NFL insider sounds off on Sean Payton, brands Broncos HC's latest comments 'dumb play'

Sean Payton was recently acquired by the Denver Broncos via trade with the New Orleans Saints to take over as their new head coach for the 2023 NFL season. He spent the last year away from coaching, but watched football from a completely different perspective as a studio analyst. During his film studies, he found a specific play that he was intrigued by.

The Philadelphia Eagles have found great success during the 2022 NFL season using a rugby-style quarterback sneak play. In short yardage situations, they lined two players up behind Jalen Hurts, pushing him forward for a gain. The play has been relatively unstoppable for the Eagles. This has led Sean Payton to claim he will use a similar play for Russell Wilson with the Broncos.

NFL insider Peter King apparently disagrees with Payton's decision to adopt the Eagles' signature play. King also expressed his frustration that the play is allowed within the NFL rules. He gave his take on the situation during an episode of "Pro Football Talk" with Mike Florio:

"It's a dumb play, it always has been a dumb play. It shouldn't exist and it's gotten bastardized, the longer it stands, and look at how good the Eagles got at it. I don't blame the Eagles, you know what the Eagles are doing? They're taking advantage of a dumb rule, and the NFL’s job when there is a dumb rule is to fix it, and I will be shocked if they don't fix it after what we've seen this year. Absolutely, unequivocally, it has to be fixed.

"It isn't football, Mike, it's rugby. I mean, rugby is a fine sport, but I don't see rugby. You know, I don't see rugby, putting jet motions in the game and putting our POS in the game. I mean, it's a bastardization of the rules, and the NFL needs to outlaw it."

Sean Payton acknowledges that the "rugby scrum" is a bit of a cheap play, but as long as it's legal, he will take advantage of it. He's considered by many around the NFL to be an offensive genius, so if he believes the play is valuable, it's hard to argue against him.

Sean Payton helped the Saints become one of the best offensive teams in the NFL

New Orleans Saints HC Sean Payton

Sean Payton spent 16 years as the head coach of the New Orleans Saints. They led the entire NFL in total offensive yards six times during his run, while being the highest-scoring offense twice. His consistency in calling their offense was incredible, ranking inside the top 12 for both yards and points in 15 consecutive seasons.

Payton formed a legendary duo with quarterback Drew Brees in New Orleans. He helped Brees lead the NFL in passing yards an incredible seven times, trailing only Tom Brady in career passing yards. Payton's innovative play designs and offensive schemes played a major role in this. He's now hoping to replicate his success with Russell Wilson for the Broncos.