Getty Former Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson is off to a rough start in Denver.
The Seattle Seahawks are trying to figure out their identity in the post-Russell Wilson era after trading their star quarterback to the Denver Broncos. However, the 33-year-old is off to a rough start of his own with the Broncos and new head coach Nathaniel Hackett.
Late in Sunday’s game game against the Houston Texans, Wilson had completed just 4 of 14 pass attempts for 48 yards and zero touchdowns. The Broncos were completely unable to move the ball, and were trailing 6-3 late in the second half.
Legendary Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman chimed in during the game, quoting some clips from Sunday’s game with the chef emoji, presumably making fun of Wilson’s “Let Russ Cook” meme.
The Broncos eventually won 16-9, but it was still a rough game from the offense. Wilson completed just 14 of his 31 passes for 219 yards, one touchdown, and one interception for a passer rating of just 66.5.
If Wilson can’t start producing at a high level like he used to in Seattle, then Broncos fans might start questioning why the team traded so many resources to Seattle and paid the 33-year-old so much money.
Reactions to Russell Wilson’s Slow Start
Sherman wasn’t the only person to chime in on the Broncos and Wilson struggling to move the ball against the Texans. The internet had plenty of reactions and tweets, and so did the crowd at Empower Field.
PointsBet Sportsbook had one of the funniest tweets of the day during Wilson’s poor performance. With Wilson struggling, the Sportsbook decided to offer free bets to anyone who had placed a bet for Wilson to win MVP this season.
RUSS IS COOKED 🚨
Russell Wilson has played so poorly to start the season that we’re giving a FREE BET to everyone who placed a bet on Russ to win MVP!
Kendall Valenzuela with Fantasy Life gave her take on what letting Russ cook actually looks like.
“LET RUSS COOK”
Russell Wilson cooking:
The crowd wasn’t much better during the game. With how poorly the offense was able to move down the field, Broncos fans started to boo the team during the game. Head coach Nathaniel Hackett acknowledged the boos and accepted responsibility.
“I would be booing myself,” Hackett said after the game. “I was getting very frustrated. We get down to the red zone two times. Don’t get another touchdown, which is unbelievably frustrating. I don’t think we have scored in there yet. That’s something that all of our guys have to step it up. Whether we run the ball more, whatever we’re doing, we just have to execute at a higher level.”
The offense was also struggling to get plays off before the play clock hit zero seconds, at one point even costing the team a field goal attempt, forcing them to punt instead. Fans were so frustrated with Denver’s pace of play that they started to count down the play clock for the team.
It hasn’t been a pretty start for Wilson and the Broncos, but there’s plenty of time to turn things around.
Where is Richard Sherman Now?
Sherman hasn’t signed with an NFL team this year, and last played for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers just last season. Although he has yet to officially retire from football, he’s staying plenty busy with a new role.
The former Legion of Boom star is now working with Amazon Prime Video and helping with the pre and post-game coverage for Thursday Night Football. The veteran cornerback has been joined by some other iconic NFL players, including Hall of Fame tight end Tony Gonzalez and long-time journeyman quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick.
At 34 years old, Sherman has had a long and successful career, so if he decides to finally end his playing career, it shouldn’t be long before he gets a call from Canton to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.