Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton had the most convoluted plan to try to help Bill Belichick get the record for most wins in NFL history.
When Belichick left the New England Patriots in 2024, Payton contemplated hatching a plan that would see Belichick come to the Broncos and become the head coach, according to Seth Wickersham of ESPN. Payton would temporarily become an assistant in charge of the offense until Belichick won the 15 games he needed to pass Don Shula as the league’s winningest head coach. At that point, Payton would then get the head coaching job back.
Belichick had 333 total wins between the regular season and playoffs when the Patriots parted ways with him. Shula’s record stands at 347.
Payton even considered presenting the plan to owner Greg Penner, but ultimately, the idea proved far too complicated to actually put into practice.
Belichick did reportedly want to break that record, but probably not like this. The plan was strange and convoluted, and even if it had come to pass, some people would have unquestionably argued that those last few wins were not purely Belichick’s. After all, he would have been coaching Payton’s team with Payton constantly peering over his shoulder.
The Broncos went 14-3 last season and won one playoff game, which would have been just enough to get Belichick the record. Anything short of that would have meant the plan would have taken over a year to execute, thus making it even stranger. It’s not hard to figure out why this one did not go anywhere.
