Former Dallas Cowboys quarterback and ESPN commentator Troy Aikman took a shot at Broncos QB Russell Wilson for missing an easy pass for a first down.
It’s been a tough start to the season for Russell Wilson, and Troy Aikman only made matters worse on Monday Night Football.
Wilson got off to an excellent start, completing his first six passes for over 100 yards and a touchdown in the first quarter. But, one missed pass on a third and short had Aikman all over him.
Denver started 2-3 on the season, thanks in part to the rough head coaching debut of Nathaniel Hackett. Wilson, for his part, has not looked great, but per Hackett was playing through injury.
Russell Wilson’s Broncos struggles continue
The organization has Wilson’s back, though the fanbase is growing impatient.
“Everything is more growing pains right now. We’re five games into the season, five games we’ve all been working together, we’re all still getting to know each other, Russell getting to know the team, the team getting to know him,” Hackett said. “Same thing for me, when you’re in those high critical situations, how people are going to react. What plays are maybe our go-tos, what we want to accomplish … it’s about us understanding what we want to go to when we need to.”
Despite his struggles, Wilson has refused to alter his process or practice routine. It worked well for him in Seattle, though these are different times.
“I’ve been in tough times before and come out on the other end of it—gone to the playoffs and all of those other great things,” Wilson said on Friday. “Everything that we want is still in front of us. We have to play great this week and keep going.”
Wilson isn’t the same dual-threat quarterback he once was. He must rely almost solely on his arm, and that’s been a struggle so far this year. Missing reads like the one pointed out by Aikman above won’t help.