I have to tell you, most of what I’m hearing about Russell Wilson around the blogosphere smacks of political and anti-Matt Flynn sentiment. Flynn has paid his dues to get a shot at a starting job in the NFL, but to some he is just some guy in the way. There is also the sentiment that since the Seattle Seahawks do not have an obvious “franchise” quarterback on the roster, observers are more willing to grasp at straws. The problem is that we really can’t be certain how either Flynn or Wilson will perform with the Seahawks’ roster as it is presently configured; but what is certain is that we have seen what Flynn is capable of playing against NFL playoff teams. Remember the game at New England, when commentators were laughing and predicting a blow-out victory for the Patriots; poor clock management at the end prevented a thrilling comeback win for the Packers. Against the Lions, Flynn’s 40-yard pass on third down with a little over a minute left was something the Seahawk fans haven’t seen in a long time. At least we know what he is capable of; the question is less Flynn than the players surrounding him.
On the other hand, we do know what Wilson is capable of on the college level, playing behind a perennially rock-solid offensive line and powerful running game for one season at Wisconsin. Having grown-up in Wisconsin, I am a Badger fan, and I have to tell you that since Darrell Bevell and that first Rose Bowl victory, I have always thought (at the time) that Wisconsin quarterbacks were better than they actually were. But it was just an illusion; the “system” instituted by Barry Alvarez—learned from his mentor at Notre Dame, Lou Holtz—elevated the program from perennial Big Ten bottom dweller to perennial Big Ten contender. Alvarez and his successor, Bret Bielema, were able to bring in talented athletes, but the only skill position players on Badger teams who turned out to have the “right stuff” to make it in the NFL were wide receivers like Lee Evans and Chris Chambers; Nick Toon, son of former Badger standout and NFL pro-bowler Al Toon, may prove to follow in his footsteps. The quarterbacks who threw the ball to them did not come anywhere near to following them to NFL success; Brooks Bollinger started nine games for Jets, and soon joined the rest into oblivion.
What this means is that people should be extremely cautious when evaluating Wisconsin quarterbacks, and it might be wise to do so in regard to Wilson, whose numbers were rather more pedestrian (but more so his junior season, when he threw more passes for less production) with North Carolina State; his accuracy was certainly a question mark, failing to reach 60 percent in his three years there. Wilson’s predecessor at Wisconsin, Scott Tolzien, completed 72.8 percent of his passes—compared to Wilson’s 72.9; only a “subpar” performance in the Rose Bowl against TCU, possessor of the nation’s top defense, kept him from finishing with a higher percentage than Wilson. What perhaps stood out with Wilson was not his decision-making or leadership skills but his “athleticism” and above average arm strength. The question with Wilson is whether he will be that NC State quarterback who would have been that undrafted free agent with only a marginal shot at even making an NFL roster, or the player who must be “good” because he put up impressive numbers for a Big Ten power.
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