After a wildly successful decade with the Seattle Seahawks, quarterback Russell Wilson had a rather rude wake-up call in his first season with the Denver Broncos. Wilson struggled mightily, and the Broncos had perhaps their most disappointing season in recent memory, finishing 5-12.
However, a new day could be dawning on the Mile High City. The arrival of head coach Sean Payton, fresh out of retirement, should help Denver’s offensive ineptitude. As for their franchise quarterback, those in the organization continue to be positive about Wilson.
“I don’t know what’s going to happen, but we’re really happy with where he’s at,” offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi said when discussing Wilson’s development in this new system.
Lombardi is not the only one on the team who is expressing confidence in the quarterback. Wide receiver Jerry Jeudy had nothing but strong words of support for Wilson.
“Russ is a soldier,” Jeudy said. “So just the way he handles his business, the way he handles situations, I just know the type of guy he is and the stuff that he can overcome. In the situations like that, that don’t put no fear into a man’s heart. And I know that this year, he got a big year coming ahead.”
Last year, a lot of 12s were openly rooting against Wilson and the Broncos. From a purely logical perspective, it made sense. Denver losing meant Seattle gets a better draft pick, and they ended up with No. 5 overall. There were understandably plenty of hard feelings from fans for a player they felt perhaps spurned them and their city.
However, a lot of those fans could be changing their tune for 2023. I’m sure there will be many who will want to see Wilson bounce back and find success after a world-class serving of humble pie.
Whatever the outcome may be, Wilson and the Broncos are certain to be another top story in the NFL to follow this season.
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