THE CHEAP SEATS with STEVE CAMERON: Seahawks head into offseason of decisions on good note

There are just a boatload of decisions for the Seahawks to make.

So, if my close personal friend Jody Allen decided to surprise everyone by giving me the NFL team as a birthday gift, I know exactly how I’d handle things.

Seriously.

I’d sell the franchise to the first gazillionaire on the street who offered the Forbes magazine valuation of $3.5 billion (note, that word was BILLION) and with the proceeds, I’d buy a gorgeous little island in the Caribbean.

Mai tais, anyone?

There would be some money remaining, so I’d put the rest of the stash into a fund providing for raises to all the nurses at Kootenai Health.

OK, OK.

Jody Allen is not really a personal friend, and she’s unlikely to just give me the team simply as a devoted fan of The Cheap Seats — although I once did enjoy a takeout Chinese lunch with her late brother Paul, so I think it’s fair to say I’m tight with the Allen family.

IF YOU are now wondering about the main point of my babbling today, it’s pretty simple.

The Seahawks’ thrilling 38-30 upset of Arizona on Sunday — along with other heart-stoppers around the NFL at roughly the same time — proved once again that just to get involved in the craziness of pro football, you’d need the pulse rate and overall calmness of …

Oh, I don’t know.

An avocado?

A redwood tree that has been silent and still since long before the presence of humans on Earth?

Let’s put it like this: My boss runs a little bit too warm for the role.

Example …

Russell Wilson wound up a hero of the “Danger Russ” variety, even though he fumbled to gift the Cards a touchdown on the second play of the game, and threw a horrible interception that set up another TD.

However …

Wilson threw for three scores and ran for another, plus scooted in for a 2-point conversion.

Despite his two gaffes, he was the Russ who should instantly quiet anyone who has been yakking about trading him out of town.


MEANTIME, despite Arizona having a division title and improved playoff seeding on the line, it was Seattle’s supposedly aging guru Pete Carroll who worked his team into the kind of frenzy you’d see if a Super Bowl awaited the winner.


Even though Sunday’s prize was a 7-10 record rather than 6-11, Pete still carried on like a twenty-something, and it obviously infected his players.

At one point, he and Wilson celebrated a touchdown with full-bore banging and bumping, like sumo wrestlers warming up for a match.

The Seahawks went through all the emotions of this violent and often stunning sport — hugging and grinning like lottery winners when things went well, then looking ashen (with some literally crying) when safety Quandre Diggs suffered a serious leg injury in the fourth quarter.

Yes, the game can be cruel.

Diggs, who has been terrific and often spectacular this season en route to a Pro Bowl spot, was 9:12 on the clock from becoming a free agent when he was carted off the field — so just one play may have cost him millions, and his teammates understood.

FELLOW secondary defender D.J. Reed (himself a pending free agent) threw his helmet in anger and frustration when he saw the seriousness of Diggs’ injury.

And yet …

In the big picture of their sport, the Seahawks had to celebrate this victory.

Their belief that Wilson’s midseason surgery — rather than any lack of talent — was what had cost them a playoff berth, ah …

That feeling, to them at least, had more or less been justified.

“We are still among the best in the NFL,” was their mantra by Sunday night, “so if you wrote us off, just look what happened.”

Of course, there are still plenty of critical questions about this team that must be addressed during the off season.

Some are tactical, some involve the decision-makers, some will be financial, and some …

Well, some are going to encompass a bit of everything.

In fact …

You know what, Jody?

It’s a kind thought, but please don’t give me the Seahawks.

I’d never get a good night’s sleep.

Email: scameron@cdapress.com

Steve Cameron’s “Cheap Seats” columns appear in The Press on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. He also writes Zags Tracker, a commentary on Gonzaga basketball which is published weekly during the season.

Steve suggests you take his opinions in the spirit of a Jimmy Buffett song: “Breathe In, Breathe Out, Move On.”