Seattle, WA

Salk: Embarrassed, sympathetic for ‘tragic character’ Russell Wilson

Published

2 years ago

February 8, 2023

Salk: Embarrassed, sympathetic for ‘tragic character’ Russell Wilson

Over the previous yr, we now have been by way of nearly all the things with Russell Wilson. We cheered him. We had been in denial about him leaving. A few of us wished him to remain over Pete Carroll. A few of us thought he wanted to be the one to go. We had been shocked when he was traded. We had been excited when he got here to Seattle and left 0-1.

After which we watched the circus in Denver that he helped create however couldn’t include. Generally we laughed. Generally we cringed. Generally we simply shook our head and questioned how the identical participant we watched for a decade of (principally) unbelievable instances might have declined so totally. It was clear that he was out and away from the steerage and safety that Pete and the Seahawks provided. It was clear that among the masked points had been revealing themselves in actual time.

And whereas I’ve chuckled and even laughed at among the ridiculous gaffes that we’ve seen since he first informed Broncos Nation to experience, at the moment I discover myself feeling one thing new for Russ: I’m embarrassed for him.

The previous couple of weeks have been tough for him. There have been talks concerning the Broncos reducing him and consuming the cash. Their teaching search was a public debacle and it led many to marvel if the coaches with probably the most leverage had been so cautious of working with him that they had been eschewing prime greenback paid by the league’s wealthiest house owners. When Sean Payton lastly took the job, he went out of his strategy to say that entry to the constructing for non-players was “international” to him and wouldn’t be part of his regime transferring ahead. Then his buddy Terry Bradshaw insinuated that Payton didn’t need to work with Russ however couldn’t discover a higher choice.

And but, all of that paled compared to the USA At this time investigation into his charitable giving.

Author Jason Wolf penned a protracted story that alleges that the Russell Wilson Basis (the Why Not You Basis), “spent virtually $600,000 — or simply 24.3 cents of each greenback — on charitable actions in 2020 and 2021 mixed and practically twice as a lot, $1.1 million, on salaries and worker advantages in that span, in keeping with federal tax data.”

Report: Practices of Russell Wilson’s basis in query

It’s a deep-dive investigation that features commentary from accountants, watchdog teams and charitable consultants who paint an unflattering image of the inspiration. In brief, the inspiration not solely didn’t do an excellent job of donating the cash it raised, however it additionally exaggerated how a lot cash it was accountable for bringing in.

For instance, “The Why Not You Basis donated $78,000 to Seattle Youngsters’s Hospital in 2019, in keeping with tax data, a fraction of the $2.6 million examine introduced. It has donated $836,000 to Seattle Youngsters’s Hospital and the Seattle Youngsters’s Hospital Basis since its inception, in keeping with tax data.”

In brief: the inspiration did good issues, however vastly exaggerated them.

Sound acquainted?

It ought to. Maybe you bear in mind Dr. Steve Shin? He was the physician who operated on Russ’s mallet finger in 2021. Afterwards, he launched a press release saying, “Though this was uncharted territory (I’ve by no means in my profession seen such a extreme harm to the throwing hand of an NFL quarterback), I’ve additionally by no means encountered a participant so dedicated to his postoperative remedy and with a lot conviction to return to the identical, if not higher, degree of efficiency as he had pre-injury. I’m completely amazed at his progress, a lot in order that I can now confidently clear him for full return to play with out reservation.”

It learn prefer it got here straight from Russ’ PR store and wreaked of pointless hyperbole. It was the worst finger harm ever for a quarterback? No participant has ever been so dedicated to rehab remedy? He was going to come back again higher than earlier than? Come on!

And it made sense coming from the identical man who stated he had a premonition that he’d be drafted by Seattle, doesn’t have time to sleep, reportedly requested for his personal non-public suite earlier than his first begin as a rookie, and talks usually about his “legacy.”

It’s all simply so pointless! Russell Wilson is a good participant. He doesn’t want to inform everybody how nice he’s. Russell Wilson is a troublesome dude who as soon as performed an entire season with a torn MCL and a excessive ankle sprain. He doesn’t want to say to be extra devoted to remedy than everybody else. Russell Wilson is a charitable, caring particular person. However there was no must exaggerate simply how profitable his basis actually was.

It’s embarrassing.

After studying the USA At this time report, I don’t imagine Russell Wilson or the individuals round him did something actually unsuitable. There may need been errors made, however it doesn’t learn like a case of true impropriety. There isn’t a accusation of embezzlement and the one declare of illegality reads to me as extra of a mistake than anything.

However that truly makes me really feel even worse for Russ. Why was this story written? Whose concept was it? Who tipped off the paper and received them began? I merely don’t imagine USA At this time awakened one morning and simply determined to analyze Russ. Sure, he stood out in comparison with the opposite Walter Payton Award winners, however was that sufficient to spawn a report that doesn’t quantity to far more than embarrassing a participant for exaggerating his personal generosity? Particularly when so many give a lot much less or achieve this a lot worse?

Russ isn’t a prison, he isn’t violent, he isn’t a thief or a batterer or have any of the opposite points that exist within the NFL. However somebody on the market was upset sufficient at him that they wished this story out. And that doesn’t really feel proper to me. That feels low-cost.

And it makes me really feel sympathetic. Russ in some ways is a tragic determine. That’s outlined in literature as “a protagonist of a tragic story or drama, by which, regardless of their virtuous and sympathetic traits and ambitions, they in the end meet defeat, struggling, and even an premature finish. They’re usually imperfect or wounded with some form of fraught expertise, and sometimes have some form of deadly flaw.”

Russell Wilson has many virtues, his charitable nature excessive amongst them. He actually did go to the Youngsters’s Hospital each week and make a distinction within the lives of numerous sick children. However he’s now struggling due to his imperfections. His must make extra of his accomplishments than they advantage. His want to point out us how superlative he’s, whether or not it’s discovering an open receiver, therapeutic from a damaged finger or donating to a worthy trigger.

And now that the narrative has caught as much as him, others will search to search out and exploit these deadly flaws. It’s a tragedy in its true literary sense.

Follow @themikesalk

Source link

Related Topics:Featured Home MyNorthwest.com MyNorthwest.com - Seattle news Sports talk and community.traffic weather

Click to comment

Seattle, WA

Seattle road collapses after water main break; repairs ongoing

Published

27 minutes ago

January 18, 2025

Press Room

Seattle Public Utilities (SPU) and Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) worked to repair a road and the surrounding area after a water service line broke and caused a collapse, according to a news release.

The incident occurred at Airport Way South and South Lander Street intersection on Tuesday, January 16.

Video of the water main break and road collapse were provided by safetyvid.org.

Seattle Police notified SPU about the situation around 10:45 a.m., prompting an immediate investigation by SPU crews.

The broken water pipe resulted in water pooling in the roadway.

Despite the significant break, no SPU water customers experienced a service disruption.

City crews and inspectors will continue to investigate the cause of the incident.

Source link

Seattle, WA

An insider's take on Seattle Seahawks OC candidate Byron Leftwich

Published

8 hours ago

January 17, 2025

Press Room

An insider's take on Seattle Seahawks OC candidate Byron Leftwich

Former nine-year NFL quarterback and Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich is the latest name to emerge in the Seattle Seahawks’ OC search.

Report: Another Seahawks OC candidate gets 2nd interview

NFL on CBS insider Jonathan Jones reported on social media Friday morning that Leftwich has interviewed for the Seattle job, making him the fifth reported candidate to do so.

Leftwich, 45, spent four seasons as Tampa Bay’s OC from 2019 to 2022. During that time, he directed some of the league’s highest-scoring offenses. With Jameis Winston at quarterback in 2019, the Bucs finished fourth in the league in scoring. Then after Tom Brady took over at QB, Tampa Bay ranked third in scoring during its Super Bowl-winning 2020 season and second in scoring in 2021.

However, the Bucs tumbled to 25th in Brady’s final year in 2022. Leftwich was fired after that season and hasn’t coached in the NFL since.

Rick Stroud, who covers the Buccaneers for the Tampa Bay Times, joined Seattle Sports’ Bump and Stacy on Friday to share his insight on Leftwich. Stroud said it remains perplexing that Leftwich hasn’t gotten another NFL gig, especially after he was considered a front-runner for the Jacksonville Jaguars head coaching job prior to the 2022 season.

“The production (was) really remarkable in terms of the passing game,” Stroud said. “And then of course, once they got Tom Brady, the team really took off and won a Super Bowl. So I think it’s unfortunate for Byron. He didn’t get much credit for what was done here, but he was the game planner. He was the play caller. And he had some of the most prolific offenses in the National Football League.

“It’s really been kind of frustrating for him and mysterious that he hasn’t gotten that attention (from NFL teams),” Stroud added.

During the Jaguars’ 2022 head coaching search, there was a report that Leftwich turned down the job because he didn’t want to work with general manager Trent Baalke. Leftwich denied those claims, according to a recent article published in The Athletic.

“There were a lot of rumors and things that he doesn’t understand – one of them being that he wouldn’t want to work for Trent Balke,” Stroud said. “He told me, ‘Rick, I never had one discussion about the general manager in Jacksonville. I would have taken that job no questions asked about who was in the front office.’

“So in this day of agents and media – and sometime media sharing the same agents, quite frankly – guys push people that they have relations with. And Byron is not a campaigner. He’s the most affable guy I’ve ever worked with. I know the players love him. (He) never had a problem with a coaching staff member that I’m aware. So I think it’s just that, in an era of self-promotion, that’s the part that he may not have done very well. … But he’s ready to coach again.”

During his four-year run in Tampa Bay, Leftwich had one of the league’s top passing attacks. The Bucs ranked No. 1 in passing yardage in both 2019 and 2021, and No. 2 in passing yardage in 2020 and 2022. However, their ground attack was lagging, ranking in the bottom quarter of the league in rushing yardage all four years. In Leftwich’s final two seasons, Tampa Bay had the lowest run play rate in the league.

That run-pass imbalance would seem to be at odds with what Seattle head coach Mike Macdonald is looking for. Macdonald and the Seahawks moved on from offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb after one season, citing philosophical differences that appeared to be centered around Seattle’s inability to get the run game untracked. The Seahawks finished 28th in rushing yardage and had the fifth-lowest run rate in the league.

Stroud was asked whether he thinks Leftwich’s pass-heavy background in Tampa Bay would be an issue for Seattle.

“The offense that he ran is really an adaptation of what (former Arizona Cardinals and Tampa Bay head coach) Bruce Arians did for years and years,” Stroud said. “And it was good enough to win a Super Bowl with a 43-year-old quarterback who wasn’t the most mobile guy in the world. They started that Super Bowl season 7-5 and they made some changes. They shored up some protections and convinced Tom to take more shots down the field, and that’s when their offense really took off.

“And look, there’s a lot of ways to get things done. And a lot of times (with) the screen game, throws in the flat are just an extension of the running game. But I’ve never known Byron to be averse to running the football when you’re doing it successfully. So there’s definitely a philosophy. It was more of a pass-first offense – there’s no question about that. But they attacked people and they created a lot of problems for the defense.”

Listen to the full conversation with the Tampa Bay Times’ Rick Stroud at this link or in the audio player near the top of this story. Tune in to Bump and Stacy weekdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Seattle Sports.

More on the Seattle Seahawks

• Insider: Why Seattle Seahawks’ 28-year-old OC candidate is ‘fascinating’
• Report: Seahawks to hold 2nd interview with Klint Kubiak for OC job
• How would Klint Kubiak fit as Seattle Seahawks OC?
• Daniel Jeremiah: What Seattle Seahawks should look for in next OC
• Seattle Seahawks OC Search: Insiders weigh in on each candidate

Follow @CameronVanTil

Source link

Seattle, WA

Gus Williams, Seattle SuperSonics star and point guard ‘Wizard,’ dies at 71

Published

16 hours ago

January 17, 2025

Press Room

Gus Williams, Seattle SuperSonics star and point guard ‘Wizard,’ dies at 71

Gus Williams, the beloved Seattle SuperSonics star who led the franchise to its only NBA championship in 1979, died Wednesday at age 71.

Williams earned the nickname “The Wizard” thanks to his speed and athleticism as a dynamic scoring guard. He played six of his 12 NBA seasons with the SuperSonics, guiding the team to back-to-back NBA Finals appearances. Both of his two All-Star selections came during his time in Seattle.

A second-round draft pick out of USC, Williams started his pro career with the Golden State Warriors and finished second in NBA Rookie of the Year voting in 1976 behind Phoenix’s Alvan Adams. After two seasons with Golden State, Williams joined the Sonics in free agency and quickly became a star once coach Lenny Wilkens made him a permanent starter in the backcourt alongside Dennis Johnson. Williams finished the 1977-78 season averaging 18.1 points in 79 games and helped Seattle reach the NBA Finals, only to fall to the Washington Bullets in seven games.

The Sonics faced off against Washington in the Finals again the following season, this time beating the Bullets in five games. It remains the only championship for the franchise, which moved to Oklahoma City ahead of the 2008-09 season.

Williams finished the championship season as the SuperSonics’ leading scorer at 19.2 points per game. He saved his best for last, averaging 29.0 ppg against the Bullets in the NBA Finals. Despite his heroics, Williams was not named Finals MVP, with that honor instead going to his teammate Dennis Johnson. Four of the five starters on that championship squad and key reserve Paul Silas are now dead, with Jack Sikma, sixth man Fred Brown and Wilkens the only surviving pillars of the team.

Remembering Gus Williams (1953-2025) pic.twitter.com/UGBFH2mq7v
— NBA History (@NBAHistory) January 17, 2025

James Donaldson, one of Williams’ SuperSonics teammates beginning in 1980, started a GoFundMe account on behalf of Williams’ family to raise funds for his burial.

Williams lived in a care facility in Maryland and died five years after suffering a stroke in 2020. Donaldson wrote on GoFundMe that he remained in contact with Williams “throughout most of this terrible journey” that included Williams battling pneumonia and meningitis after his stroke.

“He has spent the last 5 years, flat on his back and bravely battling this terrible misfortune,” Donaldson wrote of Williams’ health. “He fought a good fight, but alas, it just became too much to overcome.”

Donaldson said Williams’ family asked him to set up the GoFundMe account to bring Williams’ body to his hometown of Mt. Vernon. N.Y., so he can be buried next to his brother Ray, also a former NBA player who died of prostate cancer in March 2013. Donaldson said the Williams brothers’ 100-year-old mother and other relatives would like to be able to visit their gravesites together.

“(Williams) was gregarious, funny, always upbeat and (very) charitable with his time and money. Plus, he was always friendly with the fans and they loved him in return,” Donaldson wrote of his former teammate. “Super fast and super quick on the court. Could stop on a dime and outrun everyone out there. With a deadly jump (shot) to boot. Gus was one of a kind!”

Williams’ one-of-a-kind style extended off the court, too. He refused to back down in a contract dispute with Sonics management ahead of the 1980-81 campaign, ultimately sitting out the entire season. He returned the following season and averaged a career-high 23.4 points in 80 games, earning his first All-Star selection, NBA Comeback Player of the Year and first-team All-NBA honors.

Williams’ time in Seattle ended in 1984 when the SuperSonics traded him to Washington. He spent two seasons with the Bullets, followed by one with the Atlanta Hawks before retiring in 1987.

We are deeply saddened by the passing of Washington Bullets alumni, Gus Williams.
Our thoughts are with his family and loved ones. pic.twitter.com/zhKV1lS5Pw
Advertisement

— Washington Wizards (@WashWizards) January 16, 2025

Williams finished his career with 14,093 points, 4,597 assists and 1,638 steals. He averaged 17.1 ppg in 825 regular-season contests and 19.5 ppg in 99 playoff appearances.

He was inducted into the USC Athletic Hall of Fame in 2009.

(Photo: Focus on Sport / Getty Images)

Source link