CARSON, Calif. -- Russell Wilson tantalizes defenders with his feet seemingly every time he takes the field.
The Seahawks' signal caller has rushed for 2,689 yards in his five-year career, which already lands him at No. 12 all-time among quarterbacks. His next 185 rushing yards will vault him into the Top-10, putting him within reach of the likes of John Elway and Donovan McNabb.
And when Wilson's not tormenting the opposition with his feet, he's beating them with his arm. He's one of the most accurate quarterbacks in NFL history, completing 64.7-percent of his career passes. That number ranks No. 9 on the all-time list.
Wilson's understudy provided more of the same Sunday night at the StubHub Center. Second-year QB Trevone Boykin completed 12-of-15 passes for 189 yards and one touchdown in a preseason matchup against the Chargers. He added 31 yards on the ground on just four carries, one of which was a four-yard scamper into the endzone.
Boykin said he has learned a lot from watching Wilson last season and throughout training camp heading into year two.
"We have some of the same abilities," Boykin said. "The stuff that I see him do and some of the calls I see him make and just recognizing stuff [has helped]. Being able to improvise is probably one of our huge things that we're able to do because we're pretty mobile."
Improvising led Boykin to an impressive tenure at TCU. He threw 86 touchdown passes and ran for 27 more during his four seasons in Fort Worth. He showed similar flashes of aptitude during Seattle's 48-17 clobbering of the Chargers. Head coach Pete Carroll admired his performance, saying the young QB "did beautifully."
"[He] threw the ball really well," Carroll said. "Made some big plays with his feet. Just really had good command of what was going on."
Boykin attributed the comfortability and command Carroll spoke of to natural maturation. He said he's relaxed and confident heading into his second year in the same system.
Just as a freshman in college usually shows progression as a sophomore, second-year players in the NFL are often radically advanced from their rookie versions. Boykin completed a mere 57.2-percent of his passes as a freshman at TCU. He had 15 touchdowns to 10 interceptions that year. As a senior, he completed 64.8-percent of his throws and had 33 touchdowns and 10 picks -- Russell Wilson-type numbers.
"Last year, being a rookie, the lights got on me," Boykin said. "Obviously, football is football. But being more comfortable, more settled in, kind of knowing the ropes and stuff like that [has helped]. Year two is a huge year as far as learning more than what you did the previous year."
While it was simply a single preseason game, Boykin's showing was telling. He's ready to continue absorbing everything he can from Wilson. And if his number is called, he'll be ready.
"I feel like I made a huge leap -- a big step," Boykin said.
