It’s a great time to be Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson, who takes a legitimate MVP candidacy into Sunday's game against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Making his case
Wilson has thrown or rushed for 29 of the Seahawks' 30 touchdowns this season. That would be the highest percentage of a team’s offensive touchdowns by a single player in NFL history. His 26 touchdown passes are tied for second in the NFL entering the week. Per the Elias Sports Bureau, Wilson’s 15 touchdown passes in the fourth quarter are tied for the NFL record with Eli Manning, who had 15 in 2011.
Wilson has been at his best in the fourth quarter, posting a Total QBR of 88 to go along with a 70 percent completion percentage and one interception. In the first three quarters of the game, his Total QBR is 53, and he has four more touchdowns than interceptions (11-7).
Over the past three seasons, Wilson has 14 games with at least three touchdown passes, including Sunday night’s win over the Philadelphia Eagles. That’s tied for second in the NFL over that span.
Wilson leads the Seahawks with 432 rushing yards this season (none of his teammates even have half that many). He could become the fifth quarterback to lead his team in rushing yards since the AFL-NFL merger in 1970. Elias notes that the other four are Bobby Douglass (1972 Bears), Randall Cunningham (1987-90 Eagles), Donovan McNabb (2000 Eagles) and Cam Newton (2012 Panthers).
Jacksonville formidable
Looking ahead to this week, Wilson has been great against the Seahawks’ AFC South opponents this season. Three of his top four games in Total QBR came against the Indianapolis Colts (82.8), Houston Texans (80.3) and Tennessee Titans (75.0).
The Jaguars have allowed the fewest points this season, a distinction the Seahawks held each season from 2012 to 2015. They’ve also allowed the fewest yards.
The Seahawks’ best defensive season was in 2013, a year they also won the Super Bowl. That year the Seahawks became the first team since the 1985 Bears to lead the NFL in points allowed, yards allowed and takeaways. The 2017 Jaguars lead the NFL in points allowed and yards allowed, and they are two takeaways shy of the Ravens for the league lead in that category.