Russell Wilson was brought over to the Denver Broncos to make a deep impact, but his first year had more downs than ups, including a pretty terrible throw.
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Wilson and the Broncos’ offense had several issues throughout the year, including a major problem with the coaching job. It’s why coach Nathaniel Hackett was relieved of his duties after less than one year with the team.
This season, the Broncos are hoping coaching won’t be a problem as they’ve brought on Sean Payton in a trade with the New Orleans Saints. Payton’s resume speaks for itself.
He regularly led strong offensive teams fueled by Drew Brees, and the Saints (especially in his last few years as coach) were top contenders for the NFC crown after building a championship-level defense.
Payton faces a similar situation in Denver. The Broncos’ defense held their own throughout the season, allowing 21.1 points per game, good for 14th in the league which is very impressive considering the offense only scored 16.9 points per game, the lowest mark in the league.
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Russell Wilson forgot which team he was on for a play last year
While coaching was a major problem for the Broncos, it can’t be stated enough that Russell Wilson was a big problem too. He had a career-low year, unable to find the same groove that he had with the Seahawks in years prior.
All told the bad coaching, poor quarterback play, and lack of cohesion on the offense led to a 5-12 record for the team. Wilson demanded a trade from the Seahawks after the team failed to provide an adequate supporting cast.
However, the former star was one of the worst QBs in the league last year. He threw just 15 touchdowns to 11 touchdowns at an average of 234.9 yards per game. Averaging less than a touchdown per game is unacceptable for someone of Wilson’s caliber.
Additionally, there was this throw that had NFL fans wondering if Wilson remembered that he switched teams.
Wilson and the Broncos are primed to improve
It’s easy to look at last season and consider that Wilson may be washed up. However, considering that the quarterback is 34 years old (still not too old), and some brilliant seasons in Seattle just before joining Denver, we know that things are ready to turn around.
Sean Payton also already has a plan to fix Wilson and the struggles he went through. He spoke about the strengths Wilson had and what he brings, back in February.
“A hard worker and has played at a high level and won a lot of games,” he explained, as per NOLA.com. “The pressure is on us to put a good run game together and reduce the degree of difficulty on his position. I’m excited about him.”
“I know they did a great job in Seattle of bringing him off of a naked boot and then pulling up,” he added. “And then we all saw that throwback to Tyler Lockett across the field where the ball traveled 60 yards in the air.”
Payton is ready to do his homework to get Wilson back to where he was.
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