The Denver Broncos reportedly gave Russell Wilson an ultimatum midseason about his contract. Wilson ultimately chose not to give in, and the Broncos announced Wednesday they would start Jarrett Stidham at quarterback against the Los Angeles Chargers.
According to Andrew Siciliano with the NFL Network, head coach Sean Payton said the Broncos made the decision to bench Wilson as a means to give the team a better chance at making the payoffs:
“We’re desperately trying to win. Sure, in our game today, there are economics and other things,” Payton said. “But the number one thing…is to get a spark offensively.”
Sean Payton, on benching Russell Wilson:
"We're desperately trying to win. Sure, in our game today, there are economics and other things."
"But the number one thing…is to get a spark offensively."
— Andrew Siciliano (@AndrewSiciliano) December 27, 2023
Payton’s explanation makes no sense. Wilson is playing good football right now. He has the seventh-highest quarterback ranking among eligible quarterbacks this season. There is no way Payton honestly believes Stidham can play quarterback better than Wilson for the next two weeks.
The Denver Broncos demanded Wilson remove a guarantee
Jordan Schultz is reporting the real reason the Broncos benched Wilson in Week 17 was due to an unrequited ultimatum the team issued Wilson midseason:
“The #Broncos threatened to bench Russell Wilson weeks ago if he didn’t remove his injury guarantees. Russell Wilson’s benching by the Broncos today is solely financially related and has been in the works for weeks, per multiple sources with direct access to the situation.The Broncos approached Wilson two days after their October 29 upset win over the Kansas City Chiefs and told him he would be made inactive for the rest of the season if he did not adjust his contract and defer the injury guarantee trigger date that he has for 2025. Wilson has $37 million in injury guarantees for 2025 that will become guaranteed no matter what on the fifth day of the 2024 league year in March.At that time, Wilson was coming off a 3-touchdown game in the win over the Chiefs and was starting to experience the type of success he envisioned following a challenging first year in Denver. The threat however, “shocked him,” and the two sides got into a major dispute on how to proceed.”
“[The Broncos] wanted to move back injury guarantee date of fifth date of league year this offseason. They wanted to push it back with it feeling like intention was to have Wilson compete for job in training camp in 2024 without guaranteeing him the 2025 money.Made no sense for Wilson to revise or adjust his contract. Wilson also has a no-trade clause. So it would seem most likely scenario is Wilson ends up getting cut, freeing him to sign with any team, rather than agree to a deal.”
Confirmed Jordan’s report. #Broncos wanted to move back injury guarantee date of fifth date of league year this offseason. They wanted to push it back with it feeling like intention was to have Wilson compete for job in training camp in 2024 without guaranteeing him the 2025… https://t.co/QI3T1iuO3V
— Troy Renck (@TroyRenck) December 27, 2023
Wilson didn’t take the bait. And honestly, he had no reason to. The Broncos didn’t give Wilson a good contract for the organization. However, that’s a risk they took to land a quarterback with a history of elite play.
It’s hard to see how benching Wilson makes the Broncos organization look good to their fanbase or future free agents. Most comments on social media from Broncos fans are taking Wilson’s side in this. Wilson has played well enough that many thought the team could be more competitive in Payton’s second season.
The Broncos gave Wilson a dirty ultimatum this season, and like so much since the Wilson trade, the plan backfired.
It could be several more seasons before the Broncos are contenders after how they handled the Wilson era.
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