Besides Wilson, which Bronco raises his game the most with Payton hiring?
Columnist Sean Keeler debates Broncos reporter Parker Gabriel
KEELER>> Happy Sean Payton Day! You ready for a coach who’s the tide that lifts all boats? Under Payton, the Saints placed guys from 14 different position groups into the Pro Bowl. And players from 10 different position groups onto one of the All-pro teams. Former New Orleans QB Drew Brees led the way, no shock, with 11 Pro Bowl selections — not counting 2012 — and five more on the All-pro side. Said it before, sayin’ it again: If Payton can win with Teddy Bridgewater, Taysom Hill and Trevor Siemian, he can win with an aging Russell Wilson. But after No. 3, which current Broncos player is likely to take the biggest step forward under Payton this year? I’ve got a few dudes in mind. What about you?
GABRIEL>> I know where you’re going with this, Keeler, so I’ll let you have it. Let’s say Greg Dulcich. For a couple of reasons. First, the old adage goes that guys typically make their biggest jump between their first and second seasons and Dulcich got enough of a base when he was healthy to get a real look at what life in the NFL is like. He probably figured out — and Payton will, too — that he has a chance to be not just good but special with the right development in his game. Payton said Monday he wants to figure out what everybody’s good at and then maximize from there. That should mean exciting things for the former UCLA walk- on given his ability to stretch the field vertically and his willingness to work on other areas of his game.
KEELER>> My eyes say Jerry Jeudy. My heart says Courtland Sutton. But history says something else: After Brees, the position group that received the most frequent honors in New Orleans under Payton was the offensive line. Saints guards and offensive tackles accounted for 21 Pro Bowl berths during Payton’s reign in the Big Easy. So what the heck? I’ll cast my lot with the biggest piece of all, and a mild shocker: Left tackle Garett Bolles.
GABRIEL>> The truth is that you took my first idea when you rolled out the offensive line train of thought. One of Payton’s strengths is building solid offensive lines. He’s going to lean on long-time New Orleans tackle and then assistant offensive line coach Zach Strief to do the same in Denver. Strief played at Northwestern, ever heard of it? So, your hair-brained thought is perhaps not so hair-brained. Though if you’d have picked one of Denver’s five free-agent-to-be linemen, I might have called you crazy.
KEELER>> Hey, it’s lonely out here in left field. But hear me out. I laughed when I saw this, initially, but despite playing on only 325 offensive snaps, the wonks at Pro Football Focus last fall still tapped Bolles as the Broncos’ second-best blocker for 2022. I know, I know — that probably says more about the colossal struggles from the rest of the unit — Quinn Meinerz excluded — as a whole. Bolles has yet to make a Pro Bowl, even after notching second-team All-pro honors in 2020, and the clock’s ticking. The big lug’s going into his age 31 season. If Payton can’t wring out the best football he’s got left, then nobody can.
GABRIEL>> It helps to have a quarterback like Drew Brees who gets the ball out on time and didn’t have a sack percentage above 4.7 in the final five years of his career. His average sack rate over 15 years in New Orelans? 3.6%. Wilson’s was 10.2% in 2022 and is 8.5% for his career. Help Payton help you, Russ. Matter of fact, help Payton help you help the OL help you.