Russell Wilson was a pretty busy man since the conclusion of the team's mandatory minicamp in mid-June.
The Seahawks quarterback seemingly pushed his "no time to sleep" mantra to the limit, as evidenced by his ever-active presence on Facebook live, a tool he used to give fans a behind-the-scenes glimpse at personal workouts, media shoots, and red-carpet walks, to the first event for his Why Not You Foundation, a day highlighted by Wilson's face on the first Costacos Brothers poster in 20 years, to his hosting of the Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Sports Awards and marriage to singer Ciara. It's easy to look at the Pro Bowler's life and wonder: How does he have time for it all?
"I'm always busy, you guys know that," Wilson said following the first day of Seattle's 2016 training camp at Virginia Mason Athletic Center. "I think I stay motivated the more busy I am. It's motivation to keep doing things and motivation to try to always be successful, on the field most importantly. I'm just grateful I have such great people around me. Obviously, staying organized, staying focused on the main thing. I always say, 'Keep the main thing the main thing.' It's been a fun offseason in terms of getting prepared for this.
"There's no better day than coming back out here and seeing all the fans, seeing all the 12s, and accomplishing a lot of goals. Guys were making crazy plays today, especially on the first day. It's exciting to see."
Wilson may have been in the spotlight a lot this offseason, but his schedule hasn't taken away from his football preparation.
"He is at a tremendous level right now," said Seattle head coach Pete Carroll. "Looking at him now, talking to him and watching him on the field with his teammates now compared to two, three years ago, it's a big difference. It is subtle, I think it would be subtle to you, but it shows up in so many ways. We are fortunate. You saw you can't play like he plays without a great understanding. He is going to continue to get better and continue to improve. I think it is what brings him back with such enthusiasm every single year. He knows he can get better and he knows he can improve. He loves that challenge."
In terms of managing time, Wilson said he tries to maximize the 24 hours he has in a day as much as he can, noting "every hour counts, every minute counts." The more commitments he has, the more efficient and purposeful he becomes.
"I choose to use my 24 hours and max it out as much as I can," Wilson said. "Honestly, keeping it on one simple goal. My 2016 goal is just to win, win in everything I participate in, 100 percent, no matter what it is."
Wilson said it's that desire to perform consistently at a championship caliber level that keeps him hungry as he enters his fifth NFL season.
"I'm always motivated," he said. "I'm always motivated to be the best in the world at playing quarterback and winning more games than 31 other teams. That's honestly the simple goal. If we can win one more game—if we can be the last team to play. But you don't do that by relaxing. You don't do that by resting too long. I think more than anything, like I always say, 'No time to sleep' in terms of staying busy and staying occupied is to keep the vision. There's only one mission."
Action photos from the first day of practice at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.