Broncos HC Sean Payton Sends Blunt Message to Broncos Special Teams After Sloppy Win Over Texans
Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton didn’t mince words after his team’s 18-15 win over the Houston Texans.
As Denver Sports 104.3 noted, despite moving to 7-2, Payton expressed frustration with the Broncos’ special teams performance, a unit once considered one of the league’s best but now under scrutiny after repeated mistakes.
“All of that, without watching on tape, my concern was just the late subs. It was a little bit sloppy in the kicking game,” Payton said postgame. “We’ll get that cleaned up, or we’ll find someone else who can do it.”
Despite a 34-yard field goal from Wil Lutz that won the Broncos the game as time expired, Payton’s comments made clear that execution errors on special teams overshadowed the victory.
Special Teams Struggles
Through nine games, Denver’s special teams have regressed under new coordinator Darren Rizzi, who replaced Ben Kotwica after the 2024 season.
While Lutz has remained reliable, converting over 90% of his field goal attempts, the unit as a whole has been inconsistent.
Sunday’s game in Houston highlighted the issues:
A 51-yard field goal attempt was blocked early, costing Denver an opportunity to seize early momentum.
Then, a muffed punt deep in their own territory late in the first half gifted the Texans three points.
And lastly, a poorly executed kickoff and miscues from long snapper Mitchell Fraboni compounded the sloppiness.
Payton emphasized that the coaching wasn’t to blame, instead calling out players for failing to be ready on time during substitutions and for mental lapses in key moments.
His tone signaled accountability and possible roster adjustments if things don’t get turned around soon.
Payton doubled down on his message, warning that if mistakes continue, he won’t hesitate to make changes: “We’ll get that cleaned up, or we’ll find someone else who can do it.”
Broncos Outlook: 7-2 but Still Far Away
While Denver sits atop the AFC West standings at 7-2, the record doesn’t tell the full story.
Several wins have come down to late-game heroics or critical defensive stands rather than complete performances.
They’ve played sloppy football in many close wins against bad teams this season, including close calls over the Titans, Giants and Jets.
The Broncos’ special teams woes have surfaced multiple times this season, including a game where a late special teams penalty cost them a win against the Colts.
Payton’s comments after the game suggest that patience is wearing thin.
The Broncos face the Raiders on Thursday night, followed by a mini-bye before their first matchup with the Chiefs.
That short stretch could serve as a critical evaluation period for personnel changes or roster moves.
Adding to the complications, Pro Bowl returner Marvin Mims Jr. missed Sunday’s game due to a concussion, leaving the unit without one of its most dynamic playmakers.
His absence was felt, but Payton made clear that mental errors, not injuries, were the root of his concern.
“It was a little sloppy,” Payton reiterated. “That’s not who we are and it won’t continue.”
Browns' Deshaun Watson Trade Still Haunts Franchise, Costing Draft Picks and Future Hope
With the Cleveland Browns mired in a disaster of a season with yet another unsolved quarterback situation on their hands, it’s not hard to look back to how a March 2022 trade helped us get to this point.
We’re talking about the deal that landed Deshaun Watson, arguably the worst trade in the history of the league and one that has impeded the Browns from finding anything remotely resembling a long-term solution at the most important position in sports.
To this day, the ill-fated agreement still weighs heavily on the Browns. Let’s take a look:
Loss of draft capital
The Browns surrendered three first-round selections (2022, 2023, 2024), one third-rounder (2023) and two fourth-rounders (2022, 2024) for Watson and a 2024 sixth-rounder.
Sure, the 2022 Draft didn’t offer any real answers at the quarterback position save for “Mr. Irrelevant” Brock Purdy, selected by the Niners. Although Cleveland could have picked him at any moment of that draft, they were too busy drooling over their newly acquired passer to seriously consider adding another arm. Ironically, Bailey Zappe, taken in the fourth by the Patriots, is currently a Browns backup. Pro Bowlers available in the first round when Cleveland was due to pick (13th) include safety Kyle Hamilton, offensive linemen Tyler Smith and Tyler Lindebaum, and edge rusher Jermaine Johnson II.
The 2023 Draft is more of the same. Cleveland’s original 12th overall pick turned eventually into star running back Jahmyr Gibbs for Detroit. Two Pro Bowl-wideouts were selected later in that same opening round: Jaxson Smith-Njigba and Zay Flowers. Meanwhile, the Browns settled for Dorian Thompson-Robinson in the fifth.
Lastly, the 2024 Draft ended up with Cleveland’s original pick (23rd) being exercised by Jacksonville on Pro Bowl wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr.
Even discarding the possibility of the Browns trading up in 2023 or 2024 for someone like C.J. Stroud, Jayden Daniels or Drake Maye, there was still a ton of talent left on the table. This loss of draft capital has led to multiple missed opportunities to improve elsewhere on a roster full of holes.
Loss of cap dollars
The first thing Cleveland did once legally-embattled Deshaun Watson arrived, was compound the mistake by handing him an NFL record $230 million fully guaranteed contract that still burdens the franchise to this day.
And, thanks to the money spent on Watson, the Browns haven’t been able to dive into the open market in search of a better option through free agency, such as Lamar Jackson in 2023 or Sam Darnold this past offseason. And no, we won’t even mention Baker Mayfield here. We’ll do that next.
Loss of a potential franchise quarterback
Trading for Watson also meant getting rid of Mayfield, by far the only quarterback drafted by the Browns since 1999 close to a .500 winning percentage (29-30). In fact, out of the 41 quarterbacks that have started at least one game for Cleveland since ‘99, only Mayfield and Tim Couch (22-37) won more than 10 games for the club.
Mayfield has been through some ups and downs in his career, sure, but he’s also playing the best football in his life right now for Tampa Bay, light years ahead of what Cleveland’s passers have been showing since he left.
Misguided hope of deliverance
This is probably the worst of all since it’s not as easily quantifiable: the undying expectation that -- somehow, someway -- Watson could still be something that he hasn’t been since 2020, an NFL starting quarterback.
But, after five years of mostly being suspended, deactivated or rehabbing for the last five years, can Watson still play at a high level?
Even owner Jimmy Haslam seemed to dismiss any idea of reedemption when stating "We took a big swing-and-miss with Deshaun. We thought we had the quarterback; we didn't”, back in March. More recently, he confirmed: “A big trade we made didn’t work out, and you know, we’re all suffering from that, ” while defending head coach Kevin Stefanski.
Even if the Browns open the 21-day practice window for Watson soon, there are no assurances he’s ready to see the field, and by the time he could be, the season might be over anyways.
We get it, it’s hard to move one. But now the Browns are stuck with third-round rookie Dillon Gabriel, fifth round-rookie Shedeur Sanders, career backup Zappe, a looming dead cap issue with Watson, and a long list of ifs, hadn’t they agreed to the worst trade in the history of the NFL.
