Denver Broncos wide receiver Jerry Jeudy is backing quarterback Russell Wilson to have a big second year in the Mile High City.
Wilson, 34, suffered through the worst season of his 11-year career after being traded to the Broncos from the Seattle Seahawks. The nine-time Pro Bowler posted career lows in touchdown passes, completion percentage and quarterback rating.
Those woes contributed to Denver finishing the regular season with a league-worst points per game of 16.9. Unsurprisingly, their offensive struggles resulted in missing out on the playoffs for a seventh straight season.
With the new quarterback receiving considerable criticism last season, Jeudy spoke up in support of his teammate throughout the campaign. That confidence in Wilson has continued into the offseason.
Asked what it is about the Super Bowl champion that means the receiver retains such faith by the Broncos in-house media team, Jeudy replied: "Just his mentality. Russ is a soldier."
"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," he added. "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."
It is now not just Jeudy making his support for Wilson known, either. Broncos left tackle Garett Bolles has already thrown his backing behind his teammate and is sure that class will shine through.
“He’s a great dude, he’s the same guy every single day, he works his butt off,” Bolles said last month. “And I’m ready for that stuff to go away, and when it goes, everyone’s going to eat crow.
"He's the same guy, he doesn't change; he's a leader. He's one of the winningest quarterbacks [the] last 10 years, you guys know the stats, that's just who he is."
Boles continued: "Random rumours and things like that and the fire burns. It's like a forest fire, you start in one corner, and the wind blows, and it just burns thousands and thousands of acres, and that's sort of what happened. [But] he's not focused on that; he just wants to win."
Offseason acquisition Mike McGlinchey is another singing Wilson's praises. The offensive tackle has previously played against the QB plenty of times for the San Francisco 49ers.
"He’s a Hall of Famer," McGlinchey said back in March. "And he’s capable of doing great things and winning a lot of games in this league like he did for a decade in Seattle. And I think Coach Payton and the situation we’re going into is going to elevate his game even more.
"I know last season didn’t go the way Broncos Country wanted, but I think things are going to be a lot different. I’m very excited to get to work with Russ and see what we can do together and how we can make a splash in the AFC."
