The Denver Broncos are in flux. And that’s putting it lightly. Days after announcing plans to release Russell Wilson, the once-heralded quarterback who cost them a fortune for two tumultuous seasons, the team has also cut ties with longtime leader Justin Simmons, sacrificing one of the roster’s most accomplished veterans in the name of direly sought salary-cap space.
This turnover was always anticipated. It’s the kind of uneasy shakeup endured by any team with bloated investments and eight straight non-playoff seasons. But in the case of the 2024 Broncos, it’s clearer than ever that the keys to any potential turnaround rest with one man and one man alone: Sean Payton.
To be clear, the Broncos’ deep-seated issues took root well before Payton’s arrival. Not long after Peyton Manning’s Super Bowl sendoff, the John Elway-led front office repeatedly tried — and failed — to revive the quick fix at the game’s most important position. Aging or battered quarterbacks like Case Keenum, Joe Flacco and Teddy Bridgewater all secured pricey deals from Denver between 2018-2021, and none of them lasted more than a single season as the signal-caller.
Higher up, team leadership has been even more unsteady. Elway remained in the building after hiring his own general-manager replacement, 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 in the trade for Wilson just months before the current Walton-Penner ownership group put pen to paper. Headlines touted the big names fueling these transfers of power — hey, look, Condoleezza Rice! — but did nothing to halt the directionless march of an ailing football team.
Which brings us to now. Payton entered with a vision. An unwavering one, it seems. He wasted little time publicly asserting his power over any and everyone who came before and…
Source link : https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/broncos-teardown-confirms-this-is-strictly-sean-paytons-show-and-now-its-all-on-him-to-make-things-right/
Author : Cody Benjamin
Publish date : 2024-03-07 16:53:09
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