The Unbearable Lightness of Being Russell Wilson

As usual, he was the last to speak with reporters after the game. It took nearly an hour for him to emerge from the locker room. Most of his teammates, who, to be fair, had played just as poorly, were already lining up for the Seahawks’ bus when Wilson walked briskly to a white tent near the cramped visitor’s locker room.

Bright-eyed, grinning, clad in an earth-toned suit, he looked out at the assembled reporters, and put on another show. Wilson sounded as he always does after a painful loss — even as he did right after the Super Bowl interception — not just clichéd, but optimistic in a way that few professional athletes could be after defeat.

“With where we are trying to go, lot more season left, lot more things to do, everything is still out in front of us,” he gushed. “We got to play it one game at a time, just get better, see the film, figure out how we can get better as a group.”

It was vintage Wilson: the guy who never lets down his guard, never shows negativity or a whiff of being in the dumps. The guy who instead of smoldering in the manner of, say, Roger Federer or LeBron James after significant defeat, offers milk and honey promise of a new day.

Wilson has long worked with a mental conditioning coach, Trevor Moawad, on a stoic-like mind-set they call “neutral thinking” — stay even keel, in the moment, and steer clear of anything negative. They zealously believe in a direct link between the words one speaks and success. Moawad said they had engaged in a careful study of how great quarterbacks like Tom Brady and Drew Brees handle questions following defeats.

Too contrived? Perhaps.

Love it or hate it, Wilson’s manner did not waver as the season marched on. His demeanor was the same after a win against the Carolina Panthers three weeks ago helped seal a playoff berth. He spoke of silver linings even as his top three running backs went down with season-ending injuries and as Lamar Jackson won hearts and M.V.P. votes.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/04/sports/football/russell-wilson-nfl-playoffs-2019.html?emc=rss&partner=rss