Day: February 4, 2006

At the beginning of the season, when Chris Berman asked ESPN analyst Tom Jackson which quarterback in the league will lose his job first, Jackson replied, “Matt Hasselbeck.” He admitted that he is a big Seneca Wallace fan, but his response surprised me a little, considering I drafted Hasselbeck in four of my five fantasy leagues and was expecting a big season from him. What did Hasselbeck do? He was fourth in the league with a passer rating of 98.2 and threw for 3459 yards and 24 touchdowns against only nine interceptions, putting together the most efficient season of his career.

When Mike Holmgren left Green Bay to take over the head coaching and general manager duties in Seattle, he immediately traded for Hasselbeck, giving up just a third round pick and moving down seven spots in the first round. The Packers had to get something for Hasselbeck as he was due to become a free agent at the end of the season, but with the draft picks, the trade ended up being Hasselbeck and G Steve Hutchinson for DE Jamal Reynolds and MLB Torrance Marshall. It turned out to be a great trade for the Seahawks.

But it wasn’t always smooth sailing for the quarterback in Seattle. He and Holmgren butted heads several times over his first few seasons and it wasn’t until 2003 that the light really went on in Hasselbeck’s head. Now it seems that the coach and the quarterback are on the same page and the result is the first Super Bowl appearance in franchise history.

Everyone thinks that it is RB Shaun Alexander that makes the Seahawks go. But Seattle’s passing game is so important, especially against a stout rush defense like Pittsburgh. Seattle will not win if Hasselbeck doesn’t play well, and the quarterback from the other team isn’t in quite the same situation. Ben Roethlisberger can play poorly and the Steelers, with their outstanding running game and defense, can still get a win. Seattle’s offense is their strength and the pressure is really on Hasselbeck to play well.

Over the past few weeks Joey Porter has been auditioning for his post-NFL career. Apparently, he wants to be a motivational speaker.

Porter claims he was on good behavior this week until Seahawks TE Jerramy Stevens gave his opinion on Wednesday about Jerome Bettis’ homecoming to his native Detroit.

“It’s a heartwarming story and all that, but it will be a sad day when he leaves without that trophy,” said Stevens, who said later he wasn’t guaranteeing a victory but was only saying what he felt.

Porter seemingly overreacted to the statements, giving Seattle lots of bulletin board fodder for the rest of the week.

“You look for the guys that say something that aren’t supposed to say nothing, and I feel like he definitely was out of pocket to say what he said,” Porter said. “I’m going to make sure he owns up to those words.”

“He’s too soft to say something like that,” Porter said. “He’s going to have the opportunity to back up his words. I’m going to have the opportunity to back up my words. So it’s something I’m looking forward to and I’m ready to get going.”

“If they ever leave him on a pass block, he’s a liability,” Porter said. “He’s soft. They better not let him block. I bet they won’t make that coaching mistake. My battle with him is going to happen. I’m going to find him.”

Porter also called Stevens “a first-round bust who barely made some plays this season.” He also said a player of Stevens’ stature “has a lot of nerve” to say what he said about Bettis.

On Thursday, Porter had this to say about the game:

“We’re going to try to tap out as many people as we can, I’m going to put it like that,” Porter said at the players’ final pre-Super Bowl news conference. “We’re going to try to send as many people to the sideline as we can.”

Asked what he meant by “tap out,” Porter patted the top of his head with his hand — a sign that the player is tired or injured and wants to come out of the game.

It should be interesting to see if Porter’s comments help or hurt the Steelers on Sunday. I’ve always been an advocate of shutting your mouth and playing ball, but with over two weeks of time for reporters to ask each player a million questions, you know someone is going to say something inflammatory.