Cameras expose part of Sean Payton's playbook during Broncos' loss to Chiefs
2023 has not been kind to Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton and things are probably about to get a bit harder thanks to the technology involved in today's game broadcasts. On multiple occasions throughout the night, Payton was seen standing on the sidelines with his play sheet over his face calling plays. That's standard […]
2023 has not been kind to Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton and things are probably about to get a bit harder thanks to the technology involved in today's game broadcasts.
On multiple occasions throughout the night, Payton was seen standing on the sidelines with his play sheet over his face calling plays. That's standard and typical of coaches, but, one camera angle actually caught some pretty intricate details of said sheet:
That 4K really is something, isn't it?
In all seriousness, this is not great for Payton and the Broncos. The wildest part is they're plays for crucial situations like two-minute drills and red zone. Games are often won or lost in both scenarios. Therefore, to have a chunk of your plays exposed can really hamstring a team if the opposition can figure it out.
And, we all know that different teams/coaches use different language when designing their plays, but, players/coaches can translate what's in front of them because they already know the multiple variances and what they mean.
There's also the fact that the league still has plenty of players that played under Payton. The Super Bowl-winning coach will see former New Orleans Saints players such as Ty Montgomery (New England Patriots), Marcus Davenport (Minnesota Vikings), Alex Anzalone (Detroit Lions), and even C.J. Gardner Johnson could give the Lions some input – even if he's on IR.
There are players all across the league that have relationships with other ex-Saints players. All they have to do is give them a call and they can probably run this down in about 15-20 minutes. Then, of course, the Broncos have to play the Chiefs again in about two weeks on October 29. I'm sure Andy Reid and co. have blown this picture up and will have it hanging in the walls of the Chiefs facility all week long.
The plays shown in the picture are obviously not all of the plays in the Broncos' playbook, so it's not like Payton and co. have to start over. But again, it's a solid chunk of info and teams need all the competitive advantages they can get. Therefore, there's no doubt teams are combing this over and there's no doubt the Broncos may have to ditch a few of these simply for the sake of not falling behind their opponents.
