Russell Wilson is the talk of the NFL town on the back of The Athletic breaking a story claiming the quarterback asked for his former coach and GM to be fired.
The outlet has another story running which reveals the nine-time Pro Bowler was given his own office in the Denver Broncos’ team facility after he joined them as part of what was a very surprising trade.
According to the piece, Wilson asked for his support staff – inclusive of a personal quarterback coach, nutritionist, and physical therapist – to be in and around the facility, which is reserved for team personnel. Nathaniel Hackett, the head coach back then, is said to have agreed to the arrangement, which was “unprecedented for both players and coaches.”
“No one else I have been around has ever been able to have those people in there – which, looking back on it, not a good idea,” a member of the 2022 Broncos coaching staff was quoted as saying.
As for the office, Wilson was given his own space on the second floor of the team’s facility, where coaches and executives work. Players going up there was a rarity as a visit to the second floor is usually followed by a release.
“The players were always on the first floor; they never really came up to the second floor,” a coach said. “If you came up to the second floor as a player, it honestly wasn’t a good thing because you were probably getting released.”
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Broncos veterans said they didn’t mind the QB having his own office as he spent so much time at the facility.
“He’s got a whiteboard, the sides of the wall, and it’s just littered with (motivational) quotes and new play concepts,” receiver Kendall Hinton noted. “It was crazy to see his mind thrown out on the (wall).”
Running back Melvin Gordon said all of the players had access to Wilson’s office, where NFL Network was constantly on.
“It was just strictly football,” Gordon said. “Anybody could go to his office, and he was like, ‘Hey, if you want to learn extra plays, you want to go over this, you want to go over that?’”
The setup started working against Wilson when it became clear that he couldn’t get it done on the field.
While the quarterback informed his teammates of his open-door policy, it did not sit well with everyone in the organization.
“So, are you a coach or are you a player?” a coach inquired. “Your open door should be you sitting at your locker.”
The report also notes that Wilson did not have his own office in Seattle, nor was his support staff allowed inside the team’s facility.
