Bronco's extend Russell Wilson

  • To unlock all of features of Rams On Demand please take a brief moment to register. Registering is not only quick and easy, it also allows you access to additional features such as live chat, private messaging, and a host of other apps exclusive to Rams On Demand.

den-the-coach

Fifty-four Forty or Fight
Rams On Demand Sponsor
Joined
Jan 16, 2013
Messages
23,002
Name
Dennis
IMO, this was a great move by Denver. I don't care much for their Head Coach, but Russell Wilson is an upper tier QB and I expect him to have a great year. Seattle's plan is to suck and be in position to draft one of the top QB's in 2023.
 

AvengerRam

Benevolent Troublemaker
Joined
May 9, 2018
Messages
5,390
Ultimately, this will be an overpay. Wilson has started to show some decline, and he relies more on his legs than QBs who have maintained a high level of play into their late 30s.
 

den-the-coach

Fifty-four Forty or Fight
Rams On Demand Sponsor
Joined
Jan 16, 2013
Messages
23,002
Name
Dennis
Ultimately, this will be an overpay. Wilson has started to show some decline, and he relies more on his legs than QBs who have maintained a high level of play into their late 30s.
Well, we are about to see. IMO, his decline was more based on his team then him. Denver has some good pieces in place, so I expect Wilson to have a great rebound year in the Rocky Mountain High.
 

OldSchool

Rams On Demand Sponsor
Rams On Demand Sponsor
Joined
Nov 3, 2013
Messages
40,610
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #5
Well, we are about to see. IMO, his decline was more based on his team then him. Denver has some good pieces in place, so I expect Wilson to have a great rebound year in the Rocky Mountain High.
This also signs him until the season he turns 38. That's going to be a very interesting season to watch with him getting this much money. With a lot of these QB's I think it's too much money but I get why clubs have to do this. What was the alternative? Roll the dice with next years 1st round pick if they didn't trade for Wilson and once you traded for him you had to pay him.
 

AvengerRam

Benevolent Troublemaker
Joined
May 9, 2018
Messages
5,390
Well, we are about to see. IMO, his decline was more based on his team then him. Denver has some good pieces in place, so I expect Wilson to have a great rebound year in the Rocky Mountain High.
He might play well this year, but I doubt they get enough good seasons from him to justify his guaranteed money.

The key will be how they are able to compete in the loaded AFC West in the next couple of years. If they are at the bottom of the division (as I expect they will be this year), Wilson will seem overpaid, regardless of his numbers.
 

OldSchool

Rams On Demand Sponsor
Rams On Demand Sponsor
Joined
Nov 3, 2013
Messages
40,610
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #7
Three QB's in the AFCW making $40+ million and the other is on his rookie deal and will likely get that much or more.
 

den-the-coach

Fifty-four Forty or Fight
Rams On Demand Sponsor
Joined
Jan 16, 2013
Messages
23,002
Name
Dennis
He might play well this year, but I doubt they get enough good seasons from him to justify his guaranteed money.

The key will be how they are able to compete in the loaded AFC West in the next couple of years. If they are at the bottom of the division (as I expect they will be this year), Wilson will seem overpaid, regardless of his numbers.
I think they will be better then Las Vegas, but it's close. Obviously the Chargers & Chiefs will battle it out for first, but my only issue with Denver is their Head Coach. They have a first year HC, OC & DC, that is usually recipe for disaster.
 

blackbart

Rams On Demand Sponsor
Rams On Demand Sponsor
Joined
Dec 29, 2010
Messages
6,293
Name
Tim
I don’t see Denver having better pieces for him to work with than Seattle did. The Rams have shown how to beat him and bring in a new city isn’t going to change that.

His wheels aren’t what they used to be and their Oline is maybe as bad as Seattle the last couple of years.

Living in Montana I see a lot of Denver fans thinking they have their next hired gun and find it amusing. I still think they suck too much to get out of the cellar in that division unless there are major injuries to other teams.
 

ArkyRamsFan

Pro Bowler
Joined
Apr 6, 2016
Messages
1,955
I think they will be better then Las Vegas, but it's close. Obviously the Chargers & Chiefs will battle it out for first, but my only issue with Denver is their Head Coach. They have a first year HC, OC & DC, that is usually recipe for disaster.
This is a very good point. When Coach Mac first came to the Rams he had Greg Olson and Wade Phillips as his coaches and coordinators.
I believe that this helped him a bunch in his first several years.

~ArkyRamsFan~
 

dieterbrock

Rams On Demand Sponsor
Rams On Demand Sponsor
Joined
Jan 3, 2013
Messages
24,050
Well, we are about to find out how he rates among the QB's they got from other teams
The Great:
Peyton Manning & John Elway
The Good:
Jake Plummer & Steve DeBerg
The awful:
Bubby Brister & Kyle Orton
 

AvengerRam

Benevolent Troublemaker
Joined
May 9, 2018
Messages
5,390
Well, we are about to find out how he rates among the QB's they got from other teams
The Great:
Peyton Manning & John Elway
The Good:
Jake Plummer & Steve DeBerg
The awful:
Bubby Brister & Kyle Orton
Dont' forget Craig Morton!
 

Kupped

Legend
Joined
Aug 5, 2021
Messages
8,680
Name
Kupped
The big takeaway, for me, is that Stafford gave the Rams a relative bargain.
 

CGI_Ram

Hamburger Connoisseur
Moderator
Joined
Jun 28, 2010
Messages
49,225
Name
Burger man
What to do with Wilson?

I think there is little choice, barring a trade, they need to see if a new HC, offense, and OC makes a difference.

What is Russell Wilson's future with Broncos? Examining the QB's contract, 2023 scenarios, potential suitors​

If anyone needed confirmation that the Broncos' blockbuster offseason gambles have not paid off, the team provided it this week, firing coach Nathaniel Hackett just 15 games into his first season. Now, there remains one other elephant in the room: quarterback Russell Wilson. The longtime Seahawks star arrived with much fanfare, acquired in exchange for a massive trade package and inked to a $245 million extension before taking his first snap in orange. But Wilson, like Hackett, has been instrumental in Denver's dysfunctional 2022 performance, leading to questions about his own future with the team.

Fully diagnosing, let alone correcting, Wilson's plummet under center is hard enough. Long one of the NFL's standard-bearers when it comes to poise, pocket awareness and downfield passing, the QB has endured easily the worst season of his career at 34, barely completing 60 percent of his throws while totaling just 12 touchdowns and nine interceptions during a 3-10 stretch as the starter. Hackett's decision-making, plus a banged-up supporting cast, surely contributed to Wilson's drop-off. But there are larger concerns at work here, namely Wilson's apparent decline in mobility, which once enabled him to extend plays with ease; and an even more apparent insistence on quick-strike Shotgun passing, which has never been his bread and butter.

It's become increasingly clear that Wilson both wants and needs to be a QB that he's never truly been, at least up to this point: he wants to be the ultra-efficient superstar whose legacy and trophy case improve with age, and he needs to be ultra-efficient to compensate for less trademark elusiveness and off-script athleticism. Figuring out how to strike a happy medium, and ironically revert Wilson to the Seahawks-level production he sought to escape, will be the next Broncos coach's top task.

Or will it? Is there actually a scenario where Denver could cut the cord on this marriage after just one season?

If general manager George Paton sticks around, as the Broncos indicated in their dismissal of Hackett, it may be less likely. Paton, after all, is the one who swung for the fences to land Wilson, parting with three players and five draft picks, including two first-rounders, to do so. He's the one who gave Wilson a five-year, $245M extension, with $124M guaranteed, on Sept. 1, without ever seeing the QB play a Broncos game that counted. While Wilson's steadily sluggish debut should give new team ownership plenty of pause about the short- and long-term prospects of their team, the QB's results can't be fully separated from the price paid to get them. This is a business. And there is no easy way for Denver to turn this into a profit.

A standard release of Wilson following this season is practically impossible. This would result in an astronomical $107M dead-cap charge and, more importantly, an immediate net loss of $85M, per Over The Cap. The Broncos would literally need to cut almost half their team to stay under the 2023 salary cap. There are multiple ways Denver could reduce immediate losses by designating Wilson a post-June 1 release, however. One scenario has the Broncos absorbing a $61M dead-cap hit in 2023.

Another, the best-case scenario for cutting Wilson, involves converting 2023 salary to a bonus, exercising an option in the QB's deal, then designating him a post-June 1 release to take roughly a $40M dead-cap hit in 2023, and $67M dead-cap hit in 2024. This would make Wilson's dead-cap hit comparable to that of Matt Ryan, whose trade to the Colts last offseason left the Falcons paying a record $40.5M for the QB to play elsewhere. This would not immediately save the Broncos any money; in fact, it would still result in a net loss of about $17M in 2023. But if team brass, and/or the next coach, truly believes Wilson is unsalvageable, the name of the game may well be admitting the mistake, taking the financial lumps, and trudging forward.

It's very possible the Broncos would wait to decide on a post-June 1 release of Wilson until after June 1. Players can be cut earlier with the designation, but in this case, the new ownership and coaching regime might prefer to spend January-May exploring every alternative: rebuilding the offense for Russ, evaluating free agent and rookie QBs, praying for another desperate team to call about a trade. If they ultimately determine Wilson must go, swallowing a $17M loss via post-June 1 release, it's conceivable that other veterans will become cap casualties or trade/restructure candidates, including wide receiver Courtland Sutton, left tackle Garett Bolles, linebacker Randy Gregory, cornerback Ronald Darby and safety Justin Simmons.

The absolute dream scenario for the Broncos is another team pursuing Wilson via trade. A post-June 1 trade would instantly save Denver $8M, not to mention free up money down the road. But who's gonna be jumping at the chance to absorb such an expensive deal for potentially damaged goods? It's true that legitimate suitors will likely be hard to come by. But never say never in the NFL, especially a year after the Colts basically advertised their divorce from Carson Wentz and still netted a third-round draft pick via trade, and a year after the Browns willingly surrendered three first-rounders, plus $230M guaranteed, for a QB in Deshaun Watson who hadn't played in more than a year and faced an inevitable suspension.

Paton is most likely to give Wilson another year under a fresh staff, then address the fork in the road in 2024, when the QB can be cut as a post-June 1 release with no financial penalty other than the dead-cap hit. But he, or whomever is actually calling the shots under new ownership, will almost assuredly listen to any calls that come in before then. Not only that, but the Broncos would probably even offer to eat some of the QB's salary to facilitate a deal, a la the Browns' trade of Baker Mayfield to the Panthers this summer.

And if you can't fathom the idea of someone dialing Denver to discuss Russ, just remember we're only a year removed from other teams reportedly matching the Broncos' offer of multiple first-rounders to acquire him. Hackett's firing at least hints to the outside world that Wilson's bad debut was a result of a poor setup. And the QB is 34, not 38, in a league where at least 10-12 teams are perpetually eyeing an upgrade at the position.

On that off chance, then, which teams might actually consider working with the Broncos to take on Wilson and his deal? Consider these four: the Falcons, Giants, Patriots and Raiders.

Atlanta is loaded with 2023 cap space (projected $70M), has no discernible future at QB after benching Marcus Mariota for Desmond Ridder, and is entering year three of the Arthur Smith system, which prides itself on the run-heavy approach that once complemented Wilson, and previously revived Ryan Tannehill in Tennessee. New York is also chock-full of 2023 cap space ($59M), has proven competitive leaning on the run, boasts a coach in Brian Daboll who's now elevated both Josh Allen and Daniel Jones, and offers the big market Wilson may still covet. The Giants, meanwhile, reportedly inquired about Wilson before his move to Denver, suggesting they've already done some homework on how to utilize him post-Seattle.

Like the others, the Patriots are set to be flush with cash ($55M), and Mac Jones hasn't exactly inspired confidence in their new offense. Bill Belichick is more inclined than most to take a flyer on a star castoff, and his old-school approach could be the right recipe for a Wilson rejuvenation; the QB's personality feels like a natural fit for the stoic Patriot Way, and Wilson might relish in the opportunity to follow in Tom Brady's footsteps in New England. Lastly, the Raiders can easily cut Derek Carr, whose debut under Josh McDaniels has been especially mercurial, to save close to $30M, and Wilson previously identified Las Vegas as one of his preferred landing spots. Intra-division trades of this sort are rare but not unprecedented, especially when the selling team is that motivated to dump money.

Barring a stunning redemption tour from Wilson in 2023 and beyond, the Broncos don't have many clear paths to victory here. But the way 2022 unfolded, they'd surely settle for a tie.



Denver Broncos great alleges Russell Wilson has ‘ticked a lot of people off’ with his attitude​

After landing Wilson in a trade, the Broncos gave the one-time Super Bowl champion some unique bonuses — like his own office in the team facility and a plethora of parking spaces — in a massive five-year, $242 million contract extension.

Sharpe, who played 10 seasons with the Broncos, claims those perks, and the way Wilson has handled himself in the locker room, has taken his relationship with some teammates to a bad place.

I don’t know who the head coach is gonna be, but the first thing you do [is say], ‘Russell Wilson, I’m locking this office. You will no longer have an office. All those parking spaces you get at the stadium, they’re gone too — because you’re putting yourself in front of the team.’ I said it before, I’ll say it again, and I stand by it: You ticked a lot of people off with your attitude, bro. You can come out here and talk about how we’re a team and I’m good with my teammates, but deep down inside, they’re seething, and I’m gonna leave it at that.”

- Shannon Sharpe
 

Loyal

Rams On Demand Sponsor
Rams On Demand Sponsor
Joined
Jul 27, 2010
Messages
30,556
What to do with Wilson?

I think there is little choice, barring a trade, they need to see if a new HC, offense, and OC makes a difference.

What is Russell Wilson's future with Broncos? Examining the QB's contract, 2023 scenarios, potential suitors​

If anyone needed confirmation that the Broncos' blockbuster offseason gambles have not paid off, the team provided it this week, firing coach Nathaniel Hackett just 15 games into his first season. Now, there remains one other elephant in the room: quarterback Russell Wilson. The longtime Seahawks star arrived with much fanfare, acquired in exchange for a massive trade package and inked to a $245 million extension before taking his first snap in orange. But Wilson, like Hackett, has been instrumental in Denver's dysfunctional 2022 performance, leading to questions about his own future with the team.

Fully diagnosing, let alone correcting, Wilson's plummet under center is hard enough. Long one of the NFL's standard-bearers when it comes to poise, pocket awareness and downfield passing, the QB has endured easily the worst season of his career at 34, barely completing 60 percent of his throws while totaling just 12 touchdowns and nine interceptions during a 3-10 stretch as the starter. Hackett's decision-making, plus a banged-up supporting cast, surely contributed to Wilson's drop-off. But there are larger concerns at work here, namely Wilson's apparent decline in mobility, which once enabled him to extend plays with ease; and an even more apparent insistence on quick-strike Shotgun passing, which has never been his bread and butter.

It's become increasingly clear that Wilson both wants and needs to be a QB that he's never truly been, at least up to this point: he wants to be the ultra-efficient superstar whose legacy and trophy case improve with age, and he needs to be ultra-efficient to compensate for less trademark elusiveness and off-script athleticism. Figuring out how to strike a happy medium, and ironically revert Wilson to the Seahawks-level production he sought to escape, will be the next Broncos coach's top task.

Or will it? Is there actually a scenario where Denver could cut the cord on this marriage after just one season?

If general manager George Paton sticks around, as the Broncos indicated in their dismissal of Hackett, it may be less likely. Paton, after all, is the one who swung for the fences to land Wilson, parting with three players and five draft picks, including two first-rounders, to do so. He's the one who gave Wilson a five-year, $245M extension, with $124M guaranteed, on Sept. 1, without ever seeing the QB play a Broncos game that counted. While Wilson's steadily sluggish debut should give new team ownership plenty of pause about the short- and long-term prospects of their team, the QB's results can't be fully separated from the price paid to get them. This is a business. And there is no easy way for Denver to turn this into a profit.

A standard release of Wilson following this season is practically impossible. This would result in an astronomical $107M dead-cap charge and, more importantly, an immediate net loss of $85M, per Over The Cap. The Broncos would literally need to cut almost half their team to stay under the 2023 salary cap. There are multiple ways Denver could reduce immediate losses by designating Wilson a post-June 1 release, however. One scenario has the Broncos absorbing a $61M dead-cap hit in 2023.

Another, the best-case scenario for cutting Wilson, involves converting 2023 salary to a bonus, exercising an option in the QB's deal, then designating him a post-June 1 release to take roughly a $40M dead-cap hit in 2023, and $67M dead-cap hit in 2024. This would make Wilson's dead-cap hit comparable to that of Matt Ryan, whose trade to the Colts last offseason left the Falcons paying a record $40.5M for the QB to play elsewhere. This would not immediately save the Broncos any money; in fact, it would still result in a net loss of about $17M in 2023. But if team brass, and/or the next coach, truly believes Wilson is unsalvageable, the name of the game may well be admitting the mistake, taking the financial lumps, and trudging forward.

It's very possible the Broncos would wait to decide on a post-June 1 release of Wilson until after June 1. Players can be cut earlier with the designation, but in this case, the new ownership and coaching regime might prefer to spend January-May exploring every alternative: rebuilding the offense for Russ, evaluating free agent and rookie QBs, praying for another desperate team to call about a trade. If they ultimately determine Wilson must go, swallowing a $17M loss via post-June 1 release, it's conceivable that other veterans will become cap casualties or trade/restructure candidates, including wide receiver Courtland Sutton, left tackle Garett Bolles, linebacker Randy Gregory, cornerback Ronald Darby and safety Justin Simmons.

The absolute dream scenario for the Broncos is another team pursuing Wilson via trade. A post-June 1 trade would instantly save Denver $8M, not to mention free up money down the road. But who's gonna be jumping at the chance to absorb such an expensive deal for potentially damaged goods? It's true that legitimate suitors will likely be hard to come by. But never say never in the NFL, especially a year after the Colts basically advertised their divorce from Carson Wentz and still netted a third-round draft pick via trade, and a year after the Browns willingly surrendered three first-rounders, plus $230M guaranteed, for a QB in Deshaun Watson who hadn't played in more than a year and faced an inevitable suspension.

Paton is most likely to give Wilson another year under a fresh staff, then address the fork in the road in 2024, when the QB can be cut as a post-June 1 release with no financial penalty other than the dead-cap hit. But he, or whomever is actually calling the shots under new ownership, will almost assuredly listen to any calls that come in before then. Not only that, but the Broncos would probably even offer to eat some of the QB's salary to facilitate a deal, a la the Browns' trade of Baker Mayfield to the Panthers this summer.

And if you can't fathom the idea of someone dialing Denver to discuss Russ, just remember we're only a year removed from other teams reportedly matching the Broncos' offer of multiple first-rounders to acquire him. Hackett's firing at least hints to the outside world that Wilson's bad debut was a result of a poor setup. And the QB is 34, not 38, in a league where at least 10-12 teams are perpetually eyeing an upgrade at the position.

On that off chance, then, which teams might actually consider working with the Broncos to take on Wilson and his deal? Consider these four: the Falcons, Giants, Patriots and Raiders.

Atlanta is loaded with 2023 cap space (projected $70M), has no discernible future at QB after benching Marcus Mariota for Desmond Ridder, and is entering year three of the Arthur Smith system, which prides itself on the run-heavy approach that once complemented Wilson, and previously revived Ryan Tannehill in Tennessee. New York is also chock-full of 2023 cap space ($59M), has proven competitive leaning on the run, boasts a coach in Brian Daboll who's now elevated both Josh Allen and Daniel Jones, and offers the big market Wilson may still covet. The Giants, meanwhile, reportedly inquired about Wilson before his move to Denver, suggesting they've already done some homework on how to utilize him post-Seattle.

Like the others, the Patriots are set to be flush with cash ($55M), and Mac Jones hasn't exactly inspired confidence in their new offense. Bill Belichick is more inclined than most to take a flyer on a star castoff, and his old-school approach could be the right recipe for a Wilson rejuvenation; the QB's personality feels like a natural fit for the stoic Patriot Way, and Wilson might relish in the opportunity to follow in Tom Brady's footsteps in New England. Lastly, the Raiders can easily cut Derek Carr, whose debut under Josh McDaniels has been especially mercurial, to save close to $30M, and Wilson previously identified Las Vegas as one of his preferred landing spots. Intra-division trades of this sort are rare but not unprecedented, especially when the selling team is that motivated to dump money.

Barring a stunning redemption tour from Wilson in 2023 and beyond, the Broncos don't have many clear paths to victory here. But the way 2022 unfolded, they'd surely settle for a tie.



Denver Broncos great alleges Russell Wilson has ‘ticked a lot of people off’ with his attitude​

After landing Wilson in a trade, the Broncos gave the one-time Super Bowl champion some unique bonuses — like his own office in the team facility and a plethora of parking spaces — in a massive five-year, $242 million contract extension.

Sharpe, who played 10 seasons with the Broncos, claims those perks, and the way Wilson has handled himself in the locker room, has taken his relationship with some teammates to a bad place.

I don’t know who the head coach is gonna be, but the first thing you do [is say], ‘Russell Wilson, I’m locking this office. You will no longer have an office. All those parking spaces you get at the stadium, they’re gone too — because you’re putting yourself in front of the team.’ I said it before, I’ll say it again, and I stand by it: You ticked a lot of people off with your attitude, bro. You can come out here and talk about how we’re a team and I’m good with my teammates, but deep down inside, they’re seething, and I’m gonna leave it at that.”

- Shannon Sharpe
hater
 

CGI_Ram

Hamburger Connoisseur
Moderator
Joined
Jun 28, 2010
Messages
49,225
Name
Burger man
RE: Wilson; Is it as simple as he’s lost his quickness?

His rushing success has nosedived since 2020. At least rushing yards.

03FE0825-8586-42F1-8913-0314D978F3BA.png



And 2020 is also his last 4,000 passing yards season:


D075A967-53F4-4BB6-8B10-2F22962E75DE.png



He has been sacked a ton in Denver. And this is just 13 games.

C6DD8DBD-FA44-49A4-81AB-BA3B69686F09.png
 

Loyal

Rams On Demand Sponsor
Rams On Demand Sponsor
Joined
Jul 27, 2010
Messages
30,556
RE: Wilson; Is it as simple as he’s lost his quickness?

His rushing success has nosedived since 2020. At least rushing yards.

View attachment 58088


And 2020 is also his last 4,000 passing yards season:


View attachment 58089


He has been sacked a ton in Denver. And this is just 13 games.

View attachment 58087
Just think how our fan base would be in such turmoil if we had gambled on this guy with the huge contract and #1 picks, it would almost be as bad as having Kyler Murray....
 

Classic Rams

Hall of Fame
Joined
Jan 15, 2016
Messages
3,351
Denver Broncos great alleges Russell Wilson has ‘ticked a lot of people off’ with his attitude
After landing Wilson in a trade, the Broncos gave the one-time Super Bowl champion some unique bonuses — like his own office in the team facility and a plethora of parking spaces — in a massive five-year, $242 million contract extension.

russ.jpg

What unique bonuses? I don't see where there's a problem.