Sean Payton, Mike Macdonald keep it respectful after spying controversy

If any bad blood remained between Sean Payton and Mike Macdonald, it didn’t show Thursday night.

After the Denver Broncos’ 17-14 overtime win over the Seattle Seahawks at Empower Field at Mile High, the two coaches met at midfield, talked briefly and shared a quick bear hug, patting each other on the back. One could be heard wishing the other “good luck.”

Respect between head coaches postgame 🤝#TNFonPrime pic.twitter.com/sVzhSbf7gs

— NFL on Prime Video (@NFLonPrime) October 16, 2026

It was their first game against each other since Macdonald’s story about a behind-the-scenes feud between the teams became public last month.

In an interview with Graham Bensinger, Macdonald said the Seahawks took “100 plays” from Broncos training camp videos that fans had posted on social media. They used them to prepare for Denver in Week 1 of the 2024 season. Seattle won that game 26-20 in Bo Nix’s NFL debut.

Macdonald said Payton found out weeks later and called Seahawks general manager John Schneider. According to Macdonald, Payton threatened to publicly accuse Seattle of a Spygate-type scheme, and the Seahawks threatened to sue. Macdonald said his team didn’t spy and only used footage that was already public. He compared the standoff to a cold war that ended when the coaches ran into each other at the NFL scouting combine.

Macdonald said he never meant for the comments to be public, and he apologized to Payton.

“I thought it was the most appropriate thing to reach out to Sean and apologize to him for having that be public when it wasn’t meant to,” Macdonald told reporters. “I think it’s fair to say that if I’m talking, I’m responsible for what I’m saying.”

Payton accepted the apology and spoke about it for the first time Sept. 23.

“We spoke. Listen, he and I are good,” Payton said. “I’m sure my initial call to John wasn’t pleasant.”

Payton said he didn’t think “anything was intentional by fans.” He also called Schneider a longtime friend he’d “have a beer with at the combine.”

“I have a ton of respect for him and that’s it,” Payton said of Macdonald.

The Broncos have since have asked fans top stop filming at training camp and put up signs reading “protect our plays.”

On Thursday, the game got most of the attention. Denver led 14-3 in the fourth quarter before Seattle scored the last 11 points of regulation. Jason Myers tied it with a 34-yard field goal with 3 seconds left. In overtime, Ja’Quan McMillian intercepted Sam Darnold, and Wil Lutz made a 53-yard field goal to win it.

“No moral victories in the league,” Macdonald said afterward. “It’s a bottom-line business, production business. But I’m proud of our effort.”

The Broncos (4-2) play at the Arizona Cardinals on Oct. 25. The Seahawks (3-3) host the Kansas City Chiefs the same day.

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