Denver Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson Jim Dedmon-USA TODAY Sports

'About half' of Broncos team reportedly didn't attend birthday party for Russell Wilson

By Zac Wassink | Last updated 11/30/22

There's a new twist in the saga involving quarterback Russell Wilson and his standing in the Denver Broncos locker room.

Mike Klis of 9News reported Wednesday that Ciara, Wilson's wife and an international entertainment superstar, held a birthday party Tuesday night for her husband. "It looked like about half the team was there," a source told Klis:

There’s been some gossip about Russell Wilson’s standing in locker room. Here’s some context. Per source Wilson’s wife Ciara thru him a birthday party last night and “it looked like about half the team was there.” On player’s day off. Why do people have to be so hurtful? #9sports
— Mike Klis (@mikeklis) November 30, 2022

Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio was quick to point out that "the simple reality is that about half of the team wasn't" at what likely was a "swanky" event "with plenty of great food and drink and entertainment and whatever."

Wilson joined the Broncos from the Seattle Seahawks via a blockbuster trade completed in March and ultimately signed a five-year extension reportedly worth $245 million with $165 million guaranteed. Since that time, Denver has fallen to 3-8 on the season, and Wilson has repeatedly been blasted by analysts and fans, alike, for his on-the-field play and off-the-field antics.

NFL Network personality Michael Robinson, one of Wilson's ex-teammates with Seattle, said last month that mutiny could be "afoot" in Denver. NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero then raised eyebrows when he reported during a Tuesday appearance on "The Insiders" that Wilson and not first-year Broncos head coach Nathaniel Hackett "has lost some people in that locker room," per Jaclyn Hendricks of the New York Post.

ESPN stats show Wilson begins Week 13 29th in the NFL among qualified quarterbacks with an 82.3 passer rating, 30th with a 32.2 total QBR, and 31st with a 58.9% completion percentage on the campaign. In 10 games, he's thrown eight touchdown passes and five interceptions.

The Broncos play at the 7-4 Baltimore Ravens this Sunday.

More must-reads: