Win one for Walt

During today’s game, the Seahawks will retire #71, the number of Walter Jones, the greatest player in team history.

Television viewers will probably miss the ceremony, which will take place during the two-minute warning at the end of the first half. Lacking a proper sense of reverence, Fox will likely cut away for commercials at that time.

A titanic left tackle with nimble feet and impeccable technique, Jones gave Seattle quarterbacks a dozen seasons of serene assurance that no blitzes would blindside them, because Big Walt had their back. As a run blocker, he opened holes that helped an aging Ricky Watters post three consecutive 1,200-yard seasons, and then enabled Shaun Alexander to average 1,500 yards in the first five years of this century.

Walt matched his unparalleled power and athleticism with great sportsmanship. Had he been a cruel man, Jones could have hurt people. Instead, the gentle giant played with great economy, employing the minimal force necessary to move his opponents where he wanted them. He knew he would defeat the men who lined up against him; he simply didn’t feel the need to add injury or insult by knocking them down when there was no reason to do so. A quiet man, he never engaged in smack talk. Instead, when an opponent nearly beat him, Big Walt would compliment them on their effort. Jones knew he didn’t need to intimidate anyone. He didn’t need a psychological edge. His physical advantages—strength built by pushing SUVs in the offseason, footwork honed by pickup basketball games—were more than enough.

A remarkably kind man, Walt was a true gentleman in a sport that too often lauds bullies and praises cheap shot artists as “tough.”

Thanks in large part to Jones, Seattle won four straight divisional titles from 2004 through 2007. Not coincidentally, that run came to an end when the great lineman’s knees started to give out.

How dominant was Walt in his prime? His peers voted him to the Pro Bowl nine times. Journalists named him to the All-Pro team seven times.

But even those stark facts fail to capture the magnitude of his achievement.

John Madden (in 2004) and The Sporting News (in 2006) declared that Jones was the best player in the NFL. Not the best lineman. The best player. Better than Tom Brady or any other quarterback. Better than LaDainian Tomlinson or any other runner. Better than any receiver, linebacker, lineman, or defensive back.

Peter King of Sports Illustrated (who has less love for the O-Line) ranked Jones the 10^th best player in the league in 2007; Walt was the highest offensive lineman on his list. King called him “a latter-day Munoz,” a reincarnation of the ex-Bengal generally regarded as the greatest offensive lineman in the history of the game.

 By 2005, Jones comprised the cornerstone of the league’s most dominant offensive line. That formidable unit allowed Alexander to be named the NFL’s Most Valuable Player, and propelled the Seahawks to the NFC Championship and Super Bowl XL.

Seattle fell short in that game, but not because of Jones. For most of the contest, Big Walt was pitted against Pittsburgh’s All-Pro linebacker Joey Porter, a talented pass rusher who had finished the regular season with 10.5 sacks. In the Super Bowl, Porter’s primary assignment was to line up against Jones, pressure Matt Hasselbeck, and stuff Shaun Alexander. Instead, as he customarily did against every opponent, Big Walt dominated Porter, essentially erasing him from the game’s stat book. Porter finished the Super Bowl with zero sacks and only two tackles, a poor showing for a Pro Bowl linebacker on the game’s greatest stage. Unable to make an impact through his play, Porter—a notorious trash talker—tried to make a difference with his mouth, by taunting Jones, Hasselbeck and other Seahawks. Of course, Walt did not respond, and when Matt started smack-talking Porter in return, Jones made him stop. Not content merely to protect Hasselbeck physically, Big Walt refused to let the linebacker get inside his quarterback’s head.

Despite his strong individual performance, the Seahawks lost Super Bowl XL, done in by poor officiating and by the uninspired performance of some of his teammates.

Big Walt will always be a winner, but he will never wear a Super Bowl ring.

Most of the players on our roster today never took the field with Jones. But those who did know how important it is that we pay humble tribute to the greatest Seahawk by winning today.

Seattle made it to Super Bowl XL by beating the Carolina Panthers in the NFC Championship Game. Both teams come to today's contest under humbler circumstances, but it is fitting that we commemorate the team's greatest player on a day when we face the opponent against whom the team achieved its greatest victory.

Let us send #71 into glorious retirement with a win today.

Go, Seahawks! Win one for Walt!