washington | 4 | 3 | 1 | .750 |
| Rams | 5 | 2 | 3 | .400 |
| Philadelphia | 5 | 2 | 3 | .400 |
| Seattle | 4 | 2 | 2 | .500 |
| Green Bay | 3 | 2 | 1 | .667 |
| Baltimore | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1.000 |
| Tampa Bay | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1.000 |
| Indianapolis | 2 | 1 | 1 | .500 |
| Chicago | 2 | 1 | 1 | .500 |
| New Orleans | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1.000 |
| Buffalo | 4 | 0 | 4 | .000 |
| Cincinnati | 3 | 0 | 3 | .000 |
| Miami | 2 | 0 | 2 | .000 |
| Atlanta | 2 | 0 | 2 | .000 |
| Carolina | 2 | 0 | 2 | .000 |
| Minnesota | 1 | 0 | 1 | .000 |
| Chargers | 1 | 0 | 1 | .000 |
| Tennessee | 1 | 0 | 1 | .000 |
| Arizona | 1 | 0 | 1 | .000 |
| Cleveland | 0 | 0 | 0 | --- |
| Detroit | 0 | 0 | 0 | --- |
| Houston | 0 | 0 | 0 | --- |
| NY Jets | 0 | 0 | 0 | --- |
| Jacksonville | 0 | 0 | 0 | --- |
—Ian Allan

