Earlier this week, it was reported that Denver Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson has lost a large portion of the locker room.
But while speaking to reporters on Wednesday ahead of the team’s Week 13 game against the Baltimore Ravens, head coach Nathaniel Hackett poured cold water over speculation that Wilson has fallen out of favor in the locker room.
Here’s what Hackett had to say, per ESPN’s Jeff Legwold:
“To me, it’s all gossip. We have a fantastic locker room. Look at a guy like Russ — I’ve never seen anybody work so hard, never seen anybody try to embrace a team like he has…Russ is awesome, and we need just to do better as a team and all that stuff is what it is. I love Russ.”
Wilson and the Broncos have been one of the biggest disappointments in the NFL this year. Entering Week 13, they’re dead-last in scoring offense (14.3 points per game), and they have the worst record in the AFC West (3-8).
During Denver’s Week 12 road loss to the Carolina Panthers, teammate Mike Purcell was seen yelling at Wilson on the sidelines. Both later explained that there wasn’t tension, with Purcell staying they were “trying to get a spark”.
The Broncos gave up a king’s ransom to acquire Wilson from the Seattle Seahawks: 2022 and 2023 first-round and second-round picks, a 2022 fifth-rounder, defensive lineman Shelby Harris, quarterback Drew Lock and tight end Noah Fant.
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Not only that, but the Broncos handed Wilson a five-year contract extension worth $245 million. There’s obviously time for the nine-time Pro Bowler to turn things around in Mile High City, but it’s also fair to speculate how much buyer’s remorse the front office is feeling.
Many expect the Broncos to fire Hackett, who’s in his first NFL head coaching role, at the end of the season. Hackett was previously the offensive coordinator of the Green Bay Packers, helping quarterback Aaron Rodgers win back-to-back MVP awards in 2020 and 2021.
Through 10 games, the 34-year-old Wilson has completed just 58.9 percent of pass attempts (the worst of his career), for 2,369 yards, eight touchdowns and five interceptions. The 82.3 quarterback rating is also far-and-away the worst mark of Wilson’s career, and well below his career QBR of 100.5.
