Both Greg Penner and George Paton deny Broncos wanted DeMeco Ryans
Feb 6, 2023, 1:58 PM
The day the news broke the Broncos would be trading for head coach Sean Payton, things got a little crazy.
NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported Denver made a late push for 49ers defensive coordinator DeMeco Ryans, that he was the guy they wanted. Ryans ended up accepting the head-coaching job with the Texans and the Broncos traded with the Saints for Payton.
Moments after Rapoport’s fairly stunning report, both ESPN’s Adam Schefter and 9NEWS / 104.3 The Fan insider Mike Klis shot it down. They said the Broncos had been locked in on Payton and did not circle back around to Ryans.
Naturally, at Payton’s introductory press conference on Monday both Broncos CEO Greg Penner and GM George Paton were asked about this report. They both denied it, with Penner saying they were indeed focused on Payton.
“Yeah, that wasn’t the case,” Penner said of Rapoport’s report. “We met with a number of great candidates through the process, but once we locked in with Sean about five or six days before we got the trade done with the Saints, our focus was entirely on him and closing that.”
Paton pointed out that Payton wasn’t simply a free agent. The Broncos couldn’t just hire him like another coach, they had to compensate New Orleans.
“I would just say Sean was more complicated than the others, obviously. We would’ve had Sean done earlier if we didn’t have that other level of the trade. I did the trade with (Saints GM) Mickey Loomis. First class all the way,” Paton said. “The goal all along was not only to get Sean, but have it be ‘win, win.’ A win for the Broncos, a win for the Saints and I think we accomplished that.”
Payton later joked in the press conference that he was talking with Penner and Paton all along, and Ryans must’ve been communicating with Broncos part-owner Sir Lewis Hamilton. The quip was met with laughs.
As for the Broncos interest in Ryans, it does sound like we can put that to bed. There certainly was some initial interest, but clearly they zeroed in on Payton.
Or, at least, that’s what they want us to think. We may never truly know.
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