So, what gives? To hear Payton tell it, Wilson doesn’t bear all of the responsibility for every negative outcome.
“I think it’s too hard to clump,” he reasoned Monday. “There are certain routes that you just know, ‘Hey, we’re going to be a little bit more aggressive down the field.’ That means the sack probability rate would go up a little bit. There are certain routes from a timing standpoint that we know the ball is coming out and it should never be a sack. A lot of it has to do with the route design and the willingness to try to gain the yards at the catch point or deeper, or the latter, which would be throwing it quickly and you’re prepared. Sometimes it’s third down and a certain distance. It just kind of irks me when I hear them say, ‘Well, he didn’t get to the yard to gain.’ Well, I would say more than two-thirds of third downs in our league are caught south of that and then earned because defenses protect that yard to gain. A lot of it has to do with the play design and what we’re trying to accomplish. ‘Russ’ has been smart relative to those decisions.”
At least in comparison to last season, and thanks largely to the influence of head coach/offensive play-caller Sean Payton, Denver Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson is having a resurgence in 2023.
Wilson leads the NFL in touchdown percentage (6.9%), is tied for second in fourth-quarter comebacks (2), and sits fourth in TD passes (16) and QB rating (101.7) entering Week 9.
In addition, according to Pro Football Focus, he has the fourth-highest passer rating (124.3) on passes of 20 yards or more and an even higher rating (130.9) on throws of 10 yards or more.
Wilson, who turns 35 later this month, may never be the superstar he once was in Seattle, despite a $245 million contract. However, there’s no doubt that he’s outperforming the 2022 iteration led by Nathaniel Hackett.
Still, one aspect of Wilson’s game has been called into question: his ability (or lack thereof) to get rid of the ball.
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Wilson has taken the third-most sacks (26) in eight games despite having the third-longest time-to-throw (3.03 seconds). This is thanks to an improved offensive line led by the league’s sixth-best guard (Quinn Meinerz) and 13th-best centre (Lloyd Cushenberry), according to PFF.
Freelancing has always been Wilson’s style. When it works, he’s the hero. When it doesn’t, he’s the (lowercase) goat. Such helps explain why the Broncos are sitting at 3-5, albeit coming off a dominant victory over Kansas City which saw Wilson toss three scores — but also take six sacks.
Based on Payton’s rationale, that style is unlikely to change going forward.
