As the 2014 NFL Regular season approaches, many fans are wondering if NFL dynasties have disappeared or if is it possible that the Seattle Seahawks could be on track to become a new NFL dynasty.
Today, the NFL has several tools to attempt to keep parity in the league, which is one of earth’s most competitive sports. Super Bowl champions can fall rapidly and some teams perform one-season complete turnarounds.
The NFL attempts parity via their draft, free agency, salary caps, and soon to appear are expanded playoffs that will give each team fan base the belief that their team can win on any Sunday and may reach the Super Bowl.
Is it possible that the parity efforts have finally delivered the death of the NFL dynasties? The New England Patriots a decade ago won the 2003 and 2004 Super Bowl and that is the longest period of time, a decade, without a team repeating as champions in consecutive seasons.
A NFL expert has said, “The days of the dominant teams may be gone forever,” as repeating has become beyond difficult, because you have different systems and different types of players on the teams. The Seahawks had the fifth-youngest team in the NFL, and they have a bundle of stars on both offense and defense, including QB Russell Wilson and CB Richard Sherman.
However, the same NFL expert thinks that the Seattle Seahawks could be a team in 2014 that changes the recent trend of teams failing to repeat as Super Bowl Champs. The one thing Seattle has to be troubled with is that they are in a very competitive division of the NFL.
For instance, the Seahawks don’t even have the best betting odds to win the Super Bowl. While Seattle is listed at +595, the Denver Broncos are a +560. And in the NFC, while the Hawks are +335 to win the conference championship, the 49ers and Packers are not far behind, with even the Saints at only a +760. Sportsbook oddsmakers are not entirely buying into the Seahawks, even if the public loves their chances.
The Seahawks fans are boasting last year’s title and toting Lombardi trophies to the practice sessions. The Seattle team has a lot going for it with excellent young players, and they play their games in a very difficult stadium in Seattle, nicknamed the 12th man as it holds the world record for the loudest crowd noise. However, the Seahawks team does not boast about their first championship nor do they like to discuss making a second title. Their goal this season is to concentrate on the various facets of football that allowed them to be the best in the NFL last season. That starts with continuing their sure-handed offense and improving on their opportunistic defense that in 2013 lead the NFL in turnovers.
So the Seahawks believe that they need to stay with the basics as they open their preseason. Their first game was a rematch of last season’s Super Bowl with the opposite outcome. They played and lost to the Denver Broncos 21-16, and lost against the spread as 1 point road favorites. The total also went UNDER the 37 1/2 point line in that game.
So what has happened, with no repeat Super Bowl winners lately? Teams today do not have the depth of past years, and that makes player health a big factor. Also, many players depart in free-agency, which also contributes along with coaches changing jobs, a shorter off-season, and much more difficult schedules. One coach referred to it as being like NASCAR, as you can be racing along, and all it takes is for one cylinder to fail and now there is no full efficiency.