The first priority of new Denver Broncos offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi will be righting the ship that is franchise quarterback Russell Wilson.
While Wilson showed flashes of his old self last season, he played as one of the worst starting quarterbacks in the league for large swaths of place as the Broncos finished 5-12 overall, good enough for last place in the vaunted AFC West.
The early returns of the Lombardi-Wilson partnership, however, have been nothing but positive. Lombardi, speaking during minicamp, mentioned that a lot of Wilson’s performance will ride on the quarterback staying healthy.
“I think a lot of things,” Lombardi said, according to Jon Heath of Broncos Wire. “Injuries are always a big deal. As you look at what happened last year, a lot of it was injuries. So, it’s about staying healthy. I don’t know what’s going to happen, but for June 14, we’re really happy with where he’s at. There’s some muscle memory that we have to overcome. He’s used to doing things a certain way, and we’re presenting a new way of doing things.”
Lombardi credits Wilson’s attitude as a big reason why he’s “really fun” to work with.
“He shows up every day ready to work. He’s the same guy every day — same attitude, and he’s really fun to work with. I think the answer for him is what the answer is for everyone. Work hard every day, get your fundamentals down and understand what you’re trying to accomplish. So far, it’s been really good.”
There is still plenty of time to go between now and the regular season, but Broncos fans will certainly love to see the offensive coordinator talking like this about their quarterback.
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