Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll said at the Scouting Combine this month that the team had no intention of trading quarterback Russell Wilson, but they wound up agreeing to trade him to the Broncos a week later.
That trade became official on Wednesday and Wilson said in a press conference from Denver that it was a “mutual” decision to pursue a trade between him and his former team. A release from the Seahawks announcing the trade sent a different message, however.
Seahawks chair Jody Allen said in a statement that “Russell made it clear he wanted this change” and that she “looks forward to welcoming our new players and to everyone being fully engaged.” General Manager John Schneider said that “it became evident that Russell was interested in playing elsewhere” as the team discussed future plans with him and Carroll sent a similar message.
“This has always been a challenging time of year where we have consistently maintained a competitive approach to getting better as a team,” Carroll said in a statement. “As Jody stated, Russ’ desire in doing something different afforded the organization an opportunity to compete in multiple ways. He has always been the ultimate competitor whose leadership and consistency helped shape our culture. Our franchise has won a lot of games and we will always be grateful for the exciting moments and incredible records.”
Broncos General Manager George Paton said in Wednesday’s press conference that a “month of negotiations” preceded the agreement on a trade, so the Seahawks were open to a trade even as Carroll said it was not something they intended to do this offseason. Whatever the machinations that went on in Seattle, the end result is that both they and the Broncos are walking into new eras in 2022.