The Denver Broncos now have what appears to be a very tough task in front of them, as the team no longer has Bo Nix at the QB position. Nix broke his ankle during one of the final plays of overtime and is out for the rest of the postseason, paving the way for Jarrett Stidham, a competent backup QB.
A lot of the eyes are on Stidham now, but a lot of the eyes are also on Sean Payton. Payton is largely thought of as one of the sharpest offensive minds in the NFL. He has a successful history when he's had to start backup QBs, as he's great at tailoring a gameplan to fit his quarterback's strengths.
That will be the main task here, as Stidham and Bo Nix are different quarterbacks. Not only is Payton looking to become the first head coach in NFL history to win a Super Bowl with two teams, but this potential feat would be even more impressive with a backup QB, and Payton could soon find himself as an all-time great.
Sean Payton is on the doorstep of being an all-time great coach with two more wins
Sean Payton is sitting at 184 career wins in the regular season, which is the 13th most in the history of the NFL. He'd need 10 more wins to own sole possession of 10th place all-time, which should come during the 2026 regular season.
As for the playoffs, Payton now has a 10-9 record, which is good for 17th-best all-time. If Payton were to win the final two games and the Super Bowl, he'd sit tied with Bill Cowher and Tom Coughlin for the 8th-most in the history of the NFL.
With a second Super Bowl victory, Payton would join 13 other head coaches with multiple Super Bowl wins, but he'd be the first with a Super Bowl title on two different teams. When you consider all of these rankings, it's hard to not then put Payton as a top-10 all-time great coach, at least.
There is absolutely no indication that Payton is retiring anytime soon, as the Bo Nix era is only just getting started. A second Super Bowl title this early on in his Broncos tenure could set the stage for another one down the line.
It's easy to see why Sean Payton could truly become an all-time great with two more wins here in 2025.