Russell Wilson not yet in top-10 for QBs in Pro Bowl voting

Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson is sixth in passer rating, t7th in passing touchdowns (in fewer games than Jared Goff and Matt Ryan just ahead of him), 10th in Y/A, eighth in adjusted Y/A, and he has a pair of game-winning drives, but he’s nowhere to be found in the top 10 of quarterbacks for Pro Bowl voting. That’s after the NFL released their first round of Pro Bowl voting news this week, though that is only one-third of the nomination process and may not really reflect the final results.

Drew Brees is the leader of the group, and Patricke Mahomes is second, but Wilson also finds himself behind players like Aaron Rodgers, Tom Brady (17th in passer rating), Ben Roethlisberger (15th), Mitchell Trubisky (14th), and Cam Newton, Wilson’s opponent this Sunday. We can’t say for sure if Wilson is 11th or even lower, but the four-time Pro Bowler does not have a great number of votes despite being on pace for a career-high 37 touchdowns.

Wilson has finished all but one game with at least two touchdown throws. He has not posted a passer rating below 85 in any game this year. He also rushed for 92 yards in a game two weeks ago. Wilson’s had inconsistent play within games this season, undoubtedly, but it has been his best statistical season since 2015.

In other Seahawks Pro Bowl voting, Frank Clark is sixth among all defensive ends. He is on pace for 16 sacks, which would be one sack shy of a new franchise record. The top five is J.J. Watt, Myles Garrett, Danielle Hunter, Chandler Jones, and DeMarcus Lawrence.

A little surprising, but not in a bad way, is that Jarran Reed is ninth among all defensive tackles. He has 5.5 sacks, which is fifth-most at the position behind Aaron Donald, Geno Atkins, Sheldon Rankins, and DeForest Buckner. All four of those players are ranked in the top seven of Pro Bowl voting for DTs.

Perhaps the biggest surprise, in a bad way, is that Bobby Wagner is only fourth in voting among inside linebackers, ranking behind Luke Kuechly, Jaylon Smith, and Blake Martinez of the Green Bay Packers. Even the Panthers blogger at Cat Scratch Reader said told us this week that Kuechly is struggling with his tackling this season, whereas Smith seems to be gaining traction as a good comeback story on arguably the most popular team in the sport still. With no offense intended towards Martinez, it’s a little unbelievable that he ranks ahead of the three-time All-Pro Wagner; Martinez has 84 tackles, four sacks, two passes defensed, and nine tackles for a loss. Wagner has 71 tackles no sacks, nine passes defensed, and three tackles for a loss. Statistically we can maybe see what’s happening there, but given Wagner’s reputation and that he’s having as good of a season as ever despite the losses of so many players around him, I am surprised.

As mentioned earlier this week on Field Gulls, Michael Dickson is second among all punters and first in the NFC, giving him good odds of representing the conference in January.

Nowhere to be found: Chris Carson, Tyler Lockett, D.J. Fluker, Justin Britt, Duane Brown, or Bradley McDougald.

Final rosters will be announced next month.