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Russell Wilson Calls Sean Payton 'Classless' After Postgame Dig About Giants QB Switch

Wilson’s public rebuke revives their fraught Denver split and invokes Payton’s 2012 suspension over the Saints’ bounty scandal.

Overview

  • Wilson posted on X that Payton was "classless" and quipped about "bounty hunting," a pointed reference to the NFL’s Bountygate findings that led to Payton’s yearlong ban in 2012.
  • Payton had praised rookie Jaxson Dart after Denver’s 33-32 win and said he told Giants owner John Mara he wished the quarterback change from Wilson to Dart had come after the Broncos game.
  • As of Tuesday evening, there was no substantive public response from Payton to Wilson’s remarks.
  • Dart remains the Giants’ starter after replacing Wilson following an 0-3 start, and he accounted for multiple touchdowns in the narrow loss to Denver.
  • The exchange spotlights lingering tension from 2023, when Payton benched Wilson late in their lone season together and Denver later released him with significant dead-money consequences.