Sean Payton officially reclaimed his offensive play-calling duties for the Denver Broncos this week, ending what turned out to be a super brief, four-week run for Davis Webb. It feels like a big move to try and jump-start an attack that has been seriously struggling out of the gate, especially with the Broncos sitting at a middling 2-2 record.
The Play-Calling Rollercoaster and Who’s Really In Charge Now?
So, for the first four weeks of the 2026 season, Davis Webb was the guy with the play sheet. But now, Payton is back in the driver’s seat. What’s a little fuzzy is if Payton is taking over completely or if it’s going to be more of a shared deal. ESPN reported a “more collaborative play-calling approach this week,” with Payton getting an increased role and Webb still handling a significant game-planning and game-day role. That kind of sounds like a split, right? But then PFT came out and said straight up that Payton will be calling the plays. Honestly, having just one person handle the play-calling usually makes things way simpler, so the smart money is probably on Payton being the main voice, with Webb still giving input. The Broncos really need to figure it out fast as they roll into a Week 5 divisional showdown against the 0-4 Chargers. Talk about needing a win.
From “Extremely Talented” to “Slightly Over His Head”
This whole situation is a massive U-turn from what Payton set up back in February. As an NFL head coach for 20 seasons, Payton has pretty much always been his team’s offensive play-caller. But earlier this year, he made the call to hand the reins over to Webb. This came after some staff changes, with last year’s offensive coordinator, Joe Lombardi, getting fired in January, and Webb moving up from quarterbacks coach. Payton had been thinking about giving Webb the job for months, making it official in the offseason. Back then, Payton even said, “He’s extremely talented. With regards to play-calling, I think he’ll be really good at it.” Webb’s first gig as an NFL assistant was in 2023, and he’d worked with Payton for three seasons as his QB coach before this promotion.
Fast forward to today, and it looks like that talent didn’t translate to the play sheet this time around. Webb was only the play-caller for four weeks, and while you can’t blame him for *every single* offensive failure, it sure seems like he was a little bit in over his head. The Broncos have had some seriously slow starts. We’re talking a grand total of only 13 first-half points through four weeks, which is the absolute fewest in the entire NFL. Think about that: even the 0-4 Dolphins, who are also struggling hard, managed to score 19 first-half points. The Broncos and Dolphins are the only two teams in the whole league that haven’t even cracked 20 total first-half points this season. That’s just rough.
So, here we are. Payton’s back on the headset, trying to fix what’s broken before it’s too late. It’s Week 5, they’re 2-2, and that divisional game against the Chargers is coming up. Can he turn this thing around? We’ll find out soon enough.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by CBS Sports.
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