Hawks Lose Another Close One

Once again, the Seattle Seahawks played well enough to win a game against a quality opponent only to give the game away in the final minutes. The Hawks led the New England Patriots for most of the game, until a long Patriots touchdown drive and ensuing fumble by Seneca Wallace with under two minutes left decided the game. Still, it was actually one of the better efforts by the Hawks recently, especially considering that half the starting offense was out with assorted injuries. Four backup linemen and we still ran the ball? That's pure effort and pride, and it was great to see.I was at the game, and it was one of the more unusual games I've been to this season. First, the place wasn't full. Qwest field is always packed to the rafters; today, I was able to move from my nose-bleeds to sit with some friends in their much, much better seats, with no problem. I could have brought half a dozen people with me. It wasn't empty, by any means, but there were more empty seats than I've seen in a long, long time.There was also a sense of fatalism (I thought) in the crowd, even when the Hawks were ahead. We've gone through a difficult time as fans this season, from optimism to shock and confusion, and finally through anger, disbelief and frustration. There's a lack of confidence I haven't seen since 2002, the last losing season we had. The team and fans used to go for the jugular when we were up in a game; now, we're all just hanging on and hoping for the best. It's a depressing turn of events, to say the least.That's not to say that attending the game was a total loss from a fan stand point. Qwest is a beautiful stadium even when it's raining, and you still get to yell your guts out for the greatest team in the NFL (yes, I realize we're 2-11; still, I haven't noticed any Seahawks shooting themselves in the leg, or getting suspended for doping, or any of the other nonsense so many other teams deal with). There's one home game left, against the Jets on December 21. I'm challenging all you Hawks fans out there to get to the game and scream your head off. The team deserves nothing less.