The best quarterback in Seattle Seahawks history is hanging up the cleats and ready for life as an NFL analyst.
Russell Wilson announced his retirement after 14 seasons, of which his first 10 were with the Seahawks. Here’s his self-narrated retirement video, taking him throughout his football and life journey, for which he’s “forever grateful.”
Wilson is set to join CBS Sports as a studio analyst, replacing Atlanta Falcons great Matt Ryan, who’s
returning to his old organization in a front office role. At the time of the reporting, Wilson’s future (or lack thereof) as an NFL player wasn’t confirmed, but it was a pretty strong hint that retirement was on the table. The last visit he had was with the New York Jets, who will once again be quarterbacked by his old Seahawks teammate and eventual successor, Geno Smith. His final NFL pass was thrown as a member of the New York Giants. Fittingly, this was Wilson’s last touchdown.
There will be plenty of time to rehash, retell, and reexamine Russell’s entire NFL story, which ended as ugly as it started so beautifully. The Seahawks had Matt Flynn as their next starting quarterback when Wilson was drafted in the third round in 2012. Flynn threw nine passes and made zero Seahawks starts, while Wilson proved to be one of the forerunners of the modern dual-threat quarterback. As a shorter quarterback, he’s likely paved the way for the likes of Kyler Murray and Bryce Young to go No. 1 overall when their lack of height probably would’ve made them mid-round picks in another era.
Wilson’s combination of accurate passing, low turnovers, and incredible ability to carve up defenses as a scrambler or as a read-option threat made him an irresistible watch. Sometimes the outcomes of any Wilson play would be more irritating than irresistible, but the numbers speak for themselves. Wilson is Seattle’s all-time leader in passing yards (37,059), touchdown passes (292), passer rating (101.8), quarterback rushing yards (4,689, and he’s 5th overall regardless of position) and wins (104). It is unlikely any of those records will be eclipsed any time soon. He’ll forever go down in the record books as one of the most clutch and successful athletes in Seattle sports history. The end of his Seahawks tenure was contentious, unceremonious, and right before his decline as a player. Those boos when he debuted as a Denver Bronco in Seattle were loud, but four years have passed and the hostility has calmed down. In a way, Wilson helped the Seahawks create a new championship team through the trade, and it’s noteworthy the Seahawks were the only team he named in his retirement video.
His career might have finished as a punchline, but he’s ultimately a legend and the first Super Bowl champion quarterback the Seahawks have ever had. Thank you, Russ. We don’t know if we’ll see you in Canton, but we’ll most certainly see you in the Seahawks Ring of Honor.
