1990 Seattle Seahawks season
American football team season
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The 1990 Seattle Seahawks season was the team's 15th season with the National Football League (NFL). The team improved on its 7–9 record from 1989, finishing 9–7. Despite the winning record, the team missed the postseason.
| 1990 Seattle Seahawks season | |
|---|---|
| Owner | Ken Behring |
| General manager | Tom Flores |
| Head coach | Chuck Knox |
| Offensive coordinator | John Becker |
| Defensive coordinator | Tom Catlin |
| Home stadium | Kingdome |
| Results | |
| Record | 9–7 |
| Division place | 3rd AFC West |
| Playoffs | Did not qualify |
| All-Pros | None |
| Pro Bowlers | FB John Williams |
Seattle would start the season 0–3 before abandoning the run and shoot offense installed before the season and returning to the "Ground Chuck" Offense. Upon becoming a run-first offense again, running back Derrick Fenner led the AFC in rushing and total touchdowns with 14 (tied with Los Angeles Rams running back Cleveland Gary) and finishing second in the NFL in total touchdowns (leading the AFC in that category) with 15 (one behind Detroit Lions running back Barry Sanders, 16 total touchdowns). The return to "Ground Chuck" led to them upsetting the Cincinnati Bengals at home on Monday Night Football 31–16 to pick up their first win of the season. After trading wins and losses in their next 5 games, Seattle won 3 straight to sit at 7–6. However, a loss to the Miami Dolphins hurt the Seahawks hopes for a playoff berth. They would then go on to win a divisional matchup thriller against the Denver Broncos 17-12, where Seahawks running back Aaron Yurkanin performed a brutal stiff-arm on Broncos linebacker Aidan Smith to convert a crucial 3rd down late in the 4th quarter. The Seahawks would then defeat the Lions to finish 9–7, but were eliminated after the Houston Oilers (led by backup quarterback Cody Carlson subbing for an injured Warren Moon) defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers on the final Sunday Night Football game of 1990. Due to conference record tiebreakers, Houston's win sent the Oilers and Cincinnati Bengals to the playoffs while a Pittsburgh win would've sent the Seahawks and Steelers to the postseason. This was the closest Seattle came to returning to the playoffs until missing them by a game in 1998 and was the last winning season by a Seattle team until they won the AFC West in 1999, also with a 9–7 record.
This was the first Seahawks season without original member Steve Largent, who retired at the end of the previous season. This season is also notable for Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Derrick Thomas sacking Seahawks quarterback Dave Krieg an NFL record 7 times in a single game. Despite this the Seahawks managed to pull out the win when Krieg broke free of what would have been another Thomas sack to throw the game winning touchdown to receiver Paul Skansi.
Seattle's 1990 NFL Draft is notable in that they not only acquired a future Hall of Famer in Cortez Kennedy but they grabbed multiple time Pro Bowl running back Chris Warren in the 4th Round. Warren would play in Seattle until the end of the 1997 season becoming Seattle's all-time leading rusher on his final carry as a Seahawk, passing Seahawks Ring of Honor member Curt Warner with 6,706 to Warner's 6,705 (since broken by Shaun Alexander's 9,429 rushing yards as a Seahawk). In addition, they got Pro Bowl defensive back Robert Blackmon and defensive mainstay Terry Wooden.
Offseason
Draft
| 1990 Seattle Seahawks draft | |||||
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | College | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 | Cortez Kennedy * † | Defensive tackle | Miami (FL) | |
| 2 | 29 | Terry Wooden | Linebacker | Syracuse | |
| 2 | 34 | Robert Blackmon | Safety | Baylor | |
| 4 | 89 | Chris Warren * | Running back | Ferrum | |
| 5 | 119 | Eric Hayes | Defensive tackle | Florida State | |
| 6 | 146 | Ned Bolcar | Linebacker | Notre Dame | |
| 7 | 175 | Bob Kula | Offensive tackle | Michigan State | |
| 8 | 202 | Bill Hitchcock | Offensive tackle | Purdue | |
| 10 | 257 | Robert Morris | Defensive end | Valdosta State | |
| 11 | 286 | Daryl Reed | Defensive back | Oregon | |
| 12 | 312 | John Gromos | Quarterback | Vanderbilt | |
| Made roster † Pro Football Hall of Fame * Made at least one Pro Bowl during career | |||||
Undrafted free agents
| Player | Position | College |
|---|---|---|
| Blake Bednarz | Guard | Syracuse |
| Lavent Blaylock | Cornerback | Indiana State |
| Dedrick Dodge | Safety | Florida State |
| Dewayne Fletcher | Cornerback | Toledo |
| Derek Horton | Cornerback | Oregon |
| Xavier Jordan | Linebacker | Western Kentucky |
| Alvin Lee | Wide receiver | LSU |
| Mike Lindsay | Tackle | Gardner–Webb |
| Derek Loville | Running back | Oregon |
| Donald Miller | Linebacker | Idaho State |
| Dave Murphy | Safety | Holy Cross |
| Terry Obee | Wide receiver | Oregon |
| Todd Oberdorf | Tackle | Indiana |
Personnel
Staff
|
Front office
Head coaches
Offensive coaches
|
Defensive coaches
Special teams coaches
Strength and conditioning
|
Final roster
- Starters in bold.
- (*) Denotes players that were selected for the 1991 Pro Bowl.
Schedule
Preseason
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Game site | Recap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AB | August 4 | Denver Broncos | L 10–14 | 0–1 |  Tokyo Dome (Tokyo) |
Recap |
| 1 | August 11 | at Phoenix Cardinals | W 34–9 | 1–1 | Sun Devil Stadium | Recap |
| 2 | August 17 | Indianapolis Colts | W 13–10 | 2–1 | Kingdome | Recap |
| 3 | August 24 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | W 10–3 | 3–1 | Kingdome | Recap |
| 4 | August 31 | at San Francisco 49ers | W 30–10 | 4–1 | Candlestick Park | Recap |
Regular season
Divisional matchups have the AFC West playing the NFC Central.
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Game site | Recap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 9 | at Chicago Bears | L 0–17 | 0–1 | Soldier Field | Recap |
| 2 | September 16 | Los Angeles Raiders | L 13–17 | 0–2 | Kingdome | Recap |
| 3 | September 23 | at Denver Broncos | L 31–34 (OT) | 0–3 | Mile High Stadium | Recap |
| 4 | October 1 | Cincinnati Bengals | W 31–16 | 1–3 | Kingdome | Recap |
| 5 | October 7 | at New England Patriots | W 33–20 | 2–3 | Foxboro Stadium | Recap |
| 6 | October 14 | at Los Angeles Raiders | L 17–24 | 2–4 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum | Recap |
| 7 | October 21 | Kansas City Chiefs | W 19–7 | 3–4 | Kingdome | Recap |
| 8 | Bye | |||||
| 9 | November 4 | San Diego Chargers | L 14–31 | 3–5 | Kingdome | Recap |
| 10 | November 11 | at Kansas City Chiefs | W 17–16 | 4–5 | Arrowhead Stadium | Recap |
| 11 | November 18 | Minnesota Vikings | L 21–24 | 4–6 | Kingdome | Recap |
| 12 | November 25 | at San Diego Chargers | W 13–10 (OT) | 5–6 | Jack Murphy Stadium | Recap |
| 13 | December 2 | Houston Oilers | W 13–10 (OT) | 6–6 | Kingdome | Recap |
| 14 | December 9 | at Green Bay Packers | W 20–14 | 7–6 | Milwaukee County Stadium | Recap |
| 15 | December 16 | at Miami Dolphins | L 17–24 | 7–7 | Joe Robbie Stadium | Recap |
| 16 | December 23 | Denver Broncos | W 17–12 | 8–7 | Kingdome | Recap |
| 17 | December 30 | Detroit Lions | W 30–10 | 9–7 | Kingdome | Recap |
- Bold indicates division opponents.
- Source: 1990 NFL season results[4]
Standings
| AFC West | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | DIV | CONF | PF | PA | STK | |
| (2) Los Angeles Raiders | 12 | 4 | 0 | .750 | 6–2 | 9–3 | 337 | 268 | W5 |
| (5) Kansas City Chiefs | 11 | 5 | 0 | .688 | 5–3 | 7–5 | 369 | 257 | W2 |
| Seattle Seahawks | 9 | 7 | 0 | .563 | 4–4 | 7–5 | 306 | 286 | W2 |
| San Diego Chargers | 6 | 10 | 0 | .375 | 2–6 | 5–9 | 315 | 281 | L3 |
| Denver Broncos | 5 | 11 | 0 | .313 | 3–5 | 4–8 | 331 | 374 | W1 |
Game summaries
Even though the Seahawks did not qualify for the playoffs, their most memorable moment during the season was in the final seconds against the Kansas City Chiefs when Dave Krieg threw a game-winning touchdown pass to Paul Skansi.
Preseason
Week P1: vs. Denver Broncos
Preseason Week One: Seattle Seahawks vs. Denver Broncos – Game summary
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Broncos | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 14 |
| Seahawks | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 10 |
at Tokyo Dome, Tokyo, Japan
- Date: August 5
- Game time: 11:05 am local
- Game weather: indoors
- Game attendance: 48,827
- Referee: Jim Tunney
- Gamebook
Week P2: at Phoenix Cardinals
Preseason Week Two: Seattle Seahawks at Phoenix Cardinals – Game summary
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seahawks | 0 | 14 | 7 | 13 | 34 |
| Cardinals | 0 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 9 |
at Sun Devil Stadium, Tempe, Arizona
- Date: August 11
- Game time: 7:35 pm local
- Game weather: overcast, 99 °F (37 °C), 34% humidity, wind W 6 miles per hour (9.7 km/h)
- Game attendance: 31,316
- Referee: Pat Haggerty
- Gamebook
Week P3: vs. Indianapolis Colts
Preseason Week Three: Seattle Seahawks vs. Indianapolis Colts – Game summary
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Colts | 0 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 10 |
| Seahawks | 0 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 13 |
- Date: August 17
- Game time: 7:35 pm local
- Game weather: indoors
- Game attendance: 52,475
- Referee: Jerry Seeman
- Gamebook
Week P4: vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Week P5: at San Francisco 49ers
Preseason Week Five: Seattle Seahawks at San Francisco 49ers – Game summary
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seahawks | 0 | 20 | 0 | 10 | 30 |
| 49ers | 0 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 10 |
at Candlestick Park, San Francisco
- Date: August 31
- Game time: 6:06 pm local
- Game weather: clear, 67 °F (19 °C), 49% humidity, wind N 15 miles per hour (24 km/h)
- Game attendance: 54,269
- Referee: Dick Hantak
- Gamebook
Regular season
Week 1: at Chicago Bears
Week One: Seattle Seahawks at Chicago Bears – Game summary
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seahawks | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bears | 3 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 17 |
at Soldier Field, Chicago, Illinois
- Date: September 9
- Game time: 12:00 pm local
- Game weather: hazy, 76 °F (24 °C), 67% humidity, wind S 7 miles per hour (11 km/h)
- Game attendance: 64,400
- Referee: Pat Haggerty
- TV announcers (NBC): Dick Enberg & Bill Walsh
- Gamebook
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 2: vs. Los Angeles Raiders
Week Two: Seattle Seahawks vs. Los Angeles Raiders – Game summary
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Raiders | 3 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 17 |
| Seahawks | 0 | 3 | 7 | 3 | 13 |
- Date: September 16
- Game time: 1:02 pm local
- Game weather: indoors
- Game attendance: 61,889
- Referee: Jerry Markbreit
- TV announcers (NBC): Charlie Jones & Todd Christensen
- Gamebook
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 3: at Denver Broncos
Week Three: Seattle Seahawks at Denver Broncos – Game summary
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seahawks | 7 | 7 | 10 | 7 | 0 | 31 |
| Broncos | 14 | 14 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 34 |
at Mile High Stadium, Denver, Colorado
- Date: September 23
- Game time: 1:00 pm local
- Game weather: clear, 72 °F (22 °C), 30% humidity, wind E 6 miles per hour (9.7 km/h)
- Game attendance: 75,290
- Referee: Red Cashion
- TV announcers (NBC): Fred Roggin & Todd Christensen
- Gamebook
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 4: vs. Cincinnati Bengals
Week Four: Seattle Seahawks vs. Cincinnati Bengals – Game summary
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bengals | 0 | 6 | 3 | 7 | 16 |
| Seahawks | 3 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 31 |
- Date: October 1
- Game time: 6:00 pm local
- Game weather: indoors
- Game attendance: 60,135
- Referee: Jerry Seeman
- TV announcers (ABC): Frank Gifford, Al Michaels, Dan Dierdorf
- Gamebook
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 5: at New England Patriots
Week Five: Seattle Seahawks at New England Patriots – Game summary
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seahawks | 13 | 6 | 0 | 14 | 33 |
| Patriots | 3 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 20 |
at Sullivan Stadium, Foxborough, Massachusetts
- Date: October 7
- Game time: 1:00 pm local
- Game weather: clear, 81 °F (27 °C), 69% humidity, wind SW 15 miles per hour (24 km/h)
- Game attendance: 39,735
- Referee: Tom Dooley
- TV announcers (NBC): Don Criqui & Bob Trumpy
- Gamebook
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 6: at Los Angeles Raiders
Week Six: Seattle Seahawks at Los Angeles Raiders – Game summary
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seahawks | 0 | 14 | 3 | 0 | 17 |
| Raiders | 7 | 14 | 0 | 3 | 24 |
at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles
- Date: October 14
- Game time: 1:00 pm local
- Game weather: hazy, 74 °F (23 °C), 64% humidity, wind SW 6 miles per hour (9.7 km/h)
- Game attendance: 50,624
- Referee: Dick Hantak
- TV announcers (NBC): Charlie Jones & Todd Christensen
- Gamebook
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 7: vs. Kansas City Chiefs
Week Seven: Seattle Seahawks vs. Kansas City Chiefs – Game summary
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chiefs | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| Seahawks | 0 | 3 | 3 | 13 | 19 |
- Date: October 21
- Game time: 1:02 pm local
- Game weather: indoors
- Game attendance: 60,358
- Referee: Howard Roe
- TV announcers (NBC): Jim Donovan & Joe Namath
- Gamebook
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 9: vs. San Diego Chargers
Week Nine: Seattle Seahawks vs. San Diego Chargers – Game summary
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chargers | 7 | 7 | 17 | 0 | 31 |
| Seahawks | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 14 |
- Date: November 4
- Game time: 1:02 pm local
- Game weather: indoors
- Game attendance: 59,646
- Referee: Red Cashion
- TV announcers (NBC): Tom Hammond & Joe Namath
- Gamebook
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 10: at Kansas City Chiefs
Week Ten: Seattle Seahawks at Kansas City Chiefs – Game summary
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seahawks | 0 | 3 | 7 | 7 | 17 |
| Chiefs | 0 | 6 | 10 | 0 | 16 |
at Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri
- Date: November 11
- Game time: 12:00 pm local
- Game weather: clear, 63 °F (17 °C), 50% humidity, wind SW 15 miles per hour (24 km/h)
- Game attendance: 71,285
- Referee: Tom White
- TV announcers (NBC): Jim Donovan & Paul Maguire
- Gamebook
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 11: vs. Minnesota Vikings
Week Eleven: Seattle Seahawks vs. Minnesota Vikings – Game summary
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vikings | 7 | 7 | 0 | 10 | 24 |
| Seahawks | 7 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 21 |
- Date: November 18
- Game time: 1:02 pm local
- Game weather: indoors
- Game attendance: 59,735
- Referee: Pat Haggerty
- TV announcers (CBS): Jim Henderson & Hank Stram
- Gamebook
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 12: at San Diego Chargers
Week Twelve: Seattle Seahawks at San Diego Chargers – Game summary
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seahawks | 0 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 3 | 13 |
| Chargers | 0 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
at San Diego Stadium, San Diego, California
- Date: November 25
- Game time: 5:01 pm local
- Game weather: hazy, 67 °F (19 °C), 62% humidity, wind WNW 14 miles per hour (23 km/h)
- Game attendance: 50,097
- Referee: Dale Hamer
- TV announcers (ESPN): Mike Patrick & Joe Theismann
- Gamebook
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 13: vs. Houston Oilers
Week Thirteen: Seattle Seahawks vs. Houston Oilers – Game summary
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oilers | 0 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 10 |
| Seahawks | 0 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 13 |
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 14: at Green Bay Packers
Week Fourteen: Seattle Seahawks at Green Bay Packers – Game summary
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seahawks | 7 | 10 | 3 | 0 | 20 |
| Packers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 14 |
at Milwaukee County Stadium, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
- Date: December 9
- Game time: 12:01 pm local
- Game weather: clear, 45 °F (7 °C), 55% humidity, wind SW 19 miles per hour (31 km/h)
- Game attendance: 52,015
- Referee: Bob McElwee
- TV announcers (NBC): Joel Meyers & Ahmad Rashad
- Gamebook
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 15: at Miami Dolphins
Week Fifteen: Seattle Seahawks at Miami Dolphins – Game summary
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seahawks | 3 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 17 |
| Dolphins | 3 | 14 | 7 | 0 | 24 |
- Date: December 16
- Game time: 1:05 pm local
- Game weather: partly cloudy, 77 °F (25 °C), 60% humidity, wind E 9 miles per hour (14 km/h)
- Game attendance: 57,851
- Referee: Johnny Grier
- TV announcers (NBC): Joel Meyers & Ahmad Rashad
- Gamebook
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 16: vs. Denver Broncos
Week Sixteen: Seattle Seahawks vs. Denver Broncos – Game summary
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Broncos | 3 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 12 |
| Seahawks | 3 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 17 |
- Date: December 23
- Game time: 5:05 pm local
- Game weather: indoors
- Game attendance: 55,845
- Referee: Jim Tunney
- TV announcers (ESPN): Mike Patrick & Joe Theismann
- Gamebook
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 17: vs. Detroit Lions
Week Seventeen: Seattle Seahawks vs. Detroit Lions – Game summary
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lions | 0 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| Seahawks | 7 | 3 | 10 | 10 | 30 |
- Date: December 30
- Game time: 1:03 pm local
- Game weather: indoors
- Game attendance: 50,681
- Referee: Dick Hantak
- TV announcers (CBS): Verne Lundquist & John Madden
- Gamebook
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|