The Denver Broncos escaped NRG Stadium on Sunday with an 18-15 win over the Houston Texans. The win marked the sixth in a row for the Broncos, who now have a 7-2 record and still sit atop the AFC West standings.
But the team made many errors in the game and Sean Payton touched on the area that seemed to be bothering him the most following the game... Special teams. Following the game, while addressing the media, Payton said, "And the kicking game, we'll get that cleaned up... Or we'll find someone else who can do it".
Presumably, Payton is referring to the kick coverage aspect of his team, as that has been an ongoing issue. This offseason, the team parted ways with special teams coach Ben Kotwica despite the unit playing quite well in 2024. To replace him, Payton brought in a guy he was very familiar with from his time in New Orleans (stop me when you've heard that before), Darren Rizzi.
The move was applauded by Broncos Country and the national media felt it was a great move too. Here is what Mike Sando of The Athletic had to say after the hire was made.
"Hiring Darren Rizzi as special teams coach rounds out a staff featuring Sean Payton as de facto offensive coordinator and Vance Joseph as defensive coordinator. That’s a solid triumvirate of proven coaches in three key roles. Rizzi worked under Payton in New Orleans from 2019-21 and stayed in the role through last season, so the fit should be natural. The Saints ranked 12th in special teams EPA during Rizzi’s tenure there (2019-24), including fourth on punts, punt returns, kickoffs and kickoff returns, per TruMedia."
But it hasn't proven to be a great move to this point. The Broncos have given up big returns on kickoffs and punts throughout this season and on Sunday, the Texans averaged 28.3 yards on kick returns and 15.5 yards on punt returns. A 45-yard return of a punt by Jaylin Noel was likely the play that triggered Payton on Sunday.
That came after the Broncos had a 5-play drive to open the second half that gained just 13 yards. The return set the Texans up in Denver territory and led to a field goal and a 15-7 Texans lead.
Would Payton really make a move at the special teams coach position at this stage of the season? He certainly seemed serious when addressing the media.
READ: Broncos' Week 9 winners and losers
The Broncos have a short week this week as they will face the Las Vegas Raiders on Thursday Night Football. If the Broncos play poorly on special teams in that game, there is a mini-bye of 10 days afterwards, and that could be enough of an opening for the team to make a change.
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