Getty Denver Broncos QB Russell Wilson walking off the field.
With the Denver Broncos being the most disappointing team in the NFL this season, former Broncos tight end and Hall of Famer Shannon Sharpe had some strong comments about his former team.
During the November 23 episode of Fox Sports’ “Undisputed” with co-host Skip Bayless, Sharpe was asked how the Broncos can fix their struggles and salvage their season.
“They’re not fixing it this year. Russell Wilson has not played well, there’s no other way around that.” Sharpe continued, “He has not lived up to what they expected when they signed him.”
After trading for Wilson back in March 2022, the Broncos went ahead and signed Wilson to a five-year $245 million extension during training camp without seeing the Pro Bowl quarterback play a single game for the Broncos.
“When you make a trade like that, you believe you’re a quarterback away. The Broncos would have the best record in the NFL if they averaged 19 points per game.”
In fact, if the Broncos averaged what they averaged last season, 19.7 points per game, with Teddy Bridgewater and Drew Lock at the quarterback position, they would be 9-1.
Sharpe continued to mention that the coaches in Seattle never got credit for how well Wilson played.
“None of the coordinators, Darrell Bevell, whoever the offensive coordinator was got no credit. It was always Russ, Russ, Russ. Now Russ is looking like some stir fry and you want to blame Nathaniel Hackett, you want to blame Klint Kubiak, you want to blame everybody else,” Sharpe said. “Put the blame on No. 3, he’s been some trash this year.”
So far this season, Wilson has played in nine games and has led his Broncos to a 3-6 record. Wilson has only thrown seven touchdowns to just five interceptions. His seven touchdowns rank 28th in the NFL.
The former Seattle Seahawk is completing a career-low 59.5% of his passes. Wilson also has a career-low 32.4 QBR this season.
This will likely be the second time in Wilson’s career that his team will finish with an overall record under .500.
Shannon Sharpe Compares Russell Wilson Trade to Infamous Herschel Walker Deal
After giving up two-first and second-round picks along with a fifth-round pick and three players, Sharpe talked about how disgusted he is with the trade.
“This is starting to look like the Herschel Walker trade, but not in a good way for the Broncos. Ain’t no fixing this, this year.”
In the Walker trade, the Dallas Cowboys traded away their star running back and three draft picks to the Minnesota Vikings. In exchange, Dallas received five players from Minnesota and a total of eight draft picks in 1989.
After the trade, the Cowboys would go on and make multiple trips to the playoffs including multiple Super Bowl victories.
The Vikings on the other hand would only keep Walker for just three seasons making just one playoff appearance. Walker never rushed for more than 825 yards in a season.
“This is a lost cause,” Sharpe said. “You’re not winning this year because guess what Skip, you got [Patrick] Mahomes coming up again twice.”
When looking at Wilson’s contract, Bayless tried to figure out how the Broncos can escape the massive deal that they gave him.
“I looked at this last night and I turned it upside down and sideways and I can’t see a way out from under it.” Bayless added, “You are stuck.”
Time for a Coaching Change in Denver?
While talking with Sharpe, Bayless claimed that there is a certain way to get passed the struggles for the Broncos.
“I hate to say it, but your only way out is, there’s only one expendable person here and it’s the head coach. He’s going to have to go because you have to just change the scenery for Russ.”
Sharpe explained that Wilson’s success has come off-script in his days in Seattle and you cannot coach that.
“The only reason you hired Hackett is you thought you were going to land Aaron Rodgers and Nathaniel and Aaron were tight.”
Continuing their discussion, Bayless explained that if the Broncos bring in another head coach and it doesn’t work out for Wilson and Denver, “The Broncos are sunk for the next four years.”
If the Broncos and Wilson can’t figure out their struggles, Denver will become the first team in NFL history to win a Super Bowl and miss the playoffs for the following seven years.