Russell Wilson’s Broncos teammates have been “seething” over the quarterback’s me-first attitude.
That’s according to Shannon Sharpe, who eviscerated Wilson on FS1’s “Undisputed” Tuesday, one day after the Broncos fired first-year coach Nathaniel Hackett after a brutal 4-11 start.
“Let me tell you what the problem is,” Sharpe said. “Russell Wilson has never been a 1-2-3 get rid of the ball [guy]… He was very good at improvisation. He was very good, Skip [Bayless], at getting off-script. Russell has lost athleticism. Russ cannot outrun anybody! So he can’t make those improvisational plays like he could for those first 10 years in Seattle. You [would] never see Russ get dragged down from behind. Now, Russ don’t look like he could outrun me.”
Beyond Wilson’s dwindling athleticism, Sharpe — who played 12 seasons for the Broncos and won two championships with the team — added how the quarterback’s ego has ballooned.
“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 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,” Sharpe said.
Wilson arrived in Denver in March after a blockbuster trade with the Seattle Seahawks. Before the regular season even began, Wilson was awarded a five-year, $245 million contract extension with the Broncos. That contract is nearly impossible to get out of the next three seasons with $107 million in dead cap for 2023, $85 million in 2024, and $49.6 million in 2025.
Although buzz is already starting to build as to who the next coach in Denver could be, whoever is hired for the job will have a major reclamation project on their hands.