Russell Wilson Wants to Win More Super Bowls, Plans to 'Win Them' With Seahawks
With their season finale against the Cardinals approaching, the Seahawks have officially been out of the wild card hunt for two weeks and won't be playing for anything other than pride at State Farm Stadium on Sunday.
But in reality, Seattle found itself on playoff life support after losing three straight games upon Russell Wilson's return from finger surgery and falling to 3-8 in late November. The season fell apart long before losses to the Rams and Bears finally eliminated them from postseason contention last month.
Sitting in last place in the NFC West for the majority of the 2021 campaign, after airing his grievances about poor pass protection and lack of involvement in personnel decisions last spring, speculation about Wilson's future with the Seahawks has inevitably heated up again over the past several weeks. Reports surfaced about him being open to waiving his no trade clause to join the Broncos, Saints, or Giants, only for the quarterback to immediately deny those rumors.
Last Thursday, citing comments made by linebacker Bobby Wagner pondering his own future with the organization, Wilson didn't do anything to curb such chatter by telling reporters he "hoped" Sunday's home finale against the Lions wouldn't be his final game in a Seahawks uniform at Lumen Field.
“I hope it’s not my last game [in Seattle]," Wilson said at the time. "But at the same time, I know it won’t be my last game in the NFL.”
Then, a report of a "league-wide" feeling Wilson and coach Pete Carroll will not be together next season cropped up on ESPN two days later, pouring more gasoline on the fire.
As one of only a handful of players in the NFL who has a no-trade clause included in his contract, Wilson has full control over his destiny. If he doesn't want to play anywhere other than Seattle, he can veto any trade attempt made by the organization if they desire moving him.
Considering he holds the ultimate power when it comes to deciding his fate, at least in terms of players in the NFL, if Wilson truly wants to stay in Seattle, why hasn't he been willing to definitively squelch this speculation? Why has he kept the door open for him to potentially play elsewhere if that's not what he desires?
When posed those exact questions on Thursday, Wilson provided a somewhat revealing, yet guarded response on multiple fronts, starting with his no-trade clause.
"First of all, when it comes to no-trade clauses in sports, the main reason is so teams can't trade somebody to anywhere," Wilson said. "Cause in sports, you can wake up the next morning and you're gone somewhere else. That's the No. 1 reason."
The reasoning behind Wilson demanding a no-trade clause in the $140 contract he signed in April 2019 has been well-documented. Unsubstantiated rumors about the Seahawks potentially looking to deal him to the Browns back in 2018 may or may not have had something to do with that.
By using the verbiage "teams can't trade somebody to anywhere," Wilson kept the door open for being willing to go somewhere else if it was the right fit. Doing so provides him with a bit of leverage in case things deteriorate in Seattle to the point he wants out.
This isn't uncharted territory for Wilson and his camp either. Last spring, in what turned out to be a leverage ploy, his agent Mark Rodgers provided the Saints, Cowboys, Raiders, and Bears as four teams his client would be willing to waive his no-trade clause to play for.
After explaining the purpose of his no-trade clause, Wilson presented a more definitive statement expressing his desire to stay in the Pacific Northwest, though the way he worded his response could be interpreted a few different ways.
"My goal is to win more Super Bowls and my plan is to win them here. It's that simple," Wilson said. "There’s nothing really else other than that.”
On one hand, as he's stated on numerous occasions, Wilson's number one priority remains winning more Lombardi Trophies. Last week, he said his goal remains to win at least three more Super Bowls before hanging up his cleats. When asked if he thought he could reach that goal with the Seahawks, he again expressed hope he would be able to do so. He genuinely loves being in Seattle.
But that's when Wilson took an unexpected right turn and referenced Wagner's comments unprompted, hinting that he has indeed been contemplating his future after the Seahawks endured their worst season since 2009. While staying with the franchise may be what he ultimately wants, that may come with the caveat he wants to see specific changes made to put the team in a position to compete for championships again.
What type of changes could such a desire entail? At this point, nobody knows. The only thing that is for certain is that regardless of what Wilson and Carroll have said over the past couple of weeks, these rumors about their respective futures don't seem to be going anywhere and speculation will likely only escalate after Sunday's finale in the desert.
