The Denver Broncos are evolving. And that’s putting things lightly. Days after plans were announced release Russell Wilson, the once heralded quarterback who cost them a fortune during two tumultuous seasons, the team has also cut ties with Longtime leader Justin Simmons sacrificing one of the most accomplished veterans on the roster in the name of highly sought-after salary cap space.
This turnover was always anticipated. It’s the kind of difficult upset that any team undergoes with bloated investments and eight straight seasons without a playoff. But in the case of the 2024 Broncos, it’s clearer than ever that the keys to any potential turnaround lie with one man: Sean Payton.
To be clear, the Broncos’ deep-seated problems took root long before Payton arrived. Shortly after Peyton Manning’s Super Bowl farewell, the John Elway-led front office repeatedly tried — and failed — to revive the silver bullet at the game’s most important position. Aging or beat-up quarterbacks like Case Keenum, Joe Flacco and Teddy Bridgewater all got expensive deals with Denver between 2018 and 2021, and none of them lasted more than a single season as a signal-caller.
Higher up, team leadership is even more unstable. Elway remained in the building after hiring his own replacement general manager, George Paton, in 2021. Sean Payton’s predecessor, Nathaniel Hackett, was hired days before the entire franchise went up for sale. The Hackett regime mortgaged the future of Wilson’s business just months before the current Walton-Penner ownership group put pen to paper. The headlines touted the big names fueling these power transfers – hey, look, Condoleezza Rice! – but did nothing to stop the directionless march of a struggling football team.
Which brings us to now. Payton came in with a vision. Unshakeable, it seems. He wasted no time in publicly asserting his power over all those who came before him and helped tarnish the Broncos’ recent reputation, whether those already ousted (Hackett) or those destined to follow suit (Wilson). One season later, you can’t say he isn’t about to build a program on his own terms. The highly paid quarterback is gone. So are other familiar faces, like Simmons, as the bills have come due. Even his team is starting to resemble his old team the New Orleans Saints, with several former colleagues coming on board this offseason.
The ultimate question, however, is what Payton intends to do next. This may be the first time in a long time that Broncos ownership is truly aligned with its top decision maker, or at least fully invested in his plans. How else can you justify, say, eating through a historic sum of money just so Wilson, such a prized acquisition just two years ago, doesn’t take another shot in orange and blue? It’s clear that Payton has the support to do what he wants. To tear it all down and start fresh as best he can. But he better be right. He was given permission to save Denver in his own way; NOW how will he actually try to do it?
As is often the case in today’s NFL, it will likely depend on what happens under center. Payton’s former team, the Saints, is an annual example of a team refusing to rebuild, constantly reworking contracts and manipulating the cap to prolong playoff relevance. But the Payton-era Saints often got away with it because they had a quarterback in Drew Brees to help offset cap constraints. Can Payton and the Broncos manipulate their own cap space long enough to get things going well at the position?
Internally, it wouldn’t be surprising if the pipe dream is the signing of Minnesota Vikings starter Kirk Cousins. on track to test the market. He’s getting older and coming off an injury, but he’s precisely the kind of excellent point guard in the system that Payton likely covets. However, money talks in free agency, and Payton’s takedown suggests Cousins will have richer offers elsewhere. Perhaps the Broncos could turn to a discount version of Cousins — a Ryan Tannehill, perhaps — or continue the Saints’ reunion trend with a low-cost insurance option like Jameis Winston.
But the real intrigue lies in the draft, where Denver picks 12th overall and could have a chance to draft one of the top quarterbacks, whether it’s Michigan’s JJ McCarthy, Michael Penix Jr .of Washington or Bo Nix of Oregon. Any one of them would be a gamble, especially since Payton has yet to identify and develop a homegrown franchise quarterback during his illustrious career. But they would at least represent hope for the future, and not just an illusory vision of the present – which Denver has embraced for too long.
Either way, Payton’s direction is crucial here. The last time an NFL team went in, then out so abruptly, on a quarterback, it was probably the Indianapolis Colts with Carson Wentz in 2021. In that situation, also plagued by the contribution of senior management, the coach did not stay long. Here with the Broncos, Payton surely has more influence than Frank Reich ever did. But that just means these next steps will be attributed to him, for better or worse. It’s time for real change in Denver. What kind of change will it bring?