NFL Rumors: Sean Payton's Criticism of Hackett, More Upset Some Broncos Insiders

New Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton wasn't shy about throwing his predecessor, Natheniel Hackett, under the bus for the team's struggles in the 2022 season during a pointed interview with Jarrett Bell of USA Today, calling it "one of the worst coaching jobs in the history of the NFL."

He also criticized the team for focusing more on winning the offseason ahead of the 2022 campaign rather than fielding a competitive unit week in and week out.

And some folks around the building reportedly weren't thrilled with those comments:

Here's what he had to say about Hackett and the team's coaching when asked about the struggles of Russell Wilson last season:

"Oh, man. There's so much dirt around that. There's 20 dirty hands, for what was allowed, tolerated in the fricking training rooms, the meeting rooms. The offense. I don't know Hackett. A lot of people had dirt on their hands. It wasn't just Russell. He didn't just flip. He still has it. This B.S. that he hit a wall? Shoot, they couldn't get a play in. They were 29th in the league in pre-snap penalties on both sides of the ball."

Perhaps it shouldn't come as a major surprise that Payton would defend his current quarterback at the expense of the former head coach. Payton has every incentive to develop a strong rapport with Wilson, and shielding him from the criticism he faced last year is one way of doing so.

Wilson was undoubtedly poor last year, throwing for 3,524 yards, 16 touchdowns and 11 interceptions while completing just 60.5 percent of his passes and taking an NFL-worst 55 sacks. The Broncos were just 4-11 in his starts, and it was easily the worst season of the nine-time Pro Bowler and one-time champion's career.

Helping restore Wilson's confidence and level of play is Payton's main job, and any means of doing so makes sense. Still, it's rare to hear a coach so openly critique one of his peers. It's often considered a fraternity, and Payton's comments surely raised some eyebrows around the NFL in general.

But his criticisms weren't just leveled at Hackett:

"It doesn't happen often where an NFL team or organization gets embarrassed. And that happened here. Part of it was their own fault, relative to spending so much (expletive) time trying to win the offseason—the PR, the pomp and circumstance, marching people around and all this stuff."

"We're not doing any of that. The Jets did that this year. You watch. 'Hard Knocks,' all of it. I can see it coming. Remember when (former Washington owner) Dan Snyder put that Dream Team together? I was at the Giants (in 2000). I was a young coach. I thought, 'How are we going to compete with them? Deion's (Sanders) there now.' That team won eight games or whatever. So, listen…just put the work in."

It's hard to imagine the Broncos' front office or ownership being thrilled with those comments, even if Payton is attempting to establish a new culture around the team.

And that culture includes Payton no longer allowing Wilson's personal quarterback coach, Jake Heaps, around the team facilities, access he was granted last year by Hackett. Payton didn't blame Wilson for that, though he quickly nipped it in the bud:

"That wasn't his fault. That was the parents who allowed it. That's not an incrimination on him, but an incrimination on the head coach, the GM, the president and everybody else who watched it all happen."

"Now, a quarterback having an office and a place to watch film is normal. But all those things get magnified when you're losing. And that other stuff, I've never heard of it. We're not doing that."

It's clear that Payton is coming in with a sledgehammer in hand, hoping to quickly eradicate what he saw as an unstable foundation during Hackett's tenure. Payton has walked the walk in his career, with a championship and nine playoff berths to his name, so he'll be given some leeway to talk this talk.

If the Broncos struggle, however, that leeway diminishes. Payton hasn't been shy about blasting the former coaching staff for not getting the most out of the roster they were given. He's going to have pie on his face if he faces the same struggles.