Sean Payton has been around the game of football longer than most. He’s spent the better part of four decades constantly scouting opponents and preparing for every different style of play in the book, and has found success in multiple roles with multiple organizations.
Payton knows that the most important aspect of football is the mental side. One team can have the fastest, biggest, strongest guys, but can still be outmatched by the film junkies on the other side who spend countless hours watching back the tape and studying their opponent.
The Broncos head coach had strong words regarding the importance of preparation ahead of the team’s season opener against the Tennessee Titans. Payton and company are welcoming a rookie quarterback, Cam Ward, to town, and while the Broncos are clearly the better team on paper, Payton knows that his guys still have to put the work in before stepping foot on the field on Sunday.
“The scouting of an opponent is essential. Who plays where, who has ball skills, who is their better run player, who is their better receiver. You have to know the opponent cold, and yet, it’s a faceless opponent relative to the work week,” Payton said after Broncos practice on Friday.
Ward is even more of a faceless player than normal, as there is barely any NFL film of him heading into his first regular season start. He had limited reps against defenses that weren’t playing all of their top dogs, but the tape reflects an ability that’s much better than what the stat sheet says. Ward finished the preseason with 145 yards on 10-for-19, no touchdowns, no interceptions and a 77.7 passer rating. On seven drives, he led the Titans offense to two touchdowns and five punts.
Cam Ward put some serious zip on this throw
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— NFL (@NFL) August 15, 2025
Ward was arguably the best quarterback in college football a season ago as he finished the season as a finalist for the Heisman Trophy. He has the ability to make almost any throw on the field and has a pocket presence that most other rookies don’t possess. If Payton and the Broncos do their due diligence in preparing before the game, it should make the 60 minutes on the gridiron much easier.
Payton emphasized that football games are won before Sunday because of preparation.
“Sunday’s game will have been won during the work week, long before kickoff. They have to understand that. Relative to how you prepare, and what Monday’s like, what Wednesday’s like. I mean, what it’s what it’s really like on an elite team. Many times, most of the times, those games are won before the ball has ever been kicked off,” Payton said.
Good coaches go a long way in football, and the Broncos have one of the best in the business. Good coaches are the key to winning the toughest, closest games, something the Broncos struggled to do last year. The important question for Payton is, how has the team’s preparation been this week heading into the season opener?
“Good.”