Sean Payton knows what it takes to go from an assistant to a head coach in the NFL.
After starting his coaching career in the college ranks, Payton got his start in the NFL as a quarterbacks coach with the Philadephia Eagles in 1997. He later held the same position with the New York Giants before being promoted to offensive coordinator.
By the team he reached the Dallas Cowboys in 2003, Payton had worked his way up to assistant head coach/QBs coach. He held that position for three seasons in Dallas before becoming the New Orleans Saints’ head coach in 2006.
Payton quickly built a winning coaching staff in New Orleans — his initial staff included Doug Marrone as offensive coordinator, Dennis Allen as assistant defensive line coach and Curtis Johnson as wide receivers coach.
Marrone went on to become an NFL head coach (he’s now back with the Saints coaching their offensive line). Allen also went on to become a head coach and he ultimately ended up replacing Payton in New Orleans. Johnson is currently the head coach of the Houston Gamblers in the USFL.
More recently, Dan Campbell served as Payton’s assistant head coach and tight ends coach with the Saints from 2016-2020. Campbell is now the head coach of the Detroit Lions.
Payton knows what successful assistant coaches look like, and he envisions several members of his Denver staff going on to have similar success.
“There are three or four coaches on this staff — — that will end up being head coaches,” Payton said on June 14. “For me, for as long as I’ve done this, you want to see those guys have success. I love seeing Dan Campbell and what he’s doing in Detroit. Doug Marrone, Dennis Allen and a number of coaches who go on to positions and fulfill their goals. That’s what we’re trying to do.
“My early years in New Orleans, we had success and the late [former Saints Owner] Mr. [Tom] Benson came to me and said, ‘Coach, we have we have a lot of people interviewing our coaches.’ I said, ‘Mr. B, that’s not a problem. The problem is when no one wants to visit with our coaches.’ We have a lot of talent on the staff, and it takes that to be successful.”
The list of promising young coaches on Payton’s staff with the Broncos includes defensive backs coach Christian Parker and defensive line coach Marcus Dixon, two holdovers from the previous staff. Denver also has Vance Joseph as defensive coordinator. After previously serving as a head coach with the Broncos from 2017-2018, Joseph might be a candidate for head coach jobs again in the future if his second stint in Denver goes well.
Payton has an eye for talent — both talented players and talented coaches. We’ll see if his prediction about the current staff holds up in the coming years.
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