Two years ago, when the Denver Broncos signed Russell Wilson on a 5 years $242.6 million deal, many hailed the decision as a masterclass. Lo and behold, the deal couldn’t have been worse. In his two years at the Mile High City, Wilson saw himself have two of his worst seasons ever, marred with inconsistency and internal conflicts.
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In his tenure with the Broncos, the QB earned an average cumulative rating of 91.2. He passed for 6,594 yards and 42 TDs with 19 interceptions. For the standards set by Wilson, the numbers were a step down. In a move that everyone saw coming, the QB was dropped by the Broncos and he’ll now be searching for a new home. But how long will it take him to find this new landing spot? Rich Eisen has some thoughts.
As per Eisen, Wilson will most likely be snapped up by a team after the draft picks are done. “If I had to guess right now, I’d say after [the draft],” the analyst predicted. Even though Wilson is rumored to take the lowest possible salary, Eisen believed that he would still not be an immediate priority for many.
Axing the QB will most likely result in a whopping $85 million hit in dead money for the Broncos. With Wilson now leading up to free agency from March 13th; the question on everyone’s mind is where he will end up next up. Another burning question in everyone’s mind is how interested NFL teams are in the 35-year-old QB. The best way to know Wilson’s demand in the market is by seeing if he signs with a new team before or after the draft.
Why Does Rich Eisen Think Russell Wilson Will Be Signed After The Draft?
A week ago, reports surfaced that Russell Wilson was all set to take the league minimum of $1.21 million for a year to be as lucrative as possible for his suitors. Wilson seems to have regained that hunger to prove his naysayers wrong and his wage cut shows his desperation to join a new team at the earliest.
However, Eisen believes that NFL teams would wait till the draft picks. Till then, they would take time to figure out the chinks in their armor and prioritize the draft first. Post that, a veteran free agent like Wilson would be on their mind.
” Everybody figures out what they’re doing and who they get in the draft spots; what the holes are. But as you know, things change so damn fast in this league.”
The Analyst however iterated how important Wilson’s next team will be for him. Eisen argued that Russell Wilson would hate to be in a position where he would be treated as the backup rookie.
“But if I had a guess I’d figure that out even though the Broncos are like to start talking to people right now; the question is who’s going to just fill up their dance card? Russ, you’re the guy, and also say you’re the starter you’re not going to compete! That’s the whole point because he needs to sign somewhere where it all of a sudden it’s not like where he’s the Matt Flynn and the kid they draft is the Russell Wilson.”
Safe to say, the buildup to the next NFL season has officially begun and Russell Wilson and the Denver Broncos’ next move would be the most anticipated storyline leading up to the season. An 11-19 record for the Broncos was unsatisfactory for Coach Sean Payton with a majority of the blame being laid on Wilson for the performances. Thus their relationship also deteriorated with time. Due to all these reasons, the Broncos earlier today officially announced cutting off Russell Wilson from their roster. An aging QB, who seems past his prime, with limited results seen in the past two seasons. An aging QB, with a performance graph moving downwards, will most likely not be any team’s first priority.
