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Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton look on before facing the Philadelphia Eagles.
Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton is confident in his staff and their ability to rise to the challenges they could face.
That includes Broncos quarterbacks coach Davis Webb, who has emerged as a frontrunner for the Las Vegas Raiders’ head coaching vacancy. The anticipation has only built as the options elsewhere, both for Webb and the Raiders, have gone in different directions.
Payton offered a word of warning for Webb if the pairing takes shape.
Sean Payton Warns Broncos’ QB Coach
GettyDenver Broncos head coach Sean Payton on the field after defeating the Las Vegas Raiders.
Webb was in play for the Buffalo Bills vacancy, which saw that franchise promote offensive coordinator Joe Brady to the role over hiring the Broncos assistant.
CBS Sports’ Jonathan Jones reported that Brady’s promotion “brings the Raiders job into focus. Davis Webb, Brian Daboll and Klint Kubiak are the top candidates in Las Vegas after the former two did not getting the Buffalo job.”
“It’d be a pain in the a** for him,” Payton told reporters with a smile on January 27.
Webb’s ascension into candidacy for a lead coaching position has drawn attention, including from former Broncos offensive lineman and 2015 Super Bowl champion Tyler Polumbus.
“Davis Webb becoming an NFL head coach would be nuts & would be one of the fastest rises in league history,” Polumbus posted on X on Tuesday, noting the Broncos assistant had “Just 2 years of coaching experience,” both of which are as a position coach.
Polumbus noted that Webb has never called plays, and that he had an “average” playing career.
“He’s clearly respected, and I’d root for him…,” Polumbus, who played for the Broncos in 2008, 2009, and 20015, said. “But jumping straight to HC in Year 3? That’s wild.”
Jones noted that Brady’s hiring does not impact either of the Arizona Cardinals’ or the Cleveland Browns’ respective searches. Mills has not been linked to either of those vacancies, though, leaving the AFC West rival Raiders as Payton and the Broncos’ greatest threat.
Sean Payton Gets Honest About Assistants Leaving
GettyDenver Broncos head coach Sean Payton looks on before a game against the Cincinnati Bengals.
Payton, who lost tight ends coach Declan Doyle to the Chicago Bears (OC) last offseason, noted all of the interest the Broncos’ assistant coaches have garnered and how he plans to go about working through the process.
“Davis, then you have Vance [Joseph], and there’re teams inquiring about [Jim] Leonard. It’s part of the deal. You’re supportive,” Payton said.
Leonard could follow Brady, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter. Payton lamented the timing of it all.
“What’s difficult is when it’s taking place, while you’re still playing. And I think our guys have done a good job handling that, but it’s still difficult. Because preparing for one of those interviews requires time, like quite a bit of time,” Payton, who noted his position on the NFL Competition Committee, said.
“Preparing for an opponent in the playoffs requires every waking minute. And so, I don’t know that I have the solution. But I think it’s a challenge that we’ve battled as a league.”
“Certainly supportive of those guys,” Payton said.
Brady never played in the NFL or coached for the Broncos. However, he broke into the league under Payton with the New Orleans Saints, working under the current Broncos skipper for for two seasons in 2017 and 2018.
“I hired him right out of college,” Payton said. “Proud of him, just spoke to him two days ago. You want to see guys that come in and work, that are part of your staff, you want to see them have success, not the other way around. And then, we’ll figure out–when and if we lose a coach– what the plan is going to be.”
Josh Buckhalter covers the NBA and NFL for Heavy.com. He has covered both leagues since 2016, including bylines at FanSided, Last Word on Sports and Clocker Sports. He’s based in Villa Park, Illinois. Follow Josh on Twitter and Instagram: @JoshGBuck More about Josh Buckhalter
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