As Jarrett Stidham takes over for the benched Russell Wilson as the Denver Broncos’ starting quarterback Sunday, there is considerable doubt that Wilson and the Broncos will repair their relationship.
Coach Sean Payton made the switch Wednesday from Wilson, the nine-time Pro Bowl selection and Super Bowl winner for the Seattle Seahawks, to Stidham, a fifth-year pro who is on his third NFL team.
Wilson confirmed to reporters Friday that the Broncos threatened in late October — during the team’s bye week and just after a victory over the Kansas City Chiefs — to bench him for the rest of the season if he did not agree to adjust his contract and address an injury guarantee tied to a $37 million offseason payment.
Asked Russell Wilson if he wanted to talk. @ParkerJGabriel asked him as well as we talked with Russell. He agreed. He was very candid about his disappointment about #Broncos approaching him about adjusting contract during bye week. He said he still would like to stay in Denver.… pic.twitter.com/Kplo1iAUlg
— Troy Renck (@TroyRenck) December 29, 2023The contentiousness leaves other NFL teams believing that Wilson, 35, probably will be available in the offseason, with the Broncos poised to release Wilson if they’re unable to trade him.
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“I don’t see how that situation gets fixed,” said a high-ranking official with an NFL franchise, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because Wilson is under contract to another team. “I would think in your planning you would have to say that he will be on the market.”
The $37 million payment due to Wilson under his contract currently is guaranteed against injury, and it becomes fully guaranteed in March. Wilson also confirmed that the league and the NFL Players Association became involved in the matter during the exchange that began in late October.
“They came up to me during the bye week, the beginning of the bye week, on Monday or Tuesday,” Wilson said Friday, “and they told me that if I didn’t change my contract, my injury guarantee, that I’d be benched for the rest of the year. …
“I was definitely disappointed about it. … The NFLPA and NFL got involved or whatever, I think, at some point.”
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Wilson is the NFL’s seventh-rated passer as he heads to the bench.
“I came here to play here, to win,” Wilson said. “I knew it was going to be a process. I signed a seven-year deal for us to go and play hard. That’s my goal every time I step in between the white lines, is give everything I have. I want to be here. I want to play here. I want to be able to win here. I want to win championships here. …
“I want to be the best teammate and leader that I can be, in the midst of it all. And so that’s why I was out here at practice every day. I told Jarrett I’d help him and do whatever it takes and keep the guys going and try to lead the right way. That’s all I know.”
Payton maintained Friday that the quarterback switch was made for football reasons and that he was not involved in any contract issues, calling that the responsibility of General Manager George Paton.
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“I understand the question,” Payton said at a news conference. “And it’s fair, and I totally get it. I’m not privy to any of those [conversations]. I’m handling the football. And I know this: The number one reason for taking this job, for me, was ownership and winning. … That’s something George and the front office [did]. I’m not involved in any of that. I mean, certainly I’m involved in a lot. And there’ll be a time and place at the end of the season where maybe some of the questions that you might have, someone else will be able to answer. My focus has been on winning.”
The Broncos acquired Wilson in a March 2022 trade in which they sent a package of players and draft picks, including two first-rounders, to the Seahawks. They signed Wilson to a five-year, approximately $245 million contract extension that September, putting him under contract through the 2028 season. Wilson’s contract would count $85 million against the Broncos’ salary cap if they release him this offseason, though that cap hit might be spread over multiple seasons.
Payton said Friday that the Broncos have not made a decision about Wilson’s status beyond this season.
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It remains possible that Wilson will stay with the Broncos under a revised contract. But that seems increasingly unlikely, given the tensions between the sides and the now-public nature of the contract squabble.
The Broncos take a 7-8 record into Sunday’s game against the Los Angeles Chargers in Denver. They have lost two straight and three of four but remain alive in the playoff race. They’re 12th in the AFC standings in Payton’s first season with the franchise.
It’s Stidham’s job now. His previous two NFL starts came late last season for the Las Vegas Raiders after they sat Derek Carr before releasing him in February. Stidham was a fourth-round draft choice by the New England Patriots in 2019.
“I know how this has been written,” Payton said. “But this decision is strictly what I believe gives us a chance to win number eight.”
Ravens-Dolphins: The Baltimore Ravens staked their claim as the NFL’s top team when they outclassed the San Francisco 49ers, 33-19, on Monday night in Santa Clara, Calif. The Ravens’ Lamar Jackson won his quarterback duel with Brock Purdy in lopsided fashion and became the clear front-runner for what would be his second league MVP award.
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But there was no time for the Ravens to savor that victory: They have another huge game Sunday, as they host the Miami Dolphins in Baltimore. The Ravens, at 12-3, are a game ahead of the Dolphins for the AFC’s top seed and can clinch it with a win.
It is a rematch of a thrilling game early last season, also at M&T Bank Stadium, in which the Dolphins overcame a 28-7 deficit to beat the Ravens, 42-38. Quarterback Tua Tagovailoa threw for 469 yards and six touchdowns. Wide receivers Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle combined for 22 catches for 361 yards and four touchdowns.
The Ravens will not have to deal with Waddle this time after he was ruled out because of a high ankle sprain.
Peacock viewership: The Bills-Chargers game last Saturday night averaged 7.2 million viewers across Peacock, NBC stations in Los Angeles and Buffalo and NFL Plus, according to Nielsen.
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That’s a rather modest number. The average NFL game this season has drawn about 17.8 million viewers. The NFL’s three Christmas games Monday averaged 28.7 million viewers across TV and digital platforms.
But putting the Bills-Chargers game on Peacock was another sign of the NFL’s commitment to streaming after it placed the Thursday night package on Amazon’s Prime Video and the NFL Sunday Ticket package on YouTube. The league has been patient with giving the streaming audiences time to grow.
Peacock also will be the exclusive national carrier of a first-round NFL playoff game Jan. 13.
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