At a time when some players think the final play call in Super Bowl XLIX emerged from a desire by the Seahawks to make quarterback Russell Wilson and not running back Marshawn Lynch the MVP, Wilson publicly has accepted full responsibility for the outcome.
In a first-person produced and edited by The Players’ Tribune, Wilson says that he accepts “full responsibility” for what happened on that fateful play, which instead of a one-yard touchdown run by Lynch resulted in an interception by Patriots defensive back Malcolm Butler.
“One of the reasons why I always will and always do is because I know that it’s gonna happen again for me,” Wilson said of his willingness to accept full responsibility. “I know that I’m gonna be in that situation again.”
Wilson said the hardest thing about the loss was walking off the field, knowing he’d let the fans down.
“I’m the one that threw the pass, but I know I’ll throw another one,” Wilson said. “And hopefully I’ll be remembered for something different.”
Wilson remains supremely confident, despite the outcome of the Super Bowl.
“You know, the mindset doesn’t change, the focus doesn’t change, the belief that I’m gonna get there again and we’re gonna do it better than it’s ever [been] done, that’s never gonna change for me, no matter what the circumstances are,” Wilson said. “That’s why I’ve been to two Super Bowls, that’s why I’ve been able to win a lot of football games. Because of the guys I have around me, because of the coaching staff, because of the amazing fans – we’ve got the best fans in the National Football League – but also because I believe in my mindset. I believe my mindset is gonna take me further than anybody else has ever gone, and I just believe that.
“I believe that I’m gonna be prepared, I believe that I’m gonna be ready, in my mind, be ready for war every time I step out onto the field. I’m gonna be the last guy to ever give up. I’m gonna be the last guy to not take a risk. . . . In my mind, I believe I have a killer instinct.”
Of course, taking a risk and having a killer instinct can backfire. On the final offensive snap for the Seahawks of Super Bowl XLIX, Wilson and the Seahawks applied a killer instinct and took a risk. And it didn’t work.
While it’s great to be confident, it almost sounds as if Wilson hasn’t learned in the wake of the Super Bowl loss that, sometimes, a killer instinct can get you killed. Which means that he could end up in the same spot again at some point in the future, taking “full responsibility” for what happened but essentially vowing to do the same thing again if put in the same position. All in the name of going “further than anybody else has ever gone.”
For now, the simple reality is that Wilson had a chance to get halfway to Joe Montana and Terry Bradshaw, who each won four Super Bowls. Instead, Wilson remains three behind Montana, Bradshaw, and now Tom Brady. To go farther than anybody else has ever gone when it comes to championships, Wilson still needs four more over the balance of his career.