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George Paton says Russell Wilson benching 'completely independent' of contract negotiations

Penner: "I’m sure we could have done some things in a different way. But again our goal was to try and see if there’s a nice, constructive path forward."

ENGLEWOOD, Colo — Russell Wilson’s version of negotiations on Halloween night was the Broncos told him he would be benched if he didn’t move the trigger date on his injury guarantee back. From the point of view of Wilson and his agent Mark Rodgers, the quarterback’s benching was contract related.

George Paton, the Broncos’ general manager, spoke about those negotiations for the first time Tuesday. His version was not quite as harsh, nor as specific out of respect to the parties involved. But Paton did make clear the benching was a performance-related decision and he did imply the talks were not always pleasant.

“During the bye week I did reach out to Russ’ agent (Rodgers) in a good faith and creative attempt to adjust his contract," Paton said. “We couldn’t get a deal done and we moved on with our season. It didn’t come up again. Fast forward, week 17, Sean makes a change at the quarterback position. This was a football decision made my Sean, what he thought was in the best interest of the team.

“This was completely independent of any conversation I had with the agent. It was a football decision made by Sean.

“In regards to the negotiations, I’ll keep the specifics private out of respect for everyone involved. Negotiations are hard. You have difficult conversations, tough conversations. And you can characterize negotiations really any way you want. We always try to handle ourselves professionally and in the best interest of the Broncos and this was no different.”

Credit: AP Photo/David Zalubowski
Denver Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson sits alongside Jarrett Stidham during an NFL game against the Los Angeles Chargers, Sunday, Dec. 31, 2023.

For now the Broncos are saying they have not decided on whether they will bring Wilson back next year. Which may sound absurd. There’s virtually no chance he returns. Even if Wilson accepts a pay cut – and he wasn’t willing to adjust his deal on Halloween night -- it doesn’t change the fact Payton and Wilson are not a fit with the offense Payton wants to run.

But the Broncos are expected to explore whether they can trade Wilson and get a draft pick in return – unlikely because Wilson has a complete no-trade clause and why would he want to weaken the next team he’s going to play for? The most likely scenario is the Broncos will release Wilson.

Whether trade or release, the Broncos would be eating all but a fraction of Wilson’s guaranteed $39 million salary next year. But releasing him before March 17 would also mean saving $37 million he is due to make in 2025.

“There’s so many things that go into decisions specific to the quarterback, which is significant, obviously,’’ Payton said. “I spent a half hour with Russ yesterday. I told him, I said, ‘Look, I don’t think it’s going to be a long, drawn-out process but it hasn’t been decided relative to what our plans are. And as soon as we know something certainly he would be the first to know.”

Backup quarterback Jarrett Stidham started the final two games for the Broncos and flashed impact passing ability and mobility, although he directed the offense to an average of only 15.0 points per game. The Broncos also could use the No. 12 overall pick in the NFL draft on a quarterback and/or they could sign a veteran quarterback from free agency who has a few more than starts than the four Stidham has through his first five NFL seasons.

Broncos owner Greg Penner was asked if he wished the situation with Wilson would have been handled differently given the negative attention it brought to the organization.

“Any time you have situations like this it’s not going to be easy,’’ Penner said. ‘’You always look back and there’s different ways you can handle things. I’m sure in this case we could have done some things in a different way. But again our goal was to try and see if there’s a nice, constructive path forward that was amenable to both parties.”

Credit: AP Photo/Jack Dempsey
Denver Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson reacts after their loss against the New York Jets in an NFL football game Sunday, Oct. 8, 2023, in Denver.

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