He might’ve brought the Seattle Seahawks their first Super Bowl title, but upon his return to the Pacific Northwest with his new team on Monday, Russell Wilson certainly didn’t get a hero’s welcome.
Wilson – now the quarterback of the Denver Broncos after having been traded from the Seahawks following a successful 10-year stint – was booed by the majority inside Lumen Field when he took to the gridiron for the first time in his new colors.
And the evening didn’t get any better for Wilson, as he and the Broncos were edged out 17-16 by the Seahawks.
However, Wilson said he expected the hostile reception upon his return to the city he had called home for a decade.
“It didn’t bother me, you know, it’s a hostile environment, it always has been. I didn’t expect them to give a round of applause every once in a while,” Wilson said with a smile after the game.
The 33-year-old added: “For me, Seattle’s been amazing for me. Like I said, anybody who thinks any other words, they don’t know my heart, and they don’t know how much this city has meant to me. Tonight was special, it was on the other side than I’m used to, but it was still a special environment and a place I’ve always loved.”
Fine margins
It was always going to be a memorable return to Seattle for Wilson.
The Seahawks drafted the quarterback with a third-round pick in 2012. During his time in the Pacific Northwest, he guided the franchise into eight postseasons, including two Super Bowl appearances and one championship win in 2014.
However, after relationships staled between Wilson and Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll in recent years, he was traded to the Broncos in the offseason for a huge haul in an exchange that sent shockwaves through the sport.
Upon arriving in Denver, he signed a five-year extension with the team reportedly worth $245 million and his debut just so happened to come at his former stomping ground in Seattle.