Sean Payton laid down the gauntlet, putting himself on the hot seat
Jul 24, 2024, 7:01 AM
Surly. Curt. Short. Testy. Grumpy.
All are words that could be used to describe Sean Payton’s mood on Tuesday. In his first press conference of training camp, an occasion that is typically a light-hearted affair where hope springs eternal, the Broncos head coach wasn’t messing around.
He didn’t smile. He didn’t pontificate. He didn’t banter.
Instead, Payton walked into the room, didn’t say a word to the media gathered to hang on his every word and answered the questions hurled his way in the shortest, most matter-of-fact manner possible. Direct and to the point.
There’s nothing wrong with that approach. Everyone in the room is a professional. No one was offended that the head coach didn’t shoot the breeze with them or make them feel welcome. But that’s not the point.
The issue at play is a simple one: Why was Payton go grouchy on Tuesday?
His team hasn’t even stepped on the field yet. He can’t possibly be disappointed in them or angry at their performance.
There are no reports of anything going on behind the scenes that would be an issue. After all, the biggest bit of offseason drama seems to have been put to rest, with Courtland Sutton reporting to camp on time and ready to go.
By all accounts, things are going Payton’s way. The quarterback he loathed is now in Pittsburgh. The rookie he wanted is on the roster. He’s running the show, earning a cool $18 million per year to be the Broncos dictator.
Yet, he spent his introductory presser biting off the heads of reporters. He snapped. He bristled. He rolled his eyes.
Why? Well, there can only be one reason.
Payton is trying to set the tone for the season. To everyone.
That’s not necessarily a bad thing. After all, anyone who witnessed training camp under Nathaniel Hackett two years ago knows that a down-to-business, no-messing-around approach isn’t a bad thing. The Broncos are there to work, which the coach was communicating in a non-verbal manner.
That’s great. No one has an issue with that. At all.
But he was also trying to bully those who cover the team. He was letting everyone in the room know who was in charge. He was sending a message about what’s going to be communicated, when it’s going to happen and how it’s going to go down.
Again, that’s fine. He’s the boss. It’s his show.
But that’s a dangerous line to walk. It’s a tightrope that Payton might not be aware that he’s wandered out on.
This isn’t New Orleans. This isn’t a laid-back football town with zero expectations. This isn’t a fan base that is starving for any kind of relevance, happy to simply not be in a position where they want to wear bags over their heads to the games.
This is Denver. This is a franchise that has been to eight Super Bowls. This is a town that’s had three championship parades for the Broncos alone, seven if you include the Avalanche and Nuggets.
Expectations are different here. And if they’re not met, it’s not going to be pretty.
Broncos Country has had enough. It’s been eight-straight seasons without a playoff berth, the second-longest drought in the NFL. It’s been seven-consecutive losing seasons, the worst stretch in the NFL history of the franchise.
Yes, Payton isn’t responsible for most of that mess. But that doesn’t matter. He walked into a hornet’s nest.
And he kicked it.
It was the head coach who decided to move on from Russell Wilson and eat an NFL-record $85 million in dead cap. It was Payton who decided to spend the 12th overall pick on the sixth quarterback off the board in the NFL Draft.
His fingerprints are all over this roster. Yes, he inherited a mess. But if things go south this season, there are no more scapegoats. It’s on the head coach.
Perhaps he knows that it’s going to be a rough year. After all, the Broncos have a rookie quarterback and a roster that isn’t very highly regarded. Their over/under is 5.5 for a reason.
Thus, Payton is letting everyone know from the outset that he’s not in the mood for nonsense. He doesn’t want to hear chirping from the outside. He doesn’t want to be questioned.
Well, that’s not the way it works in the Mile High City. The Broncos are the unofficial state religion in Colorado. If things are going poorly for the team, everyone will be talking about it, asking questions and demanding answers.
And that’ll occur through the very same people that Payton tried to send a message to on Tuesday. The folks the head coach attempted to bully will be the ones at the forefront, carrying the pitchforks.
If the Broncos win, Payton will be fine. Surliness doesn’t matter when a team is going to the playoffs.
But if they don’t, the coach’s demeanor is going to backfire. It’s going to erase all of the benefit of the doubt that many wanted to give him.
Sean Payton has an impressive resume. But he hasn’t done squat in Denver. His first season was marred by a 70-20 loss, sideline arguments with his QB, mismanaged timeouts, calling the wrong play because he couldn’t read his playsheet and all sorts of other antics that would put a high school coach on the hot seat.
So it’s put up or shut up time. The coach laid down the gauntlet on Tuesday. He set the tone.
Let’s see what Sean Payton’s got.
