Russell Wilson deep-dive: Pros and cons of the Pro Bowl QB

While Denver Broncos’ QB Russell Wilson is an elite player, he is not perfect. Here are some pros and cons of the 11th-year signal caller.

Many in the fanbase have been hyping up Russell Wilson all offseason. I quickly ordered his jersey and am predicting the team goes 11-6 with Wilson throwing over 35 touchdown passes. The Denver Broncos offense is set to be efficient in 2022, but the quarterback is far from perfect.

I think it’s only fair, as training camp begins, to perhaps touch on the pros and cons of Russell Wilson.

No matter how good a quarterback is, they will always have things they do very well, and things they don’t do so well.

Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen, Justin Herbert, and any other elite quarterback from past or present could give you a laundry list of things they feel like they need to work on.

With Russell Wilson, it’s no different.

I’m simply going to take an open mind here and look at the positives and negatives of the player.  I’m not going to comment on anything off-field, as some think Wilson is corny or is too much of a diva, or whatever other pathetic insult they want to use. Russell Wilson is an outspoken player who loves his wife and wears his religion proudly.

However, that’s his business and unrelated to his on-field performances, so let’s look at the pros and cons of Russell Wilson.

The pros of Russell Wilson

Fortunately, the pros of Russell Wilson greatly outweigh the cons. Since being drafted in 2012, he’s been very consistent as a passer, never passing for less than 20 touchdowns in a season, never throwing for less than 3,100 yards, and never throwing more than 13 picks in a season.

He also never missed a start until this year, when he missed three starts due to a freak finger injury that was completely unrelated to a careless or reckless play or decision. Wilson has had a winning record in nine of his 10 seasons and has a 9-7 career playoff record. He brings 174 total games of NFL experience, and, over a 17-game season, can expect to average 3,987 yards, 31 touchdowns, and nine interceptions.

His insane passing consistency gives him one of the highest passer ratings in NFL history. He’s won double-digit games in eight of his 10 seasons and has never completed less than 61.3 percent of his passes during regular season play.

He’s made nine Pro Bowls, won a Super Bowl, and is a Walter Payton Man of the Year Award winner. Russell Wilson’s deep ball is regarded as the best in the NFL. He’s still got killer arm strength and great mobility, rushing for nearly 5,000 yards in the regular season along with 23 rushing touchdowns.

He’s a threat with both his arm and legs, has led the league in touchdown passes one time, and led the league in passer rating one time.

The pros are clear. Russell Wilson is a sensational quarterback talent and a future Hall of Famer.

The cons of Russell Wilson

Russell Wilson does come with a few cons that will impact him during the season.

One of the more obvious cons relates to the overall AFC picture. Russell Wilson will be 34 years old this season, and while that is not old by any means for a quarterback, it is old when you look at the AFC landscape of contending teams. Patrick Mahomes, Lamar Jackson, Josh Allen, Joe Burrow, and Justin Herbert are all in their mid or early 20s. There are some others who fit this age group but are unknowns like Zach Wilson, Trevor Lawrence, and Tua Tagovailoa.

The Denver Broncos should be contenders for years, but Russ being 34 this year does set a timer for the Broncos.

Wilson’s style of play is also sometimes less than ideal. He takes a ton of sacks. He’s never taken less than 33 sacks in a season and averages 46 sacks per 17 games.

That’s about 2.5 sacks per game. Not ideal. That has been part of Wilson’s game for years. Wilson, who can still move well, also relies on his legs quite a bit. It’s reasonable to think that as he is getting older, he may get a bit slower. Can Wilson still have an adequate ability to use his legs? I think this is a con worth keeping an eye on in the coming years.

His height, 5-foot-10, is also not great, either. It does somewhat prevent him from getting a full vision of the field, so throwing across the middle is not something Wilson does with pinpoint accuracy.

Some also think that Russell Wilson is heading towards a decline, as this was the first year of his NFL career that he missed a start, so that coupled with his age may have some people worrying about a bit of a decline in year 11.

However, I do not think any of his current cons are major things to worry about. He’s going to be a very good quarterback for years to come in Denver.