“It might have been one of the worst coaching jobs in the history of the NFL. That’s how bad it was.”
New Denver Broncos coach Sean Payton didn’t mince words when discussing how he felt about his new team’s previous season.
Payton spoke with USA Today’s Jarrett Bell about the squad he’s taking over and the underwhelming season the Broncos had in 2022, when they finished 5-12 after acquiring quarterback Russell Wilson in the offseason.
Payton made it known that Wilson took an unfair amount of blame and laid a lot at the feet of last year’s coach Nathaniel Hackett, who only lasted 15 games into the 17-game season before he was ousted.
“They can only beat the (expletive) out of you so much,” Payton said of the piling on by the media onto the Broncos’ triggerman. “But everybody’s got a little stink on their hands. It’s not just Russell. It was a (poor) offensive line. It might have been one of the worst coaching jobs in the history of the NFL. That’s how bad it was.”
“That wasn’t his fault,” Payton further elaborated. “That was the parents who allowed it. That’s not an incrimination on him, but an incrimination on the head coach, the GM, the president and everybody else who watched it all happen.
He also said he has high hopes for a big turnaround in 2023, his first season as head coach of an NFL team other than the New Orleans Saints, who he led to one Super Bowl appearance and victory and nine postseason berths in 16 seasons at the helm.
“I’m going to be pissed off if this is not a playoff team,” he said.
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