The Denver Broncos are a team on the rise. After a disastrous stretch, the Broncos made the playoffs again this season, the first time since winning the Super Bowl with a very veteran Peyton Manning and prime Von Miller.
Unfortunately for Denver, the Broncos were thoroughly dismantled by the Buffalo Bills in the Wild Card round, losing the game 31-7.
Even with the ugly end to the season, head coach Sean Payton was happy with the growth he saw from last season.
“We’re a lot closer than we were at this time a year ago. That was misery, sorrow, drudgery — give me some other adjectives — just, that was brutal. Let’s say that,” Payton said, according to Pro Football Talk.
It isn’t hard to read between the lines of Patyon’s statement. The primary difference between this season and last is the subtraction of veteran quarterback Russell Wilson from the roster and the addition of rookie Bo Nix, who Payton hand-selected.
Payton and Wilson butted heads during their shared time in Denver, and the franchise was even willing to pay the overwhelming majority of his massive contract to get him out of the building, as he played with the Pittsburgh Steelers this season, with the Steelers 0nly paying the league minimum.
In his end-of-the-season press conference, Payton even stamped Bo Nix, seemingly another shot at Wilson.
“I think we found that player that can lead us.”
