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4 completely lame arguments why Sean Payton was a bad hire for Broncos

By Sayre Bedinger

AVONDALE, LOUISIANA - APRIL 20: Former New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton talks with Ryan Palmer during a pro-am prior to the Zurich Classic of New Orleans at TPC Louisiana on April 20, 2022 in Avondale, Louisiana. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)
AVONDALE, LOUISIANA - APRIL 20: Former New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton talks with Ryan Palmer during a pro-am prior to the Zurich Classic of New Orleans at TPC Louisiana on April 20, 2022 in Avondale, Louisiana. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images) /
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The Denver Broncos’ decision to hire Sean Payton as the team’s next head coach was understandably met with some pushback. Not everybody in Broncos Country was on board with the move, and the move has also been met with some criticism nationally, believe it or not.

Although it should be noted, the move by the Broncos to hire Sean Payton has been pretty overwhelmingly positively received by the vast majority. But, isn’t it usually the negative voices that ring the loudest?

There might be some valid concerns about whether or not trading for and hiring Sean Payton as your team’s next head coach is a good idea, but I have yet to hear anything that has caused me to worry about it. I have heard plenty of lame arguments against Payton and his overall body of work as an NFL head coach as reasons why people think the move was a bad one for the Broncos.

Let’s look at the four worst that have repeatedly popped up.

4 lame reasons to call the Sean Payton hire by the Broncos a bad one

Denver Broncos, Sean Payton
MIAMI GARDENS, FL – FEBRUARY 07: Head coach Sean Payton of the New Orleans Saints celebrates with the Vince Lombardi Trophy after his team defeated the Indianapolis Colts during Super Bowl XLIV on February 7, 2010 at Sun Life Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images) /

1. Sean Payton has “only won one Super Bowl” as a head coach

Let’s start off with the most ridiculous argument of the entire list. People have really been criticizing Sean Payton for “only” winning one Super Bowl as an NFL head coach. There are nine head coaches in the NFL today — active coaches — who have won the Super Bowl:

  • Bill Belichick
  • Sean McVay
  • Andy Reid
  • Doug Pederson
  • Mike Tomlin
  • Mike McCarthy
  • John Harbaugh
  • Pete Carroll
  • Sean Payton

Nine active coaches, out of 32. Now, when you look historically, Sean Payton is one of less than 40 coaches in the history of the game to win a title. It’s all about perspective though. You look back at Payton’s time with the Saints, and people see the early Super Bowl title, and just forget about everything else.

How Payton and the Saints went to the playoffs every year from 2017-2020 and had horrendous bad luck in how all four of those appearances ended:

  • 2017: Minneapolis Miracle
  • 2018: No pass interference call in NFC championship vs. Rams
  • 2019: No offensive PI called in OT vs. Kyle Rudolph in playoffs
  • 2020: Up by 10 in 4th quarter vs. Bucs before Jared Cook’s fumble

What gets ignored when people say “only one Super Bowl win” regarding Sean Payton is more than just the historical difficulty of winning the Super Bowl, they are ignoring the tremendous success Payton has had as he’s adjusted to the different defensive trends and evolutions around the entire NFL.

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