Russell Wilson Explains Why He Tweeted at Sean Payton Following Shady Comments

Payton took a jab at Wilson being benched for Jaxson Dart after the Broncos played the Giants in October.

Russell Wilson felt “disrespected” by his former coach Sean Payton in comments he made after the Broncos played the Giants. | Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images

Sean Payton and Russell Wilson were involved in a social media debacle back in October after the Broncos coach seemingly took a shot at his former quarterback for being benched for Jaxson Dart in New York during his time with the Giants. Payton’s words sparked a response from Wilson on X, formerly known as Twitter, and narratives of there being beef between them flew off from there.

“Classless... but not surprised....” Wilson tweeted on Oct. 21. “Didn’t realize you’re still bounty hunting 15+ years later through the media.”

This week, Wilson spoke about his now infamous tweet and why he felt the need to post it while appearing on the Bussin’ With the Boys podcast. It sounds like he felt “disrespected” by his former coach and decided it was the “time and place” to speak on the hate.

“I don’t say much. I never, hardly ever say anything,” Wilson said. “I think there’s a time and place, but sometimes you get fatigued of people talking about you ... It’s one thing for people that maybe aren’t in the field or people say ‘bots’ or whatever, talking—I don't worry about that stuff. But, to me, when you’ve been in the ring or you’ve been on the same side of this and that, and I got the same amount of rings as you got, meaning Sean—Listen, I’ve got a lot of respect for him as a play caller, this and that. But, to take a shot I don’t like, I don’t think it’s necessary, especially when I’m not even on your own team anymore.

“It's not a matter of disrespect, just don’t disrespect me.”

Russ finally addresses the Sean Payton fallout

OUT NOW 🎙️ https://t.co/4iBSSmNLMa pic.twitter.com/vx9aEDgQe9

— Bussin' With The Boys (@BussinWTB) March 3, 2026

Mic drop.

Wilson only played for Payton during the 2023 season when Denver hired the coach to replace Nathaniel Hackett. Things didn’t end smoothly for the quarterback in Denver, though, as he was benched towards the end of the season so he wouldn’t get injured. The Broncos released him in March 2024, but were still required to pay Wilson $85 million over the following two seasons because of the massive contract he signed with the team. The Broncos finally finished paying Wilson in January.

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