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Marshawn Lynch on How Super Bowl 49 Disaster Broke Pete Carroll's Seahawks

At the most critical moment, Carroll and his staff abandoned their philosophy.
Feb 3, 2019; Atlanta, GA, USA; Oakland Raiders running back Marshawn Lynch on the sidelines before Super Bowl LIII between the New England Patriots and the Los Angeles Rams at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
Feb 3, 2019; Atlanta, GA, USA; Oakland Raiders running back Marshawn Lynch on the sidelines before Super Bowl LIII between the New England Patriots and the Los Angeles Rams at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. | Christopher Hanewinckel-Imagn Images

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No NFL team has repeated as Super Bowl champions since Tom Brady's early run with the New England Patriots over 20 years ago. The Seattle Seahawks came closer than anyone else - falling just one yard short of two straight championships after making the most controversial and disastrous play-call in Super Bowl history.

By now you've seen a thousand replays and read a hundred different break-downs of Russell Wilson's interception to Malcolm Butler, which former LOB member Brandon Browner saw coming a mile away.

The fallout from the Super Bowl pick from hell was predictably catastrophic. As gifted and talented as that generation of Seahawks were, they never came close to winning another ring.

Even though they were clearly still the best team in the NFL the following season, something had irrevocably changed about them.

We haven't heard too much from the guy who should have gotten the ball in that situation since. Here's what Marshawn Lynch had to say about the Super Bowl 49 collapse and the effect it had on the psyche of the Seahawks, per Mike Dugar at The Athletic.

“It took confidence (away from) what the coaching staff and what the organization was preaching,” Lynch explained. “(Carroll) preaches, ‘We’re gonna run the ball down your throat,’ and all that type of s— like that. I think it took a lot of respect from them, ’cause they weren’t standing on s—. They weren’t ‘10 toes’ on what the f— they were preaching."

While it's long been clear that the interception turned a small rift between Pete Carroll, Russell Wilson and Seattle's defense into a chasm the size of the Grand Canyon - we've never heard it spelled out so eloquently as this.

Lynch went on to say that the vibes at the facility were never quite the same, after.

“Hell yeah, it felt different,” Lynch recalled. “It felt like we had to go to work. Before, work didn’t feel like work; it was basically like a hangout. (But) just like with anything, if you deal with an unsolid individual — once they show you their hand — then you deal with them accordingly. And motherf—–s started dealing with the motherf—–s accordingly."

No matter what, the ending to SB49 will feature prominently in Sunday's broadcast, even though no players remain on either team from that matchup. In fact, the only holdovers are Patriots owner Robert Kraft and Seahawks GM John Schneider.

While it's undeniably inspired by the generation that came before them, Mike Macdonald's Seahawks have their own identity and their own reasons for wanting to win.

Aside from throwing the ball at the one-yard line with the game on the line, the worst thing Macdonald can do is bring up Wilson's interception - and he's said there's been no discussion of any kind of revenge-game scenario.

Cris Collinsworth will take care of that part - but like it or not every Seahawks fan will have a long-awaited redemption on their minds when the fourth quarter comes around.

Kam Chancellor
Feb 1, 2015; Glendale, AZ, USA; Seattle Seahawks strong safety Kam Chancellor (31) walks off the field after Super Bowl XLIX at University of Phoenix Stadium. | Matthew Emmons-Imagn Images

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Tim Weaver
TIM WEAVER

Tim Weaver has been writing about the NFL since the 2013 season for multiple teams and outlets, including USA Today and The Sporting News. He currently covers the Seattle Seahawks and Carolina Panthers for On SI.