Russell Wilson wants to STAY at Denver Broncos despite being benched over refusing to change his $37m injury guarantee: ‘I came here to win – I want to play here’
Russell Wilson has insisted he wants to stay with the Denver Broncos despite being benched for the final two games of the season due to a contract standoff.
The quarterback spoke at length about the great news from earlier this week, claiming he wanted to stay with the Broncos and win Super Bowls with the team.
Multiple reports on Wednesday night said the Broncos spoke to Wilson on Halloween – two days after leading the team to victory over the Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs – where they warned him that he would be made inactive if he did not receive 37 million dollars in guarantees. in his contract.
'I came here to play here, to win. I knew it would be a process. “I signed a seven-year contract,” he said.
“I want to be here, I want to play here, I want to win championships here. I want to give everything every week. I want to be the best teammate and leader I can be.”
Russell Wilson has insisted he wants to stay at the Broncos despite being benched
But the 35-year-old admitted he doesn't know if he'll still be in Denver next year. Reports earlier this week, when it emerged Wilson would be on the bench, suggested he believes he will be sacked in March.
He also confirmed that he had been warned that he would be benched in October, after beating the Kansas City Chiefs, and that if he did not change his injury guarantee, he would be benched.
“They came to me during the bye week and told me that if I didn't change my contract and my injury bond, I would be on the bench for the rest of the year,” Wilson said.
“It definitely hurt. It was a low blow for a while. At the end of the day, I just want to keep my head down and try to do what I can do, every play, every play, every moment.
“Every day you wake up and you realize it's a gift to play this game. I am grateful for that. I hope it's here. And I hope it will be here for a long time.
“If it's not here, I'm willing to do it somewhere else. But I hope it's here.'
As it was, Wilson wasn't benched right away and continued to play thus far, and the Broncos are 7-8 on the season with two games remaining.
They host the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday and wrap up the season on the road against the Las Vegas Raiders. The Broncos need to win and the Chiefs need to lose their final two games to reach the postseason for the first time since winning the Super Bowl after the 2015 season.
Denver has gone 11-19 in the two seasons since signing Wilson, 35, at an exorbitant cost from the Seahawks in 2022.
The quarterback has made $124 million, while the Broncos have also given up more than $85 million in dead cap money in 2024 and 2025.
Noah Fant, Drew Lock and Shelby Harris were traded to Seattle as part of the trade, as well as a 2022 first-round pick (Charles Cross), a 2022 second-round pick (Boye Mafe), a fifth-round pick 2022 round pick (Tyreke Smith), a 2023 first round pick (Devon Witherspoon) and 2023 second round pick (Derick Hall).