Over Seattle's last five games, quarterback Russell Wilson isn't seeing things as clearly as he did early in the season. That has led to the Seahawks' offensive struggles.
His slump started in Week 14 against the same San Francisco team he'll face Sunday in the NFC championship game, and the numbers verify that his play has dipped.
Wilson hasn't thrown for more than 206 yards in his last five games. On third down he has completed less than 47 percent of his passes and has been sacked seven times, just on third down. The Seahawks have a poor 29 percent third-down conversion rate in that stretch.
I can't tell you exactly what is causing Wilson's slump, but you can see it. Sometimes it just happens. In basketball, a great shooter can go into a shooting slump. Wilson is playing a little tentatively and his game has become unstructured and random. Even on his biggest play of the game last week against New Orleans he was off.
On a third and three in the fourth quarter, Doug Baldwin ran a wheel route from the slot. It was a one-read concept with a defined throw, and Baldwin had two steps on cornerback Corey White. The ball should have been thrown out in front but Wilson threw it to Baldwin's back shoulder and allowed White to become a factor in the throw. Baldwin made a great catch for a 24-yard gain despite that.
Wilson has been inaccurate on too many basic throws, especially quick slants. He was inaccurate on a quick slant to Golden Tate in the first quarter last week against the Saints on a third and 5. That's a routine throw Wilson has to make. Wilson at times is throwing with a locked front leg, which negatively impacts accuracy. That's especially noticeable in quick passing game.
At this point Wilson is more of a random quarterback than a precision pocket player. There's too much inconsistency in his play. Wilson has become tentative in the pocket, and not willing to pull the trigger the way he did earlier in the season. And five games is a meaningful enough sample size to indicate he is struggling.
