On Wednesday, the Denver Broncos held a team press conference following the 2023-24 regular season, in which they did not make the Playoffs. To be specific it was an end-of-the-season press conference to discuss the results and things from the 2023-24 season. Denver finished their season with an 8-9 win-loss record.
One of the highlights of the season was the decision from head coach Sean Payton to bench starting quarterback Russell Wilson and start backup Jarrett Stidham, despite still being in Playoff contention. Russ was having a way better season compared to his first season in Denver. To be specific, he had the following stats ...
- 15 games
- 7-8 win-loss record
- 297/447 completions/attempts (66.4 completion percentage)
- 3,070 passing yards - 26 TDs - 8 INTs
- 80 rushing attempts - 341 yards - 3 TDs
- 10 fumbles
It is clear that not only stats define the level of play by a football player, especially a quarterback. Following Payton's decision to bench Russell Wilson, he mentioned that it was a "football decision", but at the same time, media members said that it was due to contract situations.
Greg Penner said the financial part of deciding whether or not to bring Russell Wilson back will be a "significant component... but that’s not what will drive the decision."
— Zac Stevens (@ZacStevensDNVR) January 10, 2024
"The decision will be driven by what’s in the best interest of this football team winning games.”
During Wednesday's press conference, head coach Sean Payton, general manager George Paton, and owner Greg Penner spoke about the season, and what is next for the team. Something interesting about the press conference is that both, head coach Sean Payton and general manager George Paton, mentioned that Russell Wilson could still be Denver's QB1 going forward.
General manager George Paton said that "the door is open" for Russell Wilson to return:
“The door remains open with Russ”
— DNVR Sports (@DNVR_Sports) January 9, 2024
- Broncos GM George Paton on Russell Wilson potentially returning next season pic.twitter.com/WshiaA8pcQ
Many think that the Broncos will release Russell Wilson once the new league year opens in March, but both the general manager and head coach, mentioned on Wednesday that no decision has been made on the quarterback position moving forward.
Head coach Sean Payton mentioned the following regarding the situation with Russell Wilson ...
"“I spent half an hour with Russ yesterday and I told him ‘Look, I don’t think it’s going to be a long, drawn-out process but it hasn’t been decided relative to what our plans are. - When we decide something, he'll be the first to know.”"Sean Payton
Do you think that Russell Wilson could be back with the Broncos in 2024?