The Seattle Seahawks had to figure out a way to pull off a road upset at the New England Patriots, who hadn’t lost since Tom Brady returned.
The answer for them turned out to be the use of empty backfield sets in critical situations. The Patriots had a ton of trouble defending the Seahawks when they cleared out the backfield. That was the key strategic element for the Seahawks in a tight game.
That doesn’t fit with the image we have of the Seahawks, who rose to prominence with Marshawn Lynch and the run game as their foundation.