Hello, Parker! Why is it a given that Russell Wilson will be let go by the Broncos, given all the spotlight on the bad working relationship between Sean Payton and Wilson? Instead, how about thinking about splitting up with Payton? Wilson had a respectable season (3,070 yards, 26 touchdowns, just 8 interceptions), yet it might be said that Payton is the reason behind the Broncos’ losing record this season.
Hello Michael, I appreciate your letter starting this week’s discussion. The quickest version of the response, which we’ve addressed in earlier mailbags, is as follows: Wilson is not the one who makes the decisions; Payton is.
One way to say it is a foregone conclusion. You never say never until they have those last talks and Wilson’s departure plan is confirmed. However, it’s anticipated that Wilson will play somewhere in 2019 and Denver will return wholeheartedly to the quarterback market.
Hello Ed, excellent query. It’s one of those situations where you never know what to expect, but usually you simply hope for some degree of change. That also doesn’t mean Payton is firing his helpers. It’s possible that some employees of the Broncos will be considered for promotions when the staff is assembled by new head coaches. It wouldn’t be difficult to see a few of Denver’s assistants receiving interviews in the hopes of being hired as coordinators. Among the contenders are quarterbacks coach Davis Webb, defensive line coach Marcus Dixon, and secondary coach Christian Parker.
As far as any other changes go, nothing solid on that front so far. The Broncos have craved continuity for years and maybe Payton will try to keep as much of his staff together as possible. He spoke very highly of it through training camp as the group came together. At the same time, he was not pleased with his offense in particular as the year went along and he made an interesting comment during his postseason news conference about evaluations when he said, “I think that I’m comfortable and far enough along doing this that I can easily be swayed or moved. Even coaches. It’s one thing to be somewhere where everyone tells you what you want to hear, but the value of a coach that tells me sometimes what I need to hear, I appreciate.”
Payton didn’t say whether he thinks he has enough of that now. It could be that he does. Or perhaps he’ll go looking for more. Just as one example, New Orleans on Tuesday fired offensive coordinator Pete Carmichael, who served as Payton’s quarterbacks coach from 2006-08 and then OC from 2009 on. This time of year always brings options for both teams and coaches.
Gary, if we were assessing employee performance, how would we rate an employee who, in your hypothetical situation, implements a change, witnesses instant improvement, and then reverses that change only to witness the entire thing implode? Isn’t that considered malpractice?
Naturally, in regards to the Broncos defense, that is not the case. The team had a terrible start for a number of reasons: They were picking up a new system, they had lost Justin Simmons, one of their main communicators, and they were frequently playing the wrong player. Specifically, the final one is employed by the personnel. They may not have won the first two games if Fabian Moreau and Ja’Quan McMillian had been playing instead of Damarri Mathis and
