Philip Rivers, Tyler Lockett Got Candid About Sunday Scoreboard Watching
NFL players don’t like to admit it, but they know what’s happening around the rest of the league. During Week 17, several teams were involved in the postseason race, many of them needing help from other teams. The Seattle Seahawks were already in the playoffs, but still had a shot to lock up the top seed and needed help. The Indianapolis Colts needed help to get in. Seahawks wide receiver Tyler Lockett and Colts quarterback Philip Rivers got candid on whether they had eyes on the scoreboard.
Tyler Lockett and the Seahawks had a successful season
The Seattle Seahawks had a great start and a strong finish to the 2020 season. It was in between that was a bit shaky. Seattle won its first five games of the season and also finished the year with a four-game win streak. They were 3-4 in the seven games in the middle.
Quarterback Russell Wilson got off to an MVP-like start. The Seahawks quarterback had 14 touchdown passes and one interception through three games. By Week 7, he had 26 touchdown passes. His numbers faded a bit down the stretch, but he still managed to throw 40 touchdown passes and rack up 4,212 passing yards. Wide receiver Tyler Lockett finished with 10 touchdown receptions and his second straight 1,000-yard receiving season.
Seattle finished with an 11-4 record that was good enough to claim the third seen in the NFC. The Seahawks will host their NFC West rival Los Angeles Rams on Saturday for the third time this season as the playoffs begin. Seattle split with LA, dropping the first meeting in Week 10 23-16. The Seahawks bounced back in Week 16, winning 20-9.
Philip Rivers and the Colts needed some early help
The Seattle Seahawks already had a playoff berth wrapped up when they suited up last Sunday in Week 17. The Seahawks traveled to San Francisco to face the 49ers and were hoping a victory could help improve their playoff seeding. The Seahawks needed help in that department. The Indianapolis Colts’ playoff hopes hinged on some help from the early games.
The Seahawks did have a chance to claim the NFC’s top seed. The Green Bay Packers, who entered Week 17 as the top seed, would have had to lose. They were at the Chicago Bears, who were also fighting for a postseason berth. The New Orleans Saints would have also had to lose to the Carolina Panthers in order for the Seahawks to move up to No. 1. The Seahawks did win, but so did the Packers and the Saints, who claimed the top two spots, respectively.
The Colts were playing in the late round of games. They needed either the Miami Dolphins, Cleveland Browns, or the Baltimore Ravens – all playing in the early slate of games – to lose in order to make the playoffs. The Colts would have to beat the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Colts caught a break when the Buffalo Bills trounced the Dolphins, opening the door for the Colts. The Colts defeated the Jaguars to get in.
Rivers and Lockett were aware of what was happening
If you ever hear a coach or player say they won’t be paying attention to the other games that have an impact on their postseason hopes, they’re likely lying. The Indianapolis Colts, who played a late game Sunday, needed some help in the early games to make the playoffs. Colts quarterback Philip Rivers said he would be checking, while several of his teammates said they wouldn’t pay attention.
“I won’t have three TVs going, but my normal mode when we play the 4 o’clock game is that’s what I do. I kind of flip through the other games on the Sunday Ticket on my phone,” Rivers said, according to The Indianapolis Star. “To say I won’t be doing that would be a lie. I won’t be consumed with it but I will be aware. I think to try to pretend like you’re not going to know the outcome of those games is probably unrealistic, but I don’t think it needs to consume our locker room.”
Seahawks wide receiver was honest about his scoreboard watching. During an appearance on Russell Wilson’s DangerTalk podcast, he admitted to checking out the other scores while he was playing. “I did until the second quarter,” Lockett said. “Once I saw Green Bay was up and the Saints was up, I said none of this matters. The only thing that matters is what we do and what’s in front of us. I don’t like banking on other teams to win. Seems like my whole life, everything I needed to happen didn’t work out.” Both the Colts and Seahawks are in, but don’t let anyone fool you when they say they weren’t watching.
