Sean Payton was coming off a second consecutive 7-9 season with the New Orleans Saints at the end of 2015 when the Denver Broncos were gearing up for a push towards their third Super Bowl in franchise history. While Payton didn’t have any significant ties with the Broncos at the time, he was still at the big game, and was still pulling for the orange and blue to come out with a victory.
Payton was there with CBS that winter, and had a division foe taking the field opposite of the Broncos in the Carolina Panthers. Payton said that he wasn’t rooting for a team within his division to raise the Lombardi Trophy.
“I was there working for CBS as an in-game [analyst]. And obviously, the last thing you want is to see your division to win the Super Bowl… I was really pulling hard for Denver, and it was an amazing defensive performance against a good Carolina team,” Payton said after Broncos practice on Friday.
He also gave credit to former Broncos head coach Gary Kubiak for doing well with a “difficult job” that season. That Broncos team had one of the most dominant defenses in franchise history with the No Fly Zone, but the offense was inconsistent that year and troubled with some quarterback problems between Peyton Manning and Brock Osweiler as they bounced between both of them as the man under center.
This weekend is a big one for that Super Bowl 50 team. The Broncos are honoring them at halftime of Sunday’s game against the Giants, along with officially enshrining Demaryius Thomas into the Ring of Fame. The first 25,000 fans to the stadium will receive a free chain commemorating that team, and Thomas will have his ROF pillar unveiled before the game at 11:30 a.m. MDT. That event will take place in the Ring of Fame plaza, and is open to the public.
Sunday’s game will be an emotional one for Broncos Country. That Super Bowl 50 team was one of the best in franchise history, and Thomas was one of the best receivers in franchise history. With both being honored, there will surely be some smiles, some laughs, and some tears of joy and remembrance.