Kickin’ It with Kiz: The flop of Russell Wilson proves Sean Payton is no football mastermind

Players win games. Coaches try not to mess it up. During the peak of Brett Favre’s career, I asked Mike Holmgren, then coach in Green Bay and a former quarterback: Is the QB or head coach more essential to the success of an NFL team? Holmgren laughed and replied; “I’ve got to plead the Fifth.” The flop of Wilson with the Broncos reminds us a championship quarterback can make Payton look smart, but for all his alleged genius, Payton can’t make an average NFL quarterback a champion.

The staff here at Kickin’ It Headquarters is known for being reactionary, simple minded dullards. And we’re proud of it. But scoreboard matters to us, as do victories. While we acknowledge Stidham played without valuable receiver Courtland Sutton in the lineup during his Broncos debut against the Chargers, he passed for 224 yards, scored 16 points and had a QBR of 31.3 Three weeks earlier, Wilson went on the road against the Chargers and threw for 224 yards, scored 24 points and had a QBR of 36.4.

If you want to give the edge to Stidham on style points, that’s fine and dandy, chocolate candy. But pro football is a bottom line business. Wilson has won 124 games in his NFL career, including the Super Bowl against your Broncos. Stidham has won exactly one NFL game as a starting quarterback. We will bet our life savings against yours that despite his quick release, Stidham will never match Wilson in the most important measuring stick for any quarterback.

And today’s parting shot is a reminder that while sports coverage is sometimes dismissed as the toy department of journalism, it’s not all fun and games..