4 players Sean Payton could bring to the Denver Broncos in 2023

The Denver Broncos have hired Sean Payton as the team’s newest head coach, but Payton is going to need more than a hefty contract in order to compete in the Wild, Wild AFC West. If Payton and the Broncos are going to return to prominence, they’re going to need to upgrade the player personnel and that could start with adding some players that have connections to Payton through the years.

Payton had a ton of success through the years with the New Orleans Saints, to put it mildly. Payton averaged 11 wins per 17 games with the Saints and obviously knows a thing or two about offensive personnel and how to maximize talent. In order to get some of that success in the Mile High City, he could bring some of his old friends with him.

Let’s take a look at four players Payton could recruit to come and play for the Denver Broncos in 2023 (and beyond).

4 players Sean Payton could recruit to the Denver Broncos in 2023

1. Taysom Hill, QB/TE, New Orleans Saints (possible trade candidate)

One of the variety of players that got name-dropped in Sean Payton’s introductory press conference with the Denver Broncos was Saints jack-of-all-trades Taysom Hill. Taysom Hill has become somewhat of a household name in the NFL seemingly out of nowhere. This guy was a QB at BYU who might have had the “ATH” position coming to the professional level.

Sean Payton and his staff saw the potential in Taysom Hill, snatched him away from the Green Bay Packers in 2017, and the rest is kind of history. When Payton discussed Taysom Hill in his introductory press conference with the Broncos, it was as an example of how you mold your offense to suit the skills of the players you have.

What do our players do well? How can we do that more?

There’s really not a better example than Taysom Hill, who is Tebow-like in some regards as a QB but is a weapon with the ball in his hands. This guy has 23 rushing touchdowns, nine receiving touchdowns, and 10 passing touchdowns in his NFL career. He’s played almost 1,000 special teams snaps.

It wouldn’t shock me, in the slightest, to see Sean Payton try to acquire Taysom Hill now that he’s with the Broncos one way or another.

2. Latavius Murray, RB, Denver Broncos (2023 free agent)

Alright, this is cheating. No need to jump into the comments and notify me that Latavius Murray already plays for the Denver Broncos — I know.

But as of right now, Murray is not under contract with the Denver Broncos in 2023. He’s a pending free agent. He also just so happens to be one of the players that was name-dropped during Payton’s press conference, meeting the Denver media for the first time.

Here’s what Payton had to say about Latavius Murray, a player he coached with the Saints in 2019 and 2020:

"Latavius Murray is one of my former players and he’s played with a number of teams. He’s a super guy. You guys have had the chance to cover him. He’s one of those guys you like being around. We had a great experience with him in New Orleans. I got a text right at the end of the season. He said, ‘Man, we have to find a way to get you here—me and backfield teammate.’ When I heard that, I thought of running back. Then I thought of who else is in his backfield. I texted and said, ‘Who is your backfield teammate?’ He sent the number three. It was Christmas time and I said, ‘Be careful what you’re asking Santa for.’ That was my response. We kind of went from there. Sean Payton (via Broncos PR)"

The words Payton puts in Murray’s mouth here certainly make it seem like Murray is going to be back in Denver, one way or another. It sounds like Murray actually tried to help recruit Payton to the Broncos. And not only that, but it sounds like Murray reached out to Payton shortly after Nathaniel Hackett was fired in December if the timing of all this was around Christmastime.

Enough detective work, let’s talk about this fit, which is very simple.

Murray was a godsend to the Denver Broncos this season after Javonte Williams suffered a season-ending injury and Melvin Gordon couldn’t hold onto the ball. He ended up having multiple 100-yard rushing games and looked explosive down the stretch.

Considering his ties to head coach Sean Payton as well as GM George Paton (from their time in Minnesota), it seems almost a guarantee that Latavius Murray will reunite with Payton in Denver in 2023.

3. Jameis Winston, QB, New Orleans Saints (possible cap casualty)

We saw in the final month of the 2022 NFL season that Russell Wilson may not have really “lost it”. It’s unclear at this point what kind of injuries Wilson was dealing with early on in the 2022 season, but over the course of the year, he had a quad issue, a torn lat, and a very scary concussion.

On top of that, Wilson essentially had to operate four different offenses. He was running an offense that was essentially tailored to his skills, he was running Nathaniel Hackett’s offense, and then he ran Klint Kubiak’s version of the offense as well as Justin Outten’s version of the offense. Not to excuse Wilson’s poor play in 2022, but it’s safe to say all of these factors played a role in what ended up being his worst year yet as a pro.

Regardless of how optimistic you are (or aren’t) about Wilson’s future with the Broncos, it seems clear that the Broncos need a better contingency plan at the QB position in 2023. With all due respect to Taysom Hill, he would be an addition on top of the true backup QB in Denver.

In this case, I think Jameis Winston would be a fine pickup for the Broncos. He was brought in by the New Orleans Saints in 2020 after a devastating year in 2019 with the Bucs where he threw 30 interceptions running the Bruce Arians offense. Sean Payton took him in, developed him for a year, then trotted him out to start the 2021 season.

Winston was on pace for over 50 touchdowns through the first seven games before he tore his ACL. If I had to venture a guess, I would say that Winston would probably look forward to the chance to work with Payton again, and he could be a very good option to back up Russell Wilson as well as push him a little bit.

Winston is a former number one overall pick who certainly doesn’t lack talent. The Broncos need an upgrade in the backup QB spot, and Winston would be worth the investment.

4. Brandin Cooks, WR, Houston Texans (possible trade target)

You could put a couple of guys in this spot here, but I went with Brandin Cooks because of the way he fits the skill set of Russell Wilson.

The Denver Broncos have two big-bodied outside receivers in Courtland Sutton and Tim Patrick, who is coming off of a knee injury. They’ve got Jerry Jeudy, a budding star coming off of his best season as a pro. Beyond those guys, there’s not a reliable option in the passing game and you could make the argument that Courtland Sutton has regressed in the last two seasons.

With all of that being said, how about a reunion between Sean Payton and former first-round pick Brandin Cooks? Cooks has been almost a lock for 1,000 yards at every stop he’s made in the NFL. He’s been one of the most traded players already in league history and he could be dealt yet again here in the 2023 offseason.

The Houston Texans could be looking to get Cooks off the books in 2023 and his Twitter account basically said as much near the end of last season. It doesn’t seem like he’ll be in Houston in 2023, but will he be in Denver? If the Texans cut him, this will be the spot to look for. If there’s a trade on the horizon, the Broncos will be a spot to watch as well.

Clearly, Brandin Cooks enjoyed his time working with Sean Payton, and it doesn’t seem like there’s any bad blood over being traded early on in his NFL career. Cooks would bring an explosive element to the Broncos’ offense that simply hasn’t been consistent enough with former second-round pick KJ Hamler.