The Denver Broncos certainly haven’t had a winning culture in recent seasons.
Since winning Super Bowl 50 in 2015, the Broncos have had six straight losing seasons and seven straight seasons without a playoff berth. New head coach Sean Payton reached the playoffs nine times in 15 seasons with the New Orleans Saints, and he won a Super Bowl with the Saints.
Payton will now aim to bring that winning culture to the Broncos. Having the right coaching staff is important, but it ultimately falls on the players.
“[I]t starts with the ingredients,” Payton said on June 13. “The recipe for culture starts with who’s in the building. It’s hard to have the right culture if you don’t have the right ingredients. Then, it’s the attention to every detail. There has to be passion involved with that. In the procurement process of players, you really have to dig into — it’s the hardest thing for us — finding guys that truly love their job. It’s finding the right people to build the culture around.”
Part of being the right player is being a team-first player. Payton used an example of a star receiver having a quiet game in a win and being OK with it. Payton wants unselfish, passionate players on his team.
“We’re in the passion business, and you’re looking for all those traits,” he said.
Including the playoffs, Payton has won 161 games in the NFL. His winning percentage (.631) ranks 24th on the NFL’s all-time list, above Hall of Famers Bill Cowher (.623), Joe Gibbs (.621), Bill Walsh (.609) and Tom Landry (.607), plus a familiar name to Broncos fans in Mike Shanahan (.552).
Fixing the franchise will start with fixing the team’s culture, and Payton’s history suggests he is up to the task. The Saints quickly went from one of the worst teams in the NFL to a Super Bowl contender — and Super Bowl champion — under Payton. Now the Broncos will aim to do the same.
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