Russell Wilson: Currently-bad quarterback and now-proven terrible general manager

Russell Wilson is making a few headlines again, and again, it's for the wrong reasons. It's worth taking a look at how badly he assesses talent because it could have had a huge impact on the future of the Seahawks.

This isn't the first time we've talked about the sage of the Seahawks and their messy divorce from Russell Wilson. It might not be the last time, either. As Lee Vowell wrote in his fine dissection of the mini-furor over Wilson apparently vetoing a trade to the Eagles before the 2022 season, uh, well - who cares? Wilson is gone, the Hawks reaped a huge bounty of draft picks from the deal with the Broncos, and all is right with the world.

Well, I care. I know I shouldn't, and for those who are tweeting right now - yeah, I see you on your keyboard, dude - GIT OVR IT - I am over it. Okay, that's not exactly correct, because I was never bothered by it - whatever "it" is - in the first place. I was adamant that the Seahawks would never trade Wilson, and at this point embarrassingly so. Obviously, Pete Carroll knew better than I did what the team needed to succeed.

Wilson proved exactly why the Seahawks had to move on from his brand

See, that's the thing. I can't say that Russell Wilson became more interested in promoting himself than the Seahawks, even though many of his former teammates said exactly that. Michael Bennett, Richard Sherman, and even Doug Baldwin had their issues with Wilson at times. Not that it was ever dysfunctional - far from it. But it wasn't exactly the warm campfire sing-along that Wilson suggested it was.

The reason this still matters to me is that literally thousands of 12s wanted the Hawks to move on from Pete Carroll after the rough 2020 season, and stick with Wilson. That group shouted from the rooftops, "Let Russ Cook!", and saw the only way he could do it was to send Pete Carroll packing. Listen, I was one of the people who said Wilson needed more free rein to run the offense. And I was also one of those who called him out when he rushed back on the field before he was ready, putting himself above the team.

I was never on the side of those who said the team was better off without Carroll. The fact that Russell Wilson vetoed a trade to the Eagles and preferred to join the Broncos tells me - and should tell you few remaining doubters - exactly why Jody Allen was right when she chose Carroll and Schneider over Wilson. Look at those teams entering 2022. Now, neither were Super Bowl favorites, but the Eagles clearly had a better roster than the Broncos.

Yes, Denver had a better defense than Philadelphia, but they also had a lot of expensive talent that had to be moved to make room for Wilson's contract. Wilson certainly didn't select the players to be traded; that's on Denver's GM. Of course, that would be the same GM who is now out of a job after the fiasco he orchestrated. But the fact remains that the Broncos traded both the player who led them in receptions in 2021 - Noah Fant - and the player who led them in sacks - Shelby Harris - to get Wilson on the team.

Mr. Unlimited proved to be severely limited in Denver last season. It's absolutely correct to say he's currently a bad quarterback. I expect that he'll bounce back with a fine season under the guidance of the Bronco's new head coach, Sean Payton. If Payton can't get him back to DangeRuss form, no one can. The question remains if Wilson will listen. He didn't seem to listen in Seattle, so much so that he wanted to run the organization. Given his questionable choice of destination, I think all 12s can be grateful he didn't become the Seahawks defacto GM.