New Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton finished his last bit of business with Fox Sports during Sunday’s Super Bowl. Now the new “leader of men” in Denver will turn his attention to fixing a Broncos team that’s struggled since their last Super Bowl win in 2015. And while Payton is ready to tackle that big challenge, the Super Bowl-winning coach let it be known that there were other teams besides the Broncos that were heavily interested in his services.
One of those teams, the Washington Commanders, are in the midst of being sold, and prospective new owners reportedly asked Payton if he’d be willing to join them as the head coach if their bid was selected.
During a recent appearance on Mad Dog Sports Radio with Adam Schein, Payton opened up about that very situation.”
“Everyone’s waiting to see what happens in Washington. There’s some interest from some potential ownership groups that are going to be bidding on, that have currently bid on that team, that were getting ahead of the game. Saying, hey, if we get awarded this team, would you?”
Commanders owner Dan Snyder is selling controlling/majority interest of the franchise, and bidders were looking to get a proven head coach to take the reins.
"There were a lot of different things in play."
Sean Payton tells @AdamSchein there was interest from potential Commanders' ownership groups that reached out about him coaching in Washington D.C.
LISTEN ⬇️⬇️⬇️ pic.twitter.com/zryvRRLOps
— Mad Dog Sports Radio (@MadDogRadio) February 10, 2023
Payton Talks The Decline Of Commanders Franchise
As the former coach of the Saints, Payton faced the Washington franchise on many occasions, but his last trip to D.C. stands out the most. That’s when Payton says nearly one-third of the stadium was decked out in Saints gear. That was awkward to him, being a guy who’s coached with every team in the NFC besides the Commanders. For Payton it was what further proof of how low the franchise has sunk. He then elaborated on what he meant.
“That’s a place that’s had great tradition. Like, when I came into the league, Adam, my first two years were with Philly. My next four years were New York Giants. And then my next three were with the Cowboys. My whole entire NFL career prior to New Orleans was NFC East. And what happened to that program?”
Payton continued, “Listen, that place, my uncle loved the Washington franchise. Last year, we go to play there and pregame I’m looking up in the crowd. A third of the fans are Saints fans. And I’m like, what happened to this place? That one of the six pillars. That was a special place. So it’ll come back.”
Since 1999, when current owner Daniel Snyder bought the franchise, it has been in a downward spiral. Just six playoff appearances, two playoff wins and many, many off-the-field allegations and accusations that no one should wanna be associated with. Fans of the team believe a new owner would do wonders to begin to restore the glory days of yesteryear.
Multiple ownership groups that are set to bid on the Washington Commanders approached Sean Payton about coaching for them (@AdamSchein).
The Commanders are expected to be sold in the near future, with an asking price of $7 billion. Jeff Bezos is the favorite. pic.twitter.com/UkbShiBDWr
— PlayerProfiler (@rotounderworld) February 10, 2023
Bidders Wanting Payton Doesn’t Bode Well For Ron Rivera
Bidders asking Payton if he’d be interested in taking the reins, isn’t a good look for current head coach Ron Rivera. When you hear things like that, it makes you believe Rivera is a “lame duck coach,” meaning his successor is likely on the way once the team is sold.
Sean Payton said potential Commanders’ buyers approached him about coaching Washington https://t.co/12OpjfswBl
— NFL Live Free HD TV | @nfllivefreehdtv (@nfllivefreehdtv) February 11, 2023
With Payton in Denver there probably isn’t a more qualified coach available, but there are definitely others who could be on the new owner’s radar. What we do know for sure is Payton was, and he just took the much more certain situation by going to Denver and teaming with quarterback Russell Wilson.
