Wilson hoping to finish career with Broncos

After completing his first voluntary minicamp practice with the Denver Broncos on Monday, quarterback Russell Wilson already can't see playing anywhere else for the rest of his NFL career.

"I want to be here, obviously. I want to live here. Hopefully, I get to finish my career here," Wilson said, according to Troy Renck of Denver7. "The city is amazing. The energy. The people. It's a great sports town. The schools, everything. Everything is a big part of it for me and my family.

"To be here is such an exciting thing, and hopefully, we will win a lot of football games."

Wilson has previously said he wants to play until he's 45. The veteran turns 34 in November, so he'd need to play another 11 seasons.

The Seattle Seahawks traded Wilson to the Broncos in a blockbuster move in March, concluding a 10-year relationship and ending Denver's long hunt for a successor to Peyton Manning.

Wilson will be working under only his second NFL head coach, Nathaniel Hackett, after spending his entire Seahawks career with Pete Carroll.

The quarterback heaped praise on Hackett, who spent three seasons as the Green Bay Packers' offensive coordinator before the Broncos hired him to replace Vic Fangio in January.

"He's an amazing teacher. I think that's what I love about it," said Wilson. "Everyone is learning at such a rapid pace. He just brings great energy. He's young, he's vibrant. He brings that intelligence to the game.

"Our relationship is really tight. To give him little handoffs here and there, somebody said they call him 'White Lightning.' I don't know about that, but he looked good."

Wilson will look to rebound with the Broncos after a disappointing final season with Seattle. The Seahawks finished 7-10 in 2021, missing the playoffs for only the second since Wilson arrived in 2012.

The signal-caller missed three games due to a thumb injury - the first missed starts of his career - and finished the year with a career-low 3,113 passing yards and his fewest touchdowns (25) since the 2016 campaign.