Upon his return to New Orleans, Sean Payton accomplished his mission by leading the <a href="https://www.archysport.com/2022/01/another-dismissal-in-the-nfl/" title="Another dismissal in the NFL“>Denver Broncos to a 33-10 domination of the Saints in NFL Thursday Night Football.
Payton, the head coach of the Broncos (4-3), led the Saints from 2006 to 2021, leading the team to the Super Bowl during the 2009 season.
During halftime, quarterback Drew Brees, who worked with Payton for a long time, was inducted into the team’s Hall of Fame. The presence of the legend of the Saints (2-5), however, did not change the results of the team which lost five games in a row after scoring 91 points in the first two weeks of the season.
For the Saints, this is a second consecutive defeat of more than 20 points at home, a first since the end of the 2001 season, five years before Payton’s arrival at the helm of the Saints.
New Orleans is already without its quarterback, two star receivers and two offensive line players. On Thursday, the Saints lost the services of cornerbacks Paulson Adebo and Marshon Lattimore.
The Saints lost quarterback Derek Carr two weeks ago and wide receivers Chris Olave and Rashid Shaheed last week.
Denver’s defense was dominant, limiting the opposing offense to a total of 271 yards, in addition to achieving six sacks at the expense of rookie Spencer Rattler.
Rattler finished the game completing 25 of 35 pass attempts for 172 yards before Jake Haener finished the game in relief.
In contrast, the Broncos had success with the ground game, amassing 227 yards on a total of 33 carries. Rookie Bo Nix collected 75, in addition to adding 164 through the air.
In the victory, running back Javonte Williams scored two majors.
The surprising Broncos will have the chance to improve their record by hosting another struggling team, the Carolina Panthers, next Sunday.
