From ESPN.com
3. It's tough for offensive-minded coaches to embrace Russell Wilson's excellence.
Most of the defensive coaches I speak with love what they see from Wilson -- except when they have to face him. Some offensive coaches have a harder time embracing a quarterback whose style goes against what history has told them NFL quarterbacks must do to succeed consistently over time. That was certainly evident Sunday night, when the Arizona Cardinals' radio network asked coach Bruce Arians where Wilson ranks among the league's quarterbacks.
Arians had just watched Wilson pass for 339 yards and rush for 88 yards, but as a coach with very specific preferences at the position, he did not gush. He called Wilson "very different" and said this about him: "He's not going to beat you from the pocket. He is going to beat you all over the field and they have a nice scheme for him."
Arians and many other coaches believe quarterbacks must consistently produce as passers from the pocket to succeed over time. They are right. But for all the damage Wilson did with his feet in this game, he also completed 13 of 20 passes for 189 yards and a touchdown from inside the pocket. He averaged 9.5 yards per attempt on those throws and took no sacks in the pocket.
That doesn't make Wilson a classic pocket passer. His overall numbers from the pocket this season have not been as good as in the past, even though defenses must make concessions in coverage as they strategize to stop Marshawn Lynch and contain Wilson's running. But for a young quarterback operating in an offense lacking in pass protection and without dynamic wide receivers or tight ends, Wilson is not just very different. He is also very good.
Todd Bowles, the Cardinals' defensive coordinator, had it right in his pregame comments: "Many have tried, many have failed [in stopping Wilson]. The guy's got a gift. He's smart, he's heady, he understands their offense and he understands what's happening to him. We've got our work cut out for us."