Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton has been around the game for a long time.
He has made many meaningful connections and left as many strong impressions on those he has encountered. That was evident in the way that Chicago Bears defensive coordinator Dennis Allen spoke about Payton. Allen held the same position under Payton with the New Orleans Saints.
He has carried some of the things he learned with him, and even sees similarities with his current situation in Chicago.
Broncos HC Sean Payton Gets Strong Words From Bears DC Dennis Allen
GettySean Payton and Drew Brees received lofty praise from Dennis Allen.
Allen, whose first NFL coordinator job was with the Broncos in 2011, spent six seasons under Payton in New Orleans. Allen over for Payton as the Saints’ head coach in 2022.
In light of Payton (and Broncos kicker Wil Lutz) attending former Saints quarterback Drew Brees’ Hall of Fame induction ceremony, Allen–who was also in attendance–fielded a questio about seeing a “ruthless competitiveness” from coach and quarterback.
Allen said, “No question.”
“That was the mentality of both of those guys. I thought that was a a great tandem in terms of how they both saw the game and how competitive both of those guys are,” Allen told reporters on August 9. “Competitiveness is the asset that you see in Hall of Famers, more so than than anything else. They want to win at everything they do.
“That drives everything that they do. That drives their their preparation, that drives how they try to bring their team together. So, those were fun years with those guys and it was fun to watch those guys go to work.”
Former Broncos linebacker Dre Greenlaw noted how serious the the team takes practices under Payton. That stood out to him in his lone season in the Mile High City.
Brees was the same way, Allen said, to ready himself for the rigors of playing the QB position.
“Listen, he was extremely hard to attack because he’d seen everything, and he was so well prepared. And I’m a little bit biased in terms of how I evaluate quarterbacks because I see it from that lens. But I think the biggest thing in playing the quarterback position is, man, your ability to mentally process quickly is extremely important. And knowing where to go, and what’s your next option based on what you’re seeing and having to make those decisions in a split second is really challenging to do,” Allen said.
“To see him do it at such a high level, it was impressive to watch. And so, going up against him and Sean all these years in practice, I think, really helped me kind of develop as a coach, and, maybe, see the game a little bit more as they see it offensively.”
Bears’ Ben Johnson Operating Like Sean Payton
GettyBears HC Ben Johnson drew a favorable comparison to Sean Payton.
In another noteworthy response, Allen said that he sees similarities to how Payton and Bears head coach Ben Johnson run their respective operations. Notably, Johnson has his own dynamic passer in former No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams.
“I see a lot of the same qualities in terms of how the attacking mindset,” Allen said. “And not just how we practice offensively, but how we practice in general. The physicality and the effort level that that’s required is very similar to what we did in those years under Sean in New Orleans. So, there’s a lot of similarities as to how they coach and…, philosophically, how they see the game.”
The Broncos hope to recreate the magic that Payton, a former lockout Bears QB, and Brees had with Bo Nix. The fourth-year QB has already led the team to the AFC Championship Game.
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