Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton took a not-so-subtle shot at former Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson this week. Now, Wilson is clapping back.
This week, Payton and the Broncos beat the Giants in a 33-32 thriller in which the Broncos scored 33 points in the game’s final quarter to clinch a comeback victory. When discussing the game and Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart, who had an impressive 283 passing yards and four total touchdowns in the loss, Payton could not help but throw in a pretty clear shot at Wilson.
Wilson was recently benched by the Giants in favor of Dart, and Payton made it pretty clear that the team was hoping to face Wilson instead.
“I have a ton of respect for that organization,” Payton said. “I spent four of my early years there coordinating, Super Bowl, first game in this stadium, before 9/11. I’m close with the Mara and Tisch families. And they found a little spark with that quarterback. I was talking to John Mara not too long ago and I said we were hoping that that change would have happened long, long after our game.”
Obviously, there is some bad blood between Payton and Wilson after Payton chose to bench and release Wilson at the end of the 2023 season, and Wilson wasted no time in responding to the shot from his former head coach.
“Classless… but not surprised…. Didn’t realize you’re still bounty hunting 15+ years later through the media,” Wilson [wrote in a post on X](https://x.com/DangeRussWilson/status/1980735749394665615).
Wilson is not normally one to wade into public spats like this, but he certainly did not hold back his true feelings.
This certainly adds a new layer to their feud.