What are the three best decisions of the Sean Payton Broncos era thus far?

Sean Payton has been with the Denver Broncos for over a year now. What are the best decisions of the Payton era thus far? The Broncos had desperately needed someone like Sean Payton to bring the needed change to his franchise. And thus far, we can clearly see a long-term plan come into the picture.

I'm truly not sure if GM George Paton would have been able to fix the Denver Broncos given the mess he originally made. After nearly two full offseasons with Sean Payton, what have been the three best decisions?

What are the three best decisions of the Sean Payton Broncos era thus far?
3. Extending Quinn Meinerz

Earlier this offseason, the Denver Broncos extended Quinn Meinerz on a four-year, $80 million deal. It makes him among the highest-paid guards in the NFL and locks him onto the team for years to come. Arguably the best draft pick of the George Paton era, Meinerz went from a Division III school to a top-3 player at his position.

And it's a huge positive signal for many other Broncos players on rookie deals. The team clearly had no issue paying Meinerz top-of-the-market money, so for guys like Jonathon Cooper, Marvin Mims Jr, Baron Browning, and others, what does that tell them?

"Oh, if I play my best, my team my reward me." To me, this extension is also something that positively furthers the culture that Sean Payton has established and is a great sign for the long-term.

2. Drafting Bo Nix

One of the best decisions that this franchise may ever make is taking Bo Nix with the 12th overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. I mean, who cares if he was QB6? I promise you that neither Sean Payton nor George Paton care. Nix fits exactly what they want to do and has a great shot to be quite efficient as a rookie.

Sean Payton tried to make it work with Russell Wilson, but it just was not going to happen. Taking Bo Nix and his 61 collegiate starts not only potentially gives Denver a franchise QB, but also gives them someone who could have a high ceiling as a rookie as well. Payton got his guy in Nix, and now it's up to those two to come through for the team and the city

1. Cutting Russell Wilson

This was the best decision that the Broncos have made in quite some time. It will not be an easy one to absorb financially, but for the sake of this franchise for the long-term, cutting Russell Wilson is what the Denver Broncos needed to do. The team did win eight games in 2023, and statistically, Wilson was alot better than he was in 2022.

Some did argue that the Broncos should keep Wilson and continue to build on what progress was made, but Sean Payton clearly did not see a path forward, and while cutting him was hard for some to stomach, the franchise needed this to happen. If Bo Nix ends up being a legitimate option at QB for the Denver Broncos, no one is going to think about Russell Wilson.

And as of now, Wilson's stock is trending very negatively, and it's easy to see that Nix is trending upwards for his NFL career. All in all, cutting Russell Wilson has been the best decision of the Sean Payton-Denver Broncos era.