Even though Sean Payton, the Denver Broncos’ head coach, attempted to disparage Russell Wilson’s brilliant mind, Payton’s intellect is millions of miles behind Wilson’s. Historically, Black boys and men have not been regarded as competent enough to be quarterbacks. The genesis of such thought is racist and intellectually prejudiced individuals.
Unfortunately, as early as in recreational leagues, Black boys encounter many coaches who refuse to see them as possessing the intellectual capacity to be quarterbacks. If these coaches allow them to be quarterbacks, their expectations for these quarterbacks are low. Such coaches often believe these players must function as running quarterbacks.
By running quarterbacks, I mean quarterbacks who perform as running backs for much of the offensive scheme. Racist and intellectually prejudiced coaches feel that fast Black athletes can serve as quarterbacks when they are told to run left, right, or up the middle for many plays, given that such instructions are easy to follow.
Russell Wilson’s Brilliant Mind
While I am not arguing that Sean Payton is a racist or intellectually prejudiced person, how he treated Russell Wilson as the starting quarterback for the Denver Broncos functioned in similar ways as those racists and intellectually prejudiced coaches previously mentioned. I followed Sean Payton his entire career as the New Orleans Saints head coach, and I never saw him treat a quarterback like he treated Wilson. Although most of his coaching career with the Saints was spent coaching future Hall of Fame quarterback Drew Brees, a player with rare talent and quarterback intelligence, I never witnessed Payton have such disregard for one of his players, especially none of his quarterbacks, as he had for Russell Wilson.
Sean Payton was eager to release Russell Wilson. While some argue that Russell Wilson’s short time in Denver was a flop, he performed well there. Although Denver’s record with Wilson was not impressive, he completed 66.4% of his passes, had 26 touchdowns, and only eight interceptions in 2023, which are excellent numbers in the brutal AFC.
With those terrific numbers, Payton’s inability to generate consistent wins against difficult opponent after difficult opponent in the AFC is his real frustration—not Russell Wilson. When we saw him mercilessly yelling at Wilson, he was using him as a scapegoat for his own ineptitude as a coach in the AFC. Instead of owning his ineptitude, Sean Payton attempted to denigrate Russell Wilson’s brilliant mind as incapable of running his sophisticated offense, positing that he had to “simplify” it for Wilson.
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“Simplify” the offense for Russell Wilson? Really? When I first heard this foolishness, I couldn’t help but think about the “dumb jock” stigma many Whites have attempted to place on Black athletes since the inception of sports in America.
Russell Wilson earned a master’s degree in educational leadership and policy analysis (ELPA) at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. The University of Wisconsin-Madison’s ELPA department has always been one of the top-ranked departments in the nation for education administration/educational leadership—often the top-ranked department in the nation for education administration/educational leadership. As a graduate of this department and one who has taught and researched in it, I know one must possess the deep intellect Wilson has to be admitted and earn a degree from the department.
Therefore, trust me, Wilson is no “dumb jock” who needs Sean Payton to “simplify” any offensive scheme for him. Payton lacks the intellectual aptitude to conjure an offense that would come close to being too complex for Russell Wilson’s brilliant mind. Even when one listens to Wilson speak, the individual can hear some of that brilliance.
Parting Thoughts
Pittsburgh Steelers fans should give Russell Wilson a fair chance to excel in this new Arthur Smith offense. Let’s never forget that Wilson led the Seattle Seahawks to a dominant victory in Super Bowl XLVIII.
Is he the same quarterback he was during Super Bowl XLVIII? Of course, he isn’t. However, as his robust production on a Broncos team with far less talent than the Steelers shows us, Russell Wilson is still one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL.
On November 29, 2024, Wilson will turn 36. At his age, Wilson knows his time playing in the NFL is ending soon. He deserves the necessary patience to lead the team without unwarranted calls to replace him as starting quarterback with newly acquired quarterback Justin Fields.
About The Author
Dr. Antonio Maurice Daniels is an accomplished scholar, writer, editor, columnist, journalist, and academic, including a writing instruction expert and researcher at Johns Hopkins University. He received his educational training at prestigious universities, including Harvard University, Johns Hopkins University, and the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Dr. Daniels has twenty-four years of experience as a writing instructor at every level of education and as a professional writer.
His sports journalism focuses primarily on the Arkansas Razorbacks, Wisconsin Badgers, Pittsburgh Steelers, Milwaukee Bucks, Charlotte Hornets, Golden State Warriors, LaMelo Ball, Lonzo Ball, and LiAngelo Ball. To follow Dr. Daniels on X (formerly Twitter), click here. To read more of his online writing, click here.
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