Without question, that Russell has at least turned some heads. For the other guys and all the guys who have played before him who didn't quite get the chance for that same kind of stigma, he has opened up the door.'' — Pete Carroll, on Russell Wilson
JERSEY CITY – To be able to block for Russell Wilson, the Seahawks have constructed a plan to get inside his head. To give the 5-foot-11 quarterback the windows and space he needs to succeed, offensive line coach Tom Cable says they must know how he thinks.
Twice each week, Wilson meets with the Seahawks centers. During offensive team meetings and installation groups, they ask him to describe what he is thinking during plays.
With an unconventional quarterback, the team has learned it needs to make accommodations. Wilson’s height is his defining feature. He is the shortest starting quarterback in the NFL, yet he has been wildly successful in his first two years in the league. He has led Seattle to the Super Bowl, where they will face the Denver Broncos and Peyton Manning – his archetypal foil at the position– Sunday at MetLife Stadium.
The NFL has long seen its ideal quarterbacks to be several inches taller than Wilson — Manning is 6-foot-5. And though the league is now assembling a group of mobile and shifty quarterbacks, even those closer to Manning’s height.
But is Wilson's success enough to also turn him into a trailblazer in the league, changing perceptions about short quarterbacks? Or is he an outlier – so uniquely prosperous that teams will not change their views because Wilson is just too good to be replicated? Even within his own organization, there is no consensus, and to talk to Seahawks coaches is too see the dialogue play out.
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"Without question, that Russell has at least turned some heads," Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said. "For the other guys and all the guys who have played before him who didn’t quite get the chance for that same kind of stigma, he has opened up the door. It’s exciting to see that that’s happened because there are a lot of marvelous athletes, and we’re seeing it right now."
Carroll occupies one part of the thought process – open-minded and willing to move away from the stereotype. The Seahawks have seen Wilson bend perceived wisdom and in him, Carroll has found his franchise pillar.
The organization has given Wilson a chance that few others have received. The Saints' Drew Brees is seen as on the edge of acceptable height at the position. Even Doug Flutie, the 5-foot-10 former Bills star – had to spend eight years in exile in the Canadian Football League before returning stateside to lead Buffalo to their last playoff appearance.
In a 17-year career, Darrell Bevell, the Seahawks' offensive coordinator, had never even coached a starter who was six feet or shorter before Wilson came along.
"I don't think there were a lot of people that really thought about it," he said. "Six foot was kind of the shortest that there really was."
It was a process for Bevell to appreciate Wilson. He is a Wisconsin alum and his first time watching Wilson was as a Badgers fan cheering for his team. First, he saw his poise. Then he dug deeper and was impressed by Wilson's intangibles and his playmaking ability. By the 2012 NFL Draft, Bevell was sold.
Now, Wilson is a flashpoint for players like Johnny Manziel and Aaron Murray, two 6-foot-1 quarterbacks who's height could be a mark against them in the draft.
"I think it makes them sit back and say OK, at least now there's some evidence out there that it's been done before," Bevell said. "Maybe they'll take a second look at it."
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Carl Smith still isn't a believer. The Seahawks' quarterbacks coach likes his quarterbacks tall and still feels that way. The NFL's inherent pull towards the towering -- of the 37 quarterbacks that threw at least 224 passes this season, only 11 were shorter than 6-foot-3 and seven of those just missed by an inch – matches his own.
Before he coached Wilson he had a prejudice against short quarterbacks and still does. Just because Wilson has thrown 52 touchdowns and just 19 interceptions in two years for him does not mean that his views have changed.
"I had the bias," Smith said. "I came down from an original taller bias – where (Packers quarterbacks Brett) Favre and Aaron Rodgers are 6-2ish, I was kind of surprised when I stood next to Joe Montana and he wasn’t tall as when we were playing him in the 80s….Most of the guys who were having success were big guys that can stand in the pocket. I mean most of the defensive linemen are tall."
Smith's beliefs are not uncommon. Cable, a former Raiders head coach, said that often when teams see a short quarterback they assume he cannot play. It reflects a rigid height range that quarterbacks are placed into. Where Wilson can be too small, Broncos backup quarterback Brock Osweiler, at 6-foot-8, once feared he could be too big when college recruiters told him that if he did not stop growing he would need a new position or sport.
Still, it's evident that most teams would rather skew taller. Smith certainly believes so and Cable admits that Wilson has only done so much to change perceptions.
"I think guys will think about it now. Guys will not just immediately say ‘He’s too short. He can’t do it.’," Cable said. "They’ll look at him and say ‘He’s shorter but can he be like Russell Wilson?’"
"But let’s not kid each other. Everybody is looking for the big, tall guy.”
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