Russell Wilson tells all on Broncos' threats over $37,000,000 injury guarantee dispute: "I didn't believe it at first"
Russell Wilson's benching came as a huge surprise to the NFL world with his team doing well and in the playoff hunt and the quarterback himself playing at a greatly improved level. The decision to do it was revealed far earlier to Wilson, but it shocked him in the same way.
The Denver Broncos threatened to bench Wilson for nine games if he didn't change his contract to remove the injury guarantee that cost $37 million. He didn't do that, and it eventually cost him his job.
Wilson said on the I AM ATHLETE podcast:
"When I got that call, I was like, I'm confused. What's going on? And I didn't believe it at first. I was like, this can't be real. And I got that call that hey, we're gonna bench you for the next nine games if you don't change your injury guarantee."
He went on to say that he didn't want to set a precedent for players to remove their injury guarantees since that's an important piece of the contract. The former Seattle Seahawks QB said:
"I didn't want to [get NFLPA and attorneys involved] but then they kept saying it all the way throughout the week. So then, my agent talked to the NFLPA. The NFLPA called me and asked and then they talked to the NFL. And NFL's like you can't. This is illegal. You can't do this."
The team ultimately didn't bench him for the nine games they threatened, but he was put on the bench for the final two games of the regular season. It's an interesting decision given that the team was 8-7 and a 10-7 record could have gotten them to the postseason.
What's next for Russell Wilson?
Despite what Sean Payton says, it is an almost guarantee that Russell Wilson will not be with the Denver Broncos next year. He's expected to be cut sooner rather than later. That will make him a free agent.
Unfortunately, there is not a huge market for aging veteran QBs, a market that already has Kirk Cousins and Ryan Tannehill. Nevertheless, there are a few teams that might be interested.
The Atlanta Falcons likely draft too late to find a rookie, and a veteran to try over Desmond Ridder makes sense. They're linked to Justin Fields, but if they can't get him, Wilson makes sense.
The Las Vegas Raiders and Pittsburgh Steelers also make sense for a potential Wilson landing spot.