Three Seattle Seahawks already getting disrespected in early Pro Bowl voting

If you were looking for an accurate reflection of the lack of respect the Seattle Seahawks receive nationally, just look at the Pro Bowl voting. Not one player has even cracked the top five in fan voting so far. Frankly, that is a travesty.

As hard as it may be to believe, not one member of the Seattle Seahawks has gotten even a modicum of respect in the fan voting so far. I get it, to some degree. When the team is 6-6 and the voting opens on the heels of a three-game losing streak, the first players that come to mind aren't going to be the guys hanging "L"s on the scoreboard. But not one Hawks player in the top five? And no others in the top 10? It's mind-boggling.

Fan voting by design is a popularity contest. That's how you wind up with situations like this. The Seahawks have a great fanbase - as if the 12s needed confirmation of this - but it certainly isn't the largest in the league, either. According to this nifty study published by Keegan Sullivan in 2022, the 12s rank eighth in the NFL among all fanbases.

The Seattle Seahawks deserve better than this ridiculous vote

Before you get your dander up, have a look at his research. It's pretty fascinating, for those of you who go for mathy stuff. Whether you accept that or not - and no one says you have to - it's indisputable that the Seattle metropolitan area ranks 15th in population in the U.S. That results in 14 teams with a far bigger potential fan base. And that helps in voting.

Naturally, successful teams get more votes for their players. It would be pretty strange if voting didn't work that, way, right? The best teams tend to have at least some of the best players. But some players on those teams benefit from rubbing shoulders with truly great players. This year, call it the Philadelphia effect. Both of the Eagles safeties are in the top 10 in voting, at least as of the NFL Network's Tom Pelissero's tweet on December 6th: