Olsen helps give Russell Wilson extra gear in “12 personnel”
Despite having never received a single AP Most Valuable Player vote in his illustrious career, Russell Wilson assuages that through respect around the league. He’s proven to be short on weaknesses, regardless of the players or circumstances surrounding him. But, he tends to find additional success through the “12 personnel.”
For those unfamiliar, “12 personnel” refers to an offense having one running back and twin tight ends on the field. There’s been some discussion about who starts between Olsen and Dissly, but if Pete Carroll and Brian Schottenheimer want to maximize Wilson’s success — and thus Seattle’s success, they’ll play both of them simultaneously.
In Sheil Kapadia’s breakdown of Seattle on The Athletic, he found that Wilson ranked No. 4 in the NFL in expected points added in that scheme, compared to No. 15 when given that extra tight end. Olsen stands as an upgrade to the position compared to last year.
Within that, he should help provide a second play-action threat to stretch the field horizontally and vertically. The Seahawks ran play-action nearly 60 percent of the time last season. In Carolina, Olsen was able to catch passes for first downs 65 percent of the time. There’s a correlation between the two that makes Olsen’s fit in Seattle’s scheme much more likable.