“Russ Has Got to be Sharper”: After a Horrible 0-2 Start, Sean Payton Gets Real About Russell Wilson, His Own Strategies & Broncos’ Dismal Display

Prasenjeet Singh | 21/09/2023
"What's the Question?": Sean Payton Almost Loses His Cool While Addressing the 'Historically Embarrassing' Loss Against Dolphins During Press Conference

Russell Wilson, the star QB of the Denver Broncos, had a horrible 2022. However, things were expected to get better in 2023. While he has shown a few glimpses of his class thus far, Wilson’s unit still stands at 0-2 after two games, and Sean Payton wants things to improve.

Although by very thin margins, the Denver Broncos have now lost back-to-back games. This is not the kind of legacy that coach Sean Payton wants to develop at the Broncos. As per ESPN, Sean Payton recently reflected on details about where his team is lagging. He accepted that he needs to get better while also hinting that it is essential that Wilson also starts rectifying the errors in his gameplay.

Sean Payton Asks For More from Russell Wilson

It was not far back when Coach Sean Payton criticized his predecessor, Nathaniel Hackett, for doing one of the worst coaching jobs in the history of the NFL. However, Payton is standing on the same pedestal while wrestling with some of the same clock management and penalty issues. While reflecting on his team’s recent defeats, Sean Payton said,

“The first thing that we always try to look at—but we have to do a better job as coaches—is reduce the verbiage. If we have a longer [playcall], then we can easily get to a wristband. We have to reduce the variables.

Although Russell Willson blew the lead against the Washington Commanders, Coach Payton maintained decorum in his statement about the QB. He said, “There were several drives where we’re late with personnel [and] getting out of the huddle.” He continued, “We took a while. I mean, that’s got to change. We burned timeouts in the first half, which I’m not used to doing. We’ve got to be better; I’ve got to be better; and Russ has got to be sharper with getting the play out.'”

After the 35-33 loss to the Washington Commanders, the Denver Broncos are now one of the league’s 0-2 teams. So it doesn’t come as a surprise that head coach Sean Payton wants no turnovers, penalties, or even spotty plays by his QB from now on.

Colin Cowherd is Not Optimistic about Russell Wilson 

This game against the Washington Commanders was supposed to be a comeback for the Broncos. However, that didn’t turn out to be the case. Russell was sacked seven times and also lost a fumble. This moment was referred to as a momentum-changing one by Coach Sean Payton.

While Payton still has a lot of faith in his veteran QB, Colin Cowherd doesn’t think that the Denver Broncos and especially Russell Wilson can script a miraculous comeback in the coming games. On a recent episode of ‘The Volume’, Cowherd said, “It will only worsen here.”

If Cowherd is to be believed, then Russell is playing like a 39-year-old while being in the body of a 34-year-old. That said, if the Broncos have to rise above the adversity-driven 2022 season, they must work on their QB play. Needless to say, Broncos’ next game against the Dolphins will be a massive test for both, Sean Payton and the Denver Broncos.

Post Edited By: Shubham Bhargav
Denver Broncos Russell Wilson Sean Payton Washington Commanders

About the author

Prasenjeet Singh

Prasenjeet Singh is an NFL Content Writer at the SportsRush. A Civil Engineer graduate, he has been a sportsperson and an avid sports fan ever since. Prasen has a writing experience of over a year covering different US Sports. He likes playing Cricket and Football. Following the game for quite sometime now, he has now found his calling in the NFL.

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