Two distinctly different Quarterbacks for Seattle
Well, we’ve seen the two new QB’s on the same field in a game for the first time. Without paying too much attention to the fact one played with the first team and the other with the second team, what I saw were two really different styles of play. Both played pretty well for their first game although mistakes were made. Those are going to happen in a first game.
Flynn played a very controlled style, stayed in the pocket most of the time, and made a lot of very accurate short and medium throws. His pace with getting the offense up to the line was quick and he seemed to be checking off receivers and not locking in on one as the play unfolded. He was 8 for 8 before throwing an interception in the second quarter. He ended his stint with only one incompletion on a dropped pass by McCoy and one interception. There were a couple of sacks where Flynn actually seemed to step forward into the pressure. He didn’t seem to have the mental clock ticking on those plays. There were no long throws down the field for Flynn and no big plays.
Now, on to Russell Wilson. He gets the ball from center and seems to want to leave the pocket almost immediately. It was hard to tell if that was by design or just his reacting to the play, but he had a lot of plays where he rolled out to the right, presumably to get a better look at the field. His throws were hard and accurate although he made a couple of bad decisions on throws. His one interception was a throw to the end zone that should have been high and towards the back of the end zone. One has to believe Wilson will replay that a few times in the film room. He later had a nice 40 yard touchdown throw to Braylon Edwards where he put the ball up where his receiver could battle for it, and Edwards came down with it. It was the kind of play where a receiver develops trust with his quarterback. Wilson showed off his running throughout the half, but in the 4th quarter he had a stellar touchdown run from about 35 yards out that really highlighted his elusiveness and his speed, freezing the last possible tackler at the 5 before diving into the end zone. The thing I noticed with Wilson was he makes the defense tired chasing him all over the field. This can be a real difference maker for Wilson because a tired defense will eventually beat themselves. That may become an advantage for Wilson in his bid for the starting job. Wilson will wear the opposition out, Flynn won’t.
So, who do I think won the day at QB for the Seahawks? Wilson… by a mile. The guy was unstoppable. I want to see Russell Wilson start next week against a #1 defense. If he can do to them what he did to Tennessee Saturday, I think he could be the favorite to win the job. Flynn was good, but Wilson was crazy good. He will leave defenses shaking their heads in the future. How soon the future happens may surprise some people, but not Pete Carroll.