Hall of Fame QB confident Broncos' Russell Wilson can turn things around

Hall of Fame quarterback Warren Moon remains confident the combination of signal-caller Russell Wilson and head coach Sean Payton can turn the 1-3 Denver Broncos around beginning with this Sunday's home game against the 1-3 New York Jets. 

"I knew Sean was gonna come in and start having Russell do a lot of the things that Sean thinks Russell does best, not try and force an offense on him," Moon told Jason Reid of Andscape this week. "They hadn’t been winning, but Russell’s numbers aren’t bad. The [team’s] record doesn’t show it, but Russell has been having some [individual] success." 

Payton lost the first three games of his Denver tenure before the Broncos earned a 31-28 victory at what were the winless Chicago Bears last Sunday. According to ESPN stats, Wilson heads into this weekend tied for third in the NFL with nine touchdown passes and ranked 18th among qualified players with a 51.3 adjusted QBR. Meanwhile, the Denver defense is allowing a league-worst 37.5 points per game after four weeks of play. 

It was said soon after Payton accepted the Denver job this past offseason that Wilson is essentially "on a one-year audition" even though he signed a five-year contract extension reportedly worth $245M with $165M guaranteed before the start of the 2022 season. Moon suggested during his chat with Reid that there are signs Payton can get Wilson back to the form that made the 34-year-old a nine-time Pro Bowl selection while playing for the Seattle Seahawks from 2012 through the 2021 campaign.

"He’s getting back to a little bit more movement, a little more play-action," Moon added about Wilson. "He’s a very good play-action passer. He’s a really good deep-ball thrower. He’s gotten back to those things since Sean has been there, so that’ll give him a chance. We’ll see where it goes." 

As of Friday afternoon, OddsChecker listed the Broncos as 2.5-point favorites to defeat the Jets at Empower Field at Mile High. Moon's words likely will mean little to Denver fans if Wilson and company come up short on Sunday afternoon.