On Monday night, former Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson heard it from current Seahawks fans, who booed him early and often when he returned as the quarterback of the Broncos.
After the game, Wilson was asked whether the noises absorbed by his ears got under his skin.
“No, it didn’t bother me,” Wilson said. “This is a hostile environment. It always has been. I didn’t expect them to give a round of applause every once in a while, you know. So I think that — like I would say, I gave everything I had, every day here. Every day. Anybody that says anything else, they’re completely wrong. I gave everything I had, every day. So I know that for a fact. Like I said, I have some amazing teammates on the other side of that field that I love to death and gave everything I had to them; they gave everything they had to me. God brought me somewhere else. I’m here in Denver. I’m excited where we’re going. So I’m just grateful. I give the glory to God because he’s given me the gift of playing this game.”
Wilson exits Seattle possibly for the last time (the Broncos won’t definitely play there again until 2030, but could return sooner) with fond memories, even if he didn’t get a win.
The real question is whether the way the game he lost will leave a mark. In Super Bowl XLIX, a fateful late-game decision lingered for a long time, but in that case Wilson kept the ball in his hands. This time, the head coach opted to kick a 64-yard field goal in lieu of trusting Wilson to gain five yards, with three time outs and plenty more than long enough to get the ball close enough for something with a higher percentage of success than (based on the kicker’s history of 60-plus-yard field goals) 12.5.