Here's Why Broncos' Defensive Continuity Has Sean Payton Excited

Heading into the 2026 season, the Denver Broncos' defense is looking very similar to the unit they rolled out throughout the course of their 2025 campaign.

In all, the Broncos have 10 of the same 11 starters set on that side of the ball. The only piece they lost throughout the offseason was defensive lineman John Franklin-Myers, who ultimately signed with the Tennessee Titans in free agency.

Outside of Franklin-Myers‘ departure, the Broncos have retained every key piece on their defensive front that totaled more than 60 sacks as a unit in 2025, and have all of their starters back in the secondary, ranking seventh in yards and fourth in touchdowns allowed.

That level of continuity could be big for the Broncos on that side of the ball heading into 2026. Considering Denver was ranked within the top-three scoring defenses across the league in 2025, keeping most of the pieces on the roster who contributed to that success may help them be just as good, if not better than that level they were previously at.

Sean Payton Reacts to Broncos' Defensive Continuity

That continuity also has Broncos head coach Sean Payton extremely excited for the season ahead.

And while Payton knows better than almost any coach in the league that each new year marks a fresh slate and a 0-0 record, having most of the pieces from last year's elite defense does tend to help push them in the right direction for 2026.

“It’s amazing," Payton said of the Broncos' defensive continuity. "Realistically, we lost ‘JFM’ [John Franklin-Myers], which is a guy who I will miss a lot, but we did a really good job of being able to keep everybody intact, defensively at least."

"We’re super excited to get this ball rolling. It starts fresh every year, so we are 0-0 right now, and we have to prove it again.”

Jun 16, 2026; Englewood, CO, USA; Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton speaks to the media following mini camp drills at Broncos Park. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

It also helps out that the Broncos are in the fourth year of Vance Joseph's time with the team as a defensive coordinator, which ties him for second in the NFL for being the longest-tenured defensive coordinator behind Steve Spagnuolo of the Kansas City Chiefs.

That extended time with Joseph not only helps the players who have been a fixture on the roster to get acclimated further into his system, but it also helps from Payton's perspective as well.

Payton has a heightened level of confidence, has a better understanding of Joseph's system on that side of the ball, and gets him and the players ahead of schedule in terms of their preparation for the season ahead during the offseason program.

“It’s tremendous. The confidence that I have just to actually make the right calls," Payton continued. "A lot of the times when I was here for OTAs, it was looking to ‘B-Jones’ [Brandon Jones] and looking to Pat [Surtain II] of like, ‘What are we running right here?’ I was still learning the defense."

"But for me, it’s able to put guys in the right position and Coach Vance [Joseph] puts us out here for a reason. It’s practice. Make mistakes, make new mistakes and come out here and be the person you want to be and learn from it so you can go out there and push the line and take those calculated risks to make a play.”

If the Broncos' defense can be anywhere near as good as they were in 2025 for this season, paired with a step forward on the offensive end, Denver will be a force to be reckoned with for the year ahead.

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