1996 Seattle Seahawks season

1996 Seattle Seahawks season
1996 Seattle Seahawks season
Owner	Ken Behring
Head coach	Dennis Erickson
Offensive coordinator	Bob Bratkowski
Defensive coordinator	Greg McMackin
Home stadium	Kingdome
Results
Record	7–9
Division place	5th AFC West
Playoffs	Did not qualify
All-Pros	DT Cortez Kennedy; (2nd team)
Pro Bowlers	DE Michael Sinclair
	← 1995; Seahawks seasons; 1997 →;

The 1996 Seattle Seahawks season was the franchise's 21st season in the National Football League (NFL), the 21st playing their home games at the Kingdome and the second under head coach Dennis Erickson. They were unable to improve on their 8–8 record, finished the season 7–9, and missing the playoffs for the eighth consecutive season.

For the first time since 1984, safety Eugene Robinson was not on the opening day roster.

Owner Ken Behring unsuccessfully attempted to move the team to southern California.^[1]^[2] The team was sold to Paul Allen in June 1997.^[3]^[4]

After the season, the Seahawks would never finish at the bottom of the AFC West again. It would be the final season they finished at the bottom of their division for 25 years.

NFL draft

1996 Seattle Seahawks draft
Round	Selection	Player	Position	College
1	21	Pete Kendall	OG	Boston College
2	46	Fred Thomas	DB	Tennessee-Martin
3	77	Robert Barr	OT	Rutgers
3	91	Reggie Brown	RB	Fresno State
4	99	Phillip Daniels	DE	Georgia
4	131	Eric Unverzagt	LB	Wisconsin
6	184	Reggie Green	OG	Florida
6	209	T. J. Cunningham	DB	Colorado
7	225	Johnie Church	DE	Florida

Undrafted free agents

1996 undrafted free agents of note
Player	Position	College
Willie Brown	Linebacker	Temple
Marc Collins	Punter	Eastern Kentucky
Jimmy Gary	Running back	West Virginia

Personnel

Staff

**1996 Seattle Seahawks staff**
	Front office Owner – Ken Behring President – David Behring Executive vice president – Mickey Loomis Vice president of football operations – Randy Mueller Co-college scouting director – Mike Allman Co-college scouting director – Phil Neri Assistant player personnel director – Rick Thompson Head coaches Head coach – Dennis Erickson Assistant head coach/tight ends – Gregg Smith Offensive coaches Offensive coordinator/wide receivers – Bob Bratkowski Quarterbacks – Rich Olson Running backs – Clarence Shelmon Offensive line – Howard Mudd Offensive staff assistant – Ned James			Defensive coaches Defensive coordinator – Greg McMackin Defensive line – Tommy Brasher Linebackers – Mike Murphy Defensive backs – Willy Robinson Defensive – Dave Brown Quality assistant – Keith Gilbertson Special teams coaches Special teams – Dave Arnold Strength and conditioning Strength and conditioning – Dana LeDuc

Final roster

**1996 Seattle Seahawks roster**
Quarterbacks (QB) 8 Stan Gelbaugh 3 Rick Mirer 13 Gino Torretta Running backs (RB) 31 Steve Broussard 32 Oscar Gray 28 Dou Innocent 36 Lamar Smith 38 Mack Strong FB 42 Chris Warren Wide receivers (WR) 84 Joey Galloway 81 Ronnie Harris 82 James McKnight 85 Mike Pritchard 88 Ricky Proehl Tight ends (TE) 45 Coleman Bell 87 Carlester Crumpler 83 Ronnie Williams		Offensive linemen (OL) 74 James Atkins T 75 Howard Ballard T 64 Robert Barr T 63 Frank Beede G 79 Ed Cunningham C/G 77 Derrick Graham G 66 Pete Kendall G 52 Kevin Mawae C 69 Grant Williams T Defensive linemen (DL) 98 Sam Adams DT 93 Phillip Daniels DE 94 Antonio Edwards DE 96 Cortez Kennedy DT 67 Matt LaBounty DE 99 Michael McCrary DE 92 Henry McMillian DT 72 Joe Nash DT 78 Pat Riley DE 70 Michael Sinclair DE		Linebackers (LB) 54 Mike Barber OLB 56 James Logan OLB 55 Winston Moss OLB 53 Eric Unverzagt MLB 95 Dean Wells MLB 90 Terry Wooden OLB Defensive backs (DB) 20 Jay Bellamy FS 25 Robert Blackmon SS 26 Carlton Gray CB 30 Corey Harris CB 24 Selwyn Jones CB 23 Dexter Seigler CB 22 Fred Thomas CB 33 Darryl Williams FS Special teams (ST) 57 Jason Kyle LS 2 Todd Peterson K 14 Rick Tuten P		Practice squad 60 Greg Bloedorn C 7 Jon Kitna QB 76 Riddick Parker DT 16 Grayson Shillingford WR Reserve 48 Clarence Benford TE (IR) 89 Brian Blades WR (IR) 34 Reggie Brown FB (IR) 91 Keif Bryant DT (IR) 21 T. J. Cunningham S (IR) 86 Christian Fauria TE (IR) 17 John Friesz QB (IR) 19 Eddie Goines WR (IR) 97 Glenn Montgomery DT (IR) 51 John Solomon LB (IR) 59 Tyronne Stowe LB (IR) Rookies in italics 53 active, 11 reserve, 4 practice squad

^[5]

Starters in bold.
(*) Denotes players that were selected for the 1997 Pro Bowl.

Schedule

Preseason

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Record	Game site	Recap
1	August 3	Atlanta Falcons	W 19–17	1–0	Kingdome	Recap
2	August 8	at Oakland Raiders	W 24–19	2–0	Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum	Recap
3	August 17	at Indianapolis Colts	L 13–15	2–1	RCA Dome	Recap
4	August 23	San Francisco 49ers	W 20–3	3–1	Kingdome	Recap

Source: Seahawks Media Guides^[6]^[7]

Regular season

Divisional matchups have the AFC West playing the NFC Central.

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Record	Game site	Recap
1	September 1	at San Diego Chargers	L 7–29	0–1	Jack Murphy Stadium	Recap
2	September 8	Denver Broncos	L 20–30	0–2	Kingdome	Recap
3	September 15	Kansas City Chiefs	L 17–35	0–3	Kingdome	Recap
4	September 22	at Tampa Bay Buccaneers	W 17–13	1–3	Houlihan's Stadium	Recap
5	September 29	Green Bay Packers	L 10–31	1–4	Kingdome	Recap
6	October 6	at Miami Dolphins	W 22–15	2–4	Pro Player Stadium	Recap
7	Bye
8	October 17	at Kansas City Chiefs	L 17–34	2–5	Arrowhead Stadium	Recap
9	October 27	San Diego Chargers	W 32–13	3–5	Kingdome	Recap
10	November 3	Houston Oilers	W 23–16	4–5	Kingdome	Recap
11	November 10	Minnesota Vikings	W 42–23	5–5	Kingdome	Recap
12	November 17	at Detroit Lions	L 16–17	5–6	Silverdome	Recap
13	November 24	Oakland Raiders	L 21–27	5–7	Kingdome	Recap
14	December 1	at Denver Broncos	L 7–34	5–8	Mile High Stadium	Recap
15	December 8	Buffalo Bills	W 26–18	6–8	Kingdome	Recap
16	December 15	at Jacksonville Jaguars	L 13–20	6–9	Jacksonville Municipal Stadium	Recap
17	December 22	at Oakland Raiders	W 28–21	7–9	Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum	Recap

Bold indicates division opponents.

Source: 1996 NFL season results^[8]

Standings

AFC West
view talk edit	W	L	T	PCT	PF	PA	STK
⁽¹⁾ Denver Broncos	13	3	0	.813	391	275	L1
Kansas City Chiefs	9	7	0	.563	297	300	L3
San Diego Chargers	8	8	0	.500	310	376	W1
Oakland Raiders	7	9	0	.438	340	293	L2
Seattle Seahawks	7	9	0	.438	317	376	W1

Game summaries

Preseason

Week P1: vs. Atlanta Falcons

Preseason Week One: Seattle Seahawks vs. Atlanta Falcons – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Falcons	7	3	0	7	17
Seahawks	0	10	9	0	19

at Kingdome, Seattle

Date: August 3
Game time: 7:06 pm local
Game weather: indoors
Game attendance: 30,284
Referee: Howard Roe
TV: KING
Gamebook

Week P2: at Oakland Raiders

Preseason Week Two: Seattle Seahawks at Oakland Raiders – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Seahawks	7	14	0	3	24
Raiders	0	3	3	13	19

at Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum, Oakland, California

Date: August 3
Game time: 5:05 pm local
Game weather: partly cloudy, 63 °F (17 °C), 76% humidity, wind WNW 10 miles per hour (16 km/h)
Game attendance: 38,219
Referee: Ed Hochuli
TV: KING
Gamebook

Week P3: at Indianapolis Colts

Preseason Week Three: Seattle Seahawks at Indianapolis Colts – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Seahawks	3	0	0	10	13
Colts	3	0	0	12	15

at RCA Dome, Indianapolis

Date: August 17
Game time: 7:01 pm local
Game weather: indoors
Game attendance: 38,930
Referee: Red Cashion
TV: KING
Gamebook

Week P4: vs. San Francisco 49ers

Preseason Week Four: Seattle Seahawks vs. San Francisco 49ers – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
49ers	3	0	0	0	3
Seahawks	3	0	10	7	20

at Kingdome, Seattle

Date: August 23
Game time: 7:06 pm local
Game weather: indoors
Game attendance: 38,144
Referee: Dick Hantak
TV: KING
Gamebook

Regular season

Week 1: at San Diego Chargers

Week One: Seattle Seahawks at San Diego Chargers – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Seahawks	0	7	0	0	7
Chargers	7	6	3	13	29

at San Diego Stadium, San Diego, California

Date: September 1
Game time: 1:05 pm local
Game weather: clear, 84 °F (29 °C), 73% humidity, wind WSW 8 miles per hour (13 km/h)
Game attendance: 58,780
Referee: Jerry Markbreit
TV announcers (NBC): Jim Lampley, Bob Golic
Gamebook

Game information

First quarter

SD – Tony Martin 2-yard pass from Stan Humphries (John Carney kick), 2:15 (SD 7–0)

Second quarter

SEA – Rick Mirer 5-yard run (Todd Peterson kick), 12:01 (Tied 7–7)
SD – John Carney 35-yard field goal, 1:26 (SD 10–7)
SD – John Carney 53-yard field goal, 0:00 (SD 13–7)

Third quarter

SD – John Carney 22-yard field goal, 2:34 (SD 16–7)

Fourth quarter

SD – John Carney 50-yard field goal, 13:34 (SD 19–7)
SD – Leonard Russell 6-yard run (John Carney kick), 11:39 (SD 26–7)
SD – John Carney 31-yard field goal, 10:28 (SD 29–7)

Top passers

SEA – Rick Mirer: 24/41, 251 yds, 2 INT
SD – Stan Humphries: 20/38, 195 yds, 1 TD

Top rushers

SEA – Chris Warren: 13 car, 50 yds
SD – Aaron Hayden: 11 car, 59 yds

Top receivers

SEA – Joey Galloway: 4 rec, 89 yds
SD – Tony Martin: 7 rec, 66 yds, 1 TD

Team – pass – rush – total – to

SEA – 251 – 106 – 357 – 4
SD – 191 – 186 – 377 – 0

Week 2: vs. Denver Broncos

Week Two: Seattle Seahawks vs. Denver Broncos – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Broncos	3	10	7	10	30
Seahawks	3	3	7	7	20

at Kingdome, Seattle

Date: September 8
Game time: 1:04 pm local
Game weather: indoors
Game attendance: 43,671
Referee: Ed Hochuli
TV announcers (NBC): Charlie Jones, Randy Cross
Gamebook

Game information

First quarter

DEN – Jason Elam 18-yard field goal, 7:08 (DEN 3–0)
SEA – Todd Peterson 27-yard field goal, 0:30 (Tied 3–3)

Second quarter

SEA – Todd Peterson 40-yard field goal, 8:16 (SEA 6–3)
DEN – Aaron Craver 39-yard pass from John Elway (Jason Elam kick), 5:29 (DEN 10–6)
DEN – Jason Elam 28-yard field goal, 0:10 (DEN 13–6)

Third quarter

SEA – Joey Galloway 88-yard punt return (Todd Peterson kick), 7:10 (Tied 13–13)
DEN – Anthony Miller 7-yard pass from John Elway (Jason Elam kick), 1:06 (DEN 20–13)

Fourth quarter

DEN – Jason Elam 33-yard field goal, 10:32 (DEN 23–13)
SEA – Christian Fauria 23-yard pass from John Friesz (Todd Peterson kick), 4:14 (DEN 23–20)
DEN – John Elway 1-yard run (Jason Elam kick), 2:00 (DEN 30–20)

Top passers

DEN – John Elway: 18/28, 209 yds, 2 TD
SEA – John Friesz: 11/19, 137 yds, 1 TD

Top rushers

DEN – Terrell Davis: 28 car, 111 yds
SEA – Chris Warren: 14 car, 35 yds

Top receivers

DEN – Anthony Miller: 4 rec, 49 yds, 1 TD
SEA – Brian Blades: 4 rec, 57 yds

Team – pass – rush – total – to

DEN – 194 – 180 – 374 – 1
SEA – 172 – 39 – 211 – 3

Week 3: vs. Kansas City Chiefs

Week Three: Seattle Seahawks vs. Kansas City Chiefs – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Chiefs	14	7	7	7	35
Seahawks	0	10	0	7	17

at Kingdome, Seattle

Date: September 15
Game time: 1:04 pm local
Game weather: indoors
Game attendance: 39,790
Referee: Mike Carey
TV announcers (NBC): Don Criqui & Beasley Reece
Gamebook

Game information

First quarter

KC – Chris Penn 9-yard pass from Steve Bono (Pete Stoyanovich kick), 10:07 (KC 7–0)
KC – Dale Carter 46-yard pass from Steve Bono (Pete Stoyanovich kick), 4:51 (KC 14–0)

Second quarter

SEA – Todd Peterson 47-yard field goal, 9:05 (KC 14–3)
SEA – Lamar Smith 4-yard run (Todd Peterson kick), 1:51 (KC 14–10)
KC – Chris Penn 1-yard pass from Steve Bono (Pete Stoyanovich kick), 0:24 (KC 21–10)

Third quarter

KC – Marcus Allen 2-yard run (Pete Stoyanovich kick), 9:44 (KC 28–10)

Fourth quarter

SEA – Rick Mirer 1-yard run (Todd Peterson kick), 13:28 (KC 28–17)
KC – Marcus Allen 1-yard run (Pete Stoyanovich kick), 3:19 (KC 34–17)

Top passers

KC – Steve Bono: 18/27, 185 yds, 3 TD
SEA – Rick Mirer: 15/31, 159 yds, 1 INT

Top rushers

KC – Greg Hill: 11 car, 57 yds
SEA – Lamar Smith: 8 car, 73 yds, 1 TD

Top receivers

KC – Dale Carter: 3 rec, 61 yds, 1 TD
SEA – Joey Galloway: 4 rec, 57 yds

Team – pass – rush – total – to

KC – 166 – 157 – 323 – 2
SEA – 141 – 97 – 238 – 1

Week 4: at Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Week Four: Seattle Seahawks at Tampa Bay Buccaneers – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Seahawks	0	3	0	14	17
Buccaneers	3	7	0	3	13

at Houlihan's Stadium, Tampa, Florida

Date: September 22
Game time: 4:05 pm local
Game weather: clear, 77 °F (25 °C), 89% humidity, wind WSW 3 miles per hour (4.8 km/h)
Game attendance: 30,212
Referee: Bob McElwee
TV announcers (NBC): Don Criqui & Beasley Reece
Gamebook

Game information

First quarter

TB – Michael Husted 33-yard field goal, 5:54 (TB 3–0)

Second quarter

SEA – Todd Peterson 33-yard field goal, 14:13 (Tied 3–3)
TB – Reggie Brooks 2-yard run (Michael Husted kick), 1:12 (TB 10–3)

Third quarter

No scoring plays

Fourth quarter

TB – Michael Husted 28-yard field goal, 9:20 (TB 13–3)
SEA – Brian Blades 5-yard pass from Rick Mirer (Todd Peterson kick), 3:00 (TB 13–10)
SEA – Lamar Smith 14-yard run (Todd Peterson kick), 0:31 (SEA 17–13)

Top passers

SEA – Rick Mirer: 20/37, 209 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
TB – Trent Dilfer: 15/26, 118 yds, 1 INT

Top rushers

SEA – Chris Warren: 12 car, 38 yds
TB – Reggie Brooks: 26 car, 65 yds, 1 TD

Top receivers

SEA – Brian Blades: 9 rec, 92 yds, 1 TD
TB – Alvin Harper: 3 rec, 48 yds

Team – pass – rush – total – to

SEA – 198 – 124 – 322 – 1
TB – 106 – 111 – 217 – 1

Week 5: vs. Green Bay Packers

Week Five: Seattle Seahawks vs. Green Bay Packers – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Packers	10	7	7	7	31
Seahawks	0	7	3	0	10

at Kingdome, Seattle

Date: September 29
Game time: 1:04 pm local
Game weather: indoors
Game attendance: 59,973
Referee: Ron Blum
TV announcers (Fox): Kevin Harlan, Jerry Glanville
Gamebook

Game information

First quarter

GB – Antonio Freeman 13-yard pass from Brett Favre (Chris Jacke kick), 4:36 (GB 7–0)
GB – Chris Jacke 36-yard field goal, 0:34 (GB 10–0)

Second quarter

GB – Dorsey Levens 4-yard pass from Brett Favre (Chris Jacke kick), 3:54 (GB 17–0)
SEA – Chris Warren 37-yard run (Todd Peterson kick), 1:56 (GB 17–7)

Third quarter

GB – Keith Jackson 10-yard pass from Brett Favre (Chris Jacke kick), 8:24 (GB 24–7)
SEA – Todd Peterson 44-yard field goal, 5:35 (GB 24–10)

Fourth quarter

GB – Antonio Freeman 4-yard pass from Brett Favre (Chris Jacke kick), 9:50 (GB 31–10)

Top passers

GB – Brett Favre: 20/34, 209 yds, 4 TD
SEA – Rick Mirer: 10/30, 156 yds, 4 INT

Top rushers

GB – Edgar Bennett: 22 car, 94 yds
SEA – Chris Warren: 18 car, 103 yds, 1 TD

Top receivers

GB – Antonio Freeman: 7 rec, 108 yds, 2 TD
SEA – Mike Pritchard: 2 rec, 54 yds

Team – pass – rush – total – to

GB – 202 – 142 – 344 – 0
SEA – 170 – 159 – 329 – 5

Week 6: at Miami Dolphins

Week Six: Seattle Seahawks at Miami Dolphins – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Seahawks	7	7	0	8	22
Dolphins	3	6	6	0	15

at Pro Player Stadium, Miami

Date: October 6
Game time: 1:01 pm local
Game weather: cloudy, 76 °F (24 °C), 96% humidity, wind W 5 miles per hour (8.0 km/h)
Game attendance: 59,539
Referee: Tom White
TV announcers (NBC): Marv Albert, Sam Wyche
Gamebook

Game information

First quarter

MIA – Joe Nedney 53-yard field goal, 7:30 (MIA 3–0)
SEA – Joey Galloway 65-yard pass from Rick Mirer (Todd Peterson kick), 0:00 (SEA 7–3)

Second quarter

SEA – Joey Galloway 51-yard pass from Rick Mirer (Todd Peterson kick), 12:05 (SEA 14–3)
MIA – Randal Hill 33-yard pass from Craig Erickson (PAT failed), 0:51 (SEA 14–9)

Third quarter

MIA – Irving Spikes 2-yard run (PAT failed), 0:55 (MIA 15–14)

Fourth quarter

SEA – Brian Blades 80-yard pass from John Friesz (2pt-PAT: Lamar Smith run), 2:03 (SEA 22–15)

Top passers

SEA – John Friesz: 18/32, 299 yds, 3 TD, 1 INT
MIA – Craig Erickson: 16/28, 243 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT

Top rushers

SEA – Lamar Smith: 7 car, 35 yds
MIA – Irving Spikes: 19 car, 48 yds, 1 TD

Top receivers

SEA – Joey Galloway: 5 rec, 137 yds, 2 TD
MIA – Jerris McPhail: 6 rec, 86 yds

Team – pass – rush – total – to

SEA – 299 – 59 – 358 – 3
MIA – 214 – 85 – 299 – 3

Week 8: at Kansas City Chiefs

Week Eight: Seattle Seahawks at Kansas City Chiefs – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Seahawks	0	3	7	6	16
Chiefs	10	10	7	7	34

at Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri

Date: October 17
Game time: 7:01 pm local
Game weather: partly cloudy, 49 °F (9 °C), 61% humidity, wind NW 12 miles per hour (19 km/h)
Game attendance: 76,057
Referee: Bernie Kukar
TV announcers (TNT): Verne Lundquist, Pat Haden
Gamebook

Game information

First quarter

KC – Pete Stoyanovich 42-yard field goal, 10:28 (KC 3–0)
KC – Kimble Anders 15-yard run (Pete Stoyanovich kick), 3:41 (KC 10–0)

Second quarter

KC – Marcus Allen 1-yard run (Pete Stoyanovich kick), 3:47 (KC 17–0)
SEA – Todd Peterson 19-yard field goal, 0:26 (KC 17–3)
KC – Pete Stoyanovich 43-yard field goal, 0:00 (KC 20–3)

Third quarter

SEA – Chris Warren 50-yard run (Todd Peterson kick), 11:06 (KC 20–10)
KC – Marcus Allen 1-yard run (Pete Stoyanovich kick), 0:21 (KC 27–10)

Fourth quarter

KC – Sean LaChapelle 4-yard pass from Steve Bono (Pete Stoyanovich kick), 6:40 (KC 34–10)
SEA – Joey Galloway 16-yard pass from John Friesz (PAT failed), 1:01 (KC 34–16)

Top passers

SEA – John Friesz: 20/34, 238 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
KC – Steve Bono: 17/26, 194 yds, 1 TD

Top rushers

SEA – Chris Warren: 14 car, 81 yds, 1 TD
KC – Marcus Allen: 14 car, 39 yds, 2 TD

Top receivers

SEA – Joey Galloway: 3 rec, 65 yds, 1 TD
KC – Chris Penn: 5 rec, 69 yds

Team – pass – rush – total – to

SEA – 213 – 110 – 323 – 1
KC – 194 – 146 – 340 – 1

Week 9: vs. San Diego Chargers

Week Nine: Seattle Seahawks vs. San Diego Chargers – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Chargers	3	3	0	7	13
Seahawks	3	17	3	9	32

at Kingdome, Seattle

Date: October 27
Game time: 1:04 pm local
Game weather: indoors
Game attendance: 38,143
Referee: Walt Coleman
TV announcers (NBC): Jim Lampley & Bob Golic
Gamebook

Game information
First quarter SEA – Todd Peterson 33-yard field goal, 11:15 (SEA 3–0) SD –

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