Wisconsin Badgers in the NFL: Russell Wilson

Continuing on with our series of Wisconsin Badgers football players in the NFL, we take a look at the career of quarterback Russell Wilson of the Seattle Seahawks.

We as Wisconsin Badgers fans were fortunate enough to have Russell Wilson lead this team for his final collegiate season after transferring from North Carolina State. And boy did he impress.

During that season, Wilson would lead the Wisconsin Badgers to an 11-3 record overall and a win in the inaugural Big Ten Championship game that would land them in the Rose Bowl.

Unfortunately, the Badgers would lose 45-38 to Oregon but it doesn’t take away from what Wilson did in that season. On the year he would complete nearly 73 percent of his passes for 3,175 yards and 33 touchdown passes along with a then-record NCAA passer rating of 191.8.

As a result, Wilson was drafted that following Spring by the Seattle Seahawks in the third round of the NFL draft and as they say, the rest is history.

Entering the 2012 season, most expected the Seahawks starting quarterback to be Matt Flynn who had just signed a fairly big contract. But through training camp and into the preseason, there was no denying Wilson’s natural playmaking ability as well as his leadership that we saw on display at Wisconsin.

Wilson would win the starting job and has developed into one of the best quarterbacks in the game today.

However, even after winning the job – and even so today – many still had doubts about Wilson’s style of play and his height as he stands at just 5’11” which is a bit shorter than most successful quarterbacks through NFL history.

Yet, Wilson would prove the doubters wrong. He has a career completion percentage of 64.2 and has been a very efficient passer by never throwing more than 11 interceptions in a single season. In 2018 he threw a career-high 35 touchdown passes and of course, has two Super Bowl appearances including a win in 2013 against the Denver Broncos.

The five-time Pro Bowler has never had a losing season during his time with the Seattle Seahawks and over his career, he has 27 game-winning drives including four that have come during the playoffs.

What has made Wilson so special is his speed and athleticism which allows him to get outside of the pocket to either scramble for yards or find a receiver open downfield, both of which have led to a number of big plays.

While Wilson is known for his scrambling and highlight-reel plays, he brings so much more to the quarterback position. He is very good at anticipating throws and fitting the ball into tight windows with his strong-arm while also having great touch.

He is also wonderful at diagnosing blitzes, manipulating coverages and recognizing what the defense is doing before the ball is snapped. Not to mention the intangibles that Wilson brings as a leader and he carries himself both on and off the field the way that every team wishes their quarterback would.

During his tenure in Seattle, they’ve had incredible defenses and a powerful running game come and go, but two constants remain. One is that the Seahawks continue to win and the second is Russell Wilson.