Russell Wilson and the Denver Broncos have gotten off to a 1-5 start this season and appear to be headed nowhere fast. They have a 70-20 loss to the Miami Dolphins on their resume, and their lone win came at the expense of the Chicago Bears.
This is certainly not how things were supposed to go for the Broncos when they acquired Wilson in a blockbuster trade with the Seattle Seahawks in March 2022.
Since Wilson arrived, Denver has gone just 6-17, and the club has an enormous question to answer this coming offseason: what will it do with Wilson?
The Broncos handed the nine-time Pro Bowler a five-year, $245 million extension upon trading for him, and his contract runs all the way through 2028.
Legendary Denver offensive lineman Mark Schlereth does not think we will see Wilson under center for the Broncos in 2024.
“I would be shocked if Russell Wilson makes it past this year and if he’s the quarterback of the Denver Broncos next year. I would be shocked,” Schlereth said during an appearance on The Herd With Colin Cowherd. “It’s not that Russell Wilson is playing terrible football, Thursday night not withstanding. He was bad Thursday night. It’s not that he’s playing terrible football, but he’s not playing winning football and he’s not elevating the players around him. From that standpoint, I think it’s time to clean house and it’s time to get new players.”
Schlereth was referencing Wilson’s Week 6 outing against the Kansas City Chiefs, when he went just 13-for-22 with 95 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions. Outside of that performance, Wilson has actually been pretty good in 2023, registering a passer rating of 99.
However, Schlereth has a point. The Broncos haven’t been winning with Wilson, and it’s going to be incredibly difficult to put the proper pieces around him with his contract eating up so much cap space.
Denver may very well have to just bite the bullet and cut bait with Russell Wilson come springtime.
The Broncos will take on the Green Bay Packers this Sunday.
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