They all remember the morning of March 8, when their phones started buzzing. They all remember the instant wave of emotion. They all remember the moment everything changed.
Quarterback Russell Wilson was joining the Broncos in one of the biggest trades in NFL history.
Throughout the country, Wilson’s new teammates rejoiced when they read their social media channels, heard from their agents or were bombarded with calls from family members.
“I said, ‘What’s going on? Why is everybody calling me?’” outside linebacker Bradley Chubb said.
Throughout the Broncos’ facility, assistant coaches, who had no idea the team was pursuing Wilson, equal parts sat shocked in their office chairs and bounded into the hallways to celebrate.
The Broncos’ optimistic-but-realistic view of the season — where nearly everything would have to go right to make the playoffs — was flipped 180 degrees to aspirations of playing deep into January because of Wilson’s experience, leadership and play-making ability.
Following six consecutive years out of the playoffs and five consecutive losing seasons, the Broncos were relevant. Finally. They were a part of the AFC conversation. And they had The Quarterback. Finally.
A week later, the trade was official. A week after that, Wilson hosted teammates in San Diego for a throwing camp. Two months later, he was on the practice field. And Monday night, he makes his hype-filled return to Seattle to face his former team. It is Game 1 of 17, but it could serve as the catalyst for the Broncos to start their march up the division and conference.
What seemed unfathomable a year ago and unlikely in early March will become a reality: Wilson will lead the Broncos out of the tunnel in the stadium he thought he would always call home.
“It’s been a blast,” he said. “I feel the best I’ve ever felt. I feel strong. I feel fast. I feel confident. I feel like a winner.”
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General manager George Paton and president/CEO Joe Ellis were in the office of another Broncos executive.
“We knew it was coming soon and it was unique in that most of the building didn’t know,” Paton said. “I just kind of sat there until my phone started and I had 1,000 texts and you could hear people screaming.”
Broncos get their man
Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers, linked to the Broncos since Draft Night 2021, made it known on the morning of March 8 he was staying put and wouldn’t follow coach Nathaniel Hackett to the Broncos.
By that point, Wilson and his family were already en route to Centennial Airport, located across the street from the Broncos’ facility.
Paton saw the news break — Wilson and a fourth-round pick to the Broncos for quarterback Drew Lock, defensive end Shelby Harris, tight end Noah Fant, two first- and second-round draft choices apiece and a fifth-round selection — and then waited for the noise.
The wait was brief.
“It was like the Fourth of July,” Paton said during an interview with The Denver Post in his office. “You know, on the Fourth, when it gets dark and then, ‘Boom, boom, boom.’ There was obviously a lot of joy.”
Paton was naturally thrilled. He and Seahawks general manager John Schneider had their first Wilson-related discussion at the Senior Bowl in late January and conversations gained momentum the previous week at the scouting combine in Indianapolis. The work, though, wasn’t done.
The Broncos needed to close the deal.
“We had a lot of things to prepare for: What’s the plan? Where is Russ going when he lands? Let’s get the (fieldhouse) ready,” Paton said.
The Broncos had to sell themselves to Wilson so he would wave his no-trade clause.
“Oh yeah, we sure did,” Paton said. “He had to get to know what we’re all about as we did him. Now, we knew him probably more than he knew us. We had a month to do a lot of work and I know he did a lot of work on a lot of teams so I knew he knew our personnel, but he didn’t know me, he didn’t know Nathaniel, he didn’t know what we are trying to build here. Those were really important conversations.”
Wilson embraced the Broncos’ message and signed the document approving of the trade, which the club sent back to the Seahawks.
For the first time since Peyton Manning retired after the 2015 Super Bowl, the Broncos had a franchise-level quarterback.
Defensive backs coach Christian Parker was in his office.
“I was watching some draft guys and my Twitter updated and, yeah, there was a whole bunch of yelling and running around the hallways. (Defensive coordinator) Ejiro (Evero’s) office is right next to mine. He was the first high-five.”
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Wilson, 33, grew up in Richmond, Va., the second of three children of Harrison, a lawyer, and Tammy, a nursing director. Russell’s dad played football at Dartmouth, older brother Harry played football and baseball at Richmond and younger sister Anna completed her basketball career at Stanford in April.
“Competitiveness. Winners,” Russell told The Denver Post. “We were always shooting hoops, playing basketball, throwing the football around and tackling in the backyard — 24/7.”
Starring at N.C. State
Wilson threw 74 touchdowns in his final two years of high school football. A two-star recruit by Scout and Rivals, he signed with North Carolina State. He spent four years on the Wolfpack’s campus, throwing 76 touchdowns and rushing for 17 scores.
Before his junior year, Wilson was drafted by the Rockies in the fourth round. He hit .230 in 32 games and developed a mental skill set that helped him at quarterback.
“One pitch at a time; one play at a time,” he said. “You have to be in the moment and not let anything get to you and reset your mind every day.”
Wilson’s father passed away on June 9, 2010, at age 55 due to complications from diabetes.
Now a father, Wilson was asked what parenting attributes he learned from his dad.
“Encourage rather than discourage,” he said. “My dad always encouraged us that all things were possible and mom, too. I don’t have limits in my mind. I don’t have limits in my thought process. There are no limits. The only limits we have are the ones we put on ourselves.”
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Broncos right tackle Calvin Anderson had completed a workout with left tackle Garett Bolles in Orange County, Calif.
“We were in the hot tub,” Anderson said. “And we were freaking out. I thought it was fake news. My agent called and said, ‘You guys are getting (No.) 3.’ It was nuts.”
Rising fast in Seattle
Wilson’s commitment to play in the Rockies’ minor-league system didn’t sit well with N.C. State, which led to him to Wisconsin, where he went 11-3 and threw for 33 touchdowns (four interceptions).
Wilson was drafted 75th overall (third round) by the Seahawks in 2012. Quarterbacks selected ahead of him were Andrew Luck (No. 1), Robert Griffin III (No. 2), Ryan Tannehill (No. 8), Brandon Weeden (No. 22) and Brock Osweiler (No. 57). Tannehill is the only one still active.
Wilson beat out Matt Flynn for the Seahawks’ starting job and didn’t give it up for the next decade. He started 174 of a possible 176 regular season/playoff games, reached two Super Bowls (one win) and had eight seasons of double-digit wins.
“Russell is a championship quarterback,” Dallas coach Mike McCarthy said. “He can make all the throws. Dynamic. The game is never over. That’s as huge of a compliment you can give only to the great ones.”
Since entering the NFL, Wilson is third in touchdown passes (292), seventh in completion percentage (65.0), third in lowest interception rate (1.8) and second in regular season wins (104) and playoff wins (nine).
The Seahawks, though, didn’t get back to the NFC title game after 2014 even as Wilson threw at least 31 touchdowns from 2017-20 (including 40 in ’20) and had five years with a passer rating of at least 103.1. A perfect storm developed early in the offseason when the Seahawks were open to dealing Wilson and, more importantly, Wilson was open to being traded. The Broncos emerged and started a whirlwind of quarterback movement that was followed by Deshaun Watson to Cleveland, Matt Ryan to Indianapolis and Carson Wentz to Washington.
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The Broncos’ offensive coaches were in a staff meeting.
“All of a sudden, our phones started blowing up,” tight ends coach Jake Moreland said. “That’s how we found out. It was crazy. The whole offensive staff was like, ‘What the heck is going on? Is this real?’ It was pretty cool. There were high-fives, hooting and hollering. The defensive coaches poked their heads out their doors and it started spreading.”
Obsession with winning
Wilson doesn’t need caffeine to operate his non-stop schedule.
“I don’t drink coffee because I don’t get tired,” he said. “People ask me, ‘How do you do all this stuff?’ We never stopped (as kids). A big part of that is knowing you have only so much time to live and how I maximize my hours. I don’t spend time doing much else.”
Wilson arrives at the Broncos’ facility in the range of 5:30-6 a.m.
A grinder himself, Paton said Wilson “pretty much” beats him to the parking lot each day.
“It’s not for show,” Paton said. “This guy is all about it.”
All about the process and arriving early for meetings and self-run walk-throughs with his skill-position players. Conferring with coaches during every break in practice. Throwing routes post-practice. And repeating it all the next day.
“Just incredible detail,” Paton said. “He doesn’t waver. It’s an obsession with winning. That’s his day. That’s what he thinks about 24/7. Everyone here sees it and everyone feels it. You talk to him and it’s, ‘How are we getting better?’ I’ve never seen anything like it.”
Like Manning 10 years ago, Wilson had instant credibility before he said one word to a teammate or coach. Young players were in high school when Wilson began his pro career. Mid-career veterans were in college when he won the Super Bowl. And older players see Wilson as the key to an elusive championship.
If Wilson’s end-of-press-conference saying is, “Let’s ride,” it should be, “Ready to ride,” for coaches and players. They will go whatever direction Wilson leads them.
“It’s not a mistake he is who he is — life is ball for him,” offensive coordinator Justin Outten said. “With his work habits, it’s rubbing off on those other guys, which is exciting. You can’t beat that.”
Said receiver Courtland Sutton: “There is a different level of standard and I would say that definitely began when Russ got picked up.”
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Outside linebackers coach Bert Watts received a cryptic text message.
“I was in my office and I got a text saying, ‘You just got a lot better.’ And then I ran out of the office and was asking, ‘What is it?’ And them, boom, everybody was fired up.”
The buzz is back
Watts was an entry-level Broncos assistant when Manning was acquired in 2012, which makes him qualified to compare Manning Mania to Russ Fest.
“There are definitely some similarities,” Watts said. “It’s been great to have this energy out here. I think from Day One when Russell got here, I have felt that déjà vu. The type of people they both are, the professional and automatic credibility they bring into the field. It’s been exciting to go through it again.”
The Broncos’ secondary ticket prices are among the highest in the league — a 100 level seat for the San Francisco game on Sept. 25 is $984. They have been scheduled for five national television games, including the first Monday night game and a Christmas Day date against the defending champion Rams.
If the “Orange Crush Defense” was Chapter 1 of winning Broncos football, followed by John Elway (Chapter 2) and Manning (Chapter 3), a Wilson-led resurgence will be Chapter 4.
Elway and Manning both won their second Super Bowl titles in the final game of their Pro Football Hall of Fame careers. Like Manning, Wilson won a title with another team. Wilson wants to add to his legacy by joining Manning and Tom Brady as the only quarterbacks to win Super Bowls with two franchises.
Manning helped the Broncos to two Super Bowls (one win) and five consecutive division titles. Wilson will be the point man to help dig the franchise out of its current slump.
Before he has thrown a regular season pass, Wilson has brought the buzz back to the Broncos.
“It feels great,” Wilson told The Post. “There are two ways to look at things: In a negative manner or an opportunity manner. I look at everything as an opportunity manner.”
