The Denver Broncos hired Super Bowl champion coach Sean Payton to right the play of franchise quarterback Russell Wilson after a dismal 2022 season.
After almost a quarter of a way through the 2023 campaign, the early returns look good despite the Broncos only netting their first win of the season against the Chicago Bears on Sunday.
Wilson finished that contest by completing 21 of his 28 pass attempts for 223 yards and three touchdowns as he led the Broncos to a comeback win over the still-winless Bears.
After the game, Payton backed his quarterback’s performance despite one major critique.
“He had good poise and command,” Payton said of Wilson after the game, according to Mile High Huddle. “He’s moving well and picking up things well. He made some big plays for us, really. All the things you’re looking for. Protecting the ball. I would’ve liked to have been able to run it more.”
Wilson said it was part of the mentality he’s been preaching to his teammates.
“Yeah, it was huge for us. We were all in this thing together,” Wilson said of the dramatic comeback. “It was a ‘we’ thing. Everybody just believed. It was a beautiful demonstration of just not giving up and not giving in. We have been talking about just a season is a journey. It’s a 17-round fight, and each fight, each round matters, each one of them. I think we really stepped up to the plate.”
The Broncos host the New York Jets on Sunday.
