DENVER — Russell Wilson often speaks about how adversity and the tough times is nothing more than an inevitable journey to better days ahead and the joy of success and victory. All you have to do is hang in there and keep going.
And so to hear Wilson tell it, he and the Broncos are halfway there.
A perennial top 10 quarterback through his first 10 seasons with the Seattle Seahawks, Wilson ranks a lowly No. 21 among NFL quarterbacks five games into this first season with the Broncos.
Averaging an 11-5 record though his first nine healthy seasons in Seattle, Wilson is off to a 2-3 start in Denver.
“I’ve had tough times,’’ Wilson said at his weekly news conference Thursday. “You ask me how tough these times are. When people ask me that question, I always think about my dad because he was on his death bed, you know. And we’re talking about football and what I love to do. There’s a lot of season left. A lot of greatness in store. I’ve done it before, and I’m going to do it again.’’
There has been criticism from former teammates, former players turned analysts, local media and ardent fans in Broncos Country. Some of it gets so nasty that the harsh evaluations push past the boundary that separates professional and personal.
“For me, I can handle it,’’ Wilson said. “I’m built for it. I’m built for the good times and the tough times. Really, how you get out of it as a team that we continue to keep building and we’re doing and where we're going is focus on today. Nothing else matters. Today has got to be the best day we’ve had so far. And that will be no matter what our record is. If we were 5-0, which could have had a chance to be that, potentially.’’
There is Wilson’s inner strength. And there is his strained right shoulder that was treated in Los Angeles last Friday with an injection.
“I haven’t had this particular thing before, but I’ll be OK,’’ Wilson said. “I’ll be ready.”
Nathaniel Hackett was asked whether he thought Wilson was hurting in the last six quarters since the quarterback suffered the injury and whether he’s seen improvement during practice this week.
“He definitely looks … good,’’ Hackett said. “We’ll see more today. Russ has played in the league a long time, and all players have different things they have to deal with. He doesn’t complain. He keeps his head down, he works hard. He does everything he can to make sure his body feels as good as he possibly can throughout the season.’’
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