Sean Payton inherited one of the worst situations in the NFL when the Denver Broncos traded for him ahead of the 2023 season. Denver had just finished a 5-12 campaign with the realization that the Russell Wilson contract was one of the worst in the history of football, Nathaniel Hackett had been fired after a Christmas Day embarrassment to the Rams, and the team seemingly had no future.
Just two years later, Payton has turned this squad into a dark horse team in the AFC coming off a playoff appearance in 2024. The trade that saw George Paton and the Broncos front office ship out another first round pick has seemingly paid off, as the Broncos are now in a prime position to take a stab at the teams that have been atop the AFC for the entire decade.
PFF recently released a ranking of the top 10 returning head coaches in the NFL, and Payton slotted in at No. 2, right behind Kansas City’s Andy Reid. The list does not include names like Pete Carroll and Mike Vrabel, as they are entering their first season with their new teams.
Payton was credited for his role in turning around Denver’s season in 2023, a five-game winning streak after a 1-5 start, along with the fact that he only lost two games by more than one score in 2024 to two of the AFC’s best squads in Baltimore and Buffalo.
Payton, 61, is one of the winningest coaches in the history of the NFL with 170. He is tied with Pete Carroll for 17th all-time and fourth among active head coaches. He posted a 152-89 record in 15 years with the New Orleans Saints and has an 18-16 mark in his two seasons in Denver. His best season as a head coach came in 2009 when he led the Saints to a 13-3 regular season record and a Super Bowl victory over the Indianapolis Colts and Peyton Manning.
The veteran head coach is also widely thought to be one of the top offensive minds in football, as his teams have been in the top six in offense across the league in 11 of his 17 seasons. All those years came in Drew Brees’ prime, which played a big role in that stat, but he also did a great job of creating the ‘joker’ position on offense and utilizing running backs and tight ends in ways that hadn’t been seen before in the NFL.
The Chargers’ Jim Harbaugh was ranked sixth on the list, making all three of the eligible AFC West coaches a high nomination in this ranking. If Pete Carroll were eligible to be on the list, he would most likely be there as well. This division is the best in football from a coaching perspective, with three Super Bowl Champions and a College Football Playoff champion as well.
Payton had a solid campaign in 2024 as he led the Broncos to the playoffs for the first time in nine years and helped curate an offense that allowed rookie quarterback Bo Nix to succeed. With the foundation set for the future, he now has his eyes on a deeper playoff run in the upcoming season.