After the Seahawks lost their playoff opener, Pete Carroll said he wants to see the team run the ball more often in 2021. But since that time, Russell Wilson has indicated multiple times that he’d like to have more of a voice in the direction of the offense.
Wilson indicated last week that he wants to see the team’s passing game grow and develop – not giving up on what worked so well in the first half of last year.
And Wilson says he’d like to see the team figure out a way to protect him better.
“I’m frustrated with getting hit too much,” Wilson says, per ESPN. "I've definitely been hit -- I've been sacked almost 400 times. We got to get better. I got to find ways to get better, too.”
In terms of sacks, some of the blame can be attributed to scheme and personnel. Seattle’s offensive lines haven’t tended to be great. But a considerable component in the equation is Wilson’s playing style. He tends to hold onto to the ball, waiting for big plays to develop. That’s often the case (he’s one of the best quarterbacks in the game) but it’s also tends to result in more sacks.
Wilson has been sacked at least 41 times in eight straight seasons, an NFL first. Over the last three years, he’s been sacked on almost 10 percent of his dropbacks. Among quarterbacks with at least 600 pass attempts, that’s 2nd-worst, behind only another scrambling quarterback (Deshaun Watson).
| QUARTERBACK SACKS (last 3 years) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Att | Sack | Pct |
| Andrew Luck | 639 | 18 | 2.8% |
| Ben Roethlisberger | 1,345 | 39 | 2.9% |
| Drew Brees | 1,257 | 42 | 3.3% |
| Tom Brady | 1,793 | 69 | 3.8% |
| Patrick Mahomes | 1,652 | 65 | 3.9% |
| Jared Goff | 1,739 | 78 | 4.5% |
| Philip Rivers | 1,642 | 85 | 5.2% |
| Nick Foles | 624 | 35 | 5.6% |
| Case Keenum | 843 | 49 | 5.8% |
| Nick Mullens | 600 | 36 | 6.0% |
| Baker Mayfield | 1,506 | 91 | 6.0% |
| Aaron Rodgers | 1,692 | 105 | 6.2% |
| Joe Flacco | 775 | 49 | 6.3% |
| Teddy Bridgewater | 711 | 45 | 6.3% |
| Mitchell Trubisky | 1,247 | 80 | 6.4% |
| Dak Prescott | 1,344 | 89 | 6.6% |
| Andy Dalton | 1,226 | 82 | 6.7% |
| Derek Carr | 1,583 | 106 | 6.7% |
| Ryan Fitzpatrick | 1,015 | 68 | 6.7% |
| Josh Allen | 1,353 | 92 | 6.8% |
| Kyler Murray | 1,100 | 75 | 6.8% |
| Kirk Cousins | 1,566 | 107 | 6.8% |
| Matthew Stafford | 1,374 | 96 | 7.0% |
| Matt Ryan | 1,850 | 131 | 7.1% |
| Cam Newton | 928 | 66 | 7.1% |
| Lamar Jackson | 947 | 68 | 7.2% |
| Eli Manning | 723 | 52 | 7.2% |
| Jameis Winston | 1,015 | 76 | 7.5% |
| Gardner Minshew | 797 | 60 | 7.5% |
| Sam Darnold | 1,219 | 98 | 8.0% |
| Carson Wentz | 1,445 | 118 | 8.2% |
| Jimmy Garoppolo | 705 | 60 | 8.5% |
| Ryan Tannehill | 1,041 | 90 | 8.6% |
| Kyle Allen | 607 | 53 | 8.7% |
| Daniel Jones | 907 | 83 | 9.2% |
| Russell Wilson | 1,501 | 146 | 9.7% |
| Deshaun Watson | 1,544 | 155 | 10.0% |
The Seahawks probably will look to make some offensive line changes. Perhaps that unit will be better. But unless Wilson starts playing with a dramatically different style (which looks unlikely) I expect he’ll be taking his usual 40-plus sacks in 2021. He’s in a division that might have three top-10 pass rushes next year (the 49ers and Rams are well stocked with highly regarded pass rushers, and Arizona last year had 48 sacks).
—Ian Allan