Sean Payton Gives Denver Broncos Play Calling Duties to Davis Webb
Sean Payton is giving Denver Broncos play calling duties to Davis Webb. Webb is half Payton's age and will hopefully inject life into the Broncos offense.
Huge news on this Combine press conference Tuesday: Sean Payton is giving the Denver Broncos play calling duties to new offensive coordinator Davis Webb.
Payton's one of the best head coaches in the NFL, and one of the most experienced, too.
But the time has come for Payton to pass along the play calling to a younger man.
Sean Payton Gives Denver Broncos Play Calling Duties to Davis Webb
Sean Payton has finally given up play calling duties.
That, per Adam Schefter at the NFL Combine.
A notable change: Broncos HC Sean Payton said OC Davis Webb will be Denver’s play caller this season.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) February 24, 2026
This is somewhat surprising news.
Then again, Davis Webb deserves to take over as the play caller.
Webb was just promoted from quarterbacks coach to offensive coordinator. And that was only after Joe Brady was promoted by the Buffalo Bills to be their head coach. Payton reportedly wanted Brady as OC, and even said Brady could call plays. Then, he pivoted to Webb.
That report meant Payton should give play calling to Webb, if he were going to give it to Brady.
Davis Webb is a former NFL quarterback, playing with the Giants, Jets, and Bills from 2017-2022 before kicking off his coaching career in 2023 under Payton. He's worked his way up to the OC position and now, after calling plays in the preseason last year, will be the full-time play caller.
Webb is only 31 years old, exactly half the age of Sean Payton (62), and the hope is that Webb injects some life and new-school design into the offense.
Webb has been a close mentor of quarterback Bo Nix, and it will be interesting to see how the new play caller adapts the offense to fit around the gunslinger.
Rich Kurtzman
Broncos Country Rejoices in the Move
Rewind to the end of the year and Payton actually cost the Broncos the AFC Championship by not simply kicking the field goal in the second quarter to go up 10-0. That decision could still be his to make, but in terms of play-by-play calling, Payton left Broncos Country irate for the first half of the 2025 season. And even late in the year, too.
Denver narrowly beat the terrible New York Jets as their offense was exposed. Then, the offense was awful until it finally came alive in the 33-point fourth quarter to beat the Giants.
Broncos Country became frustrated when Sean Payton's play calling left Bo Nix checking down and throwing way too many times at or even behind the line of scrimmage. Screens became expected, not only by Broncos fans, but by opposing defenses.
It was asinine, too conservative, and faulty to say the least.
As the year went on, Payton got in his bag more.
Payton's play calling was the best it had been all season long against the Packers. But then it fell off again vs. the Jaguars, Chiefs, and Chargers to end the year.
Going into the playoffs, Denver was able to rest, and even admitted before the Divisional Round game that he couldn't let his age affect his play calling.
"The thing that I have to continue that changes as you get older is you still have to be quick. Play just ran, next play...As you get older, you think about all the ramifications...That’s something that I have to mentally make sure it’s quick. It’s quick and decisive, and it’s daring at the right time. Not reckless, but those are things that I find that are challenges compared to when I was 33 in New York or whatever."
Now, Payton will focus more on the big picture of the team rather than the play-by-play calling on offense.
That will no doubt be a big transition for him, as he's called plays his entire head coaching career going back to 2006.
But the Broncos were only one game away from making the Super Bowl this year. They were led by a destructive defense and now need the offense to take strides in a positive way—even more than it has the last two seasons—if they want to win the Big Game.
Denver's offense was 14th in scoring (23.6 PPG), 11th in passing, and 16th in rushing in 2025. They were also 11th on 3rd downs (41.2%) and 13th (57.9%) in the red zone. So, there's certainly room for improvement. Getting into the top-10 in those categories would certainly help the Broncos get deep into the playoffs again next year.
This is great news for the Broncos and sets the stage for a possible huge 2026.
Rich Kurtzman
Thanks for reading! Please subscribe to a paid or even free tier today!
Rich Kurtzman was born and raised in Denver Colorado and attended Colorado State University in Fort Collins in the aughts. He's been a professional writer since 2011, covering Colorado State football and men's basketball, as well as the Denver Broncos, for many outlets. Current Denver Broncos work can be found on Mile High Sports. Previous credits include CBS Denver and The USA TODAY Sports Media Group.
Comments ()