There were a number of flashy throws made by Russell Wilson in his Pittsburgh Steeler, but one of them looked somewhat routine upon first watch. Going back through the tape, it is very clear that it was Wilson’s best play of the game. Bill Belichick and Peyton Manning agree and showered him with praise for making it.
“Oh my God. There’s not many that could make that play,” said Belichick via ESPN’s The Breakdown with Peyton and Belichick. “Then, to your point, he put it right on the money to [Pat] Freiermuth so he could run another 20 yards after the catch. That’s a great play.”
They are talking about the play below, which came toward the end of the first half on 1st and 10.
This 30-yard pass to TE Pat Freiermuth wouldn’t have been possible if Wilson did a single thing differently. He sold the play fake effectively to freeze the defensive end. If his fake wasn’t that good, he would have been crushed for a sack on the blind bootleg turn. If he hadn’t stepped out wide to force the end out of his throwing lane, the ball would have been swatted down and fallen incomplete. And finally, if he hadn’t placed the ball in perfect stride for Freiermuth, it would have been a five-yard gain instead of a 30-yard gain.
Manning explained the mechanics of the play.
“This is a true blind bootleg. He is turning his back to the defense,” Manning said. “The tight end’s pulling, the guard’s pulling. We’re getting good flow that way, but nobody’s blocking this defense end. Russell knows that. He takes one step wide knowing that the defensive end thinks he’s going wide, and he pulls up right away. I don’t know how he gets this throw off and look how accurate the throw is to Freiermuth. It’s a runner’s ball. If this throw is behind Pat, we don’t have this explosive play.”
That throw is only possible if Wilson is locked into the play design and has a full understanding of the way the defense is going to be influenced by his actions from snap to throw. Even with the perfect execution before the throw, the ball placement while slightly off balance is nothing short of amazing.
Offensive coordinator Arthur Smith echoed that sentiment, calling it the “most impressive throw he made” in the debut, and it’s one of the big reasons he is excited to continue growing this offense with Wilson at the helm.
