Sources - Broncos reach deal with Saints for Sean Payton - ESPN
Payton, who was the NFL's Coach of the Year in 2006, will succeed Nathaniel Hackett, who was fired Dec. 26, the day after the Broncos' dismal 51-14 loss to the Los Angeles Rams at SoFi Stadium that dropped Denver to 4-11.
Payton will be tasked with repairing the league's lowest-scoring offense in 2022 as Wilson finished with a career-low 16 touchdown passes and was sacked a career-most 55 times.The Broncos have missed the playoffs seven consecutive seasons and have fired three head coaches -- Vance Joseph, Vic Fangio and Hackett -- since January 2019.Kicker Brandon McManus is the only player on the current roster who was in uniform for the Broncos' last playoff game -- their Super Bowl 50 win to close out the 2015 season.At the time, Broncos GM George Paton called Hackett a "dynamic leader and coach whose intelligence, innovation and charisma impressed us from the very start of the process."Shortly after Hackett's hiring, the Broncos traded five draft picks, including two first-rounders and two second-rounders, as well as three players to the Seahawks to acquire Wilson.