The Denver Broncos did a lot of things wrong in their loss to the Kansas City Chiefs on Thursday night, but there was one blunder in particular for which Sean Payton says there is no excuse.
The Broncos were trailing 10-0 late in the first half and had 3rd-and-5 at around midfield. They were hoping to get points before halftime, but Russell Wilson was sacked for a loss on third down. That put Denver in a situation where they had to punt. For some reason, Payton called a timeout with just 22 seconds remaining in the half.
Denver then punted and the Chiefs took over at the Kansas City 39-yard line. The Chiefs had all three of their timeouts remaining. That allowed them to quickly get into range for Harrison Butker to attempt a 60-yard field goal, which he converted to give Kansas City a 13-0 lead.
Had Payton not called a timeout after the third-down sack, the Chiefs would have used one of their three timeouts. Payton’s decision essentially gave Kansas City a free timeout. After the game, Payton admitted that he lost track of downs and made a “stupid” mistake.
Sean Payton on calling a timeout after Wilson was sacked late in the first half: “Boneheaded mistake by me” pic.twitter.com/a0OSwu2DZ0
— Andrew Mason (@MaseDenver) October 13, 2023
“That was a boneheaded mistake by me. They were calling (a timeout) as well, and I’m off a down” Payton said. “But that was stupid.”
It is rare for a coach of Payton’s caliber to lose track of downs in such an important situation, but the blunder was one of many for the Broncos this season. They are 1-5 and look like one of the worst teams in football for a reason.
Payton was paid a massive sum of money to turn things around in Denver. He has not taken any noticeable steps toward accomplishing that goal just yet, and we may see some big chances for the team in the coming days.
