{"id":1007202,"date":"2026-09-21T23:18:27","date_gmt":"2026-09-21T23:18:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/1007202\/"},"modified":"2026-09-21T23:18:27","modified_gmt":"2026-09-21T23:18:27","slug":"sean-payton-energized-on-sideline-despite-health-issue","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/1007202\/","title":{"rendered":"Sean Payton ‘energized’ on sideline despite health issue"},"content":{"rendered":"


\n Sports <\/a><\/p>\n

\n Published September 21, 2026 3:42pm
\n |
\n Updated September 21, 2026 3:57pm\n <\/p>\n

Sean Payton has a unique sideline posture to help ease discomfort.<\/p>\n

The Broncos coach sets his feet at shoulder-width, bends slightly at the waist and rests both palms on his knees. Payton is not confused about where to put his hands without a play sheet. He\u2019s adjusting to health challenges.<\/p>\n

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Payton told reporters last week about back issues related to his L4-L5 disc. He said that it \u201cradiates through your thigh and can go into your foot\u201d while standing over the course of a football game.<\/p>\n

On Sunday night, after a 20-13 home win over the Jaguars, Payton quipped: \u201cMy back is sore again, so I was bent over. I just want to make sure that when you guys see that. \u2026 I can bring you the MRIs.\u201d<\/p>\n

Payton discussed the problem in more detail Monday.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn 2013, I had a (small) disc issue, and it was just from too much CrossFit or working out. That kind of calmed down and then flared up this summer,\u201d Payton said. \u201cI already had the little procedure, which is really like an injection. \u2026 It really can get aggravated when you\u2019re standing for 3 and a half (or) 4 hours. No, there\u2019s no surgery for the back. I\u2019ve got a toe issue. There are some other issues now that are (happening), but the stress on the back can be relieved if you get into that position.\u201d<\/p>\n

Payton, 62, has about 20 years of NFL head coaching experience. But it doesn\u2019t appear his age or health issues have slowed him down, especially since offensive coordinator Davis Webb assumed play-calling duties.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve noticed his energy towards us a lot more,\u201d tight end Evan Engram said. \u201cHe\u2019s very energized. He\u2019s pretty vocal in practice and in games. He obviously has a lot on his plate calling plays, but now his energy, he\u2019s able to pour so much more (and) conversate more. It\u2019s definitely impacting us in a positive way just seeing his energy and his excitement. But he\u2019s also going to get on our butts when we\u2019re not doing the things we\u2019re supposed to be doing.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"DenverDenver Broncos line backer, Que Robinson (51) celebrates a sacking Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback, Trevor Lawrence (16) in the first half at Empower Field at Mile High in Denver on Sunday, Sept. 20, 2026. The Broncos defeated the Jaguars 20-13. (Michael G. Seamans, The Gazette)<\/p>\n

Sack numbers<\/p>\n

Multiple players on the Broncos defense set a lofty goal to break the NFL\u2019s team sacks record. The Broncos posted 68 last year. The all-time mark is 72 by the 1984 Chicago Bears.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s time to pick up the pace. Denver has four sacks over the first two weeks of the season. Defensive lineman Malcolm Roach explained how opponents are limiting pass-rush success.<\/p>\n

\u201cA lot of quarterbacks come into the game and understand you can\u2019t hold on to the ball. You can\u2019t have those double-clutches and things like that,\u201d Roach said. \u201cI think teams are doing a good job of getting rid of the ball as soon as the quarterback kind of hits that back foot. \u2026 We always say that pressures lead to sacks. But pressures also lead to interceptions (and) incompletions. It\u2019s just doing our job. We feel like the sacks are always going to be there. But what else can we do to attack the game?\u201d<\/p>\n

Defensive lineman Zach Allen is the outlier. He\u2019s already logged two sacks and four quarterback hits.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe see the work (Allen) puts in every day, so we\u2019re not really surprised at the success he\u2019s having,\u201d Roach said. \u201cIt\u2019s kind of expected just from the beast he is on the field and the work he puts in off the field (and) the attention to detail in film sessions.\u201d<\/p>\n

Briefly<\/p>\n

Payton did not specify the health status of two running backs, J.K. Dobbins and RJ Harvey, dealing with hamstring injuries. Rookie Jonah Coleman stepped up against the Jaguars. Payton said: \u201cAll three of those players we\u2019re discussing can be (the) bell cow (and) handle a majority of the carries.\u201d \u2026 Payton described the crowd noise at Empower Field as \u201csignificant\u201d in a Week 1 victory. Payton said: \u201cThere\u2019s a communication problem relative to the formation, and twice I saw that right in front of me.\u201d \u2026 The Broncos host the Rams on Sunday night. Rams defensive lineman Aaron Donald came out of a two-year retirement this season. Donald was a three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year with 111 career sacks. Roach said: \u201cHe\u2019s one of the best football players to ever walk (on) this earth.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Sports Published September 21, 2026 3:42pm | Updated September 21, 2026 3:57pm Sean Payton has a unique sideline…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1007203,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2062],"tags":[232,231,258,2426,2826,7,3539,6,1813,9],"class_list":["post-1007202","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-denver-broncos","tag-broncos","tag-denver","tag-denver-broncos","tag-denverbroncos","tag-evan-engram","tag-football","tag-malcolm-roach","tag-nfl","tag-sean-payton","tag-sports"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/117311590245455968","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1007202","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1007202"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1007202\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1007203"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1007202"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1007202"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1007202"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}