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When the Seattle Seahawks take the field against the New England Patriots on Sunday, it will be their fourth Super Bowl appearance.
The franchise’s first appearance came in 2006 in Super Bowl XL, as quarterback Matt Hasselbeck led them to a 13-3 record in the regular season. However, the Seahawks’ first trip to the big game did not go as they hoped, as they lost 21-10 to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
In that game, Hasselbeck completed 26 of his 49 passes for 273 yards with one touchdown and one interception. In a recent interview with Fox News Digital, the 50-year-old said there is only one thing he would have done differently.
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Seattle Seahawks quarterback (8) Matt Hasselbeck warms up before the Super Bowl XL against the Pittsburgh Steelers at Ford Field in Detroit, Michigan, on Feb. 5, 2006. (Matthew Emmons/USA TODAY Sports Copyright © 2006)
“I don’t think there’s anything that I would have done differently other than maybe not losing my poise. There were a couple of calls in the game that didn’t go our way, and I lost my cool on the referee and didn’t regain my poise by the time the 40-second clock had, you know, it was time to snap the next play,” Hasselbeck told Fox News Digital in a recent interview with the Family Heart Foundation.
“So, I did throw an interception on that play that I’m talking about and then I made the tackle on that interception and then I got flagged again for making the tackle which, you know, that’s a whole (other thing) I got even more upset.”
Quarterback Matt Hasselbeck (8) of the Seattle Seahawks throws a pass in the second quarter against the Chicago Bears in the 2011 NFC divisional playoff game at Soldier Field in Chicago, Illinois, on Jan. 16, 2011. (Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)
The three-time Pro Bowler said that he learned the lesson of just taking things at a time. That lesson from the Seahawks’ Super Bowl loss didn’t just help him as an athlete, but also a father.
“If something in your mind (that’s) ridiculous happens, move on. And so I think that’s something that’s helped me certainly as an athlete, it’s helped me as a dad. You know, you get in the car, my kids would tell you, you get in the car after a sporting event with me, you are not allowed to talk about the referees. You can talk about whatever you want to talk about, but you’re not talking about the officials. Not doing it. And it’s a lesson I had to learn the hard way,” Hasselbeck said.
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Former Seattle Seahawks quarterback Matt Hasselbeck greets fans before the NFC Championship game against the Los Angeles Rams at Lumen Field in Seattle, Washington, on Jan. 25, 2026. (Jane Gershovich/Getty Images)
While the Seahawks did not win Super Bowl XL, they returned to the Super Bowl in the 2013 season, and trounced the Denver Broncos 43-8 to capture the franchise’s first-ever title. They made the Super Bowl the following season, against the Patriots, but lost 28-24 as Russell Wilson was intercepted on the goal line by Malcolm Butler to seal the loss.
Now, the latest iteration of the Seahawks hopes to bring the franchise’s record in Super Bowls to .500 and get revenge on the Patriots for the heartbreaking defeat from over 11 years ago.
The Seahawks play the Patriots at 6:30 p.m. ET on Sunday.
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