Is This Actually Denver Broncos Coach Sean Payton in This Video?
The first round of the 2023 NFL draft is complete and our Denver Broncos were never on the clock at any point in the 1st round. In fact, unless they find a way to trade up, they won't be on the clock this year until the 3rd round, thanks to trading away a bevy of picks to Seattle to acquire quarterback Russell Wilson last year.
They did end up receiving a 1st round pick back from Miami in the Bradley Chubb trade during midseason of 2022, but they then promptly traded that pick to New Orleans for the rights to hire new Broncos head coach Sean Payton.
Suffice to say most of Broncos Country is pretty excited about what's to come this year and beyond with Payton at the helm. He brings a history of winning and culture creation that shapes a more successful franchise. He did it in New Orleans for a long time and we can all agree, it's something we've been missing in Denver for a while.
The only Broncos news to come out of the 1st round of the draft was an interesting video that began circulating on Twitter. In it, a man identified in captions and comments as Payton is seen smoking something - substance unknown - from a bong.
There is no confirmation that it's actually Sean Payton in the video. It does resemble him, however. But if you really analyze it closely, you could make the argument that it's not him, also. This one seems to be about a 50/50 to me.
If it is him, it would be pretty unprecedented and probably frowned upon by league and team brass. But obviously not illegal in the State of Colorado, nor technically a violation of any league policy. The league does not perform drug testing of coaches or team staff, only players as outlined in the collective bargaining agreement with the NFL Players Association.
Regardless, my eyes say it's an even guess as to this being him or not being him, anyway. We'll wait to see if he or anyone else comes forward to own it or deny it, but in the meantime, have a look for yourself: