What in the world was Sean Payton thinking?
Thankfully for the Denver Broncos, their defense made sure it was just a moot point.
The Broncos got a late stop of Cam Ward and the Tennessee Titans to preserve a 20-12 victory, but before that, Payton had called the oddest fourth-down decision in a long time.
Denver was facing a fourth-and-8 at the Titans' 36 with 1:04 left. The Broncos had that 20-12 lead.
It seemed like there were two choices: Attempt a 53-yard field goal, or punt.
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Wil Lutz is a good kicker, and in the thin air of Denver, a 53-yarder seems like a decent chance. If he makes it, it's 23-12, and the Broncos win the game for sure.
A punt could've worked, too. If it pins the Titans back at their 10-yard line or so, it'd be really hard for Ward to do anything.
Even if the field goal missed, Tennessee would take over at about their own 43-yard line, where the hold was.
But Denver chose door number three, which no one even knew was a door.
The Broncos kept the offense on the field, and they ran a play-action pass.
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Bo Nix didn't see Courtland Sutton open running toward the left corner. He instead lofted a pass toward Marvin Mims Jr. running deep toward the right corner.
It was off target, incomplete. And the Titans had a chance.
Tennessee couldn't complete a pass, and that was the game, so the Broncos could breathe a sigh of relief.
But if the Titans had pulled off a miracle, Payton would've given himself some tough questions to answer for really no reason.
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