New Broncos OT believes Sean Payton will elevate Russell Wilson

New Denver Broncos offensive tackle Mike McGlinchey believes head coach Sean Payton can fix whatever ailed quarterback Russell Wilson during his first season with the organization. 

"I’m very familiar with Russ, playing against him twice a year for four years," McGlinchey told Mike Klis of Denver’s 9News. "He’s broken my heart numerous times. I know his game, I know what he’s capable of. He’s a Hall of Famer. And he’s capable of doing great things and winning a lot of games in this league like he did for a decade in Seattle. And I think coach Payton and the situation we’re going into is going to elevate his game even more." 

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport (h/t Kevin Patra) reported on March 13 that McGlinchey was making a move from the San Francisco 49ers to the Broncos via a five-year, $87.5M contract that includes over $50M guaranteed. Wilson, of course, spent a decade with the Seattle Seahawks before he was traded to Denver last year. 

Wilson's on-the-field struggles and alleged off-the-field issues throughout his first year with the Broncos have been well-documented. Somewhat interestingly, McGlinchey may have had his new QB1's back when he used a term familiar to many within the football community. 

"I know last season didn’t go the way Broncos Country wanted but I think things are going to be a lot different and I’m very excited to get to work with Russ and see what we can do together and how we can make a splash in the AFC," McGlinchey added during his comments. 

Wilson was routinely blasted for ending post-game news conferences with his "Broncos Country, let’s ride" catchphrase even as Denver plummeted down the standings due to defeats this past season. For what it's worth, Wilson did deal with what was reported to be a partially-torn hamstring during the fall, and it was learned Wednesday that the 34-year-old underwent arthroscopic knee surgery after the campaign. 

Perhaps better health coupled with Payton's coaching can help Wilson reclaim the best form he enjoyed while with the Seahawks and also prevent the signal-caller from being benched in favor of new backup Jarrett Stidham.