Thank you, Kam Chancellor, and farewell to the charismatic "Legion of Boom", the historically great Seattle Seahawks secondary composed of outcasts and late-round draft picks that held Payton Manning and the Denver Broncos' number one scoring offense to eight points in the 2013 super bowl. This offseason has already seen the departure of Richard Sherman to NFC West rival San Francisco and the jettison of the defensive line in the Michael Bennett trade and Cliff Avril's career-ending neck injury.
Like the Mayans predicting the apocalypse, there was a certain feeling that this team was on its own collision course with destruction after completely squandering an opportunity to win back-to-back super bowls by throwing a game-ending interception on the Patriots' one-yard line in the 2014 super bowl instead of pounding it in the end zone with the game's most dominant running back at the time, Marshawn Lynch. Lynch retired the following year.
All pro-corner-back Richard Sherman never recovered mentally either. The Seahawks were their defense. The offense kept up, doing just enough to back up a nearly flawless defense and Malcolm Butlers Infamous interception finally broke the camel's back.
Feeling like his hard work, energy, and bodily risk had gone to waste for an offense and coaching staff that seemed to throw the game away, Sherman began to spiral into a pit of anger that manifested in sideline outbursts and teammate confrontations. The story given to the public was that the Seahawks were a team of alphas, fiery and strong personalities that naturally clashed but which ultimately strengthened their brotherly bonds. Meanwhile, the Seahawks won fewer games each successive season after that fateful interception.
While claiming publicly that the team was still full of talent and still had Superbowl expectations, it became clear that head coach Pete Carroll was trying to salvage a sinking ship. Trade rumors surfaced about Richard Sherman and the offense became one dimensional. The once dominant running game screeched to a halt, forcing quarterback Russel Wilson to perform miracles for every first down behind an exceptionally porous offensive line.
Many fans were still hanging on. I was one of them until the Seahawks were pummeled 38-10 by the Green Bay Packers in week 14 of the 2016 regular season as Wilson threw a career-high five interceptions. What seemed like a hopeful fluke at the time became a stark reality as the Seahawks were dominated 36-20 by the Atlanta Falcons in the second round of the playoffs. For the first time in the Pete Carroll-Legion of Boom era, the Seahawks did not beat themselves but were simply overmatched and outclassed by a better team.
After failing to make the playoffs the following year, many began to finally accept the truth, the Seahawks were a team going through a midlife crisis, hanging on to antiquated pieces of former glory, refusing to ride the wave of change. The Richard Sherman trade was the beginning of the cleanse, and Kam Chancellor's apparent retirement feels like the end to an acceptance of change from defense to offense.
There was a certain finality with Kam Chancellor. For the strongest, scariest, hardest-hitting safety in the league to retire because of an injury felt like a sign. He wasn't traded or released, and nobody, not even Kam made the decision. It was a true ending that felt almost like divine intervention. The time was simply up.
However, the Seahawks managed to accept their failures pretty quickly and manufacture a positive future to look forward to. With Bobby Wagner still controlling the middle of Seattle's defense; the charismatic Griffin brothers, cornerback Shaquill and one-handed linebacker Shaquem; and Russel Wilson behind an improved offensive line and a group of promising young running backs, Kam Chancellor's retirement announcement on Twitter was well timed.
Because of Seattle's bright future, we can have a proper send off to the greatest era in Seattle Seahawks history. As they transition toward rebuilding an offense with unique potential it makes it easier to say goodbye to a defense that actualized theirs and saw it crumble too soon.
