NFL.com Worries Russell Wilson is 'Past Point of No Return'

Russell Wilson's first season as the Denver Broncos' starting quarterback was bad. After posting career-low numbers nearly across the board, 2022 was a season Wilson and the Broncos will look to forget.

Wilson was considered a franchise quarterback with elite ability and on a Hall-of-Fame trajectory during his time in Seattle, so it will be interesting to see how the NFL talking heads will assess his abilities as time marches on.

Was 2022 an aberration in which Wilson was playing hurt, surrounded by an injured offense in a scheme that didn’t fit his skill set? Or are we witnessing one of the sharpest regressions of a mid-30s quarterback in league history?

Some believe Wilson can change course and get back to the level he showed for years with the Seattle Seahawks. NFL.com's Mark Sessler is not in that camp.

Would I go into next season choosing Russell Wilson over, say, Teddy Bridgewater as my starter? Yes, I would. Especially with Sean Payton at the wheel. But there's a very real possibility that Wilson has crossed the point of no return. His late-season play ticked up a notch, but his off-target lobs, lack of chemistry with weapons and oft-baffled demeanor was one of the 2022 campaign's more stunning developments. When quarterbacks fade, it's an unpretty sight. It's tough to imagine the train wreck we just witnessed was nothing more than a false-flag autumn. It's anyone's guess who Wilson becomes in 2023.

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Sessler pointed to Wilson and the Broncos’ end-of-year improvement as a reason for optimism in the future, but jabbed at several of the veteran's shortcomings displayed last season.

Wilson had a poor year in 2022, but seeing some of the names ranked ahead of him makes his placement on the quarterback power index even more alarming. With such signal-callers as Jacoby Brissett, Ryan Tannehill, Brock Purdy, Kenny Pickett, Andy Dalton, Marcus Mariota, and Jameis Winston all ranked above Wilson based on 2022, the Broncos quarterback has nowhere to go but up next season.

As Broncos Country can remember from the 2015 campaign with Peyton Manning, a quarterback’s ability can fade quickly. It will be up to Coach Payton and Wilson to improve the QB's standing for next season and to go forward.

It's nearly unimaginable that Wilson won’t improve with a better offensive scheme and design under Payton, an offense more tailor-made to fit what Wilson needs to succeed, and a smidge more injury fortune than in 2022. However, if Wilson does not improve dramatically and play like the quarterback the Broncos thought they were acquiring when they traded for him last offseason, the team will have a hard decision about his future in Mile High City.

The 30th-ranked quarterback in a division with Patrick Mahomes getting paid what Wilson gets simply won’t cut it.

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