WTF Happened to Russell Wilson Spectacularrrr?!!!

balakoth

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First, watch the breakdowns and see for yourself.

Some say these are the same problems in Seattle, not exactly. Wilson loves the deep over and has thrown that route to Lockett in his sleep the previous 6 seasons. It's a bread and butter play for him. This is a new problem. Jeudy was repeatedly open and it wasn't thrown, or thrown to the wrong spot when thrown. Wilson's errors are not physical, but mental. He still has the arm, he's moving and sliding with a great feel from within the pocket. Like a 2nd Baseman who can't throw to 1st base if you will. He's a headcase right now.

He currently has no trust or rapport with his receivers, too many plays he predetermines he's going to Sutton and just stares him down losing all field vision. (It's not a height thing, field camera views show he has clear sight lines.) This happened on the final play of the game as well, and oddly Hackett revealed in his presser that they were going to Sutton all the way, even though the rub on the right created an immediately open Hamler. The image is floating around the internet, Wilson isn't even looking at him. He's staring down Sutton to his left and tried to squeeze it in there.

Denver is currently tied for 2nd with the most dropped passes in the NFL, which isn't doing him any favors in terms of building that trust. A beautiful seam ball to the TE in the endzone which would've won the game in regulation, dropped. On the first drive he fit the ball into Jeudy at the back of the endzone, wrong read, but he fit it in there none the less, dropped. On another over concept, Wilson read it correctly and threw the post to the other side which was INT'd, a poor route by the WR who should've got inside leverage and shielded the defender as pointed out by Warner.

Despite being as bad as it looks right now. I like what Hackett is building on offense, and his playcalling makes sense most of the time. They are getting better every week even though the early results currently appear they are getting worse. However, a season ending injury to LT Garett Bolles, the 2nd most important player on offense is going to muck things up for sure especially when tethered to losing Javonte Williams the week before. Absolutely brutal for the Donks as they've been playing with backups on the right side of their O-Line already. RG Quinn Meinerz can't come back soon enough.

But I hope Hackett gets the chance to build it. He may not, with new ownership on board that didn't make this hire, he could very well get fired so they can bring in their guy. Once he hired Jerry Rosburg, the game and clock management issues cleared right up. That is a great sign of recognizing problems and fixing them, which is a HCs #1 job. Wilson staying bad or becoming good again regardless, depends on if he and the entire offense can get on the same page, his problems mainly stem from too much newness all around. He misses Lockett & Metcalf dearly right now. Not from the fact that they're better than Denver's top 2 WRs, but the rapport and connection he had with them. He's having to build that all over again, which takes time. And right now, he only trusts Sutton, and you can't stare down Sutton so often and expect to be successful.

And if you don't think Wilson wouldn't have looked good going against porous ATL & DET throwing to Lockett & Metcalf these last 2 weeks, I got some magic beans to sell you. Wilson played DET at the end of last year in week 17 in fact. Wilson put up 51 points, finally healed from his finger injury and was supposedly washed by then too. Washed up QBs don't drop 50 burgers last I checked. Took knees at the end of the game from the DET 1 yard line as well, could've been 58.

The good news for Seahawks fans though is the injuries the Broncos have suffered pretty much guarantees the Hawks will get higher draft choices in the 1st and 2nd rounds.

The bad news for Seahawks fans is Pete can't build a defense to save his life, so it is moot. His wretched drafting of defensive players in the first 3 rounds means there's a high chance these picks will go to waste. This is what the Pete Sycophants don't get. Just because Wilson is bad right now doesn't mean that makes Pete good. If only it were that simple. In their desperate thirst for vindication they've lost sight of the fact that Pete's defense is still a dumpster fire, and it only gets worse as the years go by with no signs of it ever improving.

I gave up on the concept of it getting better on defense by default years ago. Y'see, Pete continues to find new ways to make the defense worse every season. It's impressive to a certain extent because by shear probability you'd think they'd regress to mean at some point. Nope. They only get worse.

I could see Pete hitching his wagon to Geno, signing him to a big contract, so he can then justify throwing all of these picks at his defense, not drafting a franchise QB in the 1st round, only for said picks to still lead to disaster on that side of the ball in another failed attempt. What is imperative is this cannot happen, but unfortunately it is a realistic possibility as of now.

A recap of the current situation: https://www.seahawks.net/threads/a-deconstruction-and-chronicle-of-petes-defense.182055/

You are right, they only put up 28 points, with 235 yards. Penny's career game of 180 yards and 2 tds, Ds 3 ints..

But please tell me more about how WILSON was the one who put up 51 against the Lions
 

Spin Doctor

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Wilson's deep ball is shaky because every other aspect of his game that he neglected to develop is now being forced to the fore - and is failing.

He asked to be a pocket passer, rhythm passer and requested he be put in an offense that requires the same degree of 'technical difficulty ' to execute as A Rod.

He got what he wanted. But he no longer is being afforded the leeway to run off script and find his own rhythm. He's being forced to stay withing the rhythm of the offense.

Russ was comfortable with the deep shot because he knew when they'd come because the entire offense here was wrapped around his very specific skillset. It was catered to TRY to get him on schedule, but lived with him improvising the majority of the time and running the handful of plays from the sideline that he preferred. The offense in Seattle was 10000% his.

In Denver, he's being asked to do what any qb outside of Seattle, Baltimore and Arizona are required to, and he can't. And that inability is futzing up even the things he was successful doing when he was here.
Exactly, right now he's a fish out of water. He doesn't understand rhythm, timing and operating within the confines of an offense. People are wondering why a vet is looking like a rookie fresh out of college (Bronco fans words not mine), it's because he pretty much is in many regards here in this offense.

Hacket/LaFleur's system is extremely complicated and forces quite a bit of responsibility on the passer. You need to be really good at the LOS and you need to have a good understanding of timing, you need to be able to throw the ball where the receiver is going to be with a good deal of accuracy. It has a ton of different option routes that require the QB and the WR to be on the same page. It requires a ton of pre-snap set up to get the offense going.

I could not have picked an offense that was worse for Wilson even if I tried. He's a fish out of water right now. He's having to grapple with concepts that he's failed to develop over his 10 year career. We tried with Schottenheimer but he went right back with what he knew.
 

keasley45

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It goes much deeper than that. He can no longer hit a deep over route. That used to be a layup for him.
You can't underestimate how much the psychology of sport factors in here. The mental aspect of playing the position is as critical to success, if not more so than the physical. Russ has little confidence in what he's doing in Denver. There's the fact that he's failing to execute fairly simple concepts - that is no doubt eating at the confidence in what he's seeing and doing. And there's the fact that he's brought sooo much pressure on himself with the way in which he went about orchestrating his exit from Seattle, that simple things become difficult.

You need look no further than old Mudbone, when he played here. One week, he could literally go toe to toe with the best qbs in the league. The next, he'd look like Russ looks now. And he himself attributed much of that turbulence in his play to confidence. When he had it, he was as good as anyone. When he didn't, he struggled mightily. Same player, same offense, but drastically different performance.

And what did Pete say about Russ from the beginning? Essentially that he couldn't handle the added stress of criticism because it negatively impacted his performance. Pete had to put a bubble around him to get him to become the player that he was. That bubble is gone, the heat has been turned up. He got what he asked for and in doing so, has called into question his own ability.

Russ is in the pressure cooker and is crumbling. It's physical. It's mental. It's the worst possible scenario for him. And it's honestly shocking that he was so blind to his own limitations that he went 1000 miles and hour, with his hair on fire, right into this disaster.

Hubris.

Rainbows only happen when the sun comes out. That looks like its still a ways away for #3.

He can still turn it around. But with every week that passes that he doesn't, the chances get slimmer and slimmer.
 

toffee

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You can't underestimate how much the psychology of sport factors in here. The mental aspect of playing the position is as critical to success, if not more so than the physical. Russ has little confidence in what he's doing in Denver. There's the fact that he's failing to execute fairly simple concepts - that is no doubt eating at the confidence in what he's seeing and doing. And there's the fact that he's brought sooo much pressure on himself with the way in which he went about orchestrating his exit from Seattle, that simple things become difficult.

You need look no further than old Mudbone, when he played here. One week, he could literally go toe to toe with the best qbs in the league. The next, he'd look like Russ looks now. And he himself attributed much of that turbulence in his play to confidence. When he had it, he was as good as anyone. When he didn't, he struggled mightily. Same player, same offense, but drastically different performance.

And what did Pete say about Russ from the beginning? Essentially that he couldn't handle the added stress of criticism because it negatively impacted his performance. Pete had to put a bubble around him to get him to become the player that he was. That bubble is gone, the heat has been turned up. He got what he asked for and in doing so, has called into question his own ability.

Russ is in the pressure cooker and is crumbling. It's physical. It's mental. It's the worst possible scenario for him. And it's honestly shocking that he was so blind to his own limitations that he went 1000 miles and hour, with his hair on fire, right into this disaster.

Hubris.

Rainbows only happen when the sun comes out. That looks like its still a ways away for #3.

He can still turn it around. But with every week that passes that he doesn't, the chances get slimmer and slimmer.
I have been sharing this evil conspiracy theory that Pete did all he could to mess up Russell's fragile psyche:

Pete knew Russ and he guessed that Russ told his new teammates how he knew Pete's plays, the Broncos marched into Seattle expected to be crowned. Russ wire a tux for the expected celebration.

Instead, Pete laid this combination punches for him, from booing to the presence of antiRuss gang. After the match, Bronco teammates waited an hour on bus for Russ. I suspect Russ had a meltdown.

After the match, teammates rightly questioned Russ, ha, this time there's no Pete to shield him. Questions from teammate, ownership, national media, all taking shots at his, fragile psyche.

Football is game of inches, when his confidence was shaken, his timing was off. We may not notice it, but his teammates knew, what if most of his throws were not where it ought to be. So many drop balls, could some of the throws were just that tiny bit off, placement and timing wise? If his teammate was throwing helmet on the field, imagine the locker room. Now remember that fragile psyche that Pete had to protect at all cost? No Pete now, has Hackett been protecting Russ?

Stealing a line from John63, Pete us living in Russ's rent free.
 
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FrodosFinger

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I’ll say it one last time. Nerve damage on his middle throwing finger added to an already declining skill set
 

keasley45

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I’ll say it one last time. Nerve damage on his middle throwing finger added to an already declining skill set
But you don't think with your finger. It be something altogether different if he looked like Manning post neck surgery... making the read, getting the ball out, but then the accuracy and velocity failing him.

Or like Warner prior to his resurgence in Arizona and after his thumb injury. He still was making the right reads, but he couldn't throw the ball.

Russ is a deer in headlights. He had no issue closing out last year with a better than respectable completion percentage. He had his fastball back.
 

GemCity

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It gave him an excuse to get out of Denver until the Thursday Night shitstorm died down.
That and have an alibi as to why he’s been playing like doo.

Team Carrington came up with an excuse quick like.
 

bigskydoc

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It goes much deeper than that. He can no longer hit a deep over route. That used to be a layup for him.

I'm in the vast minority opinion that he has always had timing and accuracy issues on the deep over, that have been covered up by receivers who excelled at adjusting to the ball, and that he has benefitted from the offensively minded rules changes that make it harder for DBs to defend these passes.

He has a bit of a weird arc to his deep ball, that makes it tricky to read, and I think that is why he has had so much success with it. His receivers are used to it, opposing defenses, not so much.

In live game action, I've watched his receivers make all sorts of adjustments to get beneath his underthrown ball, then watched his accuracy be praised on those very passes by the media. I have to admit, when I look at the highlights, and the all-22 it's hard to see the adjustments that were blatantly obvious live. Do I trust my lying eyes, or the tape? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

He's had success with enough different receivers that I do believe he can get in sync with Jeudy and crew, and get this part of his game back, with some serious off-season work. Maybe they just didn't have the time to get it figured out this year.

Perhaps I'm expecting too much. Maybe what I'm seeing live is what a good deep pass looks like. Obviously there is more time for adjustment on these long balls.

I'm just a casual fan/ observer, but the results of his deep ball this year, seem more in line from what I thought the results should look like in years past, he just doesn't have the receivers to mask his deficiencies this year.
 

keasley45

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Been saying it for years. All the talk about Russ being passed his prime now, or injured or in some other way 'off' and that being why he's not performing is off the mark. There's literally years of him doing the exact same things he did in Seattle as he's doing in Denver - missed reads, poor understanding of basic football concepts.

Luke Willson... mild mannered L Willson calls out his former QB for not executing what he calls football 101 reads.

His assessment is pretty damning and pretty spot on. It crippled our offenses when he was here, and now, without his escapability, it's looking like he's going to sink an entire franchise in Denver.

But none of it is all that surprising.
 

keasley45

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The video in the link is great. Here's one take from Willson...

“And that’s my next point,” Willson said. “Trust me, I love to dog Nathaniel Hackett. I love to. But at some point, there’s a human element to calling plays.

“So, if you’re calling plays, and you’re Nathaniel Hackett, and all the pressure’s on you, and then all of a sudden, it’s like, ‘I’ve got a quarterback in here that isn’t executing simple concepts. How can he comfortably call something that’s more complex?”
 

toffee

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The video in the link is great. Here's one take from Willson...

“And that’s my next point,” Willson said. “Trust me, I love to dog Nathaniel Hackett. I love to. But at some point, there’s a human element to calling plays.

“So, if you’re calling plays, and you’re Nathaniel Hackett, and all the pressure’s on you, and then all of a sudden, it’s like, ‘I’ve got a quarterback in here that isn’t executing simple concepts. How can he comfortably call something that’s more complex?”
Luke was making so much sense.
 

RiverDog

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One of the things I've noticed over the past few years is that Russell is not seeing and/or looking for the open receiver, a good example being the do-or-die 4th and goal in overtime vs. Indy where Russell attempted to jam a pass into a tight window to Courtland Southerland and didn't see a wide open KJ Hamler for an easy TD.

Having watched a number of Hawks games from the 300 level, we've seen multiple occasions over the past few years where Russ had open receivers but for some reason, didn't throw it their way. Is he locking onto his primary target and not going through his progressions? Is his short height causing him to have problems seeing the field? I had always assumed it was because he was looking for the home run and not taking what the defense was giving him, but maybe it's something else.
 

TwistedHusky

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It is a series of cascading failures.

For one, those amazing throws Wilson threw over the years - with inches on the sideline to spare, in the very corner of the EZ, etc - all required amazing WRs. Baldwin was underrated. Tyler is absolutely underrated. And DK is fast + physical enough to get open through brute force. He doesn't have amazing hands but is reasonably reliable.

As Sky pointed out, those balls require WRs that can adjust to them. Our guys did that well.

Now watch a few Denver games. Those WRs suck.
They occasionally get open. But not really. And god knows, for starting WRs, when they are open, and if they do get the ball - they drop it often. Forget adjusting to the bad pass or even the ball in the air. They miss the layups. Regularly. Maybe Patrick is really good and just injured, no idea. Judy can get upset all he wants, he still blows. All those WRs make Jerammy Stevens look like Steve Largent by comparison.

So now, Wilson has been a guy who for years was great at longer throws (which are timing throws), throwing to receivers he doesn't have timing with that regularly drop the ball.

And his starting RB is out for the year.

This is a recipe for disaster.

I figured Wilson would struggle but thought last 3 games of the year he would put it together. I didn't think he would struggle to pass for 15 yards in a half though. Not sure those last 3 games are going to turn it around. But we will see.

Even being injured doesn't address this. He is pressing. This means he is tightening up, so his accuracy+awareness is going to ish.
Then not sure WHAT he is doing off-field. Wilson has always been up his own *ss, maybe since after the 1st SB win. But this isn't helping.

In terms of security, signing that big contract made sense. But in terms of reducing pressure on a new team? No sense.
 

Sgt. Largent

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If you're laying a lot of the blame at the feet of Wilson's receivers and O-line, then maybe they should have been working on it all through mini-camp and played in as many pre-season games as they could because they knew there were all learning a new system with new teammates and QB.

I don't absolve Wilson in the least. He rode into town (literally) declaring himself fit and "ready to ride," and his cocky ass O-linemen were on national TV telling everyone Russell wasn't going to get hit like he did in Seattle........cause of course it was the O-line's fault here that Russ got hit so much.

Nah, another broken narrative from Fade.

Hackett's a dead man walking. If they don't get to 4-4 over the next two weeks and show signs that the offense is improving. He's fired.


I mean, the Broncos are the funniest team going right now, they're in full damage control media mode desperately trying to convince anyone who will listen that they're trying hard! Except for the winning part.

 

SantaClaraHawk

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If you're laying a lot of the blame at the feet of Wilson's receivers and O-line, then maybe they should have been working on it all through mini-camp and played in as many pre-season games as they could because they knew there were all learning a new system with new teammates and QB.

I don't absolve Wilson in the least. He rode into town (literally) declaring himself fit and "ready to ride," and his cocky ass O-linemen were on national TV telling everyone Russell wasn't going to get hit like he did in Seattle........cause of course it was the O-line's fault here that Russ got hit so much.

Nah, another broken narrative from Fade.

Hackett's a dead man walking. If they don't get to 4-4 over the next two weeks and show signs that the offense is improving. He's fired.


I mean, the Broncos are the funniest team going right now, they're in full damage control media mode desperately trying to convince anyone who will listen that they're trying hard! Except for the winning part.



Hackett should just start Rypien. I mean, why not. Ready made excuse over there to 1. Protect the teams next 42 games with him And 2. Provide an opportunity to show that Rypien can at least meet Russ’ standard, which is pretty low. Plus now you are even more physically unable to execute these plats successfully.
 
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warden

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Russ skills have declined, He has lost his mobility, defenses know how to defend him, his self importance got in the way, Russ does not have the skill set to overcome this. He is done done donr
 
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