Seahawks WR Doug Baldwin: Four catches in Super Bowl 'a good day'
PHOENIX — Doug Baldwin kept the most compelling aspect of his wardrobe covered Monday as he attended his first media session of Super Bowl week. But the message on the T-shirt he wore beneath his navy blue, team-issued hoodie still mattered plenty to the Seattle Seahawks wide receiver.
"Pedestrians with Attitude," was the slogan on his shirt, a nod to the perceived slight made at Baldwin and other Seattle receivers before last year's Super Bowl. But even with a championship ring and contract extension, Baldwin still feels like an underdog.
The figurative chip on Baldwin's shoulder took on added weight this year given the notion that the Seahawks' receiving corps is a lesser group after losing Golden Tate in free agency and Percy Harvin in an October trade, moves that left Seattle without a starting wideout who'd even been drafted.
"I think we just got the (negativity) and disrespect in a different way. 'We miss Percy, we miss Golden. We're no names,' " Baldwin, now the team's nominal No. 1 target, said. "But we enjoy that. It adds some motivation, some flare to it. We embrace it."
Indeed, it's difficult to be a Seahawks wide receiver while playing in an offense that runs through running back Marshawn Lynch in a scheme that produces few opportunities for gaudy passing statistics. Baldwin had a team-high 66 catches — a total that didn't even place him among the top 40 league-wide.
It's not a system that works for everyone. Baldwin said he finds himself having to play the role of locker room counselor, convincing young receivers of their value despite the lack of numbers (Seattle averaged less than 18 completions per game in 2014 and and barely more than 203 passing yards). Baldwin is left to balance ego with team needs while reminding his teammates to make the most of each opportunity.
There was no better example than the NFC Championship Game. Baldwin recovered from an early fumble on special teams and a drop in the fourth quarter to make a 35-yard catch in overtime to set up fellow receiver Jermaine Kearse's game-winning touchdown. That catch erased what was otherwise a horrible day for Kearse, who was the intended receiver on all four of quarterback Russell Wilson's interceptions.
"If you have a receiver that doesn't care to get the ball, then there is something wrong with that receiver. You know what I'm saying? Everyone in that receiving corps wants to get their opportunity," Baldwin said.
"However, we know how special opportunities are because they are going to be few and far between."
Perhaps that's why a reporter tried to rile up Baldwin — arguably the Seattle offense's most outspoken player — by bringing up a Las Vegas prop bet Monday that set Baldwin's over-under for catches in the Super Bowl at four.
For any other No. 1 receiver that could be considered a major slight, even if Baldwin averaged 4.1 catches per game this season. He laughed at the question.
"If I get four catches in the Super Bowl, that's a good day for us in our offense," Baldwin said.
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Follow Lindsay H. Jones on Twitter @bylindsayhjones