Clayton: Russell Wilson looks like himself as Seahawks take step in right direction
Dec 6, 2021, 12:00 PM | Updated: 12:44 pm
Russell Wilson celebrates a touchdown throw with Pete Carroll in the third quarter of Sunday's win. (Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images)
(Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images)
All last week everyone was asking was what it would take for the Seahawks to get back on the winning path.
The answer was simple. They needed Russell Wilson to play like Russell Wilson.
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For weeks, he was tentative. You could tell the finger still affected some of this throws. He just didn’t look right.
In Sunday’s 30-23 win over the San Francisco 49ers, Russell was Russell. He played with good tempo and completed 30 of 37 passes for 231 yards and two touchdowns. He targeted DK Metcalf eight times, completing five passes to him for 60 yards that included a 33-yard connection. He was hot with Tyler Lockett, too (seven receptions, eight targets, 68 yards and a TD).
Sunday’s game was going to be a struggle. The Seahawks didn’t have Damien Lewis at left guard because of a shoulder injury. They lost Kyle Fuller during the game at left guard and right tackle Brandon Shell got hurt. They finished the game with two rookies along the offensive line – sixth-round pick Stone Forsythe and undrafted Jake Curhan – going against a top defensive line.
Wilson was able to conquer, though. He ended up leading the offense to 23 points (the other seven points came on Travis Homer’s 73-yard TD run on a fake punt), but really this could have been a 40-point game. Tight end Gerald Everett had two red zone fumbles and bobbled a pass off his hands that ended up being an interception in the end zone.
Despite not having Alex Collins, who has been Seattle’s top running back since Chris Carson’s season-ending injury, the Seahawks were able to get Rashaad Penny going. Penny had 35 yards on 10 carries. Adrian Peterson started just days after signing to the practice squad, and while he had only 16 yards on 11 carries, he was a big back who had some tough inside runs, including a touchdown.
The defense continues to look good, creating turnovers and making key stops. The goal line stand at the end of the game, capped off by Carlos Dunlap batting down a pass attempt on fourth down, was sensational.
Even though the win won’t change the outcome of the Seahawks’ season, it was a needed step in the right direction. The Seahawks are now 4-8 and they have three winnable games coming up. The Seahawks should be able to go to Houston and get a win Sunday against the 2-10 Texans. They have home games at the end of the season against Chicago (4-8) and Detroit (1-10-1). That should get them to seven wins. The tough stretch will be road games against the Los Angeles Rams (8-4) and Arizona Cardinals (10-2) that will be hard divisional battles.
A 7-10 season wouldn’t be ideal, but if the Seahawks split in the road division games, it would make the season easier to accept. The defense continues to get better. The big thing is Wilson is getting back to his regular play level. Thirty completions is pretty impressive. It was a nice win.
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