PHOENIX — The Seattle Seahawks have migrated south for the Super Bowl.
Cheered by thousands along the route to Sea-Tac International Airport on Sunday morning, the Seahawks arrived in Phoenix one week before facing the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLIX.
About 200 fans cheered team buses at the entrance to the Seahawks team hotel, a lavish resort just west of Tempe, Ariz. The Seahawks will practice at nearby Arizona State University.
New England arrives Monday evening and will stay in Chandler, Ariz., about 10 miles southeast of Phoenix. The Patriots will use the Arizona Cardinals’ training facility.
Shortly after arriving, Seahawks coach Pete Carroll and six players met with the media. Carroll said defensive backs Richard Sherman (elbow) and Earl Thomas (shoulder) have looked fine in practice suffering injuries in the NFC Championship one week ago.
“They both have issues they have to deal with, but both are scheduled to play,” Carroll said.
Thomas said there was never a doubt he would play Sunday after dislocating his shoulder in the second quarter of the NFC Championship.
“Even when I was a kid, every time I got hurt I still went back in the game,” Thomas said.
He went on to tell the story of a “weird ground ball” that hit him in the mouth when he played baseball in the third grade.
“I had braces at the time, so my lip got stuck to my braces,” he said. “I had to go to the emergency room. My dad said, ‘do you want to go back and play?’ I was like ‘of course.’ “
‘A very unique individual’
Carroll also spoke about Marshawn Lynch, who was fined $11,050 for grabbing his crotch after scoring a touchdown last week. For a similar gesture earlier this season against Arizona and his refusal to speak to the media, Lynch has racked up $131,050 in fines this season, the most of any player.
The NFL has warned the Seahawks that any crotch-grabbing gesture in the Super Bowl will warrant a 15-yard penalty.
“First off, let’s not miss that he is a very unique individual,” Carroll said. “He’s a very private person, and that’s why the media thing is what it is. But there’s a great deal spoken in his silence. … We’ve always celebrated the uniqueness of our players in a way that allows them to play their best.”
Lynch is expected to participate in Super Bowl Media Day on Tuesday. Sherman has said he will help him through it.
Taking reporters to school
Sherman landed in Phoenix with a larger-than-usual chip on his shoulder.
The Super Bowl will feature Sherman and New England’s Darelle Revis, widely considered the two best cornerbacks in the NFL. When asked who he thinks is the best cornerback in the league, Sherman took a reporter to task.
“I don’t really answer preschool questions,” Sherman said. “You’re going to have to improve your line of questioning. Then we’ll talk.”
Asked if he was intimating that he was clearly the best, Sherman doubled down on his answer.
“I wasn’t intimating anything,” he said. “I like journalists, not people who throw out dumb questions and try to incite controversy.”
Quinn headed to Atlanta
Seattle Seahawks defensive coordinator Dan Quinn will reportedly be named head coach of the Atlanta Falcons on Feb. 2, the day after the Super Bowl.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported Sunday that Quinn and the Falcons have agreed to a move that has been widely speculated for weeks.
Quinn led the NFL’s top defense for the second straight season. The Seahawks allowed a league-low 15.9 points and 267.1 yards per game. No other team allowed less than 300 yards per game.
Experience pays off
Russell Wilson is nearing the end of just his third NFL season. But the Seahawks quarterback sounds like a veteran when it comes to preparing for a Super Bowl.
“It’s a different than last year because we’ve been here before,” Wilson said. “You know how to set your plan for the week and get ready for practice.”
Wilson said the team is trying to replicate what it did in the leadup to last year’s Super Bowl, when the Seahawks beat Denver 43-8.
“I think we did a great job even though we had never been to the Super Bowl before,” he said. “This year’s approach is no different. Go 1-0 and have that same championship mindset we’ve had all year.”
