Russell Carrington Wilson is an American football player who plays in the National Football League for the Seattle Seahawks.
After starting his football career in college, playing for North Carolina State University and then for Wisconsin University, Wilson has come a long way to become one of America’s most popular sportspersons. However, he was initially considered unfit for football, especially as a quarterback, and faced rejections early in his life. Eventually, his skills proved his critics wrong and he went on to become one of the leading players for the popular NFL team Seattle Seahawks.
He also played baseball in college and was initially confused as to which sport he should pursue as his career. He eventually chose football as it seemed more challenging. After being drafted into the NFL in 2012, he displayed his speed and strength from the very first game and continued playing well throughout the tournament, eventually winning the NFL Rookie of the Year award in his debut series.
The very next year, he led his team to victory in NFL 2013. In 2015, Wilson became the highest-paid NFL player after extending his contract with Seahawks for $87.6 million.
Wilson is one of the best quarterbacks in football, using his blend of mobility and accuracy to become a full-fledged stud. He has played for the Seattle Seahawks his entire career, captaining the team and leading them to victory over the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XLVIII.
He started playing baseball and football when he was four, and he was almost drafted to the MLB as a professional baseball player but later chose to play football.
Russell Wilson attended high school at Richmond Collegiate, a preparatory high school where he perfected his skills for baseball, basketball and football. During his time at Richmond, he also attended the Manning Passing Academy, a summer football clinic run by a veteran NFL star who was a multiple NFL MVP winner, Peyton Manning. He won a lot of recognition throughout his time in school. He then earned the all-district, all-state, and all-region player of the year award. He also won the Richmond dispatch player annual award twice.
In his senior year, he completed 3009 yards passing 34 touchdowns and 7 interceptions with 18 touchdowns and 1132 rushing yards. He was awarded the all-state and all-conference player for the year. He got featured in a sports magazine and was the class president. On July 23, 2008, Russell was signed to North Carolina State and he even received a scholarship from Duke University.
Russell was redshirted in the first year of his college career in 2007, and he was a part-time player in 2008 and split his playing time with quarterback Harrison Beck and Daniel Evans. He threw 186 yards, rushed 46 yards and made a touchdown in the Papa Johns Bowl. He was the first freshman to be named the Quarterback of the preseason all-ACC. He also beat the all-time NCAA record of 325 passing yards without inception held by Andre Woodson. Russell was a runner up for the All-ACC Award and was named the All-ACC Player for the second team. He graduated with a degree in communication after three years in May and took business courses on the graduate level during the fall of the semester in 2010.
Russell made an announcement that he was going to begin baseball training at the Colorado Rockies association. He later expressed a desire to be drafted into the NFL and his head coach O'Brien and staff searched for scouts who would invite him into the 2011 scouting combine but to no avail. He was later released from university scholarship, having one year left and was made a free agent. Russell later transferred to the Wisconsin Badgers, where he spent his 2011 and 2012 season. He got selected by the Seattle Seahawks in the 75th overall pick of the NFL in the third round. He signed a $2.2 million, four-year contract with the Seahawks.
Russell Wilson made his debut on September 9, 2012, in the game against the Arizona Cardinals which ended in a 20-16 loss. He had 18 completions for 34 passing attempts for 153 yards, 1 passing touchdown and 1 interception. Russell earned the Pepsi NFL Rookie of the year due to a Stellar Week 10 performance in his victory game against New York Giants.
In July 2015, the Seahawks renewed his contract when they awarded a $87.6 million, four-year contract making him one of the highest-paid quarterback players in NFL history. He broke numerous single Seahawks passing records, including the most passing touchdowns, most passing yards and also the highest passing rating in the history of the Seahawks. He was ranked no 17th in the NFL Top 100 of 2016.
He was named captain in the 2018 Season and he led his team valiantly throughout the season despite player setbacks, in 2019 he extended his contract with the Seahawks in a four-year extension for $140 million, making Russell among the top five players in NFL’s history.
Wilson won his lone Super Bowl championship in 2014 when he led the Seattle Seahawks to a 43-8 victory over the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XLVIII.
Wilson’s net worth is currently estimated at $120 million. His net worth is boosted by various endorsement deals and business ventures.
Some of Wilson’s endorsement deals since joining the Seahawks in 2012 include Levi’s, American Family Insurance, Pepsi, Nike, Alaska Airlines, Microsoft, Bose, Lawson Automotive Group, Duracell, United Way and Bose.
Wilson signed a four-year, $140 million deal with the Seahawks in 2019.
Wilson was initially married to his highschool sweetheart Ashton Meem. The couple got married in January 2012 and got divorced two years later. They had no children together.
Wilson later began dating R&B singer Ciara, and they got married in July 2016 in Cheshire, England. The couple has a daughter Sienna, who was born on April 28, 2017, and Russell has a stepson named Future Zahir.
“Every setback has a major comeback”
“I thought about all the people that told me I couldn’t do it and that I couldn’t get there”
“Always persevere, always have a great perspective and always have a great purpose in your life”
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