Ernest Jones IV May Have Shared Secret to Seahawks' Successful Defense

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Seattle Seahawks linebacker Ernest Jones IV is forever grateful to be the middle linebacker of the "Dark Side" defense.
Jones and his teammates are forever stamped in NFL history and Seahawks lore as Super Bowl LX champions and they will always carry the badge of honor. Jones shared what he believes is the reason behind how the Seahawks were able to accomplish so much as a defense.
"I think when you get around a group of guys that you truly want to see succeed, you take your own personal ambitions out of it," Jones said via team website contributor Ari Horton.
"There's so much that a team can do. And I think that's what a lot of guys did, put themselves to the side, and I mean, I think you die for a greater cause. When winning the Super Bowl, great things are going to happen to guys who need contracts, guys that are coming up on contracts, whatever the case may be. I mean, winning helps. So I think we just believed in the mission."

Seahawks Defense Will Have Attempts of Recreation
The Seahawks' defense is everything you want: tenacity, teamwork, pressure and the ability to make it very nearly impossible to score. It's what many teams learned the hard way this past season and the greatness of the group allowed individuals to give themselves up for the greater good.
"The people in this room are very selfless," Seahawks defensive back Julian Love said via Horton. "The egos are to the side, and that's been our success this year."
The team aspect of football and what the Seahawks were able to do is what it's all about. Football is an incredibly hard sport to win because it requires so many parts to work. There's often 25 players in a unit that have to be in sync with one another and on the same page. Every football team achieves this to some degree, but the ones who perform the best in this aspect are usually the ones that play deep into January and February.
Then, the elite out of that group are fortunate enough to hoist the Lombardi Trophy, much like Jones, Love and the Seahawks were able to do this past season.

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Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several On SI sites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid and resides in Central Florida. He graduated from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener.