According to 9NEWS Denver’s Mike Klis, multiple league sources have refuted the claims that the Denver Broncos threatened to bench then-starting quarterback Russell Wilson if he did not adjust his contract and remove the injury guarantees.
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Yesterday, after the news of Russell Wilson’s benching was reported, the Bleacher Reports NFL insider Jordan Schultz reported that the Broncos threatened to bench Wilson if he did not remove the injury guarantees in his contract. He states that the Broncos approached him after their upset victory over the Kansas City Chiefs where he threw three touchdowns and threatened to bench him for the remainder of the season if he did not adjust his contact.
Well, now we have a report from Mike Klis that says that several league sources strongly refuted Schultz’s report and the Broncos dropped the topic when no agreement was reached.
Klis later doubled down with this claim by saying multiple league sources close to the Broncos refute this claim and say the benching was strictly football-related.
What we have here is clearly two sides getting their story out via the media. Yesterday, Russell Wilson and his agent Mark Rodgers leaked these stories to Schultz who then reported on it. Then, Wilson himself took to Twitter/X and liked multiple tweets, including the ones by Schultz to show his displeasure with the benching.
Now today, the Broncos went on the defensive and used 9NEWS Denver’s Mike Klis, a reporter they often rely on for things like this to get their side of the story out. The truth is as usual somewhere in the middle but the relationship between the two sides is not great if they are going at it through the media.
Head coach Sean Payton has stated that Wilson will remain as the number two quarterback for the Chargers game but we shall see if that actually happens as the week unfolds.
This partnership between Wilson and the Broncos was a disaster from the start and looks destined to end come this offseason. The Broncos are likely to release Wilson and eat his large dead cap hit and move in another direction at quarterback. It has been reported that Wilson himself believes he will be cut by the team come March when his option is due.
We shall see how all this continues to unfold in the coming weeks and months as the Broncos push for an unlikely postseason spot with quarterback Jarrett Stidham leading the team and eventually head into the offseason.
