Seahawks Legend Matt Hasselbeck’s New Health Initiative, Super Bowl Pick, & More (Exclusive)

With Super Bowl LX on Sunday, February 8, there’s much anticipation being drummed up among NFL fans everywhere as the Seattle Seahawks and the New England Patriots gear up for a rematch of 2015’s Super Bowl (a game in which the Patriots emerged victorious). Someone who has a unique perspective on the matchup that lies ahead is former Seahawks player Matt Hasselbeck. Not only does he hold the distinct honor of being the quarterback to lead the team to its first-ever Super Bowl appearance, but his father, Don, spent most of his professional career with the Patriots. 

Knowing all of this, it was a privilege to speak with Hasselbeck about his take on the upcoming Super Bowl game and his thoughts on the current landscape of the NFL. And before we got into the nitty-gritty of the gridiron, Hasselbeck shared some big news about his new health advocacy with Family Heart Foundation and the Tackle Cholesterol: Get into the LDL Safe Zone campaign.

Per the press release announcing the new partnership:

“To kick off Super Bowl LX week and American Heart Month, the Family Heart Foundation, a leading research and advocacy organization, is teaming up with three-time Pro Bowler and former Seattle NFL quarterback Matt Hasselbeck to launch a national campaign focused on raising awareness of high cholesterol as a key risk factor for heart attack and stroke. Supported by Amgen, the campaign, Tackle Cholesterol: Get into the LDL Safe Zone, reinforces the importance of early screening for dangerous cholesterol levels and helps individuals understand the steps to protect themselves and their families from cardiovascular disease.

So how did Hasselbeck wind up advocating for the organization? And what are his thoughts on the current league and the Super Bowl? Let’s dive in.

Hasselbeck Was Inspired By the Loss of His Father 

Men’s Journal: My deepest condolences on the passing of your father. Did that kind of spark your journey into your new health initiative?

Hasselbeck: When my dad died suddenly in April, it was just a major wake-up call. Because we did, in our minds, we did everything right.

I lasted longer than every single guy in my draft class, Peyton Manning, Charles Woodson, everybody, you know. Like I was healthy. You know, my dad was even better than me. He’s doing stuff like CrossFit at age 70. 

So we were eating right, exercising right, in shape, feeling good, you know, playing all the sports that people play. And yet there’s like this invisible thing that he had, the combination of risk factors and, you know, ultimately he had a heart attack and just doing something that, you know, he kind of loved to do, which was cut his grass. And he hadn’t even really started cutting his grass. He just kind of was, you know, just it was just boom. It was like an invisible thing.

So basically, my mom encouraged me and my brothers. She was like, “Hey, you need to get screened for all kinds of things.” You know, calcium score on your heart, blood pressure, cholesterol. And we were kind of like rolling our eyes like, “Mom cholesterol? That’s for like, you know, people who are out of shape basically. People who eat irresponsibly… Not us.” 

So we go, and we all get screened and, you know, it was eye-opening for me. There were some things that weren’t as good as I thought they were, you know, some invisible things. And I would say high LDL cholesterol was one of them.

I think that was the start of a journey. And I really literally was just telling my friends and family like, “Hey, you need to go do this too [get levels checked].” And then… More than one person was like, “Have you heard of the Family Heart Foundation?” 

And so, doing a little research, having the opportunity to partner up with them [Family Heart Foundation], kind of around the Super Bowl timing, it was a great opportunity. It just felt like it was a win-win. And the funny thing is that I’m not fully out of my story.

I got screened. I got my numbers. I’m in the process of finding out what my numbers really mean for me and what I need to do about it. It’s just been a great thing, and it gives me a peace and a confidence to know that at least I’m taking my risk down in terms of something that I can control.

Hasselbeck Is Impressed with the Young Talent of Drake Maye, Bo Nix, and More

Men’s Journal: Pivoting quite a bit, are there young players in the league right now that really capture your attention where you’re like, man, that’s a star?

Hasselbeck: I mean, so many. Just take, you know, for this year’s Super Bowl, the draft class of Drake Maye, Jayden Daniels, Bo Nix, like those guys. Caleb Williams had a much, much better year this year. Jayden Daniels had an amazing year last year.

The guy that I thought would be the most successful, like the safest bet, was Drake Maye. And I looked kind of like a fool all the whole first year when he was sitting behind Jacoby Brissett. But now I feel vindicated because he’s playing so well and he’s got such a high ceiling.

And, you know, even Bo Nix was an afterthought, like a complete afterthought at the combine. I was one of his mentors. I mentor the wide receiver quarterback groups at the combine, and he was in my group. For the scouts, they were just like, “You know, he’s not that tall. He can’t throw it that far.” And it just took one coach. It was Sean Payton, and Sean Payton knew exactly what he was looking for.

I’m very impressed with the talent level and the potential of especially the young quarterbacks.

Hasselbeck’s Thoughts on Super Bowl LX

Men’s Journal: I have to ask, any picks for the Super Bowl in terms of a winner? I assume you may have a bias? 

Hasselbeck: I have a bias. I definitely have a bias. It’s my old team against my daddy’s old team. So I, I kind of feel like we win either way in a way. But umm, I just, I think the Seahawks are incredible. I think they’re a complete team. They’re very deep. They’re in year two with Mike McDonald, and they’re way ahead of schedule.

I think Mike Vrabel in year one with the Patriots, he’s way ahead of schedule… I live here in Boston, too. So I think everybody, everybody, including the people in Foxborough are a little bit surprised that they’re already in the Super Bowl this quick.

But you know, speaking of quarterbacks, Sam Darnold is a guy who just turned 28 and hit the growing pains of being a young quarterback in the NFL. I think he was 20 years old as a rookie with the Jets. And people wrote him off with the Jets, and they wrote him off with the Carolina Panthers. He took a step back to go be a backup with the 49ers, to take two steps forward at San Francisco. He was with Clint Kubiak, who now obviously is the offensive coordinator in Seattle. And, you know, they’re both running the show, you know, his play caller and his quarterback.

How to Check Your Cholesterol Numbers?

Hasselbeck’s advocacy for heart health was really inspiring. He continued to stress the importance of knowing your cholesterol numbers, even if you believe you’re taking care of yourself. The former NFL Pro Bowler emphasized that, should you have elevated cholesterol numbers, getting them lower “solves so many issues.” As Harvard Medical School puts it, “Lowering LDL cholesterol reduces the risk of cardiovascular death, heart attacks, strokes, and the need for cardiac catheterizations or bypass surgeries.”

If you’d like to take a step in learning more about your cholesterol numbers, you can head over to CholesterolConnect.org for more information and to order a free, one-time at-home cholesterol screening.

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