Russell Wilson apparently wished Pete Carroll gone from the Seahawks nicely earlier than the quarterback was traded to the Broncos final offseason, in response to a brand new report.
The 34-year-old Wilson is claimed to have pushed for the firing of Seattle’s longtime head coach, The Athletic reported Friday, which alleges the nine-time Professional Bowler approached Seahawks possession in February 2022 and requested for the termination of each Carroll and common supervisor John Schneider. The report additionally claims former Saints coach Sean Payton was the “most popular substitute” Wilson had “in thoughts.”
Wilson, who was traded to Denver a short while later whereas Carroll and Schneider remained with the Seahawks, refuted the allegations on Friday.
“I like Pete and he was a father determine to me and John believed in me and drafted me as nicely. I by no means wished them fired. All any of us wished was to win,” Wilson tweeted. “l’ll all the time have respect for them and love for Seattle.”
An lawyer for Wilson additionally denied that he pushed for the firings, calling the claims “totally fabricated” in a letter to The Athletic.
The deterioration of Wilson’s relationship with the Seahawks has been well-documented, with ESPN reporting in September how the group had been taking a look at different choices for the quarterback place for a while, together with Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen, earlier than they had been drafted by the Chiefs in 2017 and the Payments in 2018, respectively.
“They had been f–king pissed,” a Seahawks’ front-office supply remarked of Wilson’s camp.
Though Wilson had been the topic of commerce rumors for years, he wasn’t formally moved till final March, becoming a member of first-year head coach Nathaniel Hackett with the Broncos. Regardless of the hype surrounding the blockbuster commerce — to not point out Wilson signing a five-year, $245 million extension earlier than the season even started — Denver sputtered out of the gate and Hackett was fired after 15 video games into his tenure.
Wilson, whose efficiency was closely criticized all year long, shouldered a few of the blame for Hackett’s firing, stating, “I want I might have performed higher for him.”
The Broncos have since employed Payton to exchange Hackett, with the Tremendous Bowl champion coach already laying the groundwork for modifications inside the group. In contrast to final 12 months, Wilson will be unable to carry his private quarterback coach, Jake Heaps, or different exterior personnel into the constructing.
“I’m not too acquainted with that,” Payton previously said in regard to Heaps being within the group facility. “That’s international to me. That’s not gonna happen right here. I’m unfamiliar with it, however our employees shall be right here, our gamers shall be right here and that shall be it.”
The Broncos employed former Giants backup quarterback Davis Webb as their QBs coach earlier this week.