NEWS

In a championship battle billed as the ultimate test of modern offense and defense, Earl Thomas and the Seattle Seahawks made an old adage stand up.

Defense wins championships.

The Seattle Seahawks, boasting the NFL’s top-ranked defense, dominated Super Bowl XLVIII, defeating the Denver Broncos 43-8 to claim the Lombardi trophy, the first NFL Championship in franchise history.

“It’s all about making history,” Earl said after the game. “This was a dominant performance from top to bottom. You had guys (that) stepped up that you wouldn’t even think (would step) up. That’s what this team is all about. This whole journey that we had, we’ve been enjoying this whole process and the destination — like I’ve been saying all year — it took care of itself.”

Before the game, ET III shared some words of wisdom with his defense, telling them to block out the hoopla of the Super Bowl and just play their game.

“Earl made a great statement before the game,” All-Pro cornerback Richard Sherman said. “He told us, ‘Let’s get lost in the game. Let’s show them what we’re really about. Let’s get lost in it. Let’s go out there and get in our zone and never come out of it. Let’s go play our best football.’ That’s what we tried to do.”

Led by three All-Pro defensive backs: ET III, Sherman and Kam Chancellor, the Seahawks defense took care of NFL MVP Peyton Manning and the league’s No. 1 offense in a way no other team has been able to.

It started with the first snap of the game. Seattle’s traveling 12th man was amped up and rocking Metlife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey from the get-go, causing a cadence issue for the Denver offense. Unable to hear his quarterback, Broncos center Manny Ramirez snapped the ball early on 1st & 10 from the 14, and it flew over the shoulder of Manning as the quarterback stepped up to make an adjustment.

The ball rolled into the end zone, where Broncos running back Knowshon Moreno pounced on it and was touched down for a safety that give the Seahawks a 2-0 lead just 12 seconds into the game. From that moment on, everything went Seattle’s way.

The Seahawks went on to score 36 consecutive points before Denver finally cracked the scoreboard on the final play of the third quarter. The dominating outcome was surprising to some, but ET III knew the work he and his team put in coming into Sunday’s game would benefit them.

“We have great guys that God gave them so much athletic ability,” Earl said. “When you take advantage of that and you really practice your butt off, no matter if it’s walkthroughs or in practice, you come with the same energy every day, it’s going to pay off for you.”

After the safety, Seattle looked to strike on offense. Playing in his first full game as a Seahawk, Percy Harvin heated up early, showing off his elite speed, on a jet sweep that he took for a 30-yard gain around the left side. That run set up a 31-yard field goal from kicker Steven Hauschka, which gave Seattle a 5-0 advantage less than five minutes into the game.

On the next Broncos series, the Seattle defense continued to set the tone. Kam Chancellor delivered the game’s first eye-opening hit, sending ET into a frenzy and forcing a three-and-out on the Broncos’ first full offensive set.

Seattle quarterback Russell Wilson began to settle in on the ensuing Hawks possession and converted on three third-down pass attempts. However, the drive stalled shy of the end zone, forcing another field goal try, which Hauschka drilled to extend the lead to 8-0. Hauschka’s two first quarter kicks were his only field goals of the night, capping a perfect 8-for-8 postseason.

Though the Hawks had dominated the game early, the difference was still just one possession when Denver’s offense took the field for the third time. Earl nearly came up with a huge play for the ‘Hawks when Seattle bottled up Moreno at the 27 and Chris Clemons jarred the ball loose.

ET hustled to the play just in time to see the ball come loose, but Denver offensive lineman Zane Beadles jumped on it. Still ET III recorded a tackle for loss on the play, one of his seven tackles on the night. Seattle came up with its first turnover on the very next play when Chancellor snared an errant pass from Manning.

Taking over possession with the ball deep in Denver territory, Seattle’s offense wouldn’t be denied a touchdown this time. Harvin set up the score with another nice rush around the edge and Marshawn Lynch sealed the deal, pounding his way in for a one-yard TD to extend the Seahawks lead to 15-0.

The game seemingly slipping away, Denver felt a sense of urgency and finally began to mount a drive to answer Seattle’s early surge. Manning strung together a pair of third-down conversions and started to feel a rhythm. But when he attempted to venture into Area 29, he overshot Demaryius Thomas with ET III in coverage.

Manning went deep over the middle four times on the night, finishing 0-for-4 with an interception. His longest completion all night was for 18 yards.

Manning regrouped after the incomplete toss to Thomas and continued a solid drive, but a big play by Seattle’s front seven would abruptly Denver’s scoring hopes. Manning had the Broncos just on the edge of scoring position when he was hit as he threw by Cliff Avril, causing the ball to pop up into the air well short of its intended target. It fell into the hands of linebacker Malcolm Smith, who returned the interception all the way back for six.

The game was quickly snowballing in favor of the Seahawks as halftime approached, and the Broncos had just one more chance to turn the tide before the break. Manning quickly moved Denver into Seattle territory in short oder, but the drive unraveled when he again went deep over the middle on first down, where ET was in coverage on Denver’s physical tight end Julius Thomas. The incompletion eventually led to a failed fourth-down attempt by Denver, marking the end of the first half.

The Hawks held a huge 22-0 advantage at the break, but with an entire half to play against a high-powered offense, Seattle’s defense entered the locker room acknowledging that the game was far from over.

Twelve seconds into the third quarter, Denver’s comeback hopes took another huge hit. Sent out by Seattle coach Pete Carroll to return the  second half’s opening kickoff on a hunch, Harvin darted 87 yards for a touchdown.

However, not long after Harvin’s crippling score, Malcolm Smith won the MVP race and sealed Seattle’s win with a fumble recovery, handing the ball back to Wilson and the offense near midfield looking to extend the lead even further.

They did so just three minutes after Smith’s takeaway when Wilson connected with Jermaine Kearse, who broke several tackles on his way to the end zone for a score that put Seattle ahead 36-0. After the game, Earl noted that the dominant effort was a result of work done by every member of the franchise all season long.

“Everybody, from top to bottom. The receivers played great. Everybody on defense played great. This was a great win,” ET III said. “Whatever we practice in the classroom and in the walkthrough, we took it here. I’m talking about from the bottom person, to the practice squad, everybody’s connected in this process. The cafeteria people, the video guys, this is a group effort.”

After Kearse’s touchdown, Denver finally answered with a touchdown drive of its own, but it was too little, too late. Wilson responded with a second touchdown pass, this one to Baldwin, representing the final salvo of a dominant victory. While many were shocked by the outcome, Earl was far from surprised. He was asked after the game whether he expected his team to dominate the way they did and answered confidently.

“Yeah,” he replied promptly. “We’ve been trying to tell you guys all week. Y’all didn’t listen.”

Most believed Manning would be able to break through the Legion of Boom like he had against every secondary he faced all season. However, as ET explained afterward, the LOB is unlike any other secondary Manning has seen.

“You can’t really gameplan for us, because your scout team guys are not Kam Chancellor, Byron Maxwell, Richard Sherman, and especially not 2-9. So we understand that,” Earl said. “That’s why we don’t get all stressed out about the game. We just enjoy it. That’s what it’s all about, enjoying teammates and having a balance in your life. The rest will take care of itself.”

After the game, congratulations poured into Earl’s Twitter feed from fans, as well as many of the people who helped him reach the pinnacle of his sport:

Earl even took a moment to jump on Twitter himself and comment on the championship feeling.

Although the celebration had just begun, work wasn’t far from Earl’s mind. When he was asked by reporters about the future of the Seahawks, No. 29 beamed with delight and assured that the best is yet to come.

“You definitely want to enjoy this time now,” Earl admitted. “[But] once I get success like this, I just want more success. It’s a great feeling. When you’re at the top, you want to stay at the top cause everybody is gunning for you now.

“We’re just excited for the opportunity. That’s all you can ask for in life is the opportunity to do something. Obviously, we’ve done something great, but this is not the end of it. We’re going to keep striving to get better and try to stay on top as long as possible.”