The quarterback who led his team to victory in the most recent Super Bowl has filed for divorce from his wife of two years. They do not have any children together. A statement from a spokesperson for the football player said that they had made a difficult decision and that they would like privacy from the media while working out the details of the divorce.

This case has some interesting elements, since the two began dating and were married before the football player signed his first contract with an NFL team. They met in high school and attended college together, marrying just before he was drafted by the Seahawks in 2012.

At that time he was a college star but unproven in the professional context, so the total value of his contract was rather low. In fact, he is only the fourth highest paid quarterback on his own team. Yet, he began as the starting quarterback and proved quite valuable, leading the team to victory this year. Now, entering his third season of a four-year contract, the player’s value has gone up substantially and experts say he can expect a significant pay raise on renegotiation. This will bring up an interesting issue for the divorce, since his soon-to-be ex-wife will likely be entitled to spousal support. For the moment, the support amount will be calculated by looking at current earnings and lifestyle needs. However, a major change in earnings down the road could lead to a potential renegotiation of the support amount. 

Source: The Seattle Times, “Seahawks’ Russell Wilson, wife divorcing after 2 years,” Bob Condotta, April 23, 2014

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