Russell Wilson’s debut season with the Denver Broncos has been terrible. In many people’s eyes, acquiring Russell Wilson for such a massive fee has been nothing short of a mistake. He has been a shadow of his former self, and many believe he is no longer the star QB he was back at Seattle. However, Former Broncos safety T.J. Ward has another theory to explain Wilson’s struggles at Denver.
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Ward was part of the Broncos team that won the Super Bowl 50, along with Hall of Famer Peyton Manning. He believes that the biggest difference between Manning’s offense and Wilson’s team is that the Broncos actually worked to create an offense around ‘The Sheriff’. This did not happen with Wison. For he was thrown into an already set offense and expected to lead it to the Super Bowl.
“I see the similarity between our Super Bowl 50 team and the current Broncos. But that’s the first and only similarity,” Ward says. “I think they wanted it to be closer to our team, but other guys came in and fit with Peyton. He wasn’t just chucked on a team and expected to win the Super Bowl.”
Ward says a quarterback alone cannot be the stark difference maker in a team. He feels that Russell Wilson was just thrown into the chaos that was the Broncos’ offense, and expected to sort it out. “I guess when you’re getting paid so much, it comes with the territory – but it doesn’t work like that,” he says.
Russell Wilson and the Broncos falter in his debut season, what comes next?
This was not just Russell Wilson’s debut season with the Broncos. Rookie head coach Nathaniel Hackett was also trying to make a good name for himself as a coach. Unfortunately, things did not work out for him. The Broncos collapsed to a 5-12 record this season, and Hackett paid the ultimate price. With only two games left in the season, the Broncos fired Hackett. Soon after, they started probing for a new head coach.
Fortunately for Wilson, his massive dead cap of $107 million prevents the Broncos from cutting him off the squad. It even prevents him from being benched, since naturally, the Broncos don’t want a $242 million bench warmer. The only option is the play Wilson, and try to mold the offense to his capabilities. This could be the key to unlocking Wilson’s potential that for so long has been hidden.
Fortunately for the Broncos, they have ample opportunities to make that happen. With a first-round pick back in their hands, they now have a total of 6 picks, which they can use potentially to buff the offense. Whether or not they will correctly predict what they need, and get their hands on a suitable prospect, is still to be seen.
