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The Denver Broncos had fairly high hopes heading into the current NFL campaign after acquiring Russell Wilson in one of the biggest trades of the offseason. Unfortunately, to say things did not pan out as the franchise hoped would be the ultimate understatement.
In hindsight, the fire that broke out at Empower Field at Mile High shortly after the Broncos acquired the quarterback from the Seahawks turned out to be a bit of an omen. It became fairly evident Russ was having plenty of trouble cooking in his new kitchen after the season kicked off, and as Patrick Star (of all “people”) pointed out during Denver’s horrendous showing against the Rams on Christmas, Wilson has been defined by his consistent inability to whip up an edible product on the field.
That loss saw the Broncos drop to 4-11 on the season, and while they could’ve allowed Nathanial Hackett to finish out his inaugural year as head coach, it’s also not too hard to understand why the team opted to fire him the day after that disastrous contest.
Hackett certainly didn’t do himself any favors due to a number of perplexing decisions he made over the course of the season. With that said, he also didn’t get much help from the egocentric QB who many people believe may have cost himself his shot at getting into the Hall of Fame based solely on his atrocious play this year.
On Wednesday, Wilson basically admitted that was the case when he reacted to Hackett’s dismissal. While you do have to give him some credit for admitting his underwhelming performance played a role in the firing, it’s still a bit hard to buy into the apology the supposedly “devastated” QB issued while speaking with the media.
Russell Wilson said he’s “devastated” by the Broncos’ decision to part ways with Nathaniel Hackett.
“I wish I could’ve played better for him.”
— Aric DiLalla (@AricDiLalla) December 28, 2022
Denver may have given up on Hackett, but the organization has already made it clear it’s hoping Wilson will be able to turn things around—and my heart goes out to every Broncos fan who will likely have to continue to endure this painful chapter in the team’s history.