When Russell Wilson was traded to the Denver Broncos, expectations for the franchise rose a mile high. After a disastrous season filled with drama, storylines, and other factors, Broncos players have rallied, putting their support behind Russell Wilson.

Russell Wilson receives support from various Denver Broncos teammates

The Denver Broncos opened up the season with five primetime games on national television in their first eight weeks of action. Russell Wilson’s arrival in Denver during the offseason was a big factor in what many believed was a move that would elevate the Broncos back to being contenders. Things have gone the complete opposite this season.

Wilson’s first year in Denver has been nothing remotely close to the expectation had by him, the organization, and fans around Broncos Country. Expectations for the Broncos offense under former head coach Nathaniel Hackett were high at the beginning, but they failed to resemble anything he promised during the offseason. Not only did the offense struggle, but Wilson also struggled within it as well.

His struggles have been brought forth center stage by various national outlets, and former Seahawks’ teammates to the point where criticism has been beyond his football performance, but his character.

This week players have been fed up with narratives that have been publicized about Wilson being a bad teammate and voiced their displeasure about them including Broncos wide receiver Jerry Jeudy.

Other players like KJ Hamler, Kendall Hinton, and Garett Bolles have also come out in support of their quarterback.

If the Broncos were winning, many of these things wouldn’t have oxygen or attention in the current news cycle, but the team sits at 4-11 with two games remaining, on the opposite end of where many believed they would be. Broncos fans want to win, and team CEO Greg Penner wants to win.

From a production standpoint, Wilson has his worst year in his illustrious career. Heading into Sunday’s game, he has 12 touchdowns on the year and nine interceptions. He is on pace for a career-low number in touchdown passes which was previously 20 in the 2014 season. It’s hard to believe that Wilson has suddenly fallen off a cliff from a production standpoint and is forever going to be the quarterback most have witnessed this season.

With widespread changes approaching, a new offense will be installed going into the 2023 NFL season and Denver’s franchise quarterback will have a chance to turn things around. All eyes will continue to be on Denver and Wilson next year and it will be up to him and the team to determine whether or not this season was a harsh anomaly, or reality going forward.

As somebody who covers the team daily, you won’t find a better human being in this world than Russell Wilson who dedicates his time to giving back to others, who is present on most days those of us in the media are allowed in the locker room to interview players. Wilson’s on-field play this year is deserving of criticism, he has to play better and he understands that.

“I know I can play exceptionally well,” Wilson said on Wednesday following practice. “I know what I have in me, and I know what I can do. At the end of the day, each moment that you get out there, you want to play your best. I haven’t been able to do that this year so far. We have two games to go. I want to be able to go compete at the highest level and try to get us two wins and get a win against the Kansas City Chiefs. I know how much this game means to us just because of the rivalry and the history of it all. It’s another opportunity to play the game that we love with the teammates that we love.”

The Broncos will travel to Arrowhead this Sunday to take on the Kansas City Chiefs at 11:00 a.m. MT. Can Russell Wilson rebound or will the Chiefs continue to pour salt on the wound that is this season?