Big Blue View
It’s pretty widely agreed upon that the New York Giants upgraded their quarterback position when they signed Russell Wilson.
While nobody is under any illusions that the 35-year old QB is the player he was even five years ago, he’s still considered better than what the Giants have fielded in recent years. Of course, it’s hard to be worse than the Giants’ quarterback situation was in January of 2025, when they didn’t have one under contract.
But does that mean he’s good?
Not according to this year’s edition of The Athletic’s Quarterback Tiers put out by Mike Sando.
This year, Wilson sits in the fourth tier of Sando’s rankings.
A Tier 4 quarterback could be an unproven player (not enough information for voters to classify) or a veteran who ideally would not start all 17 games.
Wilson is ranked 26th in the NFL according to the coaches and executives, which is at the top of the fourth tier, but still the fourth tier. He’s one spot behind Kirk Cousins (25th), and 10 spots behind 41-year old Aaron Rodgers (16th).
In fact, Wilson is ranked three spots behind Daniel Jones’ 2024 ranking of 23 (Jones is 30th this year). Ultimately, they just don’t believe Russ can cook anymore, that his time in the sun is over and he should be put out to pasture before the end of the season.
“What he had that was magical about him — the ability to create plays on the move — is gone,” a defensive coordinator said.
That’s probably true. Wilson’s baseball background made him one of the first “modern” quarterbacks as a young player. His ability to scramble and extend plays while keeping his eyes downfield, as well as the ability to make off-platform throws, made the Seahawks incredibly difficult to defend in his prime. Pete Carroll loves to run the ball, and run defense demands discipline, which made Wilson’s out-of-structure playmaking that much more vexing for defenses.
He’s not that guy anymore, though I’d argue that he looked pretty good on roll-outs against the Bills. But the coaches and executives surveyed were also critical of Russ’ ability to throw the deep ball.
“He can still do some things, but I think he is just declining. Some of the throws he was good at are not there for him anymore,” another defensive coordinator said. “I did not feel like he was ripping throws. Even his deep throws were like airball stuff, hoping George Pickens makes a play.”
And again, his velocity is likely declining some with age. Though writers in attendance at Giants’ camp are adamant that Wilson’s ball still has plenty of zip. But it’s also interesting that the coordinator in question is saying that the throws “aren’t there anymore” for Wilson. He was the best deep ball passer in the NFL by EPA last year, beating out both Josh Allen and Geno Smith in Pro Football Focus’ rankings.
Russell Wilson’s impeccable touch on deep throws has been...
