Sean Payton is set to return as the primary play-caller for the Denver Broncos, bumping Davis Webb from the duties he took over for the first time this season.
Payton didn’t confirm the switch reported by multiple outlets but the disciplinarian pointed out several detriments he felt were contributing to the seemingly sudden demise of the offense.
“I think our focus needs to be more on the specific and the detail of each play regardless (who calls plays),” he said. “I think Davis is very fast, very quick and understands what we’re doing. I think that the most important job I have is really evaluating the whys. I think collectively, we all, after a game, and after a four-game sample size, certainly this isn’t championship football, what we see. How quickly can we correct those things?”
Webb took harsh criticism almost immediately after the defending AFC West champion Broncos lost 31-10 at Kansas City in the Week 1 Monday night game. There has been little overall improvement in the games that followed.
The Broncos (2-2) have been outscored by 20 points (94-74) with 13 total points in the first half and 24 total points in two road games (both losses).
Denver is on the road again Sunday visiting the winless Los Angeles Chargers (0-4).
Quarterback Bo Nix is completing 60.0% of his passes with five touchdowns and three interceptions. His downfield passing totals have been a bother for Payton, too, with defenses forced to cover only a limited area of the field until proven otherwise.
The Broncos did not even attempt a pass traveling 20-plus yards in the air until the fourth quarter of last week’s loss to the San Francisco 49ers. On the nine passes Nix threw that went at least 10 yards in the air, he completed one.
Wide receivers Courtland Sutton and Jaylen Waddle have defended Nix, but the third-year quarterback insisted he’s not worried about performance critics.
“You don’t want to listen to too many things, the noise, that’s not going to do anything for you,” Nix said. “You want to make sure you’re listening to your coaches, your teammates, the people who are actually trying to make you better and understand a little more of what’s going on and that sort of thing. For me, it’s all about who you’re giving your attention to.”
