After trading for star quarterback Russell Wilson, the Denver Broncos had a disastrous 2022 season in which they won just five games.
Their offense was downright offensive, and much of the blame falls on Wilson, who had his worst season since coming to the NFL.
There is some hope in Denver for this coming season thanks to the arrival of new head coach Sean Payton, who won a Super Bowl with the New Orleans Saints when Drew Brees was his right-hand man.
Former star running back LeSean McCoy says there’s much more pressure on Wilson than there is on Payton, as the former has gotten everything he wanted.
.@CutOnDime25 believes Russell Wilson has more pressure than Sean Payton
"Russ got everything he wanted. Parking spots, he had rooms upstairs… We gave you that and you didn't deliver." pic.twitter.com/Z1AoNi1GmE
— Speak (@SpeakOnFS1) August 2, 2023
In 10 seasons with the Seattle Seahawks, Wilson made the Pro Bowl nine times and won a world championship in the 2013 season while establishing himself as an excellent dual-threat quarterback.
But in 2022, he completed just 60.5 percent of his passes and threw for only 16 touchdowns while posting an 84.4 passer rating, all of which were career lows.
The big question was whether his poor play was due to age (he will turn 35 in November) or whether it was merely a symptom of the overall offensive malady that Denver had to deal with.
In New Orleans, Payton guided some of the league’s most productive offenses, and it looks like he will have Wilson move the chains with his legs more this year.
Overall, there is plenty of pressure on the Broncos to turn things around, and Payton may have even added to the pressure with his recent comments about what went wrong for them last year.
NEXT: Nick Wright Says Sean Payton Made A Mistake With Recent Comments