The QB dilemma at the Broncos seems to be getting worse with Russell Wilson at the helm. It all started with Sean Payton’s meltdown on the sidelines after the head coach screamed at his QB’s face. Then, he benched Wilson for Jarrett Stidham with only two games left in the season. Wilson has since made his feelings known, which has sparked all sorts of reactions from fans and pundits alike. Josina Anderson, a senior journalist, took to social media to appreciate the fact that Russell Wilson got to speak up, but at the same time, she called out former NFL player Ryan Clark for his ‘thug’ comment on Sean Payton.
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Anderson is an NFL insider associated with ESPN and provides reportage and commentary on all things NFL. She has amassed almost 250k followers on X (formerly Twitter), alongside appearances on multiple podcasts, and contributes to FS1’s ‘Undisputed’. Her piece on QB John Dutton and his wife’s journey to Ethiopia to adopt their son got her a Heartland Emmy. She has also worked for various local cable sports shows and broke many stories while working for Fox.
While she didn’t call out Clark by name in her tweet, it was fairly obvious that it was addressed to him after he labeled Sean Payton a ‘thug’ for his treatment of Wilson. Clark had said that Payton’s behavior towards Wilson since he became the head coach of the franchise has been hostile and unacceptable. He has acted like a thug and has shown no professionalism, and people still refuse to call it out.
Meanwhile, good for Russell Wilson to speak up for himself. There’s power in that. I think that was excellent.
On the other hand, I also believe calling Sean Payton a ‘thug’ is intentionally inflammatory.
— JosinaAnderson (@JosinaAnderson) December 30, 2023
Clark’s comments on the Super Bowl-winning coach got some unwarranted support from former Broncos players — Kareem Jackson and Randy Gregory. Both players expressed their sentiments about Payton’s attitude in the comments section of an ESPN post. While Jackson commented and wrote, “Da truth RC“, Randy echoed that sentiment by replying to his comment with the words, “all fact,” as per Denver Sports.
In a later tweet, Josina Anderson explained Denver’s request to Wilson. She also called out other reports that claimed that the franchise asked their QB to entirely remove the injury guarantee. She clarified that Denver never asked their QB to forgo his injury clause. They just wanted to defer it.
And to be clear again: Russell Wilson was asked to ‘defer’ his injury guarantee, not to ‘remove’ it—as was reported elsewhere.
You all can debate the request, but there’s a categorical difference between those contract adjustments.
— JosinaAnderson (@JosinaAnderson) December 30, 2023
Clark’s thug comments and his take on the whole Wilson situation and Payton’s role in it brought in some strong reactions from fans. While many sided with the analyst, others called him out for his bad take.
Ryan Clark’s Comments on Sean Payton Spark Debate
The former Steelers’ safety didn’t hold back when he said that Payton behaved like a ‘thug’ and lacked professionalism. His comments received a flurry of support from fans. While most fans agreed that how the Broncos and Payton dealt with the situation lacked professionalism and accountability, some disagreed with Clark and felt that Sean was not the problem but Wilson. They feel the team and the coach are within their rights to bench him.
Ryan Clark speaking dem FACTS. He never wanted Russell from that start. Sean Payton will always be a scumbag. Ryan was very polite towards him.
— Gerald Johnson Jr (@Geraldjj) December 29, 2023
Another one chimed in, “Finally someone said it about Sean Payton. The man has only gone to and won one Super Bowl. and he had Drew Brees as QB. People act like he’s Bill Walsh when he’s not even close.”
Finally someone said it about Sean Payton, the
man has only gone to and won, one Super Bowl, and he had Drew Brees as QB. People act like he’s Bill Walsh when he’s not even close.— DoingMyBest (@Doing_my_best1) December 29, 2023
This fan said, “100% agree. I sincerely hope Russ lands somewhere and does great things.”
Another wrote, “Not a fan of Ryan, but this is the gospel.”
A fan commented, “I’m a Broncos fan, but Russ is the problem not Sean Payton. Russ isn’t a franchise QB he used to be. He’s step slower and doesn’t have the timing down that he used to. Sean Payton is a top-tier NFL head coach and he will turn the team around.”
Someone stated, “Sean Payton just as much a legend as Russ Wilson, he can do as he pleases if he feels it’s best for the Denver Broncos. Stop treating Russ like a wish kid, his best years are behind and he’s not a top 5 QB. It’s not uncommon for a coach to bring in his own guy.”
Others said-”
RC’s one of my favorite analysts, but he got this ALL wrong.
Drew Brees went 142-86 while “kissing babies”, so obviously, it wasn’t negatively impacting his play.
Let’s Ride went 4-11 last year, partly because he was more focused on his PR than he was QB’ing and winning games.— John (@John6447571229) December 29, 2023
With Wilson benched, the Broncos went on to win their showdown against the Chargers. However, they are still out of the playoff picture as the Steelers have beaten the Seahawks. They take on the Raiders next week.
Despite another bust season and a long playoff drought, the Broncos will likely keep Payton around. He’s done quite well in his debut season from last year’s 12-5. However, it will surely be interesting to see how the franchise handles the Russell Wilson situation.
