Sean Payton a bit emotional, thrilled to beat Saints in return home

Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton got the win in an emotional return to New Orleans on Thursday night.

And not only did Denver beat the Saints, they absolutely smacked them.

The Broncos crushed New Orleans 33-10 in a game that wasn’t even that close. The Saints scored their only touchdown in the final minutes of the game, with Denver up 30 points. It was a complete effort that moved Payton’s squad to 4-3 on the season.

In a rare occurence, Payton joined a postgame show live on set to discuss the victory. He said he did it when he was a media member, obviously, but never as a head coach.

Payton spoke with the Amazon Prime crew and got a bit emotional talking about his return. He certainly never cried, but you could tell the moment meant a lot to him.

“Obviously, what was difficult after the fact, we talk about we’re in session right now. We’re making memories. And it was hard coming here because there was so many of those memories. And I tried to downplay it the best I could,” Payton said. “It was a little different being here.”

After all, Payton roamed the New Orleans sideline for 15 years, posted an impressive 152-89 record and won a Super Bowl. It couldn’t have been easy going against a team that meant so much to him.

Still, Payton kept the focus on the Broncos, especially rebounding nicely on a quick turnaround after a beatdown at home by the Chargers last weekend.

“I mean, obviously, you feel great. You’re happy for the players. I thought on a short week you can always find a reason why it’s going to be difficult and we handled the week well,” Payton said.

Amazon Prime shared a couple of other noteworthy clips from Payton, including seeing former New Orleans players he used to coach and what Drew Brees means to him. Brees was inducted into the Saints Hall of Fame on Thursday night.

"Those are my guys."

Sean Payton talks on catching up with his former players.#TNFonPrime pic.twitter.com/a1SL2Vu1Sl

— NFL on Prime Video (@NFLonPrime) October 18, 2024

"He was everything to all of us."

Sean Payton says he owes a lot to Drew Brees. pic.twitter.com/aQRrraIQcc

— NFL on Prime Video (@NFLonPrime) October 18, 2024

What a moment for Payton and what a night for the Broncos. The return was always going to special, but an emphatic victory makes it that much sweeter.

Sean Payton is now 1-0 in his career as a head coach against the Saints, and you can bet he’ll remember this one for the rest of his life.

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