Who is Russell Wilson?

Russell Wilson is an American football quarterback for the Denver Broncos of the National Football League. He has been regarded as one of the best dual-threat QBs of the league and has previously been a part of the Seattle Seahawks. He was first drafted in 2012 in the third round (overall 75th pick).

He has one Super Bowl title to his name under the Seahawks in 2014. Apart from the football gridiron, Wilson actively takes part in philanthropic works with his wife Ciara. An interesting fact about Russell Wilson is that his jersey sales consistently rank among the top in the NFL dynamics.

Russell Wilson's early life and family background

Russell Carrington Wilson was born in Cincinnati on November 29, 1988, and grew up in Richmond town of Virginia. His dad, Harrison Benjamin Wilson III, worked as a lawyer and his mom, Tammy Wilson, was a nurse director. Russell Wilson has 2 siblings, an older brother named Harrison IV and a younger sister named Anna. The QB got interested in the game of football as he started playing with his father and brother at the mere age of 4.

The first organized game that he played was for the Tuckahoe Tomahawks youth football team in sixth grade. The Broncos QB has been surrounded by sports from his very childhood, with his father playing football and baseball at Dartmouth, and being a WR, his brother, Harry, playing football and baseball at the University of Richmond, and his sister Anna playing basketball at Stanford.

Following similar steps, the QB joined Stone Bridge High School and was a part of the football team along with the baseball team. As a junior in 2005, Russell Wilson threw for 3,287 passing yards and 40 passing TDs. In his senior year, he threw for 3,009 passing yards and 34 touchdowns. His performances led him to become the all-conference and all-state player of the year. In high school itself, Wilson developed a professional passion for football, after joining the Manning Passing Academy, a summer football clinic run by multiple NFL MVP winner and Hall of Famer Peyton Manning.

Russell Wilson's first marriage

Russell Wilson was first married to Ashton Meem for two years (2012-2014). Meem has a bachelor's degree in communications from North Carolina State University in 2010 and has been working with American Family Insurance as an Advertising Operations Assistant for over 10 years, per her LinkedIn profile. She also works as an account executive at Morton Consulting LLC and has been there for over a decade as well. The duo got married on January 14, 2012, at Country Club in Virginia - the same year he was drafted into the NFL.

However, just two years later, in April 2014, the couple decided to separate ways. Concerning the divorce, Wilson said, "Clearly, decisions like these don’t come easy. Ashton and I respectfully ask for prayers, understanding, and privacy during this difficult time. Moving forward, I will have no further comment on this personal matter." No reason behind their divorce was put forth by either of the parties. They do not have any kids together. Despite being married to Wilson, Meem hasn't been under the limelight much and has maintained a rather private life.

Russell Wilson and Ciara

After his divorce in 2014, the football QB met Ciara Wilson at a Wisconsin basketball game, as revealed by Russell Wilson during one of his Instagram lives. They made their first public appearance on April 28, 2015, as they attended the White House Correspondents' Dinner hand-in-hand. Eventually, later that year, the couple officially admitted to being in a relationship.

In the following year (2016), Wilson proposed to Ciara, and the same year on July 6, 2016, they got married. It was a private and close wedding in England. After getting married to the pop singer, Russell Wilson not only became a husband to Ciara but also a stepdad to her son, Future Zahir Wilburn. She had Zahir with her ex, Nayvadius DeMun Wilbur, who goes by the stage name, Future. In 2017, Russell Wilson and Ciara welcomed their first baby together. Ciara gave birth to a daughter named Sienna Princess Wilson on April 28. After that, they had two more kids.

One was born on April 14, 2020, and was named Win Harrison Wilson, and another daughter was born on December 11, 2023. She has been given the name Amora Princess Wilson. They also share a puppy named Bronco. He was gifted to Ciara by Wilson on Mother's Day. Bronco joined the family shortly after Ciara's previous dog Tyson passed away after being with the singer for almost 17 years. Eventually, they also started their own production company. It goes by the name Why Not You Productions and per sources, it aims at being able to make an impact on people. As an extension of this foundation, they also released a book called "Why Not You," which is a children's book.

Russell Wilson's net worth in 2024

Per Celebrity Net Worth, Russell Wilson's current 2024 Net Worth lies at $165 million. While the majority of this number is contributed to by his NFL earnings, there is also a contribution from all his endorsements and investments made. Russell Wilson hosts a salary of $48.5 million from matches in the NFL, according to celebrity net worth. Initially with the Seahawks, he became the highest-paid athlete after the four-year-long $140 million contract extension in 2019. He even received a bonus of $65 million, with which his income raised to $107 million.

After this, he got traded to the Denver Broncos in March 2022, where he grabbed a signing bonus of $70 million. An extension worth $245 million came his way, gaining a 5-year contract. This guarantees him at least $161 million by the expiration rate of the contract.

Russell Wilson earns approximately $14 million from his endorsements, with which his net worth automatically receives a boost. The deals include-

• Nike


• Bose


• Braun


• Aerobie


• American Family Insurance


• Alaska Airlines


• Boardroom


• Good Man Brand


• Amazon


• Microsoft


• Duracell

Other than this, his investments also have a major role to play in his net worth. Wilson invested in the Portland Diamond Project, aiming to bring the MLB team to Oregon. He also has invested in creating a new sports arena in Seattle's SoDo neighborhood for rising NBA and NHL teams, partnering with Chris Hansen, NBA star Wally Walker, and Erik and Pete Nordstrom.

The helmet manufacturing company VICIS also received a $7 million investment from the player. His business interest goes beyond sports, as he invested in and endorsed the "Molecule" mattress company as well in 2018. His income also has a part from being the CEO of the management firm "West2East Empire." Good Man Brand, his clothing line started in 2016 as well. In 2017, he founded "TraceMe," a platform for fans to get in touch with various celebrities. Some investors of the same are Jeff Bezos, Joe Tsai, and Chad Hurley.

Russell Wilson’s career timeline

Russell Wilson was drafted in 2012 by the Seattle Seahawks. Since then, he played for the squad until the 2021- 2022 season. He was the 75th overall pick and was selected in the third round. Initially, Wilson was considered short for a QB, but he eventually proved his prowess on the field. In the very first season, he became the starting QB after competing with Matt Flynn and Tarvaris Jackson. Eventually, he won the Rookie of the Year Award for his five-game winning streak and a total of 26 touchdowns that season.

In his second season, Russell Wilson helped the Seahawks reach the Super Bowl as they clinched the title SB XLVIII. He made two touchdowns and allowed his team to conquer the Denver Broncos with a 43-8 score. Astonishingly, under his leadership, the Seahawks also reached another Super Bowl in 2014. Sadly, this time, they lost to the New England Patriots. Ultimately, he was traded to the Denver Broncos, where he signed a four-year deal in 2022.

Surprisingly, Wilson's first season with the Broncos was the complete opposite of the success he was used to with the Seahawks. Arguably, harboring, one of the worst offenses of the season, Wilson couldn't turn the tide for the Broncos. His team did not make it to the playoffs this season. He had 26 TDs to his name with 45 sacks and covered 3070 yards. In fact, the Denver Broncos benched their starting QB just as the playoffs were approaching. These steps and the change in the contract have made the clouds of uncertainty loom over the football player.

Russell Wilson's career stats and records

Russell Wilson had an extremely promising college career to show on his resume. The QB played for 4 years with the NC State Wolfpack and for 1 year with the Wisconsin Badgers. In his overall college career, he played 51 games, starting 50 of them, hosting a record of 31-19. In 1,489 attempts, he had 907 completions to his name, making up a 60.9% rate. His passing yards were about 11,720 while rushing yards were around 1,427. The QB had 109 passing TDs and 23 rushing TDs under his belt.

Russell Wilson has had a rather exceptional journey in the NFL, with his stats a sure proof of the same. With 5,665 passing attempts to his name, his completions stand at 3,668 leading to his percentage to be at a considerably good number of 64.7%. He had 334 passing TDs and 29 rushing TDs to show in his record, along with having covered 43,653 passing yards and 5,307 rushing yards. His passer rating currently is at 100.0. Wilson has played 188 regular season games and has made 16 playoff appearances.

He hosts the NFL records for most passing yards in a playoff game by a rookie (385) and the most fourth-quarter touchdown passes in a season (16 in 2017). For the Seahawks, the player bears multiple massive records to his name. He has the most games with a passing TD under his belt (137) along with the highest passer rating in his whole career (101.8) and the highest passer rating in a season (110.9 in 2018).

Russell Wilson contracts

Wilson signed a four-year deal with the Seahawks for $ 2.99 million. At the end of his first season, he also won a bonus of $222,000 through the NFL Performance-based pay program. In 2015, Russell Wilson signed a contract with the Seahawks for four years for $87.6 million. This contract was ultimately extended in 2019 by the Seattle Seahawks for another four years. This time, the worth of the contract was around $140 million.

Following this, when he was traded to the Denver Broncos, he signed a 5-year $245 million contract on September 1, 2022. However, the two seasons at Broncos witnessed only a subpar performance from Russell Wilson. He was eventually benched for the last two games of the season. It was notified that the reason behind the action was to "preserve financial flexibility." His contract with the Broncos includes a $37 million payment for 2025. This would become guaranteed if he is unable to pass the physical test.

While the squad has reportedly asked him to revisit this clause in the contract and change it, sources have revealed that Wilson has declined the same. To further add pressure, it was reported that they allegedly threatened the QB to bench him for the same. Now, as the team prepares to make a decision, two scenarios might play out. One, if Broncos and coach Payton decide to trade Wilson, it will result in a $85 million cap charge. Additionally, the $39 million in guaranteed money in 2024. Two, if they decide to keep him, the cap number is $90 million over two seasons, and an additional $37 million due in 2025.

Russell Wilson awards and achievements

• Super Bowl XLVIII Champion


• 9× Pro Bowl (2012”“2015, 2017”“2021)


• Second-team All-Pro (2019)


• NFC Offensive Player of the Month (September 2020)


• NFL Offensive Rookie of the Month (December 2012)


• 11× NFC Offensive Player of the Week)


• Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Week (Week 10, 2012)


• PFWA Good Guy Award (2014)


• 7× FedEx Air Player of the Week


• 3x Steve Largent Award (2012, 2018, 2019)


• NFL Top 100: 51st (2013), 20th (2014), 22nd (2015), 17th (2016), 24th (2017), 11th (2018), 25th (2019), 2nd (2020), 12th (2021)


• Walter Payton Man of The Year (2020)


• Bart Starr Award (2022)


• 2019 MLS Cup Champion (as part owner of the Seattle Sounders FC)

Expensive things owned by Russell Wilson

The Broncos QB bought a new house in Colorado where he recently shifted with his family. His new place is present in the suburbs of Denver in Cherry Hills Village. Covering 5 acres of land, and around 20,000 sq ft of room, the huge property is worth about $25 million. It holds 4 bedrooms, 12 bathrooms, and an indoor pool as well. Other than this, the house also has space for a 9-car garage, a theater, and a basketball court.

Apart from his house, Wilson is known to spend his money well enough in large amounts on his car collection as well. The QB owns several luxurious and branded vehicles, including a Mercedes-Benz G Wagon, an Audi, a Range Rover, and a Tesla. Recently, he even bought a new Rolls Royce for this collection of his.

Russell Wilson on social media