NFL coaching carousel: Sean Payton to Denver

In an impressive swing, the Denver Broncos brought Sean Payton back from behind the camera and hired him as their next head coach. It cost them a first and second-round pick to acquire his rights from New Orleans, but they have their man regardless.

My first thought (and I can’t be alone on this) is that Payton would become an all-time great head coach if he somehow finds a way to resuscitate Russell Wilson’s career. I mean, Wilson was garbage to say the least in his debut campaign at Mile High.

Former Payton quarterback Drew Brees certainly has high expectations:

The previous head coaching situation in Denver wasn’t great, to be fair, but Nathaniel Hackett still has his way with most quarterbacks he works with. Wilson was…different…to say the least.

The signs were there before Wilson’s arrival that he was the cause of offensive dysfunction. The Seahawks chose Pete Carroll over him. They clearly knew Russ was on his last leg, and they luckily traded him before the rest of the world found out.

If Payton can inherit that situation and turn Wilson back into even a decent starting quarterback, it would be nothing short of a coaching masterpiece.

The weapons around him are all there: Jerry Jeudy, Courtland Sutton, KJ Hamler, Javonte Williams, and a whole slew of quality tight ends all give Wilson a lot of ways to distribute the ball.

Cleary, Payton sees something in Wilson and the Denver offense, because he could have gone anywhere, really. In my opinion, there are only a handful of teams that wouldn’t fire their head coach right now for the chance to get Payton in the door.

Add on to that the fact that Rodgers, Brady, and more quarterbacks were lingering out there, waiting to make a move. We already know that Brady and Payton had a plan to team up in Miami last year, and Payton could have picked any number of teams where he could have made that idea a reality.

When Payton went to Denver, Brady probably looked at that as his last viable playing option flying out the window. That could’ve been a driving force behind his decision to retire.

The Brady/Payton plan just wouldn’t work in Denver. Wilson’s too expensive to cut, trade, or stick on the bench. The Broncos’ only option is to stick through it, and by getting Payton to commit to them, they just might have a good chance to do it.

Payton is as good a hire as the Broncos could have made. The defensive bones are already there; DC Ejiro Evero is one of the best in the league, and he led one of the NFL’s best units on that side of the ball.

Besides rescuing Russ, Payton’s other big immediate task is likely keeping Evero in the building. He’s still under heavy consideration for open head coaching gigs, but if he doesn’t get those, he’ll likely be courted by other teams looking for a defensive coordinator. We already know he has a close connection with Kevin O’Connell and Minnesota, among other potential suitors.

If Evero doesn’t get a promotion elsewhere, Payton would do himself a massive favor by convincing him to stay in Denver. Payton will have his hands more than full with the offense, so it will be important to give the keys to the defense to someone who he knows can handle it; we know Evero is great at that job.

It could just end up being that Russell Wilson is a washed up, overrated, no-longer-unlimited version of Mr. Unlimited. Or, Sean Payton could come in and revive their nine-figure signal-caller. Regardless, it’s a huge win for the Broncos to get this offseason’s most sought-after head coaching candidate, and I expect him to make the Broncos much better next season.

87/100… Fire.

Follow Nick Hedges on Twitter @nicktrimshedges or Instagram @nicktrimshedges


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