Sean Payton spent years building a reputation as a coach who guarded his play-calling like a family heirloom. So when he handed that responsibility to Davis Webb this season, it turned heads around the league.
Payton made it clear in an interview with Colin Cowherd that nobody forced his hand. He said the move came because he believed it would help the Broncos win.
“I wouldn’t have done it if I didn’t think it was going to help us win games,” Payton said.
He also pushed back on any idea that Webb needs to worry about Payton hovering over every decision once the games start. Payton said he has tried to let Webb settle into the job, even if he still offers thoughts during the week and occasionally in preseason settings.
“I had a great three years of experience with Bill Parcells,” Payton said. “Now Bill, you had commentary almost after each call.
It would be a deep breath, and then if something went well, he would say, ‘Atta boy, atta boy.’ It became white noise; it had to.
“I’ve tried to take the approach in the preseason - Davis a year ago called plays, this preseason. And it might be between series, or maybe there’s a clock stoppage, and it might be me saying, ‘Hey, be thinking about this,’ so he understands if I’m thinking this is a four-down situation.
In other words, if we’re approaching a third down at the 38-yard line, I might say to him, ‘Hey, I’m thinking four downs here,’ that could change his third down call. That has to exist.”
Payton said his input is mostly limited to the week leading up to games, where he and Webb go over plays and ideas together. But he stressed that once the sheet is built, Webb has to feel good about what’s on it.
“I think it’s more during the week; like last night in our meetings, you know, ultimately, what we put on that sheet, he has to feel good about,” Payton said. “I’ll go through some plays, some thoughts, that I think look good. Here’s why, and I said [to Webb that] the worst thing we can do is take down and install plays that you know in your heart of heart on Sunday that you won’t be interested in calling.”
In Los Angeles, the Chargers tried something unusual up front in Week 1 against the Cardinals, splitting snaps at left guard between Kayode Awosika and Trey Pipkins. Awosika played 35 snaps and Pipkins got 20, but the results were ugly. The Chargers struggled in both the run game and pass protection and also piled up too many penalties.
Jim Harbaugh said the rotation was intentional.
“We felt that was the best thing for us,” Chargers HC Jim Harbaugh explained via USA Today’s Gavino Borquez. “Just how good those two players are, and yeah, had the rotation. That was our decision.”
He wouldn’t say whether the team plans to keep using that setup.
“We’ll look at that,” Harbaugh said.
In Kansas City, Patrick Mahomes’ return to the field is already remarkable before the Chiefs even kick off against the Broncos. He’s back under center just nine months after tearing multiple ligaments in his knee, a recovery that required nonstop work from the day after the injury through now.
Chiefs GM Brett Veach called the effort extraordinary.
“It’s incredible,” Veach said via ESPN’s Nate Taylor. “That’s a guy that defines what leadership and what the face of a franchise should look like.
He gave up an entire summer. He just attacked [the rehab].
Everybody in the building sees it. The level of sacrifice is something that has been an example throughout the entire organization.”
A big part of that process was Chiefs trainer Julie Frymyer, who worked with Mahomes almost every day over the past nine months. Mahomes pointed to her as a major reason the rehab stayed on track, noting how she handled the grind and kept him from overdoing it.
“I trust her so much,” Mahomes said. “There’s days you come in [and] you’re tired.
I mean, you’re sore. But she makes sure I finish the entire workout - and I’m going to do it the right way.
She knows when to pull back on some days. It lets me go out there and work and not have to think about if I’m doing too much [or] am I doing not enough.”
The Raiders, meanwhile, opened with a much-needed 27-13 win after last year’s three-win season, getting 102 rushing yards and two total touchdowns from Ashton Jeanty. Jeanty said he’s not interested in carrying last year’s baggage into this group.
“The past is the past,” Jeanty said, via Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk. “We’re moving forward, and we’re not worried about what happened last year.
This is a new team, new staff, and we’re building a new culture here. And that’s a culture that’s going to win football games.”
In Other News...
Chargers Already Face An Ugly Harbaugh Backlash After Week 1
The Chargers opened their season at home with a 26-14 loss to the Arizona Cardinals, and the mood around the team turned quickly afterward. Jim Harbaugh made it clear he was disappointed in the performance, with the defense drawing particular concern, as the Chargers left Week 1 with more questions than answers after a game they expected to handle better.
Breiden Fehoko added to the noise with criticism of Harbaugh and general manager Joe Hortiz on social media, putting roster choices under the microscope almost immediately. It is the kind of early backlash that can linger if the Chargers do not steady things fast, and there is not much time to reset before a visit from the Las Vegas Raiders. [Read more 🡒]
Chargers Debut Under Mike McDaniel Raised A Justin Herbert Concern
The Chargers opened their Mike McDaniel era at SoFi Stadium with hope after an early scoring drive, but the rest of the afternoon tilted hard in Arizonas favor. The Cardinals left with a 26-14 win behind a rookie rushing touchdown from Jeremiyah Love, a blocked punt by Simi Fehoko that turned into points, and an interception by Andrew Wingard that helped close the door.
For Los Angeles, the bigger concern was how little the offense sustained once the first possession was over. Turnovers and a ground game that never really got going left the Chargers chasing the game, and Justin Herbert spent too much of the day working without the balance and rhythm this roster needs if it is going to settle in under its new coach. [Read more 🡒]
Chargers Offense Just Showed A Bigger Problem Than Fans Wanted
The Chargers home opener against the Cardinals turned into an early reality check, and not just because of the 26-14 final. Los Angeles had already been searching for rhythm on offense when wide receiver Ladd McConkey went down with a chest injury in the third quarter, and the timing only made the unraveling harder to ignore. What had been a shaky afternoon became a much tougher one once a key target left the mix.
Jim Harbaugh acknowledged afterward how difficult it was to lose McConkey in the middle of the game, and the comment spoke to a bigger concern for the Chargers than one bad result. This offense is still trying to establish consistency, and the opener showed how thin the margin can be when one of its most important pass catchers is unavailable. With the season just getting started, the question now is how quickly Los Angeles can steady itself if McConkeys absence lingers. [Read more 🡒]