Russell Wilson has been urged to retire and give up on the NFL amid uncertainty over the legendary quarterback’s future.
Wilson, 37, is currently a free agent after his one-year deal with the New York Giants ended. He began last season as the starter before being demoted in favor of rookie Jaxson Dart.
Since then, Super Bowl champion Wilson has not exactly been inundated with offers from teams and is still without a contract for next season as teams continued to ramp up their preparations.
The New York Jets, who have already signed quarterback Geno Smith to their ranks, were rumored to be interested but head coach Aaron Glenn poured cold water on that.
Wilson does have options outside of football, however, with CBS Sports believed to be eyeing Wilson for an analyst position.
And Aqib Talib, a Super Bowl champion, has urged Wilson to hang up his cleats for good and forge a new career in front of the camera.
Russell Wilson has been urged to retire and give up on the NFL for a move into a TV role
Wilson, with wife Ciara at the Met Gala, is a free agent after leaving the New York Giants
‘Do your TV thing, Russ,’ Talib said on a recent episode of ‘The Arena: Gridiron.’
‘It’s over with, man. Once you’ve got to decide, do I even want to play? I think you don’t really want to play.
‘I hate when guys get to the later part of their career and then they start doing the bounce-around thing and they’re not going to win. There was no chip in New York. That’s just going to be another stop on your résumé.’
As a source recently told The Daily Mail, Wilson could still entertain other offers to stay in the league, even as he considers becoming a CBS analyst.
Even if Wilson is unsigned at the start of training camp, the source stressed he could still opt to return, depending on the opportunities available to him during the season.
‘He is currently leaning toward doing TV but not fully retiring and seeing how the season pans out with injuries,’ the source told The Daily Mail.
‘He would highly consider joining a team later in the season that is making a playoff push. He feels that TV is his future and if he gets a contract that is too good to refuse, then he will do that immediately and monitor the game from the studio.’
‘But he could have a clause in his contract that he could sign with a team if needed.’
Super Bowl winner Aqib Talib questioned whether Wilson has the urge to continue playing
The source close to Wilson says that he doesn’t want that to be the final chapter of his career if he can avoid it.
‘He is eager not to retire and have one final moment, but he is OK taking a year off and trying TV,’ the source continued.
‘He’s going the route of having his cake and eating it too.’
Wilson won a Super Bowl with the Seattle Seahawks in 2014 during a 10-season run with the team.
But since leaving Seattle, he has struggled with the Denver Broncos, Pittsburgh Steelers and, most recently, the Giants.
