Does “DangeRuss” have a weakness after all?

I recall that many people—myself among them—were skeptical about Seattle Seahawks’ quarterback Russell Wilson’s ability to be a legitimate starter in the NFL due to his height of 5-10. However, he “wowed” observers during the 2012 preseason by splitting time as a halfback; despite a slow start during the regular season, Wilson managed to take advantage of a fourth-ranked defense and third-ranked running game to impress enough people to make him a Pro Bowl selection. But the fact that he and others of his ilk—Robert Griffin III, Colin Kaepernick, Cam Newton and Geno Smith—average the fewest pass attempts per game of all the starting quarterbacks, one might legitimately question whether they are “passing” fads or precursors to a changed game that more teams will attempt to follow suit.

The fact that three of these quarterbacks are among the “final four” in the NFC playoffs suggests that since NFC teams got onboard first, they were able to acquire the best seats available. But we will only know if this is media hype or legitimate in time; after all, we’ve seen these “multi-dimensional” quarterbacks before: Randall Cunningham, Kordell Stewart and Michael Vick. Before that, Bobby Douglas ran for 968 yards in 1972, while passing for only 1,246 (completing just 37.9 percent of his passes). The difference between then and now is that there was no direct correlation between this kind of play and winning football games, and thus there was no assumption in the media that this represented some kind of watershed; whether or not it means a substantial change in the way the game is played today has yet to be determined. 

Even this season, while RGIII has clearly regressed from his rookie season, Kaepernick has seemed almost Tim Tebow-like in his ability to tread water until late in games when he stumps exhausted defenses. As for Wilson, there is something very odd going on here. In this past playoff game against the New Orleans Saints—won “ugly” 23-15—Wilson managed just nine completions in 18 attempts for 103 yards, 49 of them coming off two plays. His counterpart, Drew Brees, threw for exactly three times that amount, 309 yards. Most of those yards came in the fourth quarter, but still Brees showed that a well-conceived pass-based game that avoided interceptions could make-up ground in a hurry. There was no denying that Wilson did not pass the “eye test” in this game; even given the changeable weather, he looked spent and mostly ineffective.

This could be said of Wilson’s play in the last month of the season. He was at his most efficient in the four games prior to that, completing 73 of 100 passes for 1,044 yards and nine touchdowns for a 128.1 QB rating. But in December, Wilson’s numbers dipped dramatically: 59 of 102, 685 yards and four touchdowns for a 79.1 rating. The team basically limped into the playoffs (one loss from losing the division and the number one seed that seemed a “lock” just a few weeks earlier) on the backs of the number one ranked defense and fourth best rushing game—and perhaps more importantly, first in turnover differential.

What happened? Earlier in the season, some observers were blaming the Seahawks mundane offensive play on the absence of key pieces on the offensive line, but others (like John Clayton), assured people that everything would “come together” for the stretch run, and the Seahawks would be unbeatable. That didn’t exactly happen. Million-dollar bank-busters Percy Harvin and Sidney Rice combined for just 16 catches for 248 yards. Harvin had four touches for 30 yards against the Saints, which seemed to drive people wild—probably because at least it was something for all that money he is being paid, and a first round draft pick lost. Of course, that was before he received a concussion in the first half that might now keep him out for the rest of the playoffs; one wonders if this is the curse of Brett Favre haunting the Seahawks.

But it could be more than that. Golden Tate has proved to be more than adequate in filling the void of a deep passing threat. Consider this: from games 9 through 12, culminating in the 34-7 destruction of the Saints, Wilson completed a remarkable 17 of 24 deep passes for 523 yards. But in the final four games he completed just 7 of 24 deep balls for 135 yards. In those first four games the Seahawks forced just 6 turnovers, meaning the offense at least kept the pressure off of it; but in the final four games, the defense forced 12 turnovers, which largely explains why despite moribund offensive effort, the Seahawks managed to at least split those games.

Is Wilson’s arm giving out at just the wrong time? After all, despite having large hands, he still isn’t what you would call a prime physical specimen for a quarterback.

Just a “thought” I will leave you with.