Watch: Broncos nearly pull off comeback with last-second Hail Mary
Just two games into the 2023 season and Denver Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson looks significantly better playing under head coach Sean Payton than he did last season under former head coach Nathaniel Hackett.
In Sunday’s 35-33 loss to the Washington Commanders, Wilson looked more like his old self, completing three passes of 50 or more yards, including a 50-yard bomb to Brandon Johnson on the final play of the game that put the Broncos just a 2-point conversion away from tying it up.
Unfortunately for Denver, Wilson’s magic ran out after Johnson’s TD catch as his pass to Courtland Sutton on the ensuing 2-point conversion fell incomplete and Washington narrowly escaped with a win.
Denver ranked 16th in the league last season in 2-point conversion percentage (50%), per Team Rankings.
Both of Wilson’s other two deep passes either scored a touchdown or led to one. His first was a 60-yard bomb to Marvin Mims down the deep left sideline that gave Denver a two-score lead.
The other — a 53-yard strike to Mims early in the second quarter — helped keep a nine-play, 90-yard drive alive and ultimately led to a 16-yard touchdown catch from Johnson that gave the Broncos a 21-3 lead.
Though they lost, the silver lining for Broncos fans is that although it's been just two games, Payton appears to have found the Wilson that made nine Pro Bowls with the Seattle Seahawks. The 34-year-old QB is completing 68.2 percent of his passes with five touchdowns, just one interception and a passer rating of 107.6.
Last season, Wilson had just two games with at least three touchdown passes and only two games with a passer rating of 107 or higher. His five touchdown passes through two games is also more than he had in any two-game span last year, and he needs just one more game with multiple touchdown passes to match his mark from 2022.
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