On Sunday, ESPN’s Chris Mortensen reported that Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson has “changed his approach” in 2015, and that he’s becoming a “celebrity quarterback.” On Monday, Wilson said nothing has changed.
“I think that ultimately, it comes down to how you prepare,” Wilson told reporters on Monday. “Like I always say, the separation is in the preparation. It comes down to getting here early, loving your teammates in terms of getting ready and having fun getting prepared. If anybody loves doing that, I love getting ready to go. We all love getting ready to go, and preparing for that, and getting ready for Sundays.”
Wilson has periodically been a pin cushion for negative reports and rumblings, from the notion that he’s too aligned with management to the perception that he’s not “black enough” to the reality that he now makes $20 million per year to the goofy idea that the Seahawks opted to pass the ball and not to run it with the Super Bowl on the run in order to ensure that Wilson would be named the game’s MVP. When a team struggles, some people may be inclined to grumble -- and the highest-profile people in the organization become the target for it.
When it happens, it says less about Wilson’s character than it does about the character of any teammates who seem to be more worried about Wilson that about themselves. If every player brought the ability and dedication that Wilson brings to the quarterback position, the Seahawks would be a lot better than 5-5. And if the Seahawks didn’t have Wilson, they’d be a lot worse.