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Broncos Fans Blame Sean Payton for Humiliating Loss to Jets — and They Should

Denver's coach seems to find fault in everyone but himself.
October 9, 2023
Image: Sean Payton is now 1-4 as head coach of the Denver Broncos.
Sean Payton is now 1-4 as head coach of the Denver Broncos. Denver Broncos via YouTube

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Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton loves him some Sean Payton — so much so that he tends to blame anything bad that happens on someone/anyone else. But after his squad's puke-inducing 31-21 home loss to the New York Jets on October 8, fans are increasingly unwilling to buy Payton's brand of (with apologies to Deion Sanders) bulljunk.

And they shouldn't. Quarterback Russell Wilson's late-game fumble, which the Jets' Bryce Hall returned for a scoop-six, may have doomed Denver's comeback dream. But Payton essentially authored every gaffe, wrong move and shortfall during the contest as a whole, making him the undoubted owner of yet another embarrassing L in what's now almost certain to be a season full of them.

Payton's mistakes began in the off-season, when he went out of his way to rip his predecessor as bungling Broncos czar, current Jets offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett — a move that turned what should have been an intriguing matchup into the equivalent of a personal showdown. Since then, he's consistently tried to avoid accountability for Denver's 1-3 start while also refusing to take action against defensive coordinator Vance Joseph (another ex-Broncos HC) despite his charges' monstrous ineptitude, as epitomized by a humbling by the Miami Dolphins that made the wrong kind of history.

And then there's Payton's propensity for throwing Russ Wilson under every bus, car, truck, scooter or tricycle in sight whenever he gets the chance, even though the quarterback has been among the brighter spots in the Denver lineup.

Until yesterday, that is.

Indeed, Wilson looked like the Hackett-directed version of himself far too often against the New Yorkers, holding the ball way too long when his protection broke down (which it did all the damn time). The Jets' first-quarter safety may have been aided and abetted by a moronic Payton play-call, but Wilson's awful execution sealed the deal. Same goes for yet another slothful second-half performance, when the offense looked like a dinosaur slowly sinking into the La Brea tar pits before a late touchdown brought the Broncos back to within three points.

At that point, the defense needed to step up, and it did, sort of. After a strong first quarter, the players tasked with slowing NYC reverted to their laughingstock form, allowing another Hall, running back Breece, to run wild in precisely the way ESPN pundits envisioned when they recommended in the days before the game that fantasy-football participants pick him up — because, after all, he was facing Denver. Only quarterback Zach Wilson's usual shakiness and a fourth-quarter interception by Pat Surtain II (who otherwise had a subpar outing, too) gave the Broncos a chance for redemption — until Wilson coughed up that opportunity. His fumble was Denver's third of the day, with supposed super-rookie Marvin Mims Jr. contributing the previous pair.

Still, the Broncos wouldn't have been in that position were it not for Payton. His problematic play-calling resulted in a pair of should-have-been touchdowns in the first half turning into field goals, and when the Jets made several successful second-half adjustments, such as assigning a spy to Russ to make sure he couldn't scramble for big gains, he came up with nothing to counter them. He may not have been directly outcoached by Hackett, whose job was made infinitely easier by Denver defenders' eagerness to let the Jets run all over them, but pretty much everyone else on the New York staff outsmarted him at every turn.

Wilson's final turnover prompted Payton to blast him on the sideline and beyond, and some Broncos loyalists on the Service Formerly Known as Twitter did so, too. But an increasing number are no longer willing to cut Payton the slack he seems to feel he deserves by royal right. Check out the twenty memorable posts below to see what we mean:

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Image: Michael Roberts
Michael Roberts began his career with Westword in 1990 as music editor. In 1999, he took on a new role, full-time media reporter, as author of a column called The Message. In 2008, he became the lead writer for Westword's news blog, The Latest Word, a position he held until January 2023. Michael continues to freelance for Westword, covering everything from business to sports and the media; he also contributes to Jazziz, a national music magazine. He holds a bachelor's degree from what is now Colorado Mesa University and master's degrees from the University of California, Los Angeles, and Northwestern University.
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