Russell Wilson’s next contract will reportedly be for NFL minimum

Highlights

• Russell Wilson will likely be released by the Denver Broncos in March.
• Wilson’s next contract could be for the veteran minimum due to offset language in his contract with the Broncos.
• Denver will have to swallow an $85M dead cap hit after Wilson’s release, practically guaranteeing 2024 will be a rebuilding year for the franchise.

The Russell Wilson era in the Mile High City fell flat on its face, and it’s likely to come to an end soon, as the Denver Broncos are widely expected to release the Super Bowl-winning QB once the new league year begins in March.

It’s an unceremonious curtain call on one of the worst trades in NFL history, as the Seattle Seahawks made out like bandits while the Broncos were stuck with a veteran quarterback on the decline.

Once Wilson is a free agent, he’ll have plenty of suitors from teams looking for a proven winner at the game’s most important position. His stock is only set to rise further after ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reported that “Danger Russ” will likely take the veteran minimum on his next contract due to offset language in his deal with the Broncos.

Russell Wilson’s cap hit for next team could be as low as $1.21 million

The Broncos will be saddled with a massive dead cap hit once they release the QB

Wilson’s contract with the Broncos is somewhat peculiar as the team will owe him $39 million upon releasing him, but that figure will shrink in concordance with Wilson’s next contract. For example, if Wilson receives a one-year, $30 million contract in free agency, the Broncos will be on the hook for $9 million.

Regardless of what they actually owe him in real dollars, though, the Broncos will be saddled with a massive cap hit once their starting quarterback is off the roster. Per Spotrac, the team will incur an NFL-record $85 million dead cap charge following Wilson’s release.

There isn’t much time to find an alternative solution either, as Wilson’s $37 million salary becomes fully guaranteed on March 17th if he’s still on the roster.

Effectively, Denver is stuck between a rock and a hard place, and they’ll have to find some way to build out their roster while about a third of their salary cap is tied up in Wilson’s dead money. At least they’ll have the NFL’s big cap jump to alleviate some of their burden, right?

As for Wilson, he should have no problem finding a new home, especially if he does take the league minimum from his next team. Remember, no matter what salary his new team gives him, he’ll make $39 million next season from the Broncos and his new team combined. He has no real incentive to torch his new organization’s cap space by demanding a $20+ million salary next season.

As Fowler explained on SportsCenter over the weekend:

“The feeling is he’ll sign for considerably less, maybe even the league minimum, because he’s got all that money in hand guaranteed. And so, he’s going to have options. The feeling I get from talking to teams and scouts is that he’s still an NFL starter, there will be a job somewhere for him.”

With teams like the Atlanta Falcons and Pittsburgh Steelers reportedly in the market for veteran competition for their underwhelming young starters, Wilson could prove to be a cost-effective option for a team desperate for a starting quarterback in 2024.

All stats courtesy of Pro Football Reference and all salary info courtesy of Spotrac unless stated otherwise.