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On Friday morning, The Athletic published a piece claiming that former Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson tried to get head coach Pete Carroll and general manager John Schneider fired before he was ultimately traded.
It didn’t take long for Wilson to respond to the report, though, as he addressed the allegations on Twitter mere hours later.
“I love Pete and he was a father figure to me and John believed in me and drafted me as well,” Wilson said. “I never wanted them fired. All any of us wanted was to win. I’ll always have respect for them and love for Seattle.”
I love Pete and he was a father figure to me and John believed in me and drafted me as well. I never wanted them fired. All any of us wanted was to win.
l’ll always have respect for them and love for Seattle.
— Russell Wilson (@DangeRussWilson) February 24, 2023
Instead of Carroll and Schneider losing their jobs, Wilson was ultimately shipped out of town to the Denver Broncos, where he had one of the worst seasons of his professional career.
During the 2022 season with the Broncos, Wilson started in 15 games and won just four of them. Across those 15 games, he completed 60% of his passes for 3,524 yards, 16 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions.
As a result of Wilson’s play, Broncos head coach Nathaniel Hackett was fired and the team has since hired former Super Bowl winner Sean Payton. The Seahawks, however, were able to remain competitive despite Wilson’s departure, as they qualified for the NFC Playoffs as a Wild Card team thanks to a resurgent season from new starting QB Geno Smith.
Compiling a 9-8 record, Smith completed 69% of his passes for 4,282 yards, 30 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions. In the best year of his career, Smith was named to his first-ever Pro Bowl.
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