Russell Wilson Peaking at Right Time for Highly Dangerous Seahawks

I don't know where Russell Wilson ranks among the game's top quarterbacks.

I don't know how his arm strength ranks. Or his accuracy. Or his pocket awareness. Or any of the other artificial metrics cited by the stat geeks and metric nerds who say they study film 27 hours a day. I don't know. I don't care.

This is what I do know: Wilson has almost no downfield threat. His tight ends don't scare anyone. His line is decent. His best weapon is a running back in a passing league.

Yet all I see from Wilson is a concert of excellence and double standards. Wilson's accurate throws, his critics will say, are because of route-running by the receiver. Andrew Luck's are because of his radar-lock brain that is radar-locked on the receiver which allows his radar-locking mechanism to radar-lock, 'cause radar-lock gonna radar-lock.

No, you aren't seeing 400-yard passing games from Wilson, but what you are seeing is a rise in his play. A resurgence. Revenge of the Russell. He's back to Super Bowl form, and I would say he's even better now than he was last year and this fact, as much as his defense, makes the Seattle Seahawks difficult to beat.

What the Seahawks' 24-14 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday showed was, once again, if you don't fear the Seahawks, you need to check yourself before they do it for you.

What's even more stunning is how the competitors around the Seahawks are disintegrating as the Seahawks rise. The San Francisco 49ers are a mess. The Arizona Cardinals, without Carson Palmer, might be done. The Seahawks just beat Philadelphia. The Detroit Lions still can't be trusted. Do you believe in the Dallas Cowboys? Hell no. Not yet.

So in the NFC, the Green Bay Packers are a clear No. 1, and then Seattle. That's how it has to be.

The 'Hawks have the clearest road to a division title. The Cardinals finish the season at St. Louis (win), home against Seattle (loss) and then at San Francisco (toss-up). The 49ers are at Seattle (loss), home against San Diego (loss) and then home against Arizona (toss-up).

Arizona had a good win on Sunday, but they aren't the same team. They just lost Andre Ellington for the year with a hernia.

Then there's San Francisco. If Colin Kaepernick regresses any further, he'll be wearing a single-bar facemask. The players on the 49ers have totally checked out. They know Jim Harbaugh is gone. They're already booking vacation flights. The 49ers are broken men. They were just manhandled by the Oakland Raiders. No way they beat Seattle.

The thing about the Seahawks-Eagles game: It really wasn't that close. This game had more of a 30-7 feel. I never got the feeling Philadelphia was ever going to win it. The Seahawks are also the first team this year to beat the Eagles in Philly. Seattle has won three straight games overall and six of its last seven.

These Seahawks continue to streak, and while their defense is obviously a huge reason, it is time again to take a close look at the job Wilson is doing. He back's. He's baaaack.

Look at Wilson versus almost any other thrower in the conference. He's playing better than Drew Brees, Matthew Stafford, Matt Ryan, Jay Cutler, Eli Manning, Tony Romo (yes, Romo) and Cam Newton. The only person in the conference playing quarterback now better than Wilson is Aaron Rodgers.

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I'm not talking solely statistically. I'm talking about playing the position. His ability to make nice touch passes has always been better than many have given him credit for, but now he's better than ever. His athleticism has also improved. His ability to destroy a defense with a well-timed scamper is just as problematic for an opponent.

We've heard a lot about the pocket passer and how in today's game, you win from the pocket. That is mostly true, but look at a pocket passer like Alex Smith who still hasn't thrown a touchdown pass to a wide receiver. The last touchdown caught by a Kansas City receiver was Week 13 last year.

I'm watching Wilson do everything. Look at his stat line against the Eagles: 263 passing yards and two passing scores; 48 rushing yards including a 26-yard rushing score.

On a day when prototypical pocket passer Peyton Manning had 173 passing yards and two picks, I'll take Wilson's line. I'll take that all day.

The Eagles victory was Wilson's 33rd of his career. According to ESPN, that ties him with Dan Marino and Ryan for the most wins by a quarterback in his opening three seasons during the Super Bowl era. Yes, his defense is scary, and yes, so is his running game. But so is Wilson.

No, I don't know where Russell Wilson ranks or what his QBR is or how he fares when it comes to pocket distress.

I just know Wilson and the Seahawks are peaking at the perfect time.

Mike Freeman covers the NFL for Bleacher Report.