Seahawks life without Russell Wilson will be fine

It was a fun ride

Matt Baide | Mar 17, 20220

The Seattle Seahawks made a big move and traded quarterback Russell Wilson to the Denver Broncos for two first-round picks, two second-round picks, and quarterback Drew Lock, tight end Noah Fant and defensive lineman Shelby Harris.

I know a lot of fans are upset about this move, and rightfully so, but I’m here to tell fans that everything is going to be fine.

Wilson has been the quarterback in Seattle since he was drafted in the third round out of Wisconsin in 2012. He helped the Seahawks reach two Super Bowls, winning Super Bowl XLVII and was 1 yard away from back-to-back Super Bowls.

He is the greatest quarterback in Seahawks’ history and he will be in the Ring of Honor one day and likely the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Seattle has won a lot of games during his time in the Northwest.

He will always be appreciated for what he did for the team and the city. Not only did he excel on the field, he was a good person off the field. He visited Seattle Children’s Hospital every week and won the Walter Payton’s Man of the Year award for his charity work.

If you listen to my podcast, Washington East to West Sports on YouTube, and listen to my brother Sean or Kevin, or go on Twitter at all, you will most likely see

Seahawks’ fans talking like the sky is falling, all hope is lost and the Seahawks will now nosedive into the depths with the NFL’s teams that can’t seem to get anything right like the Detroit Lions or Jacksonville Jaguars. Some fans are getting rid of their Wilson jerseys, denouncing their Seahawks fandom and swearing off Seattle until Pete and John are held responsible and fired.

I am happy with this trade for a few reasons. The first and main reason is because Wilson could have stopped this trade and stayed in Seattle if he wanted to. Wilson had a no-trade clause in his contract, which he waived for the trade to go through.

Last offseason, it was clear he wanted out with the list of teams he’d be willing to be traded to. If you went to your significant other and said, “I love you, but if we were to break up, I would like to date Tina, Amber or Chloe.” Do you think your significant other would just shrug it off and decide to stay together? No, and the Seahawks saw that. With two years left on his contract, the team decided to get something in return for a player who was going to leave regardless of what management wanted.

I wanted to keep Wilson as well, but when it is clear he wanted to leave, why keep him and keep this going for another two years before it ends anyway? If you love someone, you should let them go, if that is what they desire.

I have constantly heard fans say the Seahawks haven’t been successful because they’ve only won one playoff game since 2017, but have made the playoffs three times and have only had one losing season. These same fans blame head coach Pete Carroll for this while giving Wilson all the credit for the success during this time.

It is clear to me and some other fans that while Wilson is a great quarterback, he hasn’t had the playoff success since the end of the Legion of Boom. Fans can argue for days who was more instrumental to the Super Bowl runs and playoff success of the 2010s, but it’s clear that Russ hasn’t been as successful without the LOB.

The last reason I’ll mention why I’m happy with this trade is the excitement of new possibilities for this team. I am sad the last two players from the Super Bowl winning team are gone. The team informed Bobby Wagner he would be released by the team the same day the Seahawks’ traded Wilson. But I am excited for the future of this team because of the potential to find a new Legion of Boom, a new young quarterback with lots of potential and the players on this team that now have a chance to shine.

The NFL is a business, and players will not be here forever, and we all know one day our favorite player will no longer suit up for our team. But instead of seeing it with despair and dread, I choose to look at it as a new opportunity for the next group of players to succeed in Seattle.

It was a fun ride, Wilson, best of luck in Denver, except when you play the Seahawks.

■ Matt Baide is a reporter for the Shelton-Mason County Journal. He can be reached at [email protected] or 360-426-4412.