During this year’s NFL Scouting Combine, multiple quarterback prospects discussed how different or difficult their meetings with the Denver Broncos and head coach Sean Payton.
Ever since, Broncos Country has understandably wondered, ‘what is Sean Payton during these quarterback meetings.’
We received at least part of an answer to that question on Monday, during the NFL’s annual owners meetings, in Orlando, Florida.
“I like to find out how they process, how quickly it comes,” Coach Payton told the gathering reporters during the AFC coaches’ breakfast. “If we send them information at 5 pm the prior day, and we send them more than we think that they’re going to have a chance to study — like, we’ve all been in that position. Now, it may not have been football, but 5 pm on a college Thursday, [with a] test on Friday, and [we have to study] more than we have enough time to study. How do they handle that? Where’s the break point the next day? Is there one? Did they handle it really well? Did they really struggle? What time are they at the facility? Have they been preparing? Are they early? Like, all of it, it’s interesting. It’s fascinating.”
The idea of Coach Payton recreating the infamous ‘I have a final tomorrow and I haven’t studied at all,’ nightmare for all of his quarterback prospects is funny, but it’s also quite intriguing.
At face value, it certainly makes sense.
You want to see how these quarterbacks react to pressure before you invest valuable draft capital and millions of dollars into making them your franchise’s messiah. It also tests their mental and intellectual fortitude — two other qualities we know are valuable for NFL quarterbacks — by straining them beyond reason and seeing how they respond.
Pair that with Sean Payton’s history at the position and Davis Webb’s meteoric rise, and it’s easy to have faith in the Denver Broncos’ quarterback development plan.
