The Seahawks, in Pete Carroll's first season, had been up and down all year heading into this Wildcard Playoff game.
After a strong 4-2 start, Seattle had dropped seven of their last ten contests to finish the season at 7-9. None of the losses were real blow-out laughers, but after barely squeezing by the St. Louis (now LA)Rams, The Seahawks found themselves as the team that was easy to pick against, especially with the defending champion Saints' high powered offense.
The feature pieces on that team were quarterback Drew Brees, running back Reggie Bush, and receiver Marques Colston -- with an aged Jeremy Shockey at tight end.