Ranking the Seattle Seahawks' top rivalries of the NFC era

1: Green Bay Packers

Overall record 6-10 (1-3 in playoffs)

Is it a divisional opponent? No, but I truly believe that there was a more consistent and equally as intense hatred between the Packers and Seahawks, as there was with our rivals in the Bay.

While the Seahawks and the 49ers had an intense rivalry during the 2011-2014 years, the era in between have been pretty non-competitive, as the Seahawks owned the rivalry before Harbaugh, while Kyle Shanahan has owned the Seahawks. 

The Packers rivalry has been even and had some wild games and storylines that trump anything another team could bring. Both teams have also dealt the other historically embarrassing and shocking playoff defeats. The Holmgren versus Favre battles climaxed when Matt Hasselbeck threw the ball to Al Harris in the 2004 Wild Card overtime loss.

The Packers ended Holmgren’s last best shot at a Super Bowl in Seattle when a 14-0 lead became a 42-14 route in the middle of a snowstorm in the 2007 NFC Divisional loss. In what was Holmgren’s final playoff game as a head coach, he witnessed Favre’s final home victory as a Packer.

Who can forget the “Fail Mary”, a hysterical moment in NFL history that birthed the chaos that was Pete Carroll football in Seattle? 

The 2014 NFC Championship miracle will live on forever, glory for the Seahawks and infamy for the Packers. The loss was the first for Aaron Rodgers in the NFC Championship game (he also won MVP this year) and would begin an 0-4 stretch in the penultimate game that has overshadowed his career. 

The Packers got a small amount of revenge in 2019, holding off a furious Seahawks comeback attempt in the NFC Divisional Round. We have an all-time memorable sack when both Shaquill and Shaqueem Griffin combined to sack Rodgers in the fourth quarter. We also have one of the more egregious first-down spots to ice the game when Jimmy Graham benefitted from a horrific spot and poor camera coverage, in what should have been fourth and one with a few minutes left to go.

The rivalry also has a mystic to it. Did you know that the Seahawks have never won a game in Lambeau Field as an NFC team? They are zero for their last 10 in the frozen tundra. 

People may disagree, but the Packers have been in the way of more Seahawks greatness than any team in the NFC since 2002. You’ll be hard-pressed to find a duo that has caused as much heartbreak to each other as these two have. We’ll see what these two have next in store when they meet up in Seattle this December. 

Best Win - “The Brandon Bostick Game”
Worst Loss - “The Malik Turner Game”
Honorable Mention - “We want the ball, and we’re gonna score”

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