Ben Baldwin

@rbsdm.com

@nfl4th.com // @nflverse.com // https://www.nflfastr.com/ https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/author/ben-baldwin/

As an old person, pregame coverage talking about Messi like it's a miracle he can still walk given how old he is while he's still in his 30s is killing me

COMING SOON: “12 As One: Mike Macdonald, the Seattle Seahawks & the making of a Super Bowl champion” My 2nd Seahawks book chronicles the on-field brilliance & special bonds that brought Seattle a title — told thru a unique lens! Available 9/1/2026! Pre-order NOW on Amazon! a.co/d/006NWnK7

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Added a "weighted EPA" feature to the website. This downweights garbage time and low predictive value value events (interceptions, fumbles), among other things. In the large sample of a full season it doesn't change much for most teams, but hopefully still useful!

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9 year old has become obsessed with Magic the Gathering (which is awesome) but we haven't found a single other kid at his school who plays. What is going on with America's youth?

Been working on vibe coding NFL team strengths using modified EPA per play and am happy to report that the best team in the NFL during the 2025 season was the Seattle Seahawks People forget that

I am not trying to be greedy. But I just want to know, hypothetically speaking, how much the Seahawks would have won by if that early JSN pass would have connected

Okay it's KIND OF funny that the Seahawks had a QB who fans constantly argued about who didn't win a playoff game during his three seasons as a starter, only for Seattle to then win the Super Bowl in the first season after replacing him, while his new team finished with the worst record in the NFL

Best point differential (regular season + playoffs) for Super Bowl winning team, since conference realignment in 2002: 1. 2025 Seahawks (+246) 2. 2013 Seahawks (+235) 3. 2016 Patriots (+234) 4. 2024 Eagles (+228) 5. 2002 Bucs (+219)

I would not change anything about how the season turned out. This is not a complaint. But this team was like 3 plays away from 20-0. Just insane