Sometimes it’s good to get a reminder of past mistakes. Mainly so we don’t make them again.
For the Denver Broncos, it’s an experience they get to have, in public, over and over again. It’s all thanks to their disastrous trade for quarterback Russell Wilson in 2022, which Bleacher Report’s Kristopher Knox called the “Worst NFL Trade of the Last 10 Years” for the franchise.
The Broncos are still feeling the effects of the trade in $85 million in dead cap space spread out over the 2024 and 2025 seasons after making the decision to release Wilson in March 2024.
“The Denver Broncos’ ill-fated 2022 trade for Russell Wilson has largely been overshadowed by the disastrous deal Cleveland made for Deshaun Watson in the same offseason,” Knox wrote. “However, that doesn’t mean that Denver’s deal was a good one. In fact, the Wilson trade might be considered the worst of the last decade if not for the Watson debacle. The Broncos coughed up two first-round picks, two second-round picks, a fifth-round pick, quarterback Drew Lock, defensive lineman Shelby Harris and tight end Noah Fant to acquire Wilson and a fourth-round pick. The Broncos then signed Wilson to an extension worth $242.6 million over five years with $161 million guaranteed.”
Wilson, Payton Butted Heads in 2023
The writing was on the wall for Wilson once Nathaniel Hackett was fired after one season as Denver’s head coach in 2022 and replaced with former New Orleans Saints head coach and Super Bowl champion Sean Payton.
Wilson and Payton famously butted heads, but the bottom line was Wilson went 11-19 over 2 seasons in Denver until he was eventually released following the 2023 season.
Wilson rejuvenated his career somewhat in 2024 with the Pittsburgh Steelers on a 1-year, $1.2 million contract.
After missing the first 6 games of the season due to injury — Justin Fields started in his place — Wilson returned to go 6-5 for the Steelers, who made the AFC Playoffs before losing to the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC Wild Card Round, with Wilson going 20-of-29 passing for 270 yards, two touchdowns, and zero interceptions.
Wilson signed a 1-year, $10.5 million contract with the New York Giants on March 27 — just one month before they selected Ole Miss quarterback Jaxson Dart in the first round of the 2025 NFL draft.
Broncos Made Playoffs for First Time Since 2015
The Broncos shocked the NFL in their first year post-Wilson by going 10-7 and making the playoffs for the first time since 2015, where they lost to the Buffalo Bills in the AFC Wild Card Round.
That they did so with rookie quarterback Bo Nix, the No. 12 overall pick in the 2024 draft, was its own special kind of miracle. When it’s all said and done, Payton’s decision to draft Nix might end up not just being the thing that saved the Broncos’ franchise from going completely in the tank but also saved its future.
If the Broncos can make the playoffs for the second consecutive season, you can already make a good argument that Nix’s 4-year, $18.6 million rookie contract has already paid for itself. He’s not even in the conversation for a contract extension until the beginning of 2027 — the kind of savings that have a chance to negate the losses from the Wilson deal.
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