Russell Wilson for President (And other overreactions I’m having)!

Russell Wilson EVERYTHING!!!

If the November elections were held today, Seattle Seahawks fans would elect rookie quarterback Russell Wilson not just to the presidency of this great nation, but as Emperor of the World!

My wife and I are expecting our next kid in February, and we’re likely going to name it Russell. The gender of the baby doesn’t matter.

And I’m also fairly confident Wilson can cure diabetes.

These overreactions brought to you by Top Pot Doughnuts, the official Hand-Forged Overreaction Dessert of the Seattle Seahawks!*

(*Full disclosure: Top Pot Doughnuts in no way endorses or advertises on this blog, but remember that one time Golden Tate totally stole some of those tasty treats? I just thought I’d bring that up for no reason at all.)

They may be exaggerations, but it is extremely likely if you watched the third Seahawks preseason game last night versus the Kansas City Chiefs you have had similar thoughts. Or feelings. Personally? I want to make love to the Seahawks. That’s my feeling, alright, Dad? I LEARNED IT BY WATCHING YOU!

Keep in mind these reactions are coming from an ardent supporter of Matt Flynn, who I still believe is quite talented and would do well as our starter. That’s what makes watching this QB “competition” so fantastic. No matter what happens, we’re far better off than last year.

But last night we got to see why Wilson was so coveted by Pete Carroll and John Schneider, and it appears that they really have wanted him to succeed and win the starting job since the evening they drafted him at New York City’s Radio City Music Hall. As Seattle Times reporter Danny O’Neil shared from the Seahawks live chat last night, it is also the case that “Every day I’m Russeling.”

Like many watching this four-part QB miniseries unfold, I was convinced that Wilson’s wonderful play during the initial two preseason outings against Tennessee and at Denver were due to playing against second and third stringers and players that aren’t even going to make the final roster of those teams. He was a shining star on the rise, but who may lose some luster against the big boys who start games. I was wrong, and so were plenty of others.

But I wasn’t adamantly against Wilson taking first-string snaps during the Chiefs game, and so I can haughtily say: “Na-na, na-na boo boo, stick your head in doo-doo.” And not really caring all that much who took the snaps, because I was pretty comfortable with either guy (though I still felt it was likely Flynn would be the starter no matter what), it made watching Wilson shine that much more lustrous (I’m using a lot of clichéd adjectives to seem impressive, here, you see).

Wilson had poise in the pocket, made intelligent throws and had enough balls to toss a few up in to traffic with confidence that his receivers would win the jump. And they usually did. We saw his mobility, and how he used his run game only when necessary or when he could take advantage of it, not because he was scrambling in a panic. There were a few minor hiccups: Some overthrows on finesse balls and throwing behind receivers a few times. Before you knew it though, he came back with a touchdown throw. Those misses didn’t look like rookie mistakes, they seemed like minor veteran errors that would inevitably corrected with points on the board a few plays later.

Now I’m taking a more aggressive tact on this whole QB battle. Wilson must start and anything else will end with Pete Carroll being the most loathed coach in the history of the Seahawks franchise (right behind Jim Mora, nobody will ever beat him for that spot). Carroll is the one who told fans he didn’t care about conventional wisdom and wanted to see what Wilson had. Now he’s seen it, as have countless thousands of others and it’s a pretty simple choice.

Tap the electric play of a rookie and know that we have a win-win situation with Flynn sitting right behind him. That is, of course, unless they trade Flynn away already.

We may still have Tarvaris Jackson, who we all know can maintain some semblance of game management, despite the fact he holds on to the ball so long it’s like he’s doing a monthly cancer screening on it.

More Reasons to Love the Hawks

Wilson wasn’t the only one with impressive play last night, and other rookie standouts are showing just how well John Schneider works an NFL draft. I’ll point to the most obvious, because I’m a basic fan, not a nerd, you  nerds.

Robert Turbin, with his Hulk-sized biceps, showed lightening speed through gaps while he out-ran Chiefs linebackers for a TD. For all the talk we heard about him still having to work on the basic one-step then through the hole stuff early in camp, he seems to have it down.

J.R. Sweezy man-handled opponents at the right guard spot, making another impressive show as he transitions from the defensive line to the offensive side of the ball. He mad huge gaps for the running backs and played so well that my wife and I will probably name our third child Sweezy.

And lest we not forget that the entire Seahawks defense is amazing, and appears to be making party plans to move from a top 10 defense to a top five.

There are plenty of things to be excited about with this 2012 iteration of the Seattle Seahawks. They may or may not be overreactions. It’s just exciting to see success after some lull years.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to get Russell Wilson’s face tattooed on my left ass cheek.