Russell Wilson recently revisited his final chapter with the Denver Broncos, talking about the circumstances that led to his departure from the team. Speaking on Bussin' With The Boys, Wilson reflected on injuries, close losses, and the contract situation that unfolded late.

His comments came months after he publicly called former head coach Sean Payton "classless". Wilson had revealed that he spent much of his Broncos tenure battling through a significant shoulder injury while continuing to play.

"The history of being in Denver, it was challenging. I tore my lat. I was playing on it. I tore 80 to 90 percent of my lat on my right side trying to throw," Wilson said.

He also looked back on how often games slipped away by narrow margins during his time.

Wilson also revealed he was given an ultimatum by team officials during the 2023 bye week to remove his $37 million injury guarantee or sit out the rest of the season.

"The unfortunate part is we lost like nine games by like five, six points or less," Wilson continued.

"There's a tricky situation where they make a business decision," Wilson further said. "'We're going to bench you the rest of your last nine games if you don't change your injury guarantee.' I'm like, 'Wait, what?'"

The veteran quarterback added that his decision was not only about protecting himself but also about the broader implications for players around the league.

"If I said yes and they removed the injury guarantee, now all of a sudden if I get injured the following week… the bigger issue is not just myself but the rest of the NFL," said Wilson

He continued by explaining why he chose not to alter the deal. This topic was revisited recently by another NFL personality as Wilson's retirement rumors have been heating up.

Justin Simmons Revisits Broncos' Wilson Era

Speaking on the 4th And South podcast with Jarvis Landry and Leonard Fournette, Justin Simmons looked back on Denver's challenging stretch during the Wilson era.

Simmons revealed that leaders from both sides of the ball organised a private meeting without the coaching staff.

“We had a whole player-only meeting. We didn’t tell no coaches” said Simmons on the May 27 episode of the podcast. “It was under the radar. Offensive leaders, defensive leaders, and we just said, ‘Yo, we got to figure this out right now.’”

The Russell Wilson experiment never quite delivered the turnaround Denver had envisioned. The Broncos finished 5-12 and last in the AFC West in 2022 before improving to 8-9 and a third-place divisional finish in 2023. Even with that progress, the team remained outside the playoff picture.

Individually, Wilson still put together respectable numbers. Across 30 starts in two seasons with Denver, the veteran quarterback threw for more than 6,500 yards and 42 touchdowns.

Simmons also discussed the differences in leadership style between Wilson and head coach Sean Payton.

“Sean is very like controlling. He wants you to run what he calls,” said Simmons. “When you start butting heads with two alphas, that’s the result that’s going to happen.”

While the Broncos and Wilson eventually moved in different directions, Simmons's remarks offered another perspective on a period that remains a major talking point around the team.

Read more at the Denver Broncos Community!

Written by

Debanjali Rakshit

Edited by

Aadesh Dhote