Seahawks Finally Get Their Due Before Patriots Come to Seattle

For much of the offseason, the Seattle Seahawks have occupied an unusual place in the NFL conversation. They have the Lombardi Trophy. Other teams have seemingly had the spotlight. That is beginning to change just before the New England Patriots return to Seattle. Pro Football Talk placed the defending Super Bowl champions No. 1 in its Week 1 NFL power rankings, keeping Seattle ahead of a Los Angeles Rams team that has dominated much of the preseason hype. And PFT isn't alone. CBS Sports' Pete Prisco also opened the season with Seattle at No. 1 — and, more importantly, said out loud what plenty of Seahawks fans have probably been thinking for months. 'The champs are getting disrespected in a lot of ways,' Prisco wrote in his September 8 rankings. Now the Seahawks get a chance to answer that entire conversation in the most appropriate way possible. Against the team they beat to become champions. Seahawks Have Watched Rams Take Over the Conversation Nobody needs to invent a Seahawks disrespect narrative. Just look at how the NFL offseason unfolded. The Rams became perhaps the league's biggest glamour team after loading an already talented roster with even more star power. Reigning MVP Matthew Stafford remains at quarterback, while Myles Garrett and a returning Aaron Donald turned Los Angeles into one of the most talked-about teams of the summer. Prisco even described the Rams as the NFL's 'chic, trendy pick,' noting that many observers have Los Angeles reaching the Super Bowl. NFL.com also put Los Angeles first in its preseason rankings and Seattle third, citing some legitimate questions created by the Seahawks' offseason losses. talkSPORT followed a similar path this week, ranking the Rams first and the reigning champions third. There are football reasons for that skepticism. Seattle lost Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker III in free agency. The Seahawks have also been dealing with health uncertainty around key defensive pieces, while a rookie-heavy backfield will be asked to replace significant production. But there is also something odd about watching a team win the Super Bowl and then spend the following summer watching everyone else get crowned. PFT and CBS just pushed back. PFT Puts Seahawks Back Where Champions Expect to Be PFT's ranking is simple but significant: Seattle is first. The Rams are second. The Denver Broncos are fourth. And the Patriots — the team Seattle beat 29-13 in Super Bowl LX — enter the season seventh in PFT's rankings. CBS reached the same conclusion at the top, although Prisco admitted he does not currently expect Seattle to repeat as champion. His reasoning for starting the Seahawks first was straightforward: the champion deserves to begin there until somebody takes the spot away. That distinction matters. These rankings aren't necessarily predictions that Seattle will hoist another Lombardi Trophy in February. They're acknowledgments that the Seahawks already did something the Rams and every other hyped contender still have to do. They won the last one. And Wednesday night gives Seattle the perfect stage to remind everyone. Patriots Rematch Gives Seattle a Chance to Reinforce the Point The 2026 NFL season begins with one of the league's rarest openers: an immediate Super Bowl rematch. Seattle hosts New England on Wednesday night at Lumen Field, seven months after beating the Patriots for the franchise's second championship. The Seahawks aren't walking into the game untouched. Safety Nick Emmanwori was limited in practice this week because of an ankle issue, while New England has its own injury concerns entering the opener. But none of that changes the symbolism. Seattle gets to raise a championship banner in front of its home crowd. The opponent has already seen what this team can do at the highest possible level. And the rest of the NFL has spent months debating whether someone else should already be considered better. Power rankings won't settle that. Wednesday night can begin to. The Seahawks have spent the offseason hearing about the Rams, the Broncos and every other team capable of taking their crown. Now PFT and CBS have delivered something different. Respect. The defending champions get their first chance to prove it was overdue when the Patriots walk back into Lumen Field.