Bad bye

Seattle has seemed bulletproof so far this year.
Reshuffled linebackers? No problem: the younglings can play.

Extreme attrition on the O-Line? No problem: Beast Mode can run through people, and when his escape artistry fails, DangeRuss can absorb surprising doses of punishment

Losing our #1 wideout to injury? No problem. Golden Tate, Doug Baldwin and Jermaine Kearse can take up the slack.

Pulled groin for our #2 cornerback? No problem; Walter Thurmond may be better, anyway.

Despite all of that adversity, the Seahawks entered the bye at 10-1, with the best record in the NFL.

We were flying so high into the bye that I knew--knew--something would go wrong. I felt this foreboding in the Calvinist marrow of my Scottish bones, sensed the Ragnarokian doom in the dread-drenched depths of my Scandinavian soul, and recognized from a lifetime of learning, the seeds of Greek tragedy and the trials of Job.

It's hard to screw up a bye, but the Seahawks managed the feat.

A week of rest should restore the bodies and souls of our gridiron gladiators, but Percy Harvin's hip has grown worse, not better. Did we trade a first-round pick for irretrievably damaged goods?

Worse, the NFL busted Brandon Browner and Walter Thurmond for smoking weed, two key members left the Legion of Boom for the Legion of Doob.Is this simply a case of stoners loving chronic more than championships, or were they toking ganja to mask their use of other performance-enhancing drugs? Do we have to worry again that Seattle is a dirty program of juiced athletes?

The timing is terrible. Drew Brees is the league's most accurate passer, and a wizard at reading defenses, running through his progressions and putting the ball where only his receiver can catch it. He is not the sort of quarterback you want to face with a discombobulated secondary. Reserve cornerbacks Eric Lane and Byron Maxwell have played capably when thrust into starting roles in the past, but if there are vulnerabilities in the reconstituted (recombobulated?) Legion of Boom, then Brees will expose and exploit them mercilessly.

Can the 12th Man and a fierce pass rush even the odds? Can our punt and kick coverage units hold up with less help from Lane and Maxwell?.Can the recently returned starters on the O-line recover the chemistry that eluded them against Minnesota before the bye? Can Beast Mode chew up the clock to deny New Orleans scoring opportunities? Can DangeRuss best Brees, his midget quarterback mentor? Will Seattle seize home field advantage?

Go, Hawks!