SeaTown Sports Top 100 (#100-#91)
Brian and Kevin count down the top 100 professional Seattle sports athletes of all time
In celebration of surpassing 100 subscribers, SeaTown Sports will be counting down the top 100 professional Seattle sports athletes of all-time. This list will not include individual athletes like Apolo Ohno or Michael Chang and it does not include any college stars who did not play in Seattle professionally (think Steve Emtman or Kelsey Plum). Also, you won’t see any Seattle Kraken athletes on the list. We just haven’t seen any individual performers at a high enough level in the past three seasons in the deep. Kevin and Brian hope this list provides an opportunity for fun discussion as our readers keep engaging with us moving forward.
#100 - Rufus Porter, Seahawks
Key Accomplishments: 2x Pro Bowl selection, ranks 9th in Seahawks history in sacks.
Undrafted out of Southern University, Rufus Porter caught the attention of Seahawks coaches and fans alike in 1988. Porter was an absolute menace on special teams in his rookie season, earning Pro Bowl honors. (Seriously - watch below. He is a linebacker sprinting down field like a gunner and blowing up punt returns). Porter followed that up in 1989 with another Pro Bowl nod and 10.5 sacks to lead the Seahawks. After a 12 game season in 1990 with five sacks, Porter rebounded from injury for another double digit sack season in 1991. For those who got to watch him, it was like watching a cannon blast every time Porter rushed the quarterback.
#99 - Vin Baker, Sonics
Key Accomplishments: 1x All-Star selection, 1x 2nd team All-NBA.
Ok, I get it. You may stop reading here. The name Vin Baker elicits more sadness and frustration than joy for Seattle sports fans. But Vin Baker was really good when he first came to the Sonics. Following three straight All-Star appearances with the Bucks, Baker came to Seattle and posted his best season of his career. At 19.2 points and 8.0 rebounds per game, Baker earned a top 10 MVP finish and another All-Star nod. Baker also was named second team All-NBA in that 1997-98 season. Unfortunately the 1998 NBA lockout crushed Vin Baker (and ironically Shawn Kemp) as he battled alcoholism. Baker still stands in 17th all-time in points and 14th in rebounds in Sonics history.
#98 - Sam Perkins, Sonics
Key Accomplishments: 11.2 points per game while shooting 36% from three-point land while in Seattle, averaged double digits as a sixth man in eight different playoff series, key reserve on three winningest teams in Sonics history.
Sometimes it is hard to quantify a player’s value to a franchise. In the case of Sam Perkins, there are no all-star berths, all-NBA teams or award recognitions to prove his worth on this list. In fact, Vin Baker’s peak is better than Sam Perkins. But anyone who watched the Sonics in the mid-1990s (the peak of the franchise) knows how important Perkins was to that team. Perkins was a big game player. In the 1993 playoffs, Perkins had ten games of 14 or more points including a 20 point, 13 rebound performance to close out the Jazz in round one. In the 1996 run to the NBA Finals, Perkins was key with 13 games in double digit scoring. A career 36% three point shooter, “Big Smooth” deserves his spot in the top 100.
#97 - Chris Carson, Seahawks
Key Accomplishments: 2x 1000+ yard rushing seasons, ranks 8th all-time in rushing yards and 6th in rushing touchdowns in Seahawks history.
Chris Carson had a short, but highly successful career for the Seahawks. Most readers will remember Carson for hard runs, but may not appreciate him as much as they should since Carson followed Beast Mode. After earning the full time role in 2018, Carson took off with back-to-back 1000+ yard rushing seasons for the Hawks. Carson also averaged over 4.2 yards per carry and is second all-time in Seahawks history in that category for a running back (minimum 300 carries). A neck shoulder in 2021 ended Carson’s career too soon, but not soon enough to keep him off this list.
#96 - Bobby Engram, Seahawks
Key Accomplishments: Ranks 7th all-time in receiving yards, 7th in receptions and 10th in receiving touchdowns in Seahawks history.
A member of the 35th anniversary team, Seattle fans will remember Bobby Engram for the over-the-middle catches and his clutch nature on third downs. A favorite target of Matt Hasselbeck, Engram led the Seahawks in catches with 67 in the 2005 Super Bowl season. Engram’s peak came in 2007 with 94 catches and his only 1000 yard season (1,147). Engram ranks in the top 10 in all major receiving categories in Seahawks history.
#95 - Ricky Watters, Seahawks
Key Accomplishments: 3x 1200+ yard rushing seasons, ranks 7th all-time in rushing yards and 8th in rushing touchdowns in Seahawks history.
Following a great run playing for the San Francisco 49ers and Philadelphia Eagles, Watters signed a four year, $13 million deal with the Seahawks in 1998. Watters did not disappoint as he racked up three straight seasons of 1200 rushing yards or more in Seattle. But Watters wasn’t just rushing between the tackles as he caught at least 40 balls in all three seasons as well. Unfortuantely, Watters last year in Seattle was cut short by injuries to his shoulder and ankle.
#94 - Julio Rodriguez, Mariners
Key Accomplishments: 2x All-Star selections, 2x Silver Slugger awards, 2022 AL Rookie of the Year.
Now things are heating up. It would be easy to exclude Julio from this list as he is only in his third season for the Mariners. In fact, I was ready to do just that. But Kevin came to the rescue and lobbied for Julio. And Kevin is absolutely correct. Just look at those accomplishments. Only Alex Rodriguez can match the first two years that Julio just completed and even A-Rod had 196 at-bats before his first full season. Imagine where Julio will be on this list in 10 years.
#93 - Raul Ibanez, Mariners
Key Accomplishments: 11 years for the Mariners, ranks 7th in hits, 9th in runs, 6th in doubles, 8th in HR, and 7th in RBI in Mariners history.
The best left fielder in Mariners history (not a great accomplishment actually), Raaaaaaaaauuuuul had three different stints in Seattle. Ibanez earned his only All-Star berth as a Phillie, but still posted good numbers for the Mariners as evidenced by the number of categories he ranks as a top 10 hitter. Between 2004-2006, Ibanez had three straight 100+ RBI seasons for the M’s and actually finished 20th and 21st in AL MVP voting during that span. Lastly, Raul’s .280 average or better from 2004-2008 looks mighty impressive for anyone who followed the Mariners in the past 10 years.
#92 - Joey Galloway, Seahawks
Key Accomplishments: Ranks 8th in receiving yards, 9th in receptions, 6th in receiving TDs, 7th in punt return yards, and 1st in punt return TDs in Seahawks history.
For most Seahawk fans, Joey Galloway is remembered for two things - his holdout in 1999 which caused him to miss eight games and the legend of his 40 yard dash time. Galloway posted four terrific seasons to start his career with the Seahawks including three 1000+ yard plus campaigns (and one year at 987 yards) before he held out for a better contract. Galloway was a touchdown machine (50 receiving TDs in his first four years) and even more exciting on punt returns and probably deserved his money. But the best part of Galloway was his speed. Randy Mueller, former Seahawk GM, claims Galloway ran a 4.18. For context, Xavier Worthy set the NFL combine record at 4.21 this past offseason. Uh, that’s pretty fast.
#91 - Jeff Bryant, Seahawks
Key Accomplishments: 12 seasons all with Hawks, ranks 3rd in sacks in Seahawks history.
To be honest, Jeff Bryant was really tricky and a test of our top 100. On the one hand, Jeff Bryant has no Pro Bowls, no all-Pro seasons and generally isn’t one of the first Seahawks to comes to the forefront of one’s mind. On the other hand, Bryant recorded 14.5 sacks in 1984 and rates as one of the top 12 Seahawks players ever by approximate value on Pro Football Reference. His 63 sacks are third most in Seahawks history, placing him above the likes of Frank Clark, Michael Bennett and Cliff Avril. Also, just look at how tough he looks below. Put him on the list!
Wow this is gonna be cool! First installation was great - thank you!
As someone who came to Seattle in 1983, a list like this is Gold. Thanks for reminding me on athletes I had enjoyed and forgotten, and also the obvious athlete that I had tried to forget(Vin). I should learn a bit more about him as I did not know that he was dealing with some demons.