Milestone No. 7: The Broncos make a blockbuster trade for Russell Wilson
Apr 3, 2025, 7:16 AM
The Fan is turning 30! For three decades, the station has been covering Denver sports, serving as a media outlet of record for the biggest events over the past 30 years.
There have been a lot of them. From championships to MVPs, from historic seasons to improbable victories, The Fan has been there for all of them.
What were the best of the best? During a six week span, Denver Sports will chronicle the moments that stood out the most. It’s a countdown from No. 30 to No. 1, in a series called “Mile High Milestones.”
Enjoy the trip down memory lane!
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The Broncos were squarely in NFL purgatory. Since winning Super Bowl 50, they had been searching for a starting quarterback. Peyton Manning hoisted the Lombardi Trophy and rode off into the sunset, leaving the team looking for his heir apparent.
They thought they had their quarterback of the future in Brock Osweiler. After all, he won multiple big games for Denver during their championship run. But he left prior to the 2016 season for big money in Houston.
That left the Broncos in scramble mode. And they stayed squarely in that position through the next six seasons.
They tried a late-round draft pick (Trevor Siemian). They tried a first-rounder (Paxton Lynch). They went with a one-hit wonder (Case Keenum). They went with a former Super Bowl MVP (Joe Flacco). You name it, the Broncos tried it. All to no avail.
So heading into the 2022 offseason, George Paton was determined to end the QB carousel once and for all. The previous year, Denver’s general manager thought he had pulled off a trade for Aaron Rodgers. This time around, he was determined not to miss out again; Paton went so far as to hired Rodgers’ former offensive coordinator, Nathaniel Hackett, as the Broncos head coach.
But even that didn’t work. Rodgers wasn’t coming to the Mile High City, even with a possible reunion with his favorite OC. Thus, Paton had to pivot. And he did so in dramatic fashion.
“This is not a drill!”
Those were the words uttered by The Fan’s Zach Bye coming out of a break on March 8, 2022. The radio host had just confirmed that Denver had struck a blockbuster deal with Seattle to bring a future Hall-of-Fame quarterback to the Mile High City and he was breaking the news to Broncos Country.
It was one of the biggest trades in NFL history. Denver was sending three players (Noah Fant, Shelby Harris and Drew Lock) to the Seahawks, plus two-first round picks, two second-round selections and a fifth-rounder in exchange for Russell Wilson and a fourth-round choice.
Holy moly! To call this big news would be the understatement of all understatements. It was a “We interrupt regularly scheduled programming,” “Stop the presses” and “Drop everything” type of moment.
The town was abuzz. Fans were pumped. The media was excited. And the team was ecstatic, including Hackett, who acted like a kid on Christmas morning at Wilson’s introductory press conference.
“Wow!” the head coach said before the QB met the media. “Come on, y’all, Russell Wilson! Holy sh…, um, very exciting!”
The Broncos quarterback problems had been solved. They had finally wondered out of the desert and could become relevant again. The franchise’s long nightmare was over.
Or so everyone thought. It didn’t take long for the whole thing to go south.
There were signs of promise, however. Wilson threw for 340 yards in his Broncos debut, at Seattle, and was leading his team on a game-winning drive in the waning seconds. But Hackett decided to settle for a 64-yard field goal, Brandon McManus barely missed and Denver started the season 0-1 thanks to a devastating 17-16 defeat.
The Broncos won the next week in their home opener, but the victory over the Texans was marred by the home fans having to count down the play clock after multiple delay-of-game penalties. And a 2-1 start felt hollow when it came on the heels of an ugly 11-10 win over the Niners on national TV.
Things only got worse. The Broncos lost nine of their last 10 games. Yes, many were close, as that stretch included three overtime defeats. But Denver’s offense was awful. In their first 11 games, they scored 11 points or less six times.
Things finally came to a head on Christmas Day, when the Broncos lost to the Rams by a 51-14 count. After that debacle, Hackett was fired. Denver finished the season 4-11.
The 2023 campaign was better, as Sean Payton helped right the ship. In fact, the Broncos were still in playoff contention on Christmas Eve. But a heartbreaking 26-23 loss to the Patriots at the final gun dashed their hopes and ended Wilson’s tenure in Denver.
In 30 starts, the quarterback threw for 6,594 yards, 42 touchdowns and just 19 interceptions. But he went just 11-19 in those games.
Before the quarterback ever played a down of the five-year, $246-million contract extension that the Broncos gave him after the trade went down with the Seahawks, Wilson was released. Denver ate $85 million in dead cap and the quarterback turned into a journeyman; he spent 2024 with the Steelers and just signed with the Giants.
To say it turned out badly would be unbelievably inaccurate. The trade was an unmitigated disaster.
But for a while, especially on that crazy day in March 2022, the Broncos had hope. That’s why few things in the history of Denver sports have ever been bigger news that Russell Wilson coming to the Mile High City.
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THE COUNTDOWN
30: Ubaldo Jimenez has a magical season
29: Todd Helton get enshrined in Cooperstown
28: Valeri Nichushkin goes missing in the postseason – twice!
27: The Avalanche win their second Stanley Cup
26: The Nuggets come back from two 3-1 deficits in the bubble
25: The seemingly never-ending Broncos ownership saga
24: Hurricane Josh hits the Mile High City
23: The Rockies trade Nolan Arenado to the Cardinals
22: The Nuggets reach the Western Conference Finals in 2009
21: John Elway gets enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame
20: The Avalanche hoist third Stanley Cup in franchise history
19: The Avalanche acquire Patrick Roy from the Canadiens
18: The Broncos produce the greatest offensive season in NFL history
17: John Elway joins the Broncos front office to right the ship
16: The Avalanche win the Stanley Cup in 1996
15: The Broncos nearly decade-long quarterback carousel
14: The Avs-Red Wings rivalry turns into a bloodbath
13: The Broncos win back-to-back titles during historic season
12: The Broncos suffer one of the worst losses in franchise history
11: The Broncos part ways with head coach Mike Shanahan
10: The Nuggets trade away Carmelo Anthony in a blockbuster deal
9: Nikola Jokic finally wins a much-deserved MVP award
8: Coach Prime arrives in Boulder and resuscitates the Buffaloes
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Wanna hear more about this Mile High Milestone? Tune into “The Rundown” at noon or check out the show on YouTube to hear Richie Carni and a special guest take a walk down memory lane.
