Seahawks have shockingly few award winners in franchise history

The Seahawks have been a mostly successful franchise since the franchise’s inception in 1976. But Seattle has had very few major award winners.

Seattle has deserved better recently too. Think of all the greatness that has happened over the last decade yet no Seattle player has won one of the top awards for play on the field.

In fact, the most shocking part of Seattle’s lacking number of award winners is not only that Seahawks haven’t won, but in some cases haven’t even received votes. Why must the national media hate the Pacific Northwest?

I am sure, however, that players who have played for Seattle over the last two decades especially have preferred the team’s success over individual awards. Because to be honest, when it comes down to it winning games and a Super Bowl is probably better than individual accolades.

Seahawks have deserved better when it comes to winning major awards

NFL MVP

Seattle winner: Shaun Alexander 2005

If Alexander hadn’t won in 2005 then the whole process would have been proven to be a croc. He had 1,880 rushing yards, 27 rushing touchdowns (an NFL record at the time) and he led Seattle to its first Super Bowl appearance.

But in the 2010s, Russell Wilson should have at least been thought of to be in the running for NFL MVP. He plays the right position: Quarterback. (No non-quarterback has won the MVP award since Adrian Peterson did in 2012.) But he’s also been great, especially in 2015. And he has not received one vote for MVP. (Bobby Wagner actually received one, though, for the 2014 season.)

NFL Coach of the Year

Seattle winners: Jack Patera 1978 and Chuck Knox 1984

Seattle won two Coach of the Year awards in the first nine seasons of franchise existence. Since, nada. This even though the Seahawks have gone to three Super Bowls. Yet, neither Mike Holmgren nor Pete Carroll has won this award and that is criminal.

NFL Defensive Player of the year

Seattle winners: Kenny Easley 1984 and Cortez Kennedy 1992

Both Easley and Kennedy deserved these awards. Kennedy had 14 sacks from his defensive tackle position in 1992. Easley had 10 interceptions in 1984 and returned 2 of them for touchdowns.

But even in the year Wagner received his MVP vote, he didn’t get one vote for Defensive Player of the Year. Wagner did finally get one – only one – DPOY vote and that was in 2018 but didn’t for the 2016 season when Wagner led the league with 167 tackles, had 4.5 sacks and 18 quarterback hits.

Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Year: Russell Wilson 2012

There are a bunch of different Rookie of the Year award givers. Pepsi has one they have given out since 2002 and Wilson won the award in his rookie season.

Walter Payton Man of the Year: Steve Largent 1988 and Russell Wilson 2020

Maybe this award truly means most overall as far as humanity goes because it is given for “excellence on and off the field.” The good thing is that neither Largent nor Wilson seem to have gotten lucky in the year they won the award. Both seem like good people in general.

Don’t expect for any Seahawks to win the MVP award anytime soon, though. As I said, it is most likely going to be given to a quarterback every year (which makes the award seem skewed and more like a popularity contest instead of who the best player is in the NFL in a given season.) Seattle is still trying to find who its starting quarterback is for the next few years so unlikely to be so good as to win the MVP award.