The Denver Broncos were already going to be under a lot of pressure in 2023. New head coach Sean Payton will be tasked with fixing Russell Wilson after the veteran quarterback posted a disastrous 2022 campaign, while the Broncos are expected to improve on a dismal 5-12 record.
On Thursday, Payton upped the ante in a new interview with Jarrett Bell of USA Today. Torching everyone and everything from Nathaniel Hackett to Wilson’s personal support staff, Payton put the Broncos under even more scrutiny.
Sean Payton Torches Nathaniel Hackett and the 2022 Broncos
Payton has already made several changes in Denver, but he’s still cognizant of how poorly the Broncos performed under Hackett last season. While most NFL head coaches would never rip another coach by name, Payton wasn’t afraid to do just that.
“It might have been one of the worst coaching jobs in the history of the NFL,” Payton said. “That’s how bad it was.”
Hackett lasted just 15 games as the Broncos’ head coach, becoming just the fourth NFL head coach to be fired before the end of his first season.
“There’s 20 dirty hands, for what was allowed, tolerated in the fricking training rooms, the meeting rooms,” Payton said. “The offense. I don’t know Hackett. A lot of people had dirt on their hands. It wasn’t just Russell. He didn’t just flip. He still has it. This B.S. that he hit a wall? Shoot, they couldn’t get a play in. They were 29th in the league in pre-snap penalties on both sides of the ball.”
For the most part, Payton shielded Wilson from criticism. But he did reiterate that Wilson would not be allowed to have Jake Heaps, his personal quarterback coach, in the Broncos’ building this year (as he was in 2022).
“That wasn’t his fault,” Payton said of Wilson. “That was the parents who allowed it. That’s not an incrimination on him, but an incrimination on the head coach, the GM, the president, and everybody else who watched it all happen.
“Now, a quarterback having an office and a place to watch film is normal. But all those things get magnified when you’re losing. And that other stuff, I’ve never heard of it. We’re not doing that.”
It’s notable that Payton placed blame on “the GM,” as Denver general manager George Paton is still around. Paton, of course, was responsible for hiring Hackett and trading a significant package to the Seattle Seahawks in exchange for Wilson.
Sean Payton Sets Clear Expectations for 2023
“It doesn’t happen often where an NFL team or organization gets embarrassed,” Payton said. “And that happened here. Part of it was their own fault, relative to spending so much (expletive) time trying to win the offseason — the PR, the pomp and circumstance, marching people around, and all this stuff.”
Payton also managed to get a shot in at the Jets, who hired Hackett as their offensive coordinator this offseason.
“We’re not doing any of that. The Jets did that this year. You watch. ‘Hard Knocks,’ all of it. I can see it coming. Remember when (former Washington owner) Dan Snyder put that Dream Team together? I was at the Giants (in 2000). I was a young coach. I thought, ‘How are we going to compete with them? Deion’s (Sanders) there now.’ That team won eight games or whatever. So, listen…just put the work in.”
The Broncos are staring up at the Chiefs and the Chargers in the AFC West, while the AFC as a whole is as strong as its ever been. Still, Payton expects Denver to immediately compete for the postseason in 2023.
“I’m going to be pissed off if this is not a playoff team,” Payton said.
Payton is a media-savvy head coach. He was a broadcaster for FOX last year. He knows these comments will make waves and put more pressure on the Broncos, but that’s probably by design. Either way, expectations have now been elevated in Denver as the 2023 season approaches.