Russell Wilson Named Seahawks' Starting Quarterback

Pete Carroll has officially named Russell Wilson the starting quarterback for the Seahawks. Carroll announced the decision in a press conference Sunday night, stating simply, "He's earned his job."

Carroll said, via a series of quotes from the Seahawks' official twitter account, that "Russell Wilson will start against the Raiders and will start the first week of the regular season. Russell has shown nothing but that he is a quarterback. He is so prepared, he does not seem like a first year quarterback. [He] is an extraordinary kid. He just kept knocking us out with what he brought. I've watched our team respond to him and they've taken to his leadership style. He fixes things. If you make him aware of [a problem] he finds ways to remedy the situation in impressive fashion."

"He really validates what John Schneider saw in the draft from day one."

Doug Farrar points out on twitter that Pete Carroll also brought up the fact that Wilson played in a West Coast Offense (at NC State) and a two-back power zone (at Wisconsin) in college, and the Seahawks, more or less, run a hybrid/blend of the two. As Farrar put it, he's a "perfect fit for Seahawks."

Per Aaron Levine, Carroll mentioned that "the more competitive the situation we put him in, the better he was. He's gonna grow. He learns so much so fast.. he'll be able to execute everything we're calling. He expects to be good. He expects to make plays. That's just the way he thinks. He came to win this job."

Pete Carroll also talked briefly about Matt Flynn, noting, "I'm disappointed for him, because I know how much he wanted this. He's disappointed, since he came here to start. He still wants it. That's gonna help us going forward." Flynn remains, for now, one of the best backups in the NFL.

Wilson gets his shot, and frankly, it's pretty damn exciting. Let's see what the rookie can do!