According to ESPN and NFL Network, the Denver Broncos and Sean Payton’s former team, the New Orleans Saints, have reached a compensation agreement, and the 59-year-old will take over as head coach for the Broncos.
After stepping down as head coach last year, Payton continued to be employed by the Saints on a contract basis this year in a broadcasting capacity. He was the Saints’ head coach for 15 years, during which time the team made the playoffs nine times and won a lone Super Bowl in 2010.
This is the chance I’ve been waiting for,” Payton told NOLA.com. We have a huge fan base and a great tradition. I think the ownership group is great, and I really enjoyed watching them play in a few games last season.
He’s joining a Broncos team that could need a pick-me-up. The 5-12 record Denver posted this season extended their streak of seasons without making the playoffs to seven. In anticipation of this season, the Broncos traded four premium draft picks to the Seattle Seahawks in exchange for quarterback Russell Wilson.
The nine-time Pro Bowler’s season finished with the lowest point total of his career, as he threw for a career-low 16 touchdowns and directed an offense that averaged only 16.9 points per game.
Still, Payton is positive that he can coax the best performance out of Wilson. “Russell is a great worker and has played at a high level and won a lot of games in this league,” Payton said, according to NOLA.com. The onus is on us to establish a reliable running game and ease the burden on his position. I can’t wait to work with him.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24399816/627964842.jpg?resize=1120%2C630&ssl=1 "Reports Indicate That The Denver Broncos Have Reached An Agreement With The New Orleans Saints To Appoint Sean Payton As Head Coach")
On the other side of the NFL, the Houston Texans announced on Tuesday that they had hired DeMeco Ryans, 38, the defensive coordinator for the San Francisco 49ers and a former linebacker for the Texans.
The former Texans linebacker has a strong resume after serving as defensive coordinator for the 49ers. In 2022, San Francisco’s defense was #1 in the league in overall defense (300.6 yards per game), points allowed (277), and points allowed per game (16.3) because to his work as coordinator the previous two seasons.
The 2021 49ers defense allowed 310.0 yards per game, good for third in the league. After a 3-13-1 season in 2022, Houston’s front office let go of head coach Lovie Smith in early January. The second coach to leave after just one season was Smith. After last year’s 3-14 campaign, the Texans decided to replace David Culley with Smith.
On Tuesday, the Carolina Panthers introduced new head coach Frank Reich, formerly of the Indianapolis Colts. Reich, now 61 years old, started at quarterback for the Panthers in their inaugural game in 1995 and is returning to the team as its sixth head coach.