Why the Seattle Seahawks are the real-life version of Ted Lasso

Surely, by now, you have seen the greatness that is the Apple TV show, Ted Lasso. It is heart-warming, thought-provoking, well-written, funny, sad, hokey, and sophisticated. Basically, it is what life is. But there are quite a few similarities between Ted Lasso and the Seattle Seahawks.

And no, I am not writing this article because I love the show and also love the Seattle American football team. See, I fooled you. I love them both, but maybe not equally.

Still, maybe I empathize a bit more with the show due to my being a Seahawks fan. I am not crazy, right? That makes sense? But here is why I think that makes sense and some of the similarities between Ted Lasso and your Seattle Seahawks.

If you love Ted Lasso, you probably also love the Seattle Seahawks

Example No. 1: Ted Lasso is partly Pete Carroll

I didn't make this example up, of course. Lots of sites have written about how Pete Carroll is quite like Ted Lasso and it comes down to one great thing: Positivity. Jason Sudeikis' Lasso character exudes Carroll-isms.

One criticism of Carroll has been maybe he didn't see the black-and-white truth of things. But maybe the people asking thought some issues - the Seahawks run defense in 2022, for instance - had clear solutions, but there is always gray. Carroll mostly spins positive responses in much the same way Lasso does. And for one, I hope Carroll keeps being somewhat closer to the Lasso character than someone like Bill Belichick.

Example No. 2: Doug Baldwin is Roy Kent and Roy Kent is Doug Baldwin

Both Baldwin and Kent are former players still involved in their former teams, to various degrees, and both have the same kind of outward demeanor. Both could be tough on the field as players when needed to be and both seemed a bit standoffish at times. But both the character Kent and the player and person Baldwin know when a soft touch and caring is needed. Neither Kent nor Baldwin are jerks. In fact, they are both good people and strive to do the right thing, though from a distance both can seem dismissive.

Example No. 3: Both teams are owned by smart and confident females

This is one of the better examples and crosses over into the real world where we have NFL owners who are "guys who must be guys" and then the women who are their equals. Ted Lasso's AFC Richmond is run by Hannah Waddingham's character, Rebecca Welton. Welton takes control after her then ex-husband has lost the team to her in a divorce battle. Still, Welton becomes an owner who steers her team's ship with intelligence and confidence and morality.

The same could be said of Seahawks chairperson, Jody Allen. Allen is smart and business-savvy but runs the team with heart. Of course, in the real world 12s are luckier to have Allen because she is a real person doing real things while Rebecca Welton is fictional.

And there are other similarities between the show Ted Lasso and the football team of the Seattle Seahawks. One being that striker Jamie Tartt on Lasso has to come back from being cast aside by other teams and prove himself again with Richmond. The same thing happened to Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith who wasn't a starter for several years, had to prove he could be good, and did.

Basically, I dare any other fan of their team to compare Ted Lasso to the Seahawks. Sure, one is a steaming show and one is a real football team. But in the end, fans care about both and both have compelling and human-driven stories that make us happy to follow the show and the team.