Does Russell throw enough interceptions?

[AgentDib]

The thing about our offense is that Pete absolutely opens things up when he thinks we have to. We stayed conservative in the second half of the Chiefs game because we were only down by 4 and he thought the defense could get the ball back. It sort of worked, too, depending on whether you think Sherman recovered that fumble.

On the other hand, watch the second half of the 2013 Bucs game if you want to see a more aggressive Seahawks offense. 40 yard passes to Tate, designed Wilson TD runs, Tate's Beast Mode punt return. There's a throw to Baldwin where he has a single step on the defender but Wilson puts it out in front of him and lets him make a play on it. There's an extremely contested pass that Wilson throws to Kearse with the defender all over him, and then an interception Russ throws into the endzone on the very next play where the aggression backfires. The defense gets the ball back, and then Russ connects down field with Miller to set up a very contested pass to Baldwin for the TD.

 

[ColinSackorpick]

One of Wilson's biggest flaws in my opinion is his inability to throw interceptions.

To answer the OP, yes he needs to throw more interceptions. At his current rate, he is simply a "game manager" in that regard.

 

[SeaChase]

He needs to take more chances down field. He plays to safe.

 

[HuskerHawk]

Russell did take more shots in the past. Watch highlights from his Rookie year. He was throwing jump balls and tight window throws left and right. Only difference is that they were mostly going to Rice, Miller, and Tate, guys who have the ability to make these catches and coincidently are now gone.

 

[KARAVARUS]

Win games. Win Super Bowls. I don't care how.

 

[Mick063]

One thing to consider here:

Imagine "7 on 7 drills" on "turnover Thursday" against the LOB...... week after week.

Over time, do you think a quarterback might get a little gun shy about throwing into tight windows? I think Russell over estimates the ability of opposing secondarys because of it.

Further, this thread got derailed a bit. It isn't just about throwing the ball deep. It is about pulling the trigger against single coverage when the receiver doesn't appear open, but trusting he can make the play. This can be an intermediate throw as well. I don't know where the connection to deep throws came from, a relatively low percentage pass, but Russell gets his share of those from broken plays. This is more about throwing the ball on time against single coverage at any level. It is fair to say that Wilson errs on the side of conservatism often. He intentionally throws the ball out of bounds more than any quarterback I have ever seen. Apparently, Pete condones this or it wouldn't happen with such frequency.

 

[RiverDog]

One thing to consider here:

Imagine "7 on 7 drills" on "turnover Thursday" against the LOB...... week after week.

Over time, do you think a quarterback might get a little gun shy about throwing into tight windows? I think Russell over estimates the ability of opposing secondarys because of it.

Further, this thread got derailed a bit. It isn't just about throwing the ball deep. It is about pulling the trigger against single coverage when the receiver doesn't appear open, but trusting he can make the play. This can be an intermediate throw as well. I don't know where the connection to deep throws came from, a relatively low percentage pass, but Russell gets his share of those from broken plays. This is more about throwing the ball on time against single coverage at any level. It is fair to say that Wilson errs on the side of conservatism often. He intentionally throws the ball out of bounds more than any quarterback I have ever seen. Apparently, Pete condones this or it wouldn't happen with such frequency.

Good post. I haven't seen any numbers, but my sense is that passes of 30+ yards are less likely to get intercepted than the 10-30 yard variety as there isn't as many bodies around.

I don't know if Russell's apparent frequency of throwing the ball away is more than any other quarterback. If it is, it's more than likely due to his being outside the pocket and on the move with more frequency so he's presented with better opportunities. Guys like Manning and Rivers gets pressure and they're usually still in the pocket and more subject to intentional grounding calls so it's the smart play for them to eat it and take the sack.

The one thing I do worry about is that at times Russell seems to get a bit careless in his attempts to avoid a sack. He hasn't been burned by that carelessness yet, but there's been some very harrowing plays that have run shivers up my spine where he simply flings the ball without much concern for it's direction. I guess that's one of the downsides that we have to accept if we like seeing all those Houdini escapes and big plays off broken plays. Our offense would be absolutely horrid if we didn't get a couple of those plays a game.