Sundays battle between 10-1 Philadelphia and 7-4 Seattle was supposed to be a battle between two of the NFLs leading MVP candidates.
KAMR Local 4 News on Twitter
Through eight weeks of the NFL season, who is your MVP: Tom Brady, Carson Wentz, Alex Smith, or Russell Wilson?
You had the OG Russell Wilson, who is still unfathomably underrated in some circles, against the NFLs new flavor of the month, second-year signal caller Carson Wentz, who has been sweated harder than than a 500-pound lineman wearing three garbage bags while running a marathon in the Mugabi Desert.
Wentz has been all the rave, but as usual, Russell had all the right stuff to keep an injured and inspired Seahawks squad in the playoff mix with a clutch 24-10 win over the soaring Eagles, who began their West Coast swing.
On Sunday, Wentz, who led the Eagles (10-2) to a 10-1 start for the fourth time in franchise history (2004, 1980 and 1949) and 12 wins in their last 13 games dating back to Week 16 of 2016, had a chance to solidify his MVP status and his superiority as a rising young gun. Instead, Wilson put on a vintage clutch display and gave the hotshot new jack Wentz a preview of what playoff ball is going to look and feel like.
Bik Nizzar on Twitter
Carson Wentz: “I’m going to become MVP with my performance tonight” Russell Wilson: https://t.co/UEXidgHfmO
Philly was 8-0 against the NFC before falling to the Hawks. It was business as usual for Russ. The Super Bowl QB threw for 221 yards and three touchdowns and made all of the critical plays when they counted, schooling Wentz on how far he still has to go past the glowing statistics to hop over Wilson on the list of the NFLs premier quarterbacks.
As folks tire of Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers’ aerial dominance, Wentzs name is common flow from the lips of football fans when discussing the heir apparent to the NFL’s QB throne. Numerous players have been tabbed that guy since RG3, Luck and Wilson stormed the league in 2012. But is Wentz truly built like Wilson, who led the Seahawks to a Super Bowl in his second season in the league? The team has had an incredible regular season run, but while the AFC is a two-team race between New England and Pittsburgh, the NFC will be a dogfight and at 10-2, Philly is still trying to secure home field advantage.
Russell Wilson has seven straight games now with at least two TD tosses and the word “MVP”is being associated with his name more often each week.
ProFootballTalk on Twitter
Sunday Night wrap-up: Russell Wilson makes his MVP case, as Seahawks handle Eagles https://t.co/257TTCDuRq
Wentzs potential cant be questioned, but the jury is still out on whether or not Philly is fools gold. The Eagles have one win this season against a team with a winning record. And in a game where they had to win to remain the top seed in the NFC, they let Wilson shred them with big plays while Wentz 348 passing yards are kind to his statistics, but short of effectiveness in the clutch, mustering just one TD.
Minnesota has now overtaken the top spot in the NFC at 10-2.
NFL Research on Twitter
Carson Wentz has thrown for just 45 pass yards through halftime, his fewest in the first half in any game this season This is the 3rd time this season the Seahawks have held opposing QB under 50 pass yards in the first half this season (T-most in NFL) #PHIvsSEA
They couldnt make the big plays when they needed too, Deion Sanders said on his Sunday evening NFL Network show.
Wilson was the complete opposite and embraced the moment. He told a reporter, (We approached this) like a playoff game.
He has carried this team on his back,” Sanders added. “Russell Wilson is darn near single-handedly propelling this team to the next level.and the defense is coming…these guys can be the sleeper team to go on and do some real damage in the playoffs.
The post season is what it’s all about if Wentz wants to be considered an elite quarterback, he has to win the regular season games that have playoff significance. Wentz’ test will only get more difficult down the stretch. He will face the quarterback that was chosen over him in the 2016 Draft in Jared Golf, Derek Carr and Dak Prescott in his final four games. That should be his focus because as far as MVP talk, Wilson is kind of running away with that.
