Sean Payton isn’t sweating the Broncos being 32nd in first-half scoring

Unfazed by a three-week sample size, the Broncos head coach admits that his team needs to be better in the first 30 minutes of games

BY JAMES MERILATT

Sep 30, 2026, 3:08 PM

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For those members of Broncos Country who have been living under a rock, here’s a newsflash: The Broncos haven’t been very good in the first half of games so far this season. They scored seven points in the first 30 minutes during a Week 1 loss at the Chiefs, managed just three in the following game against the Jaguars and were shut out last Sunday night at home versus the Rams.

That’s 10 total points. In 90 minutes of play.

It doesn’t take a math whiz to figure out that’s not very good. And the stat sheet verifies that notion, as the Broncos rank 32nd out of 32 NFL teams in first-half scoring so far this season.

Sean Payton is aware of this fact. But the Broncos head coach isn’t sweating it. Yet.

“Three weeks in, we don’t look at 28th, 32nd or any of that,” Payton said when asked about his team’s current positoin. “Any analytical person would say (that).”

And he’s not harping on being 32nd with his team.

“When I go through the Powerpoint right now, the Week 3 rankings (are something) we don’t even look at,” the head coach added. “We just recognize that it isn’t good and it’s gotta improve.”

Spotting the problem is the first step. Doing something to fix it is the next move. On that front, Payton was emphatic that the Broncos are focused on the issue.

“It’s not just me up here talking,” the head coach explained. “It’s in the beginning periods of practice – the opening sequence, both offensively and defensively.”

He then doubled down on that front.

“Believe me, there’s a lot we’re doing to create those scenarios of starting (faster),” Payton added.

What might that include? Payton didn’t offer specifics, but he provided a hint.

“We haven’t run the ball in the first half consistently well enough,” he said. “Clearly.”

Establishing the ground game might just be the plan. But that’s another area where the Broncos have struggled, ranking 31st in the NFL in rushing through three games.

J.K. Dobbins has just 121 yards on 35 carries. RJ Harvey has only 24 on five. And Tyler Badie has only rushed for three yards on two carries. The Broncos current stable of healthy backs have combined for 187 yards on 52 carries, an average of 3.6 yards per carry.

That sample size might not mean much to the analytics people, but it does point to the potential issue. Improving the running game will improve the offense, which will improve the Broncos ability to score.

Simple to say. Perhaps not so easy to do.