Matt Hasselbeck: Last Bite Not as Good as the First
As part of our process to select our newest addition to the 12th Man Rising staff, we have asked all applicants to submit a sample article for us to review.
We thought, why not throw them up on the site and see what their eventual audience thinks?
For each article we won’t include the authors name, just the initials, to ensure anonymity.
Enjoy!
Submission No. 3 By RM
The last bite is never as good the first. I just grow accustomed to things and assume they’ll be there forever after a while. But let’s just say that it really was the last bite. The only thing left will be the memories reaching for a reality, which was never truly appreciated at the time. At that point, I find myself thinking of the last bite more than the first.
Matt Hasselbeck is currently entering the final year of his contract. He has been in Seattle since March 2, 2001. To acquire Matt from the Packers the Seahawks moved down to the seventeenth pick from number ten overall and gave up their third round pick for the Packers seventh. At the time many thought Seattle gave up too much, however, with that seventeenth pick the Seahawks chose Steve Hutchinson. Anyone remember him? (Go ahead and curse Ruskell right now. You know you want to).
Unfortunately for Matt his first outing was less than spectacular. It was actually less than average… by a lot. In Matt’s first game in Cleveland, he threw for 178 yards, 2 interceptions, and 0 touchdowns. In his second game against the Eagles, Matt had just 6 completions for a whopping 62 yards and 0 touchdowns again. Matt wouldn’t score his first touchdown until week 7 against the Dolphins. A game played in Seattle.
Many fans had already given up on the unproven, cocky kid from Boston. Why was he even on the field when we had Trent Dilfer who was fresh off a Super Bowl win with the Baltimore Ravens? At the time, it was clear to everyone that Dilfer was the better quarterback. The only one who wasn’t convinced was Dilfer who was quoted in 2006 as saying, “Late in that first year, I came in and played a couple of games and won and the team wanted me to play and the fans wanted me to play and I stood up and said, ‘Listen, this kid is going to be a great player.’” Dilfer gave Matt the last and most essential piece of the puzzle that year: The mental discipline required to play quarterback in the NFL.
Since then the rest has been history: 4 division titles, 1 NFC Championship, and a questionable Super Bowl loss. I have talked to many fans over the years, and am absolutely amazed at how many people shake their head and exclaim, “He sucks,” or “I never liked that guy.” Listen carefully everyone. This is an undisputable fact: Matt Hasselbeck is the BEST quarterback we have ever had. He’s a little bit Favre, a little more Zorn (ironic isn’t it) and a whole lotta Holmgren. He is a natural leader. He came up from the practice squad by working his tail off. He is a fearless General on the field who never stops trying. He is one of those rare players who actually appreciates and loves the game itself rather than the status he acquires from it. When was the last time he ever embarrassed his team or his teammate? Sure he got cocky in Green Bay, but that’s Matt. He’s willing to make a mistake and learn from it. He’s willing to become a better man and player each day.
This is most likely our last year with Matt Hasselbeck, so I implore you to appreciate him for the accomplishments he has made with our team. He has been to more playoff games than any other Seahawk in the organization (as a Seahawk). He has been the face of the franchise for almost a decade, and carried us to a height of success not usually associated with Seattle sports. He is a true great in Seattle sports history; so don’t wait until his success is simply a memory talked about in bars across the state after a failed season in the future. Appreciate him this last year and as fans allow him some room to do what he does best: win; because when he does it will be the last bite you remember and not the first.
Posted in Seahawks