Mike Shanahan Shares True Thoughts on Broncos Hiring Sean Payton

Football coaches tend to stick together. They're kindred spirits who know exactly what it takes to carve out a living in such a pressure cooker environment.

Legendary former Denver Broncos head coach Mike Shanahan is a well-respected football mind and one who's always willing to impart his knowledge to others. Shanahan has been in contact with new Broncos head coach Sean Payton several times.

The pair even enjoyed a night together at Shanahan's steakhouse in Denver, as reported by The Denver Gazette's Chris Tomasson.

“I’ve talked to him a number of times,’’ Shanahan said via Tomasson. “He’s a good friend. We had dinner over at Shanahan’s and I spent a little time with him, and we had a good evening.”

Shanahan has developed a close friendship with Payton over the years after both men attended Eastern Illinois University to play quarterback. Since then, Shanahan has closely followed Payton's meteoric rise to the very top of his profession.

All the stops Payton made along the way through the coaching ranks eventually led to him taking charge of a New Orleans Saints team in 2006 that had been listing. As Shanahan pointed out, that's where Payton proved himself to be an intelligent, winning football coach who didn't flinch at taking on the tough assignments.

“I’ve always thought the world of Sean,’’ Shanahan said via Tomasson. “Sean was a very successful quarterback (at Eastern Illinois), and I followed his career as an assistant coach since he was at Eastern Illinois. I followed him as an assistant with the Giants and with Dallas. I’ve watched him throughout his career as a head coach. He’s very sharp, and that’s one of the reasons why he turned the Saints around.”

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Shanahan is as excited as anyone to see how Payton runs his inaugural training camp as the Broncos' head coach. Broncos fans are anticipating that the preparation work will be more focused, and the expectation is that the intensity levels will skyrocket under Payton's watch.

In addition to his friendship with Payton, perhaps Shanahan will make an appearance at Centura Health Training Center to also develop bonds with the Broncos' new ownership group, and in particular, CEO Greg Penner.

“I’ll probably stop by,’’ Shanahan said. “I know Sean, of course, and I also know (owner and CEO) Greg Penner. So I just root for the Broncos with all the history there. I think they’ve got a good chance to do some good things, so I’m looking forward to watching one of their practices. Sean’s a guy that I think people will really enjoy, and they’ll see what type of coach he is.”

Having Shanahan around the Broncos organization is positive after years of things being fairly tense. The two-time Super Bowl-winning former head coach clearly has a deep affection for the franchise he led to back-to-back World championships in the 90s.

That being said, Shanahan remained diplomatic about the prospect of the Broncos facing his son Kyle's outfit — the San Francisco 49ers — in a future Super Bowl rematch.

“That’d be nice,’’ Shanahan said.

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