Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson has been added to the NFC Pro Bowl roster, replacing an injured Matt Ryan, the NFL announced Monday. Wilson becomes the sixth Seahawks player on the NFC team, joining offensive linemen Max Unger and Russell Okung, running back Marshawn Lynch, safety Earl Thomas and kick return specialist Leon Washington.
Seattle sent six players to the Pro Bowl after the 2007 season and seven players after the 2005 season, most in franchise history.
Wilson led the Seahawks to an 11-5 regular-season record and to a wild card playoff victory over the Washington Redskins. He also brought back the Seahawks from a 20-point deficit to a 28-27 lead over the Atlanta Falcons in the division playoffs, which Seattle lost on a late field goal, 30-28. In that game, Wilson threw for a career-high 385 yards and two touchdowns. The 385 yards also set a Seahawks playoff record.
Wilson is the fourth quarterback — and first rookie — to represent Seattle in the Pro Bowl, and the first since Matt Hasselbeck in 2007. Dave Krieg made three Pro Bowl appearances in the 1980s and Hall of Famer Warren Moon one in 1997.
Wilson won a competition from Matt Flynn in training camp and started all 16 of the Seahawks’ games. He completed 252 of 393 passes (64.1 percent) for 3,118 yards, 26 touchdowns and just 10 interceptions for a passer rating of 100.00, second best in the NFL for a rookie behind Robert Griffin III.
Starting in Week 9, Wilson threw 16 touchdown passes and just two interceptions and led back-to-back 58-0 and 50-17 Seattle victories over Arizona and Buffalo. The Seahawks became the first team since 1950 to score 50 or more points in back-to-back weeks.
2 Comments
I suspect he’s already prepared scouting reports for his Pro Bowl receivers. Kidding aside, I now may have to watch the Pro Bowl for the first time in many years.
Congrats to Wilson for his selection to the Pro Bowl. He’s earned this even if it took three bailouts to get the call. But on that point, with so many players opting out due to “injury,” can we all agree that few people want to play in this game and few more people want to watch it? The Pro Bowl may be the most meaningless of major league sports all-star games.
I’d replace the Pro Bowl with something akin to the pre-draft combines: Each team can designate one active player (doesn’t matter if they’re a star, a starter or a sub as long as they’re on the 45-man roster) to represent them in Honolulu by matching up in various contests of skills such as a high jump, long jump, 40-yard dash, bench press, etcetera…the kinds of things they do at the spring combines (minus the Wunderlich Test) and maybe some esoteric event like the Obstacle Course they use to have on the Superstars in the Seventies.
The Pro Bowl in its current form? I’m not planning to watch it. An NFL Pro Combine? For that I’d tune in.