Reporter says Sean Payton, not Steelers QB Russell Wilson was to blame for, ‘Toxic’ relationship in Denver

Russell Wilson, while proven to be an elite QB in his prime, has always had a history of rubbing people the wrong way .

And while he's integrating into Pittsburgh as the leader and veteran presence the team needs at the position, it wasn't always that way in Denver.

But according to Ray Fittipaldo of the Pittsburgh Post Gazette , it was Wilson's former HC Sean Payton who deserves the blame for things going array with the Broncos.

Wilson not the toxic one?

“One thing that always struck a cord with me about Russell Wilson’s tenure in Denver was Sean Payton went out of his way to make things difficult with their relationship,” Ray Fittipaldo of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette said during an appearance on 93.7 The Fan . “Really putting a Super Bowl-winning veteran quarterback in places that were just odd for me to see him. The way he talked about him in the media. His body language in games, the yelling on the sidelines. You don’t see that every day.”

This shouldn't be news to anyone who watched a Denver Broncos game last year, as Payton couldn't wait to get Wilson out of the lineup. He even benched Russell Wilson down the stretch of the season just to be sure they wouldn't owe him any extra money should an injury occur.

The situation was doomed from the beginning and worse than many could ever imagine .

“Sean Payton does have a reputation in the NFL of being a guy who’s difficult to deal with. So that’s another reason I want to give Russell the benefit of the doubt with the Steelers,” Fittipaldo said. “Sometimes just getting away from a toxic coach can be a good thing. Maybe you get into a more positive situation. Maybe you can get back to where you were in Seattle. … That whole Sean Payton thing always struck me as odd, the way he treated Russell Wilson.”

Now, what can't be ignored is that Wilson wore out his welcome in Seattle, looked horrible in year one with Nate Hackett in Denver, and then was released in the largest dead money cap hit in NFL history earlier this year.

So there are certainly two sides to every story, and Wilson likely incurs blame, but it's fair to say that he was doomed from the start in Denver.

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