Sean Payton offered an equally puzzling explanation for the Broncos' odd decision not to attempt an onside kick in Sunday's loss to the Steelers.
Speaking to reporters after the 13-6 loss at home, Denver's head coach detailed the reasoning behind his decision to kick a deep pass with under two minutes left in the fourth quarter, as the Steelers had run out most of the clock and left rookie quarterback Bo Nix with just nine seconds left to make his magic.
“Yeah, we went through it a lot. Over and over again. We had plenty of time to talk about it. We had guys down. We felt like we had a chance … We had about six seconds on a long run on third down before they punted. We were hoping we could get a couple of plays before we got in the end zone,” Payton said. According to Denver's 104.3 The Fan.
Denver cut the lead to seven points with a field goal with 1:54 left, but with only one timeout remaining, they didn't think the possibility of recovering an onside kick was worth the risk.
“We just weighed the possibility of getting the onside kick versus the possibility of getting the ball back with 26 seconds left,” Payton said, “so we decided to take the kickoff.”
Nix, the team's 12th overall pick in this year's draft, ended the game with an interception, dropping Denver to 0-2 on the season.
As the attacks on Payton intensified, fans took to social media.
“Sean Payton… down seven with 1 minute, 54 seconds left, he takes a timeout and decides to kick it deep.” Posted by X user @trentbets“I've seen a lot of bad coaching decisions, but this is up there with the best.”
“I have officially hung up my orange and blue glasses. The Denver Broncos are a really bad team and their coaching staff isn't that good. Sean Payton is losing to his coaching staff on a weekly basis. They lack talent and energy.” X user @kadenstaab wroteHe added, “I don't know the answers, but this is the worst. This is rock bottom.”
Denver is signed with the Knicks after a messy parting of ways with Russell Wilson earlier this year.
Wilson signed with Pittsburgh in March and was honored with a “Petty Game Ball” even though he did not play in Sunday's game because of lingering calf problems.
“I think we all know Russ did some rough stuff last year,” Steelers quarterback Justin Fields said after the game. According to ESPN:“I know he wanted to play in the game today, but I'm really happy he got the win. He got the Petty Game Ball.”
Broncos Reportedly Wilson was told by the team last fall that he would be benched if he did not waive injury protection on his salary, and the team ultimately made good on that promise at the end of the year, benching the quarterback for the final two games.
Denver's decision to waive Wilson came with an $85 million dead cap hit.
Next Sunday, the Steelers will host the Chargers, while the Broncos will visit the Buccaneers.
