Former NFL quarterback Robert Griffin III said Tony Gonzalez and Richard Sherman did Russell Wilson “so dirty” when they ripped the Giants’ now backup quarterback on “Thursday Night Football.”
Taking to X, Griffin defended Wilson — benched this week for rookie Jaxson Dart amid an 0-3 start — after Sherman, a former teammate of Wilson’s in Seattle, and Hall of Fame tight end Tony Gonzalez debated the quarterback’s Hall-of-Fame status on the Amazon Prime broadcast of the Seahawks’ 23-20 win over the Cardinals.
“They doing Russell Wilson so dirty,” Griffin wrote. “I never hear former teammates attack [former Giants quarterback] Eli Manning and his record or how he performed outside of the 2 Super Runs they had. They show him the respect he has earned and appreciate him for helping them win at the highest level. That ain’t right.”
During halftime in Glendale, Ariz., Sherman and Gonzalez were aligned on the idea that Wilson’s career went downhill when he left Seattle in 2022.
Wilson has played for the Broncos, Steelers and Giants since leaving Seattle.
“Honestly, I hope we have (seen the last of him),” Gonzalez said when Prime Video host Charissa Thompson asked, “Do you think we’ve seen the last of Wilson?”
Gonzalez continued, “And I say that because just looking at him and his career, his legacy, like you talked about, if ever there was somebody who played himself out of a Hall of Fame, it’s Russell Wilson. I say that because look what’s happened — ever since he left Seattle. When he was in Seattle, he was the man. He was making these good plays, won a Super Bowl, been to two of them.
“But as soon as he left there and went to Denver, signed that big ol’ deal, they paid him $30 million to leave. He goes to Pittsburgh, plays there one year and he’s out of there. Now he goes [to the Giants] and he has three games. I just don’t know if its going to get any better. I don’t want to see him on the sidelines with a clipboard … I just don’t think he’s done himself any favors since he left Seattle.”
Sherman — teammates with Wilson from 2012-17, including a Super Bowl 2014 win together — explained that Wilson hasn’t proven himself to be a great quarterback in the latter half of his career.
“Yeah, I agree,” Sherman said. “II think you got to judge his career off when the Legion of Boom was there. You had a legendary defense, an all-time defense and how much success he had and then without that legendary defense, the success he had. Without that legendary defense, he’s been 4-11, 7-8, 0-3 to start with the Giants.
“He was a winning football player in Seattle and people said, ‘Hey, winningest football player.’ All this good stuff, all these accolades. And now you get to go on your own and you get to prove, ‘Hey, I’m this great quarterback. I’m this guy that’s gonna be dominant.’ And it just hasn’t worked out that way.”
Wilson, 36, said he’s “not done yet” and that he is focused on helping Dart and winning.
“I’ve got so much belief in myself and I know what I’m capable of,” he said. “I know I can help this football team if that comes up.”
The veteran quarterback signed a one-year deal with the Giants in March after one season with the Steelers.
So far in New York, Wilson has recorded 778 passing yards with three touchdowns and three interceptions.
The shift to Dart came after Wilson tossed two interceptions and could not generate much offense in the Giants’ 22-9 home loss to the Chiefs on “Sunday Night Football.”
Dart, whom the Giants selected 25th overall during the 2025 NFL Draft in April, will make his first NFL start Sunday against the Chargers at MetLife Stadium. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. ET.