1978 Seattle Seahawks season


The 1978 Seattle Seahawks season was the team's third season in the National Football League. The Seahawks won nine games, giving the franchise its first winning season. Head coach Jack Patera won the National Football League Coach of the Year Award at seasons end.
Led by the third ranked offense, the team had some achievements. David Sims led the AFC in total touchdowns – 15, including 14 rushing – and the team had 28 rushing touchdowns, number two in the league. Steve Largent made his first Pro Bowl with 71 receptions and 8 touchdowns. Quarterback Jim Zorn earned his sole All-Pro honor of his career by making the second team. This would be the only All-Pro by a Seahawks quarterback until Russell Wilson was selected in 2019. The defense, however, lagged far behind ranking 26th.
Season highlights included defeating the [1978 1978 Oakland Raiders season|Oakland Raiders season|Oakland Raiders] twice and a last-second win over the [1978 Minnesota Golden Gophers football|Minnesota Vikings season|Minnesota Vikings]. Also a memorable game was a 20–17 loss in overtime to the [1978 1978 Denver Broncos season|Denver Broncos season|Denver Broncos]. Following an interception of a Jim Zorn pass off of a deflection, in overtime, the Broncos drove to the 1 yard line, but could not punch it in for a touchdown. Jim Turner missed an 18-yard field goal attempt, but the Seahawks were penalized for having 12 men on the field and the Broncos made the second kick. A 37–10 defeat in [1978 1978 San Diego Chargers season|San Diego Chargers season|San Diego] in week 15 eliminated the Seahawks from playoff contention, but a 23–19 win at home against [1978 1978 Kansas City Chiefs season|Kansas City Chiefs season|Kansas City] gave the team their first winning season.

Offseason

Undrafted free agents

PlayerPositionCollege
Jerome CarterDefensive backDelaware State
Gene DalesGuardOregon State
Lance GarrettWide receiverSouth Carolina
Marcus HatleyTight endTulsa
Mike KorvasPunterWeber State
Rob LoweKicker/PunterIdaho
Steve MidboeDefensive endMinnesota
Mike O'BrienDefensive BackCalifornia
Scott PalmerQuarterbackAnderson
Frank StephensDefensive BackUCLA
Howard StuddardWide receiverUSC
Skip TaylorRunning backOklahoma State
Jeff TisdelQuarterbackNevada
Bruce TimmierQuarterbackTrinity
Joe VolinskyDefensive endPenn State

Personnel

Final roster

  • Starters in bold.
  • Denotes players that were selected for the 1979 Pro Bowl.

Schedule

Regular season

With the start of a 16-game season, inter-conference play began a rotating schedule. Divisional matchups had the AFC West playing the NFC Central.
WeekDateOpponentResultRecordGame siteRecap
1September 3[1978 1978 San Diego Chargers season|San Diego Chargers season|San Diego Chargers]L 20–240–1Kingdome
2September 10at [1978 1978 Pittsburgh Steelers season|Pittsburgh Steelers season|Pittsburgh Steelers]L 10–210–2Three Rivers Stadium
3September 17at [1978 1978 New York Jets season|New York Jets season|New York Jets]W 24–171–2Shea Stadium
4September 24Detroit LionsW 28–162–2Kingdome
5October 1at Denver BroncosL 7–282–3Mile High Stadium
6October 8Minnesota VikingsW 29–283–3Kingdome
7October 15at [1978 1978 Green Bay Packers season|Green Bay Packers season|Green Bay Packers]L 28–453–4Milwaukee County Stadium
8October 22Oakland RaidersW 27–74–4Kingdome
9October 29Denver BroncosL 17–20 4–5Kingdome
10November 5at [1978 1978 Chicago Bears season|Chicago Bears season|Chicago Bears]W 31–295–5Soldier Field
11November 12Baltimore ColtsL 14–175–6Kingdome
12November 19at [1978 1978 Kansas City Chiefs season|Kansas City Chiefs season|Kansas City Chiefs]W 13–106–6Arrowhead Stadium
13November 26at Oakland RaidersW 17–167–6Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum
14December 3Cleveland BrownsW 47–248–6Kingdome
15December 10at San Diego ChargersL 10–378–7San Diego Stadium
16December 17Kansas City ChiefsW 23–199–7Kingdome