SEATTLE - Happy hour started at lunchtime across this city on Thursday. Desk jockeys called in sick. Children stayed home from school. Parents left the errands for another day.
And why not? The sun was out, the air was warm, and the Super Bowl Champion Seahawks were opening their season against the Green Bay Packers.
'Heck yeah, I took a vacation day,' said Dale Butts, a truck driver and season-ticket holder from Port Townsend who was having a drink with his nephew, Smokey J Nelms, at a bar near CenturyLink Field. 'It's like the Super Bowl parade. Everyone called in sick.'
A few hours later, Butts and 67,000 noisy fans watched the Seahawks unfurl a championship flag at midfield and in the rafters for the first time in their 39-year history. The 12th Man flag was raised behind the south end zone to a deafening roar.
Fueled by fans who literally shook the stadium, the Seahawks got to work defending their crown, which they did by beating the Packers, 36-16.
The Seahawks have been formidable at home the last two seasons, winning 15 out of 16 regular season games. The Packers, who want to bounce back from a subpar 2013, have the fourth-best winning percentage in season-opening games.
From the outset, the game had the feel of a late-season battle between evenly matched teams battling for a playoff spot. And after an off-season filled with lawsuits against the league, controversial suspensions of players and an owner, and a growing debate about the Washington Redskins name, the game had the kind of drama that the N.F.L., eager to change the focus, had hoped for on opening night.
Russell Wilson, one of the league's emerging stars, faced off against Aaron Rodgers, a marquee quarterback. Both teams also featured talented running backs - Marshawn Lynch for the Seahawks and Eddie Lacy for the Packers - who broke free for long runs. (Lacy left the game in the fourth quarter with a possible concussion.)
The biggest revelation was Seahawks receiver Percy Harvin, who made several explosive plays after receptions and kick returns. The Seahawks acquired him in a trade with the Minnesota Vikings last year, but he was injured for most of his first season in Seattle.
In the first half, the teams went back and forth, with penalties and fumbles providing second chances for both sides. After stopping the Packers on their opening drive, the Seahawks' drive stalled at the Packers' 44. But the Packers' Mike Daniels ran into punter Jon Ryan, which led to a 35-yard field goal by Steven Hauschka at 6:07. On the next series, the Packers caught a break when the Seahawks' Earl Thomas fumbled a punt return and Ha Ha Clinton-Dix recovered at Seattle's 34. Rodgers completed passes to Jordy Nelson and fullback John Kuhn ran the ball into the end zone for a two-yard score.
The Seahawks quickly regained the momentum in the second quarter, covering 80 yards in six plays. Wilson, who was 19 0f 28 for 191 yards, hit Ricardo Lockette, who made a nifty run for a 33-yard score.
Throughout the game, the Packers lined up their best receivers away from Richard Sherman, the Seahawks' star cornerback. But Sherman's teammates in the secondary held their own, preventing the Packers from completing long passes. And early in the second half, Seattle cornerback Byron Maxwell intercepted Rodgers, whose pass slipped through Nelson's hands. The Seahawks later added a field goal.
The Packers ran uphill the rest of the game. The stadium, filled to capacity for the 96th consecutive time, shook after Rodgers, who was 23 of 33 for 189 yards with one interception, was sacked at midfield on fourth down, and again when defensive end Michael Bennett stripped him of the ball, which rolled into the Packers end zone for a safety.
The Seahawks took advantage again, driving 53 yards for another touchdown, the second of the night for Lynch. The Packers scored once to draw closer, but for most of the rest of the evening, the Seahawks fans celebrated their good fortune.
Fans cannot seem to get enough of the Seahawks. Jones Soda Company, whose head office is across the street from the stadium, introduced green and blue sodas with a label with the number 12 on it, a homage to Seahawks fans.
'We're scrambling to keep up with demand,' said Eric Chastain, the vice president of operations.
If the Seahawks continue to play the way they did against the Packers, demand will only grow.
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