Russell Wilson stayed hot Sunday, completing 21 of 27 passes for 274 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions in the Seattle Seahawks' 38-7 win over the Minnesota Vikings.
Wilson is playing the best football of his career. With some help from ESPN Stats & Information, here are five numbers that matter when it comes to Wilson:
90.5 -- Wilson's completion percentage when he stayed in the pocket against the Vikings. He was 19-of-21 for 256 yards and a pair of touchdowns from the pocket. Several players in the locker room -- wide receiver Doug Baldwin and cornerback Richard Sherman, to name a couple -- specifically mentioned how well Wilson is playing from the pocket. In the past three games, he's 59-of-69 (85.5 percent) for 810 yards (11.74 YPA), 10 touchdowns and no interceptions from the pocket. On the season, he is completing 72.8 percent of his passes (first), averaging 8.76 yards per attempt (second), and has a passer rating of 113.2 (first) on throws from inside the pocket. The offensive line has been much better, and Wilson, who turned 27 last month, is trusting the protection. It seems to me that we're seeing a young quarterback progress and elevate an important aspect of his game.
158.3 -- Wilson's passer rating against the blitz the past three weeks. The Vikings didn't blitz him much, and when they did, they got burned. Wilson was 3-of-4 for 73 yards and a touchdown when Minnesota sent five rushers or more. This number goes hand in hand with the first one, really. Wilson and the offensive line are doing a tremendous job before the snap, and the Seahawks' numbers against the blitz have really turned around. In the first 10 games, Wilson completed 52 percent of his passes (25th) and had a passer rating of 66.9 (30th) against five or more rushers. In the past three games, he's 21-of-27 (77.8 percent) for 381 yards (14.1 YPA), six touchdowns and no interceptions against the blitz. His recent performance could make defensive coordinators think twice about sending extra pressure in coming weeks.
4.1 -- The sack percentage on Wilson since Week 8. That's the ninth-best mark in the league. In Weeks 1 through 7, it was 11.7 percent, which ranked 32nd. The offensive line has really done a nice job of keeping him clean. Against the Pittsburgh Steelers, Wilson got rid of the ball quicker than he had all season. But that wasn't the case against the Vikings. The Seahawks called a lot of bootlegs, which take a longer time to develop. He held the ball an average of 2.76 seconds before each pass, which was the sixth-highest number of any quarterback in Week 13. But this was Wilson at his best. He bought time, scrambled and made defenders miss all game long. Ideally, the coaches want him to execute from the pocket but still use his athleticism and elusiveness. Wilson is balancing those things as well as ever right now.
47 -- The number of pass plays of 20-plus yards that Wilson has produced. That's fifth-most in the league. It's especially impressive, considering that Wilson has averaged only 29.3 pass attempts per game, which ranks 35th. Pete Carroll talks about explosive plays all the time, and the Seahawks are coming up with a good number of them through the air. There's a really nice mix right now of the quick passing game, the run game, the read option/packaged plays and shots downfield. The different looks on offense, led by Wilson's execution, has made them tough to defend.
68.5 -- Wilson's overall completion percentage, which is tops in the NFL. He's averaging 8.51 YPA (third) and has a passer rating of 106.2 (third).
"Remember, he's a fourth-year guy," Carroll said. "We compare him to guys that have been playing 10 and 12 and 15 years in this league all the time. He's a fourth-year player, and he's doing remarkably well. He's on his way to having a great career."
The Seahawks have a lot of things going for them. The upcoming schedule is favorable. The defense is healthy. And the offensive line is playing much better. But it's Wilson's play that has them in position to go on a run and make some noise down the stretch.