Incredible Contract Detail Highlights How Much Broncos Will Owe Russell Wilson If He’s Released

If Denver releases the quarterback, there’s a real argument that they will have given him one of the worst contracts in NFL history.

The Denver Broncos appear set to move on from quarterback Russell Wilson, barring something major changing ahead of the 2024 NFL offseason. Denver will bench Wilson for the season’s final two games in favor of Jarrett Stidham, as NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport detailed, signaling the expectation that a new face will likely be under center next season.

Following this news, the hot-button topic immediately became Wilson’s contract, as he signed a five-year, $245 million extension when landing with Denver. And to show just how drastically bad that deal could be, Sports Illustrated’s Matt Verderame highlighted that if Wilson doesn’t play with the Broncos next season, it’d mean he didn’t take a single snap under his new deal.

The Broncos aren't wrong for benching Wilson to make sure he passes a physical, but man, that's one of the worst trades/contracts in NFL history.

Consider this ... Wilson signed a five-year, $245M extension upon his arrival in Denver.

He never played a down on it.

— Matt Verderame (@MattVerderame) December 27, 2023

That’s an eye-opening detail to process during this situation, and it leads into the topic of how much the team will owe Wilson if they choose to release him. As Spotrac explained, regardless of whether Denver opted to make Wilson a pre-March 17 or post-June 1 release, the numbers add up to a staggering $85 million.

A Pre March 17th release for Russell Wilson would mean $85M of dead cap ($39M cash) in 2024.

Designating him a Post June 1st release means a $35.4M hit in 2024 ($39M cash), & a $49.6M dead cap hit for 2025.

Either way - this would be an unprecedented release.

— Spotrac (@spotrac) December 27, 2023

The coming weeks will provide plenty of speculation and discussion about the futures of both the Broncos and Wilson. But if this situation plays out the way that it appears to be going, it’s hard to debate that this deal won’t go down as one of the worst in NFL history.