NFL fans label Russell Wilson’s trade to the Broncos the worst in HISTORY as the quarterback is released by Denver 19 months after signing a new five-year, $245m contract extension

Russell Wilson will be released by the Denver Broncos later this month, which NFL fans believe will cap the worst trade in sports history.

The Broncos announced Monday that they are officially moving on from Wilson, who has endured a miserable two-year stint in Denver after arriving from the Seattle Seahawks in 2022.

After initially enduring the worst season of his career under Nathaniel Hackett, in which he went 4-11, the Super Bowl-winning quarterback bounced back under Sean Payton last season.

However, in the end his resurgence still wasn’t good enough as the Broncos fell 7-8, and Payton eventually benched him for his final two games.

And to make matters worse for the franchise, they also gave Wilson a five-year, $250 million contract extension before he played a single in Denver six months after his move from Seattle.

Therefore, the divorce will be costly for the Broncos, who still owe Wilson his $39 million salary for 2024 minus what he would sign with another team, which would likely be the veteran’s minimum salary of $1.21 million.

They will also take a record $89 million hit in salary cap charges over the next two seasons, affecting their roster construction as they look to end an eight-year playoff drought that has featured six head coaches and 13 starting quarterbacks.

Wilson’s release completes a disastrous miscalculation for Denver officials, and fans are convinced that both his trade from Seattle and his $250 million extension are the worst in NFL history.

One wrote on X: ‘Russell Wilson was so bad that the Broncos are willing to eat $85 million in dead capital. Think about it. It is the worst contract in NFL history.

“That Russell Wilson contract will go down in history as one of the worst of all time,” said another.

A third sentence: “It’s mind-boggling that Russell Wilson is being released just as his $245 million extension kicks in. Regardless of the trade, it’s one of the worst contracts ever made in NFL history.”

A fourth gave a slightly different opinion: “The Russell Wilson trade is not the worst trade in NFL history; although the Russell Wilson extension is something we can consider the worst.”

While one simply insisted: ‘The Russell Wilson trade is the worst trade in NFL history, and there is no other that comes close to it.’ Argue with a wall on that one.

Although he had maintained that a Wilson return was possible, Payton hinted at an impending split at the NFL combine last week when he discussed Denver’s long string of mediocre quarterbacks and suggested his job was to make sure ” the next” was the right QB to get the Broncos back into contention.

Wilson, who had gone silent on social media at Payton’s request a year ago, recently resumed sharing videos of his workouts and over the weekend removed all references to the Broncos from his X profile.

Following news of his release, he wrote in an online post: “Over these past two years, you have welcomed my family and me with open arms and embraced us as members of the Denver community,” Wilson said shortly afterward. for the news to be known. .

‘This city will always have a special place in my heart. Our family grew up here, we created countless memories and friendships, and formed relationships that will last a lifetime.

‘To my teammates, thank you for going into battle together and for being there at all times.

‘There are so many moments I treasure because of you and I feel blessed by the impact you have had on my life. I am beyond grateful for all of you and being able to race as your teammate was an honor.

‘(…) I will never forget Wendy and Brandy in the cafeteria! Daily bringing good food, but even better jams! Thank you for always being uplifting.”