The Denver Broncos made big, if not expected, news on Monday.
The team officially promoted Davis Webb to offensive coordinator after he became one of the hottest names during the NFL coaching cycle.
Not only could Webb have potentially landed a head-coaching job, he could’ve left the Broncos to go be an offensive coordinator somewhere else.
And while all the insiders reported that he’d be staying with the team, one key question still remains. Is Webb going to be calling the plays on offense?
That is unclear, with various sources saying it’s not yet known.
“There’s no language in Davis Webb’s OC deal with the Broncos around play-calling and staff + Sean Payton haven’t made decision yet on play-calling,” The Denver Post’s Luca Evans tweeted on Monday.
Hmm.
Why would Webb accept the job if he doesn’t get to call the plays? Wouldn’t it make more sense for him to head to a new city where he gets to show everyone that he’s an offensive genius and the next big rising star in the NFL?
The cold reality is it’s time for Broncos head coach Sean Payton to give up play-calling duties. He should hand those to Webb and just be the CEO and leader of the team, not involved in every single snap.
Remember, Payton made a revealing comment last month, showing he’s at least considered that decision.
“The thing that I have to continue that changes as you get older is you still have to be quick. Play just ran, next play. I said this. When I was younger, we’d run a reverse on the eight-yard line, and I think nothing of it. As you get older, you think about all the ramifications. So I have to also remove that. It was said as you get older, maybe you don’t drive in the rain at night,” Payton said.
It’s time for the Broncos to stop letting Payton drive in the rain.
Too many times this year Denver’s offense looked vanilla and stuck in the mud. There were a lot of three-and-outs and uninspiring series.
That falls largely on Payton, who sometimes took too long to deliver the play to QB Bo Nix. Heck, in the AFC Title Game with backup Jarrett Stidham, he had to call timeout to ponder a key fourth-down decision.
Payton should’ve ordered a field goal to put the Broncos up 10-0. He didn’t and now the New England Patriots are playing in the Super Bowl instead of Denver.
“That’s something that I have to mentally make sure it’s quick. It’s quick and decisive, and it’s daring at the right time. Not reckless, but those are things that I find that are challenges compared to when I was 33 in New York or whatever,” Payton said in the middle of January.
It was daring against the Patriots, but it wasn’t smart. The call was for Stidham to pass the football and throw to RJ Harvey. It never had a chance — and we all know how the game ended. Three points would’ve been very, very valuable.
Hiring Webb is a step in the right direction. The next one is for Payton to relinquish play-calling duties, realizing it’s time.
The speed of the game has caught up to Payton. That’s not his fault as Father Time is undefeated. The best way to combat that is acknowledge it’s true and let Webb design and run the offense every play.
It was exciting to learn he’s officially staying Denver. It was disappointing that Webb calling the plays wasn’t also part of the news.
There are months and months ahead to make sure that happens, but it needs to get announced sooner or later. That’s the best path for Payton, Webb, the 2026 Broncos and our entire town to experience the joy of a fourth Super Bowl title.
