The Seahawks allowed the fewest points in the NFL during the 2025 season and they finished at the top of the NFC, so it was only natural that they would hear comparisons to the most famous defense in franchise history.
The Legion of Boom was the backbone of back-to-back NFC champions over a decade ago and this year’s run to the Super Bowl has featured plenty of mentions of this defense following in that one’s footsteps. Safety Julian Love said on Monday night that he appreciates the connection, but wants this year’s group to stand on its own.
“There’s one Legion of Boom, we know that,” Love said, via the team’s website. “A lot of those guys are still around. We get a lot of inspiration from. But we’re not them. The comparisons, obviously it’s a great defense in Seattle, your mind goes to Legion of Boom. We know who we are. We’re different. We carry ourselves way different than those guys, than those legends, and we’re just trying to create and identity for ourselves.”
Defensive lineman Leonard Williams touched on similar ground while taking time to explain what he thinks is a proper moniker for this defense.
“We just kept hearing comparisons to the Legion of Boom,” Williams said. “And we kind of thought that it was time for us to have our own name pretty much. And we had a few names thrown at the wall, and I think The Dark Side stuck because, one of Coach Mike’s messaging is, ‘A play style and a place that nobody wants to wants to play.’ And in Seattle, it gets dark during the wintertime, and we shut some teams out this year with no points on the board. So, we have a very like suffocating defense, I would say. And I think that’s why we came up with The Dark Side.”
The Seahawks’ last trip to the Super Bowl ended with a loss to the Patriots and they’ll be hoping that the power of The Dark Side propels them to a different outcome come Sunday.
