Why Russell Wilson is not a lock to finish the 2023 season in Denver

In the spring of 2022, the story that dominated the landscape of the NFL’s quarterback carousel was the deal that sent Russell Wilson to the Denver Broncos.

The nine-time Pro Bowler and one time Super Bowl champion was supposed to change the fortunes of NFL football in the Rocky Mountains. Some NFL prognosticators suggested Wilson could get Denver to the Super Bowl as early as his first season. However, fate would call an audible.

Problems were quick to emerge

The union of new head coach Nathaniel Hackett and Wilson in Denver was seen as a close partnership early on from the start of last offseason. The early reviews were a quarterback and head coach being ready to relaunch a franchise while relaunch their careers. The problem was drama lurked, and losing began in earnest, and a once proud franchise exploded on the launchpad.

The ego of Russell Wilson would emerge and rub his teammates wrong. It was a story that followed him from Seattle where he insisted head coach Pete Carroll be fired. The trade was a welcome one by the Seahawks, the Broncos, and Wilson himself. 

In Seattle, Wilson had effectively checked out. As the season wore on in Denver, the appearance was he had checked out

as the losses mounted. The league saw it, as did the media, the fans, and the entire Broncos organization. Hackett would be fired before the season even ended. He was the lone casualty of a lost season. 

Enter Sean Payton

When Sean Payton was hired, you had to wonder if he knew just how bad the situation in Denver had become, given just how much the Broncos had given Wilson for a below average return.

Immediately, the changes were swift. Payton got rid of Wilson’s office at Mile High, a perk for executives of an organization. The star quarterback was also allowed to have his own training staff as well as a personal quarterback coach. Payton got rid of all those personal enhancements, making it clear he would not allow such amenities so long as he was the head coach in Denver.

He has not stopped there as he made sure to have an insurance policy in the name of Jarrett Stidham. Stidham came on in relief of Raiders quarterback Derek Carr, now in New Orleans. In his first start for the Silver and Black, the journeyman QB made his first start against the San Francisco 49ers, throwing for 365 passing yards, three TD passes and 34 points.

Wilson on a short leash under Payton?

Sean Payton has a bigger job than simply righting the ship in Denver. His task is to fix what is a fading quarterback the organization has staked everything to. That said, do not expect Payton to go down with the ship the way Nathaniel Hackett did. 

Wilson posted absolutely dreadful numbers in his first season in Denver. He had 3,524 passing yards (13th), 26 touchdowns (tied 19th), 11 interceptions (tied for 22). Needless to say, the rebound will need to be huge if he hopes to be on the field versus in a baseball hat with a clipboard waiting on the sideline.

Win in 2023 or Bust

It is hard to imagine Sean Payton would allow another 5-12 season record and 1-5 in the AFC West without taking a hard look at what they might be able to do heading into 2024.

Releasing Wilson next year will be on the table if he doesn’t have a much better 2023 season. Doing it conventionally is the least cap-effective manner. The Broncos would have $85 million in dead money for 2024 if they release him before exercising the option for his 2028 contract year. It is a dollars-and-cents disaster, including all the draft picks they sent to Seattle. 

Russell Wilson is an investment gone bad. He has become a reclamation project that only someone like Sean Payton could fix. 

But that is not all. Wilson is in a bad place of his own making. He bought into his ego, the press clippings, the trips to the White House, and a brand of celebrity that had made Wilson and his spouse a power couple. He invested in his own brand of celebrity. For an athlete, especially an NFL quarterback, the expiration date can arrive sooner than you would like. Russell Wilson may be the last to realize that.