Coach Prime Makes Bold Promise on Behalf of Broncos HC Sean Payton
In the wake of that 50-point loss to the Miami Dolphins, millions of Denver Broncos fans are questioning their read on head coach Sean Payton. The man who led the New Orleans Saints to a Super Bowl championship and the only sustained period of relevance in team history was expected to lift the Broncos out of the NFL doldrums.
And yet, Denver is 0-3. Adding insult to injury, Payton's refusal to fire defensive coordinator Vance Joseph after his defense relinquished a 70-burger to Miami has lost him the benefit of the doubt in the eyes of countless Broncos fans.
However, Colorado Buffaloes head coach Deion Sanders doesn't want to hear that criticism of Payton, throwing out a bold prediction during a press conference this week.
"Hey, leave my guy alone. Leave my guy alone," Sanders said this week. "I love the Broncos. I love their coach, and Sean Payton's my guy. He's going to get it right, I promise you that."
Coach Prime's words will come as cold comfort to most fans right now, though Broncos Country wants to believe it. The NFL is a production-based business, and the bottom line is Payton has failed to produce a victory yet. Two of Denver's losses were not only winnable games, but games the Broncos were supposed to win.
If we are reviewing the receipts, though, it's quite clear that the early returns on the Broncos' offense under Payton are promising. As the No. 15 offense in total yards, Payton has coached Russell Wilson to improved levels of production.
The Broncos enter Week 4 with the No. 8 passing offense. Meanwhile, Wilson ranks No. 8 in passing yards, No. 6 in passing touchdowns, and No. 7 in passer rating.
That's what you call a top-10 quarterback.
Payton is coming through on his promises relative to Wilson, even though it's still a work in progress, so perhaps Broncos fans should listen to Coach Prime and extend that honeymoon period. If Payton can help Joseph figure out how to correct the Broncos' defensive issues, and the offense can begin to produce in the second half of games as well as it does in the first, this team would have something.
That would lead to Payton getting it "right," to quote Coach Prime. Alas, as much as many fans want to give Payton more rope to prove himself, the past seven years of NFL humiliation and depredations have led to trigger fingers within Broncos Country hovering over the panic button.
Sanders' strong endorsement of Payton doesn't change the reality of the Broncos sitting at 0-3. But it does perhaps put into perspective how Payton's timeline for fixing the deep-seated issues that have corrupted this team for three-quarters of a decade will stretch beyond the 2023 season.
That's been made apparent by the first three games of Payton's maiden campaign. There might be too much water under this bridge for a worst-to-first turnaround in Year 1, but the season is young yet.
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