Russell Wilson Comments on HC Hackett's Questionable Decision to Kick Long Field Goal
You don't pay a quarterback over $240 million and take him off the field in a do-or-die situation.
Feels like common sense in the NFL, but the Denver Broncos proved, in primetime, that no team is safe from making this inane move.
Facing a fourth-and-5 on Seattle territory (near the 50) with 20 seconds left, Broncos head coach Nathaniel Hackett opted to send kicker Brandon McManus for a 64-yard field goal rather than putting new Mile High star Russell Wilson in the game.
From the Mannings to audiences at home, a collective WTF was unleashed when Hackett mishandled the drive, then tried for, and missed, the game-winning field goal.
Wilson's former team, the Seahawks, walked away victorious in the revenge game, 17-16.
Russ evaded the boos in his return to Lumen Field, but he couldn't dodge answering for the Monday night loss based on his rookie head coach's terrible call.
Wilson spoke with the media after the game, and when asked about Hackett's decision to take the ball out of his hands in the final drive, he said he fully supported Hackett's move.
"I believe in coach Hackett, I believe in what we're doing, I believe in everything," Wilson said. "Anytime you can try to find a play on 4th-and-5, that’s great too. But I don't think it was the wrong decision … If we’re in the situation again, I wouldn’t doubt whatever he decided."
Hackett's call for a field goal wasn't his only blunder of the night. On that final drive, with a minute left on the clock, Hackett blew 30 seconds to call a timeout — still a considerable distance from scoring a touchdown or field goal.
The questionable waste of crunchtime showcased the ineptitude of the first-year coach in Hackett, said OutKick's Armando Salguero.
Also add the terrible goal-line offense by Wilson and the Broncos: fumbling on two trips and settling for a field goal on another.
"Obviously, I wish we would have gotten a lot closer, it put us in that weird spot because we were in that field goal range, but we were on that fourth down situation ... We just made that decision and take our shot there," Wilson added.
Seahawks coach Pete Carroll was asked about the Broncos' final play for the win.
"I was surprised they took Russ out at the end," Carroll said. "We weren't thinking field goal there. We were thinking they were going. It gave us a chance to win the game on that play. Very fortunate there."