Russell Wilson Benched by Sean Payton for Final Two Games of Broncos Season, Expected to Be Cut

According to NFL insiders Dianna Russini, Ian Rapoport and Adam Schefter, the Denver Broncos are benching quarterback Russell Wilson for the rest of the 2023 football season, starting with Sunday’s game against the Los Angeles Chargers.

“Broncos’ HC Sean Payton has informed his team that Jarrett Stidham will start Sunday vs. the Chargers, with Russell Wilson as the backup, per sources,” Schefter wrote on X (formerly Twitter) today, December 27.

Hours later, Russini added that Wilson expects to be cut in March, after knowing for months it would be his last year with the team.

Stidham is a longtime NFL backup, starting just two games in his nearly five-year career after being drafted by the New England Patriots in 2019. Now it's Wilson who will ride the pine, with countless people offering reasons for the change, from sparking the Broncos offense to saving Russ for a possible trade scenario.

Coach Sean Payton insists it's a football decision: "I understand all the speculation and everything that surrounds a move like that," he told the media after Wilson's benching was announced. "We're desperately trying to win, and sure, in our game today there are economics and all those other things, but the number-one push behind this — and it's a decision I'm making — is to get a spark offensively."

Wilson has been controversial since he came to Denver as part of a trade in 2022, in which the Broncos sent Drew Lock, Noah Fant and Shelby Harris to Seattle along with their first- and second-round picks in 2022 and 2023. The Broncos also sent the Seahawks a fifth-rounder in 2022 in exchange for Seattle’s fourth-rounder. Payton was named head coach in February 2023.

That Wilson trade, orchestrated by general manager George Paton, happened just months before the team was sold for $4.65 billion to an ownership group made up of Robson Walton, son of Walmart co-founder Sam Walton; Greg Penner and Carrie Walton Penner — Robson’s daughter and her husband; former secretary of state Condoleezza Rice; Starbucks chair Mellody Hobson; and Formula 1 champion Lewis Hamilton.

From the beginning, pundits and fans alike questioned the wisdom of giving up so much for a quarterback who wasn’t so young anymore. After Wilson (and the Broncos) had a miserable 2022 season, in which the quarterback threw just sixteen touchdowns compared to eleven interceptions, Paton was facing questions.

Before Wilson even played a snap in the Mile High City, the new owners gave him a mega contract extension for up to $245 million over a course of five seasons, which kicks in next year. The specifics of that contract could be part of the reason for Wilson’s benching.

“It was unquestionably one of the worst trades (and extensions) in NFL history,” football personality Gregg Rosenthal declared on X Wednesday.

Along with Wilson’s $39 million guaranteed salary in 2024, if he can’t pass a physical by March due to injury, the Broncos would owe him another $37 million. “One valid reason for benching Russell Wilson is to avoid an injury … for monetary reasons,” Romi Bean, CBS 4’s lead sports anchor, wrote on X.

By sitting Wilson for the last two weeks of this season, the team ensures it won’t have to cough up the extra injury dollars.

Another possibility for the benching: The team wants to move on from the former Seattle Seahawks QB and plans to see how the roster works without Wilson before cutting him in the off-season. “If the Denver Broncos bench Russell Wilson for Jarrett Stidham, this is a clear indication that they will move on from Wilson after this season,” Russini said before the benching became official. “If this happens, this will also tell you Broncos ownership has full trust in Sean Payton.”

Signs have been pointing to a split between QB and coach since the team's Week 15 loss to the Detroit Lions, when the two had a widely publicized tiff on the sidelines.
After the Broncos failed to score a touchdown, Payton was seen screaming at Wilson on the sidelines. Payton refused to offer any commentary on the incident in his post-game press conference and claimed he had a “great relationship" with Wilson. People later called Payton out for his role in the team’s low playoff chances.

“Russell Wilson had a fine year but becomes the easy fall guy for Sean Payton who doesn’t want to have to accept any responsibility for not turning the Broncos around,” said Bleacher Report's Sam Richmond on X. “And people will side with Payton because Wilson makes corny TikToks.”

Payton, in addition to Wilson, also has a giant contract — with reports indicating his deal is worth $18 million per year for five years. The legendary New Orleans Saints coach always had Drew Brees to rely on in the past, and it appears he may not be willing to wait on Wilson for another year.

Ending the Pro Bowler's time in Denver will cost the Broncos $85 million total, with monetary hits of $35.4 million in 2024 and $49.6 million in 2025. But that could be worth it for a team that has aspirations of returning to the playoffs for the first time since winning its third Super Bowl in 2016.

It's not like the Waltons are hurting for money: According to Walmart’s annual report released in March 2023, from January 31, 2022, to January 31, 2023, the retail giant had $11.68 billion in consolidated net income, or net worth.

If this is the end of Wilson and the Broncos, it would officially make Stidham the grim reaper for a starting quarterback’s tenure with his team two years running now. Stidham’s only two NFL starts came in similar fashion last season when the Las Vegas Raiders benched then-quarterback Derek Carr in favor of Stidham for its last two games of the 2022 season.

“If I had a nickel for every time Jarrett Stidham started for an AFC West team to finish the season following a disappointing loss on Christmas Eve night I would have two nickels, which isn’t a lot but it’s weird that it happened twice,” sports reporter Jordan Georgeson commented on X.

The Broncos (7-8) lost their Christmas Eve matchup to the New England Patriots (4-11) and have been on a bit of a slide after giving fans playoff hopes with five straight wins between October 22 and November 26. According to Next Gen Stats, the team has just an 8 percent chance to make the post-season now. Payton says he thinks Stidham gives the team its best shot.

“Russell Wilson should simply pay Jarrett Stidham $1 million to pretend to be incredibly sick on the morning of the game,” Ryan Nanni joked on X.

People criticizing the breakup have been referencing the Broncos’ parting ways with Joe Flacco in 2019 as a reason why they don’t like the move, citing his resurgence this season with the Cleveland Browns.

“My greatest fear is that if the Broncos release Russell Wilson this offseason, he will be leading the Browns into the playoffs in three years and playing his best football in a decade,” football commentator Brandon Perna said.

Will this benching be the answer to fans' prayers, or another in their string of Wilson-related nightmares? Only time will tell.

In the meantime, Stidham said he's ready for the chance to prove himself, with his preparation being business as usual.

"I have my routine that I stick with that I know gets me prepared, gets me ready to play," he told reporters. "That's what I'm going to do."