There’s widespread belief among NFL circles that the Denver Broncos will move on from Russell Wilson. Conversely, former running back LeSean McCoy believes keeping the veteran quarterback is still the best scenario.
“Sean Payton, I’m telling you right now…Please, bro, stick with Russ,” McCoy said during the February 27 episode of Fox Sports 1’s Speak. “He can get it done. You’ve seen the interview. You see the fire in his eyes?”
McCoy, a two-time Super Bowl champion, elaborated his argument by asking, “If we move on from Russ, who you gonna get?”
The 11-year NFL veteran floated the idea of getting Kirk Cousins, who he believes is better at this point of their careers.
But Cousins is coming off an Achilles injury and falters during primetime games. “Cousins is 2-10 on Monday Night Football primetime games,” Pro Football Network’s Ryan Broyles wrote on October 23, 2023.
.@CutOnDime25 explains why the Broncos should stick with Russell Wilson
"They always say it's greener on the other side. I had about 4 girlfriends, and they were right. I should've stayed!" 😅 pic.twitter.com/sDsjpZzKcQ
— Speak (@SpeakOnFS1) February 27, 2024
The two-time First Team All-Pro running mentioned drafting a rookie quarterback. However, that option doesn’t guarantee that the prospect will be successful in the pros.
Payton isn’t a fan of giving rookie play-callers extensive minutes, either. NFL Network insider Tom Pelissero pointed out on The Rich Eisen Show last February 24, “I believe the only time he’s done that in what, 15, 16 years as a head coach was when everybody got COVID, and they had to roll out Ian Book for a game.”
If Russell Wilson had a choice, he would like to remain with the team that surrendered five draft picks and three players for him in March 2022. “Whether it’s in Denver or somewhere else. I hope it’s in Denver,” Wilson shared with Brandon Marshall in an exclusive interview uploaded on the I AM ATHLETE YouTube Channel last February 26. “You know, I hope I get to finish there. I committed there. I wanted to be there.”
Though they barely missed the 2023 AFC playoffs, the 9-time Pro Bowler proved his commitment by learning Sean Payton’s offense, which emphasizes timing and precision. As a result, Wilson improved his completion percentage from 60.5 in 2022 to 66.4 in 2023.
Connecting more with his targets led to more touchdown passes (16 to 26) and fewer interceptions (11 to 8). Pro Football Focus noted these positive changes by improving Wilson’s overall grade from 66.2 in 2022 to 77.5 last season.
Broncos Pick Their Poison in Dealing with Russell Wilson’s Contract
GettyBroncos General Manager George Paton
The 2024 season corresponds to the first year of his five-year, $242.5 million contract extension. But as Spotrac revealed, the Broncos will be shouldering a heavy price tag regardless of their decision with the Super Bowl 48 winner.
Russell Wilson will earn a guaranteed $37 million next season, regardless of his fate. But the situation gets tricky if the Broncos part ways with the 2020 Walter Payton Man of the Year winner. Cutting him before June 1 leads to a massive $85 million dead money.
Conversely, releasing him after that date allows Denver to split the tab over two seasons. The cap casualties for 2024 and 2025 vary if the team exercises its $22 million option for 2024.
As Spotrac founder Michael Ginnitti wrote, “If Denver exercises the option bonus then designates him a Post June 1st release (before March 17th), they can push $17.6M of that cap into 2025, leading to a $35.4M dead hit in 2024, & a $49.6M hit in 2025.”
But delaying Wilson’s release during or after March 17 earns him a $37 million injury-guaranteed salary for 2025. The sum of money became a point of contention between him and the Broncos.
As Wilson shared with Marshall, “I got that call that ‘Hey, we’re gonna bench you for the next nine games if, you know, you don’t change your injury guarantee.’”
NFL Insider Believes Russell Wilson Could Remain in Denver for 2024
GettyNFL insider Tom Pelissero
Aside from pointing out Payton’s apprehension in playing rookie quarterbacks, Pelissero shared with Eisen that he sees a scenario wherein Wilson remains in a Broncos uniform for his 13th NFL season.
“Maybe, if everybody looks at the other side of the fence and doesn’t like what they see, the best scenario could be Russell Wilson back in a Denver uniform.”
While that possibility is on the table, Payton shared a timeline regarding their decision on Russell Wilson.
“There’s a couple factors here. Obviously, the cap projections came out, we’re further down the road with the draft class, obviously the pro free agents. So I would anticipate it being within the next two weeks,” the second-year Broncos head coach shared with reporters on February 27.
