Sources - Broncos OK Russell Wilson to talk to teams before release - ESPN

Before free agency begins next week, the Broncos have given soon-to-be-released quarterback Russell Wilson permission to immediately begin speaking and meeting with other teams in their home cities, sources told ESPN's Adam Schefter on Wednesday.

The Broncos announced on Monday that they informed Wilson that he would be released after the 2024 league year begins next Wednesday, in a move that will end his tumultuous two-season run with the team.

In a statement released after the Broncos' announcement Monday, Wilson said, «Tough times don't last, but tough people do. God's got me. I am excited for what's next.»

The Broncos went 11-19 in Wilson's starts over two seasons and failed to make the playoffs. Coach Sean Payton benched him with two games remaining in 2023, a move that in effect marked the end of the quarterback's career in Denver. He had passed for 3,070 yards with 26 touchdowns and eight interceptions before his benching.

The Broncos signed Wilson to a five-year, $242.6 million deal after his arrival in a blockbuster trade with the Seattle Seahawks in 2022. They will take on an $85 million hit in dead money over the next two seasons because of the release.

The tipping point of the very public football divorce was likely the conversation between Wilson, his representatives and the Broncos during the team's Week 9 bye in 2023. The Broncos maintain that they wanted to find a «creative way'' for Wilson to waive, or adjust, a $37 million injury guarantee in his contract.

The Broncos' dead money charge for releasing Russell Wilson is larger than the next two closest combined all time, according to the Roster Management System.

Wilson, 35, said he was told at the time that if he and his representatives didn't play