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Russell Wilson gives Seahawks QB Jalen Milroe awesome gift ahead of rookie season

A legend of the Seattle Seahawks past shows some love to their potential quarterback of the future.
Jon Alfano|
Jun 11, 2025; Renton, WA, USA; Seattle Seahawks quarterback Jalen Milroe (6) scrambles during mini-camp at Virginia Mason Athletic Center. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Brashear-Imagn Images
Jun 11, 2025; Renton, WA, USA; Seattle Seahawks quarterback Jalen Milroe (6) scrambles during mini-camp at Virginia Mason Athletic Center. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Brashear-Imagn Images | Stephen Brashear-Imagn Images

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Seattle Seahawks

Longtime Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson's departure may have been messy, but it's always important to remember what he did for the franchise.

Wilson, 36, was easily the best quarterback the Seahawks have ever had. In 10 seasons, he earned nine Pro Bowl selections while throwing for more than 37,000 yards with 292 touchdowns to only 87 interceptions. Of course, he also helped Seattle win its first Super Bowl in 2013, and while he was definitely helped by an outstanding defense early on, he was the undisputed face of the franchise in his later years.

Even three years after leaving Seattle, Wilson still cares immensely about the Seahawks, and his latest act shows that.

As part of Fanatics' "The Locker Room," in which rookies receive inspirational messages from their NFL idols, Wilson gifted new Seahawks quarterback Jalen Milroe a signed jersey with the message, "Jalen! You are going to be a star in NFL! You will love Seattle. Go be great!" A great message for the former Alabama star ahead of his rookie season, to be sure.

Jalen Milroe an underdog like Russell Wilson

New York Giants quarterback Russell Wilson
Aug 4, 2025; East Rutherford, NJ, USA; New York Giants quarterback Russell Wilson (3) throws a pass during training camp at Quest Diagnostics Training Center. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images | Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

When looking at Milroe and Wilson's path to the NFL, they aren't all that different. Wilson, 36, was a third-round pick (No. 75 overall) in the 2012 NFL Draft, and despite being mostly slept on, he became the best quarterback from his draft class. Milroe, 22, was a third-round pick in this year's draft and was largely slept on leading up to the event.

It goes further than that, though. Wilson joined the Seahawks just after they signed free agent quarterback Matt Flynn, then beat him out for the starting job and never looked back. Milroe joins the Seahawks just after they signed free agent quarterback Sam Darnold, and while the latter will start this season, the former could very well be the future under center.

Only time will tell if Milroe ends up matching Wilson's NFL success, but the parallels are definitely there.

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Jon Alfano
JON ALFANO

Jon is a lead writer for Baltimore Ravens On SI and contributes to other sites around the network as well. The Tampa native previously worked with sites such as ClutchPoints and GiveMeSport and earned his journalism degree at the University of Central Florida.

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