Broncos' Russell Wilson Not Ranked in Top 10, Honorable Mention by NFL Coaches, Execs

Russell Wilson's falloff was so steep last season that not a single player, coach, executive or scout views him as a top-10 quarterback.

ESPN's Jeremy Fowler polled around the NFL for the top quarterback rankings, and Wilson was not among the 18 quarterbacks who received at least one vote in the poll.

Among the names who received mention before Wilson: Justin Fields, Daniel Jones, Jared Goff and Kyler Murray, who is not expected to play until midseason as he recovers from an ACL tear.

Keep in mind: There were more than 80 ballots submitted. Not a single one mentioned Wilson, who is a nine-time Pro Bowler, future Hall of Famer and just two years removed from a 40-touchdown passing season.

That is how awful Wilson was during his first year in Denver.

Wilson was nothing short of abysmal as he transitioned away from comfort in Seattle, throwing for 3,524 yards and 16 touchdowns against 11 interceptions. The Broncos went 4-11 in games started by Wilson, and his chemistry with Nathaniel Hackett was so bad the team fired the coach after just 15 games. Hackett's tenure was one of the shortest in NFL history, and it's unclear how much of the blame is at his feet and how much belonged to Wilson.

The Broncos doubled down on their all-in push with Wilson this offseason by poaching Sean Payton out of retirement, paying the price of a 2023 first-round pick and 2024 second-round selection. Payton is widely considered one of the best offensive gurus of this generation and spent more than a decade dominating opposing defenses with Drew Brees—another small quarterback—under center.

Still, it's remarkable that one year of poor play led to such a marked decline for Wilson in the eyes of NFL evaluators. Matthew Stafford likewise suffered through a miserable, injury-plagued season in 2022 and was still ranked 10th. Stafford is a year older than Wilson, less mobile, has a more concerning injury history and has precisely one-ninth as many Pro Bowl selections.

On paper, it's hard to justify Stafford sticking around and Wilson not. It's even harder to figure out how he ranks behind the likes of Jones, Fields and Murray, who all have marked flaws, lack high-profile resumes and have little/no history of postseason performance.

This may turn out to be a case of the hate pushing a little too far with Wilson after one down season.