Tag Archives: Russell Wilson

Schedule

At 5-0, Hawks will only get better; race is on against Packers

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A third of the way through one of the most bizarre seasons ever (and we’re not just talking about the pandemic), the Seahawks are 5-0 and among the favorites to win the Super Bowl. And that’s despite having the league’s worst defense (by the standard measure: yards).

The Packers (4-0) have been more impressive so far, but the Seahawks might be more dangerous because they are a big-play team on both sides and should get better on defense as the season goes.

By DVOA, the Hawks are considered the No. 3 team in the league, behind Baltimore and Tampa Bay (buoyed by the No. 2 defense). Los Angeles is fourth, Kansas City fifth and Green Bay sixth. Those teams look to be Seattle’s biggest competition for a Super Bowl title.

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Week 5: Minnesota

A team of 2013-like destiny?

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It’s starting to feel perfectly normal for the Seahawks to play (and win) so many close games.

And it also feels a little like these Seahawks, still with a perfect record after a 27-26 win over Minnesota, might be a team of destiny — a la the 2013 Super Bowl club.

There was little reason for them to beat Minnesota the way that game went. Not after trailing 13-0 at halftime, failing to convert a third down, allowing 43% to be converted, surrendering 31 first downs, giving up over 200 rushing yards, being out-possessed 39-21 minutes. Seattle was outplayed for all but about four minutes of that game.

Pete Carroll’s Seahawks have never played a game with that particular mix of bad stats, which probably explains why 10th-year veteran K.J. Wright called this one of the three craziest games he has ever played.

The Seahawks overcame it all to hit 5-0 for the first time because they won the turnover battle (3-1, counting a big fourth-down stop) and field position, were called for just three penalties and got two spectacular plays from DK Metcalf to win the game.

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Week 4: At Miami

Wilson finally wins in Florida as Hawks hit 4-0 for second time ever

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It wasn’t easy, but Russell Wilson finally won in Florida and the Seahawks improved to 4-0 for the second time in franchise history with a 31-23 win in 88-degree weather in Miami.

K.J. Wright and the Seattle defense held Miami to five field goals and a late TD, giving a struggling Seattle offense time to finally put the game away in the fourth quarter after Miami had held time of possession and stymied Wilson and company in the red zone a couple of times.

Wilson threw two TD passes to reach 16, which ties Peyton Manning for most through four games in NFL history. Manning set that record in 2013, when Seattle opened 4-0 for the first time on its way to beating Manning’s Denver Broncos in the Super Bowl.

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Week 3: Dallas, X's & O's

Wilson is not throwing more — just more proactively

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Russell Wilson – everyone’s three-game NFL MVP — has not thrown the ball more this year, contrary to what some might think. He has just thrown it more efficiently and effectively and, most important, more proactively.

He has thrown 103 passes through three games, which is right around his average (104) for the first three games of the 2015-19 seasons.

But Wilson has set an NFL record with 14 TD passes to start the season, and his 76.7 percent completions and 7.76 yards per attempt are all the best of his career through three games.

It hasn’t been the volume; it has been the timing: He is throwing on early downs and in the first half more than ever.

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Week 3: Dallas

Surprising 3-0 start has been costly, too

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We thought the Seahawks would be 1-2 at this point (on the way to 11-5), so 3-0 is a nice surprise – especially as they give up 400 passing yards and 28+ points per game.

It has been costly though:

The margin of error is so small for this defense-poor team. For the second straight week, a HUGE offensive mistake made the game closer than it should have been. DK Metcalf showboated on what should have been a 63-yard TD catch, and cornerback Trevon Diggs punched the ball through the end zone from the 1.  

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Franchise history, Week 2: New England

Hawks are 2-0 for 12th time, but this is not 2013

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The Seahawks are 2-0 for the third time in Russell Wilson’s career and the 12th time in franchise history.

The Hawks have made the postseason in each of the other two years Wilson led them to 2-0, 2013 and 2019, and they are 7 for 11 overall in making the playoffs after 2-0 starts.

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Week 2: New England

expect more thrillers like that win over Pats

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If the first two games are any indication, the Seahawks are going to play in a lot of shootouts this season – and probably win most of them.

Russell Wilson is off to his best start ever — with nine TD passes and one interception (thanks, Greg Olsen). Meanwhile, the defense, even with superstar Jamal Adams, is struggling every bit as much as it did in 2019, when almost every week (12 of 16 anyway) involved a thriller.

This 35-30 win over the Patriots was more of that brand – and the same kind of show Pete Carroll and Bill Belichick’s teams always put on when they meet.

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Coaches, Week 2: New England

Ageless Carroll can do a lot on ‘five-year plan’

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It’s fitting that Pete Carroll and Bill Belichick will set a record for the oldest coaching matchup in NFL history this week – the same week Carroll turned 69 (Belichick is 68).

It’s a great matchup between the NFL’s two best coaches of the past decade, and it begs the age-old question: How much longer will these guys go? Most important to us: How much longer will Carroll coach the Seahawks?

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Week 1: At Atlanta

Adams, Wilson, Schotty star in big opening win

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Pay Jamal Adams right now, and give Brian Schottenheimer a gold star.

In his first game, Adams showed he was definitely worth the 13th overall pick and Schotty made the “Let Russ Cook” crowd happy by coming out throwing.  

Apparently Russell Wilson has finally earned more pull in the organization, because the Hawks took his advice and stunned us all by coming out firing in Atlanta. They ended up scoring more points than in any season opener in Pete Carroll’s 11 seasons.

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Contracts, Free agency, The roster

D-line drama over, contract focus turns to star-stacked secondary

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The Seahawks’ defensive line soap opera, which had dragged on for a year and a half (from Frank Clark to Ziggy Ansah to Jadeveon Clowney), finally ended when Clowney signed with Tennessee the other day.

Short of another trade, the Seahawks are going with the pedestrian pass-rush crew they assembled without Clowney. And we move on with fingers crossed and eyes closed.

We can only hope there is not as much drama – or failure — around extensions for Seattle’s now star-studded secondary next offseason.

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