Stopping Russell Wilson is Easier Said Than Done
K. Joudry
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Seattle has been able to accomplish a rare feat, one that speaks to both Pete Carroll’s and Russell Wilson’s brilliance.
When they were first making some noise in the early 2010s, Seattle was a defense-first team. The Legion of Boom partnered with legit talent in the front seven – Wagner, Wright, Bennett – to form a really intimidating group. That defense is largely gone, but they’ve still found ways to be successful. Carroll deserves a ton of credit, but Wilson is the main reason why.
Patrick Mahomes and Tom Brady are rightly recognized as the game’s best QBs. After those two, you’d have a hard time convincing me it isn’t Wilson. His clutch-factor is off the charts. Minnesota’s players and coaching staff recognize this reality.
Here is what Patrick Peterson had to say: “Yeah, you might get a bunch of sacks on them, but the time he is running around, you’re holding your breath. Because you’ve seen it so many times. The guy, he’s a winner. He always has his team in position to have success.” Harrison Smith reflected on Wilson’s abilities, the ones that have been evident in the games against Minnesota: “He’s made some great plays in those games, so he’s a big part of that success.”
Andre Patterson noted Wilson’s ability to be elusive: “He manages their whole offense – he runs the whole thing. A lot of it is no-huddle. He can escape when he wants to.” He goes on: “And he knows how to get on the edge and still make big plays down the field. He’s a tremendous challenge for us.” How do Minnesota’s coaches prepare for such a unique, gifted QB? “And the best thing you can do as a coach is show them on film what he does, where he likes to go, how he likes to get out, what he does when he’s outside, what he does when he goes inside, and what’s the best way that we can do the best job we can to keep him in the pocket? It’s very difficult to do, but it’s our job on Sunday to do the best job of it we can.”
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At this point, it should take very little convincing that Wilson is a dynamic player. He orchestrated a late, game-winning drive against the Vikings last season. It was a gut punch of a loss. What made it worse, of course, is that it followed several straight years of losses to the Seahawks.
How, then, can the Vikings hope to contain him? Well, as we noted last week with Kyler, the best way to defend an exceptional QB is to ensure he doesn’t see the field. It’s hard to put up points from the bench. In other words, the Vikings should be focusing their attention on a methodical, ball-control offense that can control the time of possession. Being at home will help with this goal.
The team also needs to continue emphasizing offensive balance. It was really good to see K.J. Osborn assert himself again in Week 2, but there is still more room to incorporate the tight ends. Doing so will keep Seattle’s defense increasingly off balance.
On Zimmer’s side of things, I think there’s a few things that can be done. For starters, I’d expect Zim to simplify things on defense. Our big plays have often been the result of mental errors. Similar to the OL following Week 1, the first step is for us to eliminate the self-inflicted wounds. I also wouldn’t be surprised to see Cameron Dantzler in the lineup, a move that may help make things a little more crisp on the back end. Finally, I think there’s something to be said for a QB spy. Eric Kendricks or Nick Vigil could be relied upon to keep their eyes on the QB on critical third downs to try to limit the damage he can do with his legs.
One thing is certain: tomorrow’s Seattle game looks like a must-win for our friends in purple.