On Jan. 12, the Seattle Seahawks, led by Russell Wilson, traveled to Green Bay, Wisconsin to take on the Packers at Lambeau Field. Going into the game, the Packers were huge favorites, as they finished 13-3 in the regular season and secured a first-round bye in the playoffs.
The Seahawks, on the other hand, finished the season 11-5 and barely won the week before in the wildcard round by a score of 17-9 against an Eagles team that had injuries at almost every position, including their star quarterback Carson Wentz. The Packers played like the favorites early on, and by halftime they had a 21-3 lead. The Seahawks, however, just like all year, didn’t give up when they were down, and in just over five minutes after halftime, they scored their first touchdown on a long drive down the field that was capped off when Marshawn Lynch ran the ball for a touchdown.
That touchdown cut the lead to 11 for the Seahawks, and by the beginning of the fourth quarter, the Seahawks were down just five thanks to another Marshawn Lynch touchdown that made the score 28-23. The Seahawks had one last chance with the ball with 4:54 minutes left. On the first play of the drive, Wilson completed a 14-yard pass to receiver Tyler Lockett for a first down. One play later on first down, Russell Wilson scrambled out of the pocket and made a perfect pass to Malik Turner, which would have given them the first down, but the inexperienced Turner dropped the ball. The Seahawks were unable to pick up the first down, which eventually resulted in them punting the ball and losing the game.
This game was a good representation of the Seahawks and Russell Wilson’s year. While Russell Wilson had a great game, his young, inexperienced receiving core often struggled to make catches, and their defense struggled to make stops. This season for the Seahawks was one in which they relied heavily on Wilson’s ability to escape the pocket and make plays.
Another example of this was the playoff game the week before against the Philadelphia Eagles. While the running game and the offensive line struggled, Wilson managed to use his scrambling ability to run outside the pocket and make two big plays to help seal a 17-9 victory. The first play came in the third quarter when the Seahawks only maintained a 10-6 lead. Wilson was able to escape the pocket and find the rookie wide receiver D.K. Metcalf downfield for a 53-yard touchdown. The next big play came on third and 10. With the Seahawks up just one touchdown, Wilson was able to run outside of the pocket and deliver a 36-yard pass to Metcalf to win the game.
Throughout the season, the Seahawks played a lot of close games in which Wilson was the main reason they won. In fact, the Seahawks played 12 one-score games in the regular season this year and won 10 of them. Wilson’s ability to make big plays while avoiding turnovers was the No. 1 reason why this young, inexperienced Seahawks team won so many games. This season, Wilson finished with 31 touchdowns compared to only five interceptions and 4110 yards passing the ball. The Seahawks quarterback also finished with 451 rushing yards and three touchdowns. These stats highlight just how incredible Wilson’s 2019 season was, and whether it was through the air or on the ground, Wilson found a way to help his team win football games.
