Los Angeles (United States) (AFP) – Super Bowl-winning quarterback Russell Wilson offered a heartfelt “Thank you” to football on Wednesday in a social media video confirming his move from the NFL field to the broadcast booth. “As I enter this next chapter with CBS Sports and ‘The NFL Today’ I’m so blessed to be able to continue doing what I love most: being around the greatest game in the world,” Wilson said in the voice-over to the video that spanned hallmark moments of his career.
The 37-year-old thanked his former coach, Pete Carroll, for taking a chance on him in 2012 when the Seattle Seahawks drafted Russell in the third round despite widespread doubts around the NFL that the 5-foot-11 signal-caller would thrive in the professional league. Russell won the Seahawks starting quarterback job as a rookie and with Carroll at the helm led Seattle to the Super Bowl title in his second season.
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The Seahawks came up agonizingly short in their repeat bid the next year after Wilson threw a late interception at the goal line in their loss to the New England Patriots. Wilson was a 10-time Pro-Bowler, spending 10 seasons with the Seahawks before landing with Denver, where he was benched in 2023.
He spent the last two seasons of his playing career with the Pittsburgh Steelers and New York Giants but played just three games for the Giants last season before he was supplanted as starter by rookie Jaxson Dart. US media reported this week that Wilson was in talks for a job on CBS’s “NFL Today” programme, taking over from former quarterback Matt Ryan who left the network to become the Atlanta Falcons’ new president of football.
During his 14-year career, Wilson threw for 46,966 yards, 353 touchdowns, and 114 interceptions. He was also named the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year in 2020 for his charitable work off the field.
© 2024 AFP
