Broncos Pick ‘Em: How much pressure is there on Sean Payton to beat Nathaniel Hackett and the New York Jets?

The 1-3 Denver Broncos playing the 1-3 New York Jets doesn’t appear to be a game filled with storylines on the surface.

But thanks to Sean Payton’s bombshell interview with USA Today’s Jarrett Bell that dropped at the beginning of training camp, the game is sizzling hot with juicy storylines.

In the interview, which was the top story nation wide as training camps opened up around the NFL, Payton defended Russell Wilson’s poor season last year by attacking the preview coaching staff, led by former head coach Nathaniel Hackett.

“It might have been one of the worst coaching jobs in the history of the NFL,” Payton stated of the 2022 Broncos coaching staff. “That’s how bad it was.”

Now, Hackett is leading the Aaron Rodgers-less Jets’ offense as their offensive coordinator.

If that wasn’t enough, Payton also criticized the previous staff for two aspects the Broncos have struggled with this year too — pre-snap penalties and communication on the offensive side of the ball.

“There’s so much dirt around that. There’s 20 dirty hands, for what was allowed, tolerated in the fricking training rooms, the meeting rooms. The offense. I don’t know Hackett. A lot of people had dirt on their hands. It wasn’t just Russell,” Payton said, defending his quarterback. “He didn’t just flip. He still has it. This B.S. that he hit a wall? Shoot, they couldn’t get a play in. They were 29th in the league in pre-snap penalties on both sides of the ball.”

Now Payton, leading a 1-3 Broncos team, goes up against Hackett as the former head coach comes back to Denver for the first time since being fired in January.

How much pressure is there on Payton to beat the coach who he said did one of the worst coaching jobs in the history of the NFL?

The DNVR Broncos Crew breaks it down.

All odds below are courtesy of bet365.

How much pressure is on Sean Payton to beat the Jets and Nathaniel Hackett?

Zac: All of it — After Sean Payton’s bombshell interview, the Jets game was a must-win, not for the Broncos, but for Payton.

But now, following the team’s 1-3 start and the fact the Jets and Hackett don’t have Aaron Rodgers for this game, there’s even more pressure on Payton than it just being a must-win game, if that’s even possible.

Payton’s tenure as the Broncos’ head coach is off to a rocky start, to say the least. On the other side, Hackett is now working with arguably the worst starting quarterback in the NFL in Zach Wilson. Couple those to things, along with Payton saying that Hackett and his 2022 staff had one of the worst coaching performances in NFL history, and Denver’s new head coach simply cannot lose this game.

If Hackett does beat Payton, embarrassing will just be the start of the conversation.

RK: The most pressure a coach can be under that isn’t on the hot seat — To be honest, that’s really not that much pressure. This pressure is all about narrative. If the Broncos don’t win this game, it’s going to be a long week for Sean Payton. Every talking head is going to roast him for writing checks his team couldn’t cash.

Those conversations will likely lead to bigger conversations about why, in this scenario, the Broncos are 1-4 and if Payton really has what it takes to turn this franchise around.

It’s not real pressure because Payton is going to be the coach of the Broncos for a long time, but the external pressure meter is full.

Hank: A little more — The Broncos are 1-3. With a loss on Sunday, their season will be done.

That’s where the pressure is coming from.

In an alternate universe where the Jets are flying high into Denver and the Broncos are in the thick of the AFC race, the Payton versus Hackett drama would be the league’s No. 2 storyline this week behind Taylor Swift. The eyes of the football world would be on Denver. The loser would have to tuck his tail between his legs and take a public beating.

Instead, both teams are in a do-or-die situation. The pressure is already at a maximum, without the off-field drama. Whoever loses will be the butt of jokes for the rest of the week, but the pain of those jokes won’t compare to the pain of playing 14 more weeks of meaningless football.

Picks Picks Picks

Russell Wilson passing yards over/under 220.5

Zac: Over.

RK: Over.

Hank: Over.

Zach Wilson passing yards over/under 203.5

Zac: Over.

RK: Over.

Hank: Under.

Russell Wilson passing touchdowns over/under 1.5 (+125)

Zac: Over.

RK: Over.

Hank: Over.

Zach Wilson passing touchdowns over/under 1.5 (+200)

Zac: Under.

RK: Over.

Hank: Under.

Jerry Jeudy receiving yards over/under 48.5

Zac: Under.

RK: Under.

Hank: Over.

Garrett Wilson receiving yards over/under 59.5

Zac: Over.

RK: Over.

Hank: Over.

Breece Hall rushing yards over/under 60.5

Zac: Over.

RK: Under.

Hank: Over.

Dalvin Cook rushing attempts over/under 9.5

Zac: Under.

RK: Under.

Hank: Under.

Broncos-Jets total points over/under 43

Zac: Over.

RK: Over.

Hank: Over.

Jets @ Broncos (-1.5)

Zac: Jets cover.

RK: Broncos.

Hank: Broncos.

Chiefs (-4) @ Vikings

Zac: Chiefs.

RK: Chiefs.

Hank: Chiefs.

Packers (-1) @ Raiders

Zac: Packers.

RK: Raiders.

Hank: Packers.

Leaderboard

Last week

RK: 7-5-1

Hank: 6-6-1

Zac: 4-8-1

Overall

Zac: 26-24-1

Hank: 24-26-1

RK: 24-26-1