The 2018 Seattle Seahawks Will Go as Far as Russell Wilson Takes Them

Jeremy Damen
Sep 3, 2018 · 4 min read

The 2018 NFL season is nearly upon us. For the first time in the Russell Wilson Seahawks era, this is truly his team. The Legion of Boom has turned to the Legion of Whom due to various reasons, whether it be locker room issues, unexpected career ending injuries, or a holdout as Earl Thomas isn’t satisfied with the state of his current contract.

Everyone is wondering how the Seattle Seahawks will do this year with the offense finally needing to the best unit on the team. No more do they have the luxury of having a defense that can compensate for slow starts. Last year, the Seahawks offense finished 11th in points. That’s pretty good considering they had one of the worst rushing attacks in NFL history. However, they will need to crack the top 10, maybe even top 5 to get where they want to go.

One man is going to be largely responsible for that mission.

Still overlooked, Russell Wilson has a huge opportunity to quiet the noise.

Russell Wilson has had an amazing start to his career, and as long as the Seahawks don’t do anything silly, he should be the Seahawks QB until the end of his days. There is a lot of doubt and pessimism over what the Seahawks can accomplish this year. Many experts think anywhere from 5–8 wins. Seattle Seahawks fans have fallen largely into the same spectrum of wins.

There is no doubt that this is the least depth the Seattle Seahawks have ever had in the Russell Wilson era. A flurry of injuries could spell doom to the season even if Russell Wilson plays at an MVP level. With major coaching changes on the offensive side of the ball however, Russell Wilson is more poised than ever to shock the world and send the Seahawks on a potential surprise playoff run.

Last year, no one projected the Eagles as a Super Bowl team. Many had them in the 8–8 area as well. All projections about this Seahawks team is going to rely on Russell Wilson to continue to grow into an even better QB, which he is fully capable of doing. If Russell Wilson takes a step back, it’ll be time to look at what prospects the Seahawks might be interested in taking in the 2019 NFL Draft.

The hopes and dreams of the Seattle Seahawks rests on this Russell’s right arm and legs.

No one carried a burden like Russell Wilson did last year. Although this year he will be without defensive stars like Richard Sherman, Kam Chancellor and Cliff Avril for the entire year, he was without them most of the previous season as well. He had one of the worst rushing attacks in NFL history, and yet he still led the NFL in passing touchdowns and fourth quarter touchdowns. He knows going into this year, for the first time ever, this is truly his team.

This is the first season it feels like the hangover from Super Bowl 49 is finally not looming over their heads. Part of the reason for moving on from players like Richard Sherman was their inability to move past the Super Bowl 49 interception. They were no longer a team. With the inability to move past that decisive, heartbreaking moment, Pete Carroll had no choice but to remove the toxicity that still lingered from that game, which included multiple outbursts from Richard Sherman during various games. What always struck me as odd is that no one remembers that the Seahawks had a 10 point lead in the fourth quarter of Super Bowl 49. The defense apparently doesn’t remember either, focusing all of their blame on the infamous goal line interception.

There is no doubt about it, the Seattle Seahawks are an underdog this year. Some even expect them to finish third in the NFC West. With a chip on their shoulder and tons of new young players on the team, this might just be what the Seahawks need. Everyone on the team knows this is Russell Wilson’s team. There is a certain calm to knowing that you have a star QB on your side. You have a fighters shot going into every game when you have a QB the level that Russell Wilson is at. I’m cautiously optimistic about the Seahawks, but they have a shot every week when you have #3 at QB every Sunday. The Seahawks will need it, because the entire season truly rests on him.

Russell Wilson will have to be Captain America for the Seattle Seahawks to shock the world.
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