Russell Wilson was about to get sacked.
About to.
You were certain of it. I was certain of it. Surely, Arizona Cardinals defenders were certain of it. The only question was how many yards would he lose.
The Seattle Seahawks quarterback kept circling back. One loop-de-loop. Another. Where is he going?
Then, as calm as placing a baby in the crib, Wilson -- who was facing the opposite way at this point -- off one foot, heaved the football toward the sideline. For most QBs, it's a prayer. For Wilson, it's a normal Thursday. Doug Baldwin snatched a would-be interception out of the air, dashing 54 yards to set up another touchdown.
Baldwin was asked after the 22-16 victory how many quarterbacks could have made that play.
"One. Just one," Baldwin said, via Stefanie Loh of the Seattle Times.
Baldwin deserves credit as well, first for blocking on the play, then realizing Wilson needed an outlet, then snatching the ball, staying in bounds, and sprinting up the sideline to set up the game-sealing score.
"It seemed like it took forever. It was just fantastic execution and chemistry between those two guys to get that done," coach Pete Carroll said of the wizardry between his two best offensive players. "I thought Russell did a nice job tonight. He was resourceful."
Wilson is often resourceful, breaking out the magic each week to dazzle viewers.
"I got a front row at the magic show for one of his Houdini plays," center Justin Britt said. "That's just Russ being Russ. You love to have a playmaker like that on our team.
"He's one of the only quarterbacks who can make a play like that, and then you've got an incredible slot player in Doug who makes those kind of plays."
Newcomer Duane Brown was equally awed by Wilson's trickery.
"It was incredible, man," Brown said. "Watching from afar, you always admire those kinds of plays, but seeing it, that's pretty incredible. The kind of player he is, it's just not your typical, orthodox play. It's otherworldly. I'm just glad he's on my team now."
The entertaining play masked what was an otherwise mediocre night for Wilson, who was under siege from Cardinals' pass rushers often. But when he needed to make a play to ice the game, the magician dug into his bag of tricks and pulled out a gem Thursday night.
