The Denver Broncos replaced Russell Wilson as starting quarterback with rookie first-round draft pick Bo Nix.
Now, Wilson is returning the favor.
Nix was selected as a Pro Bowl alternate with C.J. Stroud, Josh Allen, Justin Herbert, Lamar Jackson, and Patrick Mahomes all bowing out or otherwise preoccupied. However, a previously planned clean-up procedure will prevent Nix from participating.
That opened the door for Wilson, now of the Pittsburgh Steelers to make it. The accomplishment marks the 10th Pro Bowl in Wilson’s 13-year career.
“God is Good!!!” Wilson posted on X on January 29. “10th Pro Bowl.”
“Steelers quarterback Russell Wilson was named to the Pro Bowl Games as a replacement for Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen, who is unable to play due to an injury,” Steelers.com’s Teresa Varley wrote on January 28.
“Wilson will be making his 10th Pro Bowl appearance (2012-15, 2017-21, 2024), which is tied for fifth-most among quarterbacks in NFL history.”
Six other players have at least as many Pro Bowls as Wilson now does.
All are either in or considered locks for the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Wilson surpasses Broncos legend John Elway with this selection. Wilson remains four Pro Bowls short of fellow former Broncos QB Peyton Manning’s mark and five from catching Tom Brady for the lead.
Russell Wilson Predicted to Land with Raiders
GettyRussell Wilson #3 of the Pittsburgh Steelers warms up before a game against the Baltimore Ravens.
Wilson signed a one-year, $1.2 million contract with the Steelers in free agency. It was a relative bargain thanks partly to the Broncos paying him $37.9 million in 2024. That was part of an $85 million dead cap hit after cutting him in Year 1 of a five-year, $245 million pact.
Steelers president Art Rooney II left the door open for Wilson to leave the Steelers in free agency this offseason. ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler linked Wilson to the Las Vegas Raiders.
“Is a reunion with Pete Carroll, now Las Vegas’ head coach, really viable? Two ex-Carroll assistants believe they can co-exist, with one taking it as far as predicting that Wilson will sign there, adding that the two rekindled their relationship a little over a year ago after a rocky ending the Seattle,” Fowler wrote on January 29.
“The Raiders’ plans are uncertain, but this at least seems like a possibility.”
“I think both would be open to it, especially with this QB class the way it is,” a different former assistant of Carroll’s told Fowler.
Wilson to Vegas has been a popular notion in media circles, with Fowler making the connection upon Carroll’s hire. However, Carroll pumped the brakes on that, saying it was “too soon” to project a reunion.
That could be because Wilson is still technically under contract, limiting what Carroll can say.
Russell Wilson’s Potential Return to AFC West Could Be Good News Broncos
GettyFormer Denver Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson #3 greets former Seattle Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll after a game.
Wilson earned his first nine Pro Bowl nods under Carroll’s watch. The duo also went to back-to-back Super Bowls, winning one following the 2013 season. Wilson has said he would like to return to Pittsburgh. His potential return to the AFC West could boost the Broncos’ outlook.
The veteran is 2-1 against the Broncos in his career.
He sandwiched the lone loss with wins, first in 2018 and then again in Week 2 of the 2024 regular season. Wilson was not active for that game, though.
Wilson went 1-3 against Broncos head coach Sean Payton when the latter was leading the New Orleans Saints. He was inactive for the most recent of those games, a loss that came during the 2021 season.
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