After the Denver Broncos lost to the Seattle Seahawks thanks in part to coach Nathaniel Hackett’s questionable decision-making, quarterback Russell Wilson publicly backed Hackett and said he believes in the coach.
Hackett then came under scrutiny again in Week 2 after his slow decision-making forced the Broncos into two delay of game penalties against the Houston Texans. Denver ended up beating Houston, but it was a sloppy, undisciplined win that did not reflect well on the team’s coach.
Wilson is still backing his coach, but he admitted this week that Hackett can improve. Wilson remained diplomatic and the quarterback said he needs to improve as well.
“I believe in Coach Hackett,” Wilson said after a 16-9 win over the Texans. “I believe in who he is. I believe in his understanding of the game. We’re going to keep getting better and better. This is a journey for us together and I’m excited for it. You can never let anyone steal your joy in this game. This game is a special game we get to play. I think that on the other side of it is that there’s little things we can always do better, me included.
“It’s not only on the other side — [fix] a couple details here and there. If anyone is going to correct it, it’s going to be him. That’s the great thing about Coach Hackett is that he’s going to work his butt off to correct it. I’m going to correct whatever details I need to correct. It starts with us, and we go from there.”
Hackett has admitted that he can do a better job getting play calls in quickly, and he admitted after Week 1 that he shouldn’t have let the clock run down to attempt a 64-yard field goal. The fact that he’s realizing his mistakes and is not too proud to acknowledge them is a good sign. Now Hackett has to learn from them and — as Wilson said — improve going forward.
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