Getty Former Broncos QB Russell Wilson warms up ahead of a 2023 regular season game.
The short-lived Russell Wilson era is likely something most fans of the Denver Broncos would prefer to forget.
But Denver fans’ desire to see Wilson gone was an overreaction that they may regret, according to Bleacher Report’s Brad Gagnon. The Broncos released Wilson, who failed to emerge as team’s solution to its ongoing quarterback conundrum, on March 13.
“Two coaches and two offenses in two seasons and you bail on a future Hall of Famer who isn’t far past his prime? You’re now stuck with that bill for years to come,” Gagnon wrote in a May 31 story on overreactions for each NFL team.
“The Broncos would have been better off riding it out with Wilson for at least one more season to see if he could mesh better with Sean Payton. He did show signs of that at times in 2023.”
Gagnon suggested fan bases around the NFL “might want to take a chill pill” to see how teams’ offseason moves — including the Broncos’ cutting Wilson — play out.
There Was a Method to Sean Payton’s Madness Regarding Russell Wilson
One glimpse at Wilson’s numbers from 2023 would indicate that he had a solid season under Payton. Hindsight is 20/20 which might explain the method behind Payton’s madness in cutting the veteran signal caller.
Wilson had a 26-8 touchdown-to-interception ratio in 15 games and ranked eighth in the NFL with a 98.0 passer rating. However, Wilson averaged just 6.9 yards per pass attempt, a mark that ranked 21st in the league out of 32 qualified passers.
For reference, he finished only one spot ahead of new Pittsburgh Steelers teammate Justin Fields, who averaged 6.9 yards per attempt. Wilson also had only three games with over 250 passing yards.
The veteran lacked aggression in pushing the ball downfield and the Broncos suffered in the win column. Through his 30 games played in Denver, Wilson went 11-19 as a starter and took 100 sacks in two seasons.
Payton’s gamble to select Bo Nix in the first round will appear wise if the rookie outperforms Wilson in 2024.
Former NFL QB Cites Outside Influences as Reason for Wilson’s Decline
While most of the football community has given up on Wilson, one former NFL quarterback is not about to join them.
Wilson came in at No. 21 in NBC Sports analyst Chris Simms’ latest QB Rankings. Simms cited outside influences for Wilson’s shortcomings in the Mile High City.
“I would say he’s a guy that still has top-notch ability,” Simms said on the May 28 episode of his “Unbuttoned” podcast. “But he’s lost his way in trusting himself and trusting what he sees on the football field, and being a little too, I think, worried about his overall standing in the pantheon of quarterbacks and what it might look like if he plays this way in this game or whatever else.”
Simms then encouraged the nine-time Pro Bowler: “Stop thinking so much … Just let it fly a little bit.”
Fortunately for Wilson, the Steelers are not a struggling franchise like the Broncos. Pittsburgh has made three postseason appearances in the last four seasons under longtime head coach Mike Tomlin.