Russell Wilson believed to have mallet finger after injury in Seahawks vs. Rams

Russell Wilson exited Thursday night’s loss to tie Rams with an injury to his finger that led to Seahawks backup quarterback Geno Smith filling in. 

On Friday morning, Ian Rappaport of NFL.com provided an update on Wilson. 

“Seahawks  QB Russell Wilson will have an MRI on his finger today, sources say, and then seek a consultation with hand specialist Dr. Steven Shin of Kerlan-Jobe in LA,” Rappaport reported via Twitter. The initial belief is he has mallet finger, essentially a sprained joint that makes it hard to flex a finger.” 

Before the middle finger injury, Wilson threw 10-of-15 for 151 yards with one touchdown and one interception.

Heading into the Week 5 matchup, Wilson has 1,044 passing yards with nine touchdowns. His interception to Rams linebacker Troy Reeder was his first of the 2021 season. 

The former NC State star has the sixth-best completion percentage this season at 72.5% and the No. 1 passer rating at 129.9.

Russell Wilson injury vs. Rams

Just minutes after Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford injured his finger, Seattle Seahawks Wilson dislocated the middle finger of his right hand.

Amazingly, both signal-callers re-entered the game on the next drive. Stafford responded by throwing a touchdown to Tyler Higbee to extend the lead to 16-7 in the third quarter.

Wilson grabbed his finger in pain as he threw on the sidelines while the Rams drove down the field. The 10-year NFL vet returned to the game regardless but did not have similar success. Rams defensive lineman Aaron Donald sacked Wilson on his first drive back and the Seahawks had to punt.

Russell Wilson’s backup Geno Smith stepped in for him in the fourth quarter as the Seahawks starter paced the sidelines. Fox Sports sideline reporter Kristina Pink initially announced Wilson was questionable to return, though the Seahawks relied on Smith for the remainder of the contest.

Smith threw his first touchdown since 2017 to DK Metcalf to bring the Seahawks within a field goal with nine minutes to play.

The former West Virginia quarterback was impressive, constantly receiving praise from Troy Aikman and Joe Buck in the FOX broadcast booth. Though a fluky interception that was out of Smith’s control ended the final drive for Seattle, Smith finished the night 10-of-17 for 131 yards.

Russell Wilson has suddenly emerged as one of the top storylines to follow this NFL season.