After surprising the entire NFL world with the benching of current franchise quarterback, Russell Wilson; the Denver Broncos’ head coach, Sean Payton, put the change down to the need to get a ‘spark offensively‘.
Yet, much of the actual reason has been attributed to the $37 million that the Broncos will have to pay Wilson were he to suffer an injury between now and March, when his bonus becomes guaranteed. By benching Wilson, Denver insures themselves against being forced to pay out the money to Wilson, and gives them some flexibility regarding a possible contract restructure for Russ – or perhaps even a change at the position.
And now, it seems like Russell Wilson himself seems to be clued into his role at the team going into next season, per NFL Insider, Dianna Russini.
Russell Wilson is expecting to be cut by the Denver Broncos in March, per league sources. For almost two months, the quarterback has been starting knowing the organization was most likely going to move on him from after this season.
— Dianna Russini (@DMRussini) December 28, 2023
Will The Denver Broncos Actually Cut Russell Wilson?
Well, the answer, as of yet, is not certain. However, what is more shocking (to me at least) is the fact that Wilson has seemingly known about this for the past two months
This is especially wild considering that the Broncos went on an incredible hot streak mid-way through the season where they went 5-6 and put themselves fully back in playoff contention. So, whilst there may have been rumblings of discontent with Wilson earlier on in the season – although the Broncos’ defense, not the offense, was undoubtedly the problem at that point – there must have been a point of reconciliation in the midst of their impressive run of form where Payton was able to realistically conceive of a 2024 season with Russell Wilson still at the helm.
Yet now, it seems like the writing is officially on the wall, and presumably Wilson thinks so too. Let’s see how the rest of the season unfolds, and who the Denver Broncos start at QB in 2024.
For Additional Content
Hello there. If you enjoyed this article (or, really, even if you didn’t). Please go and follow me on Twitter @danielarwas for more NFL breaking news, updates, and “special edition” previews.
