1978 Seattle Seahawks season

Last updated

1978 Seattle Seahawks season
Owner The Nordstrom family
General managerJohn Thompson
Head coach Jack Patera
Home field Kingdome
Results
Record9–7
Division place3rd AFC West
Playoff finishDid not qualify
Pro Bowlers WR Steve Largent
AP All-Pros QB Jim Zorn (2nd team)
WR Steve Largent (2nd team)

The 1978 Seattle Seahawks season was the team's third season in the National Football League (NFL). The Seahawks won nine games, giving the franchise its first winning season. Coach Jack Patera won the National Football League Coach of the Year Award at seasons end.

Contents

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 Oakland Raiders twice and a last-second win over the Minnesota Vikings. Also a memorable game was a 20–17 loss in overtime to the 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 San Diego in week 15 eliminated the Seahawks from playoff contention, but a 23–19 win at home against Kansas City gave the team their first winning season.

Draft

1978 Seattle Seahawks Draft
RoundSelectionPlayerPositionCollege
19 Keith Simpson Defensive back Memphis State
236 Keith Butler Linebacker Memphis State
363 Bob Jury Defensive Back Pittsburgh
5119 Louis Bullard Offensive tackle Jackson State
6146Glenn Starks Wide receiver Texas A&I
7173 John Harris Defensive Back Arizona State
9231Rich GrimmettOffensive Tackle Illinois
10258Rob StewartWide Receiver Lafayette
11301George HalasLinebacker Miami (FL)
12316Jeff Bergeron Running back Lamar

Undrafted free agents

1978 Undrafted Free Agents of note
PlayerPositionCollege
Jerome CarterDefensive back Delaware State
Gene DalesGuard Oregon State
Lance GarrettWide receiver South Carolina
Marcus HatleyTight end Tulsa
Mike KorvasPunter Weber State
Rob LoweKicker/Punter Idaho
Steve MidboeDefensive end Minnesota
Mike O'BrienDefensive Back California
Scott PalmerQuarterbackAnderson
Frank StephensDefensive Back UCLA
Howard StuddardWide receiver USC
Skip TaylorRunning back Oklahoma State
Jeff Tisdel Quarterback Nevada
Bruce TimmierQuarterbackTrinity
Joe VolinskyDefensive end Penn State

Personnel

Staff

1978 Seattle Seahawks staff

Front office

  • Managing general partner – Herman Sarkowsky
  • general manager – John Thompson
  • Assistant general manager – Mark Duncan
  • Director of player personnel – Dick Mansperger
  • Director of pro scouting – Chuck Allen

Head coaches

Offensive coaches

Defensive coaches


Strength and conditioning

  • Head trainer – Bruce Scott
  • Assistant trainer – Jim Whitesel

Final roster

1978 Seattle Seahawks final roster
Quarterbacks

Running backs

Wide receivers

Tight ends

Offensive linemen

Defensive linemen

Linebackers

Defensive backs

Special teams

Reserve lists


Rookies in italics
49 active, 0 inactive, 0 practice squad

[1]

Schedule

Preseason

WeekDateOpponentResultRecordGame siteRecap
1August 4 San Diego Chargers W 17–91–0 Kingdome Recap
2August 12at San Francisco 49ers W 20–62–0 Candlestick Park Recap
3August 17 Los Angeles Rams L 7–262–1Kingdome Recap
4August 24 Chicago Bears W 16–73–1Kingdome Recap
Source: Seahawks Media Guides [2] [3]

    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 San Diego Chargers L 20–240–1 Kingdome Recap
    2September 10at Pittsburgh Steelers L 10–210–2 Three Rivers Stadium Recap
    3September 17at New York Jets W 24–171–2 Shea Stadium Recap
    4September 24 Detroit Lions W 28–162–2Kingdome Recap
    5October 1at Denver Broncos L 7–282–3 Mile High Stadium Recap
    6October 8 Minnesota Vikings W 29–283–3Kingdome Recap
    7October 15at Green Bay Packers L 28–453–4 Milwaukee County Stadium Recap
    8October 22 Oakland Raiders W 27–74–4Kingdome Recap
    9October 29Denver BroncosL 17–20 (OT)4–5Kingdome Recap
    10November 5at Chicago Bears W 31–295–5 Soldier Field Recap
    11November 12 Baltimore Colts L 14–175–6Kingdome Recap
    12November 19at Kansas City Chiefs W 13–106–6 Arrowhead Stadium Recap
    13November 26at Oakland RaidersW 17–167–6 Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum Recap
    14December 3 Cleveland Browns W 47–248–6Kingdome Recap
    15December 10at San Diego ChargersL 10–378–7 San Diego Stadium Recap
    16December 17Kansas City ChiefsW 23–199–7Kingdome Recap
    Bold indicates division opponents.
    Source: 1978 NFL season results [4] [5]

    Standings

    AFC West
    WLTPCTDIVCONFPFPASTK
    Denver Broncos (3)1060.6257–18–4282198L1
    Oakland Raiders 970.5633–55–7311283W1
    Seattle Seahawks 970.5634–46–6345358W1
    San Diego Chargers 970.5635–37–5355309W3
    Kansas City Chiefs 4120.2501–74–10243327L2

    Game summaries

    Preseason

    Week P1: vs. San Diego Chargers

    Preseason Week One: Seattle Seahawks vs. San Diego Chargers – Game summary
    Period1234Total
    Chargers03339
    Seahawks073717

    at Kingdome, Seattle

    Week P2: at San Francisco 49ers

    Preseason Week Two: Seattle Seahawks at San Francisco 49ers – Game summary
    Period1234Total
    Seahawks0137020
    49ers03306

    at Candlestick Park, San Francisco

    • Date: August 12
    • Game time: 6:06 pm local
    • Game weather: cloudy, 61 °F (16 °C), 77% humidity, wind S 4 miles per hour (6.4 km/h)
    • Game attendance: 36,069
    • Referee: Fred Silva
    • TV: KIRO
    • Gamebook

    Week P3: vs. Los Angeles Rams

    Preseason Week Three: Seattle Seahawks vs. Los Angeles Rams – Game summary
    Period1234Total
    Rams1067326
    Seahawks07007

    at Kingdome, Seattle

    Week P4: vs. Chicago Bears

    Preseason Week Four: Seattle Seahawks vs. Chicago Bears – Game summary
    Period1234Total
    Bears00077
    Seahawks073616

    at Kingdome, Seattle

    Regular season

    Week 1: vs. San Diego Chargers

    Week One: Seattle Seahawks vs. San Diego Chargers – Game summary
    Period1234Total
    Chargers737724
    Seahawks670720

    at Kingdome, Seattle

    Game information

    Week 2: at Pittsburgh Steelers

    Week Two: Seattle Seahawks at Pittsburgh Steelers – Game summary
    Period1234Total
    Seahawks073010
    Steelers0140721

    at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

    Game information

    Week 3: at New York Jets

    Week Three: Seattle Seahawks at New York Jets – Game summary
    Period1234Total
    Seahawks0143724
    Jets773017

    at Shea Stadium, New York

    Game information

    Week 4: vs. Detroit Lions

    Week Four: Seattle Seahawks vs. Detroit Lions – Game summary
    Period1234Total
    Lions3310016
    Seahawks0702128

    at Kingdome, Seattle

    Game information

    Week 5: at Denver Broncos

    Week Five: Seattle Seahawks at Denver Broncos – Game summary
    Period1234Total
    Seahawks00707
    Broncos7701428

    at Mile High Stadium, Denver, Colorado

    • Date: October 1
    • Game time: 2:00 pm local
    • Game weather: partly cloudy, 82 °F (28 °C), 23% humidity, wind 5 miles per hour (8.0 km/h)
    • Game attendance: 74,989
    • Referee: Cal Lepore
    • TV announcers (NBC): Jay Randolph and Mike Haffner
    • Gamebook
    Game information

    Week 6: vs. Minnesota Vikings

    Week Six: Seattle Seahawks vs. Minnesota Vikings – Game summary
    Period1234Total
    Vikings01414028
    Seahawks13601029

    at Kingdome, Seattle

    Game information

    Week 7: at Green Bay Packers

    Week Seven: Seattle Seahawks at Green Bay Packers – Game summary
    Period1234Total
    Seahawks0147728
    Packers'28314045

    at Milwaukee County Stadium, Milwaukee, Wisconsin

    • Date: October 15
    • Game time: 12:00 pm local
    • Game weather: cloudy, 42 °F (6 °C), 87% humidity, wind S 14 miles per hour (23 km/h)
    • Game attendance: 52,712
    • Referee: Chuck Heberling
    • TV announcers (NBC): Sam Nover and Bob Trumpy
    • Gamebook
    Game information

    Week 8: vs. Oakland Raiders

    Week Eight: Seattle Seahawks vs. Oakland Raiders – Game summary
    Period1234Total
    Raiders00077
    Seahawks7146027

    at Kingdome, Seattle

    Game information

    Week 9: vs. Denver Broncos

    Week One: Seattle Seahawks vs. Denver Broncos – Game summary
    Period1234OTTotal
    Broncos3770320
    Seahawks7703017

    at Kingdome, Seattle

    Game information

    Week 10: at Chicago Bears

    Week Ten: Seattle Seahawks at Chicago Bears – Game summary
    Period1234Total
    Seahawks7714331
    Bears06101329

    at Soldier Field, Chicago, Illinois

    • Date: November 5
    • Game time: 12:01 pm local
    • Game weather: clear, 71 °F (22 °C), 74% humidity, wind S 16 miles per hour (26 km/h)
    • Game attendance: 50,697
    • Referee: Pat Haggerty
    • TV announcers (NBC): Curt Gowdy and John Brodie
    • Gamebook
    Game information

    Week 11: vs. Baltimore Colts

    Week One: Seattle Seahawks vs. Baltimore Colts – Game summary
    Period1234Total
    Colts730717
    Seahawks700714

    at Kingdome, Seattle

    Game information

    Week 12: at Kansas City Chiefs

    Week Twelve: Seattle Seahawks at Kansas City Chiefs – Game summary
    Period1234Total
    Seahawks373013
    Chiefs030710

    at Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri

    Game information

    Week 13: at Oakland Raiders

    Week Thirteen: Seattle Seahawks at Oakland Raiders – Game summary
    Period1234Total
    Seahawks7001017
    Raiders0100616

    at Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum, Oakland, California

    • Date: November 26
    • Game time: 1:00 pm local
    • Game weather: hazy, 50 °F (10 °C), 86% humidity, wind W 5 miles per hour (8.0 km/h)
    • Game attendance: 52,978
    • Referee: Jerry Markbreit
    • TV announcers (NBC): Curt Gowdy and John Brodie
    • Gamebook
    Game information

    Week 14: vs. Cleveland Browns

    Week Fourteen: Seattle Seahawks vs. Cleveland Browns – Game summary
    Period1234Total
    Browns0107724
    Seahawks14971747

    at Kingdome, Seattle

    Game information

    Week 15: at San Diego Chargers

    Week Fifteen: Seattle Seahawks at San Diego Chargers – Game summary
    Period1234Total
    Seahawks730010
    Chargers31701737

    at San Diego Stadium, San Diego

    • Date: December 10
    • Game time: 1:00 pm local
    • Game weather: clear, 69 °F (21 °C), 50% humidity, wind W 8 miles per hour (13 km/h)
    • Game attendance: 49,975
    • Referee: Pat Haggerty
    • TV announcers (NBC): Jim Simpson and Paul Warfield
    • Gamebook
    Game information

    Week 16: vs. Kansas City Chiefs

    Week Sixteen: Seattle Seahawks vs. Kansas City Chiefs – Game summary
    Period1234Total
    Chiefs377219
    Seahawks7130323

    at Kingdome, Seattle

    Game information

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    References

    1. "Home". pro-football-reference.com.
    2. 1978 Seahawks Media Guide, accessed February 14, 2015.
    3. 1979 Seahawks Media Guide, accessed February 14, 2015.
    4. Seattle Seahawks 1978 Schedule
    5. 1978 NFL season results, NFL.com, accessed February 14, 2015.