Sean Payton Offered To Step Aside So Bill Belichick Could Coach Broncos

Sean Payton reportedly considered a bold measure to help Bill Belichick make history.

Belichick remains second to Don Shula for most all-time wins (playoffs included) by an NFL head coach. As he prepares for his second season running North Carolina's college football program, the 74-year-old could run out of time to capture that milestone.

Payton had an unconventional idea to assist Belichick. According to ESPN's Seth Wickersham, Payton considered offering to step aside so Belichick could coach the Denver Broncos.

Under this proposal, Payton would have overseen Denver's offense as the assistant head coach until Belichick reached the 15 wins needed to surpass Shula. Payton would have then returned as head coach.

"In the end, it was too complicated -- and maybe too fanciful," Wickersham wrote.

Could Payton's idea have worked?

The New England Patriots parted ways with Belichick after the 2023 season, ending a legendary 24-year run with nine AFC championships and six Super Bowl titles.

Belichick made a shocking move into the college ranks after failing to land a new NFL gig. While the Atlanta Falcons interviewed the three-time Coach of the Year, Denver wasn't on anybody's radar.

The Broncos had just finished Payton's first season with an 8-9 record, the franchise's highest win tally since 2016. Had Payton's unorthodox thought come to fruition, Belichick would have coached rookie quarterback Bo Nix in 2024 instead.

If the Broncos achieved the same results under Belichick, he would have broken the wins record in Week 5 of the 2025 season against the New York Giants. Belichick won two Super Bowls with the Giants as the defensive coordinator for Bill Parcells, who later hired Payton on his Dallas Cowboys staff.

Belichick would presumably have handed the team back to Payton and watched the Broncos play the Patriots in the AFC Championship Game. The transition of power certainly would have created an interesting subplot and perhaps some turmoil.

Payton instead steered the Broncos to a 14-3 campaign last season, and he's six wins away from reaching 200 career victories.

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This story was originally published July 7, 2026 at 8:30 AM.