Broncos Head Coach Sean Payton Has ‘Clear Vision’ on Drafting RB

If you’re looking for some sort of insight into what Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton might be thinking when it comes to running backs and the upcoming 2025 NFL draft, a glimpse into Payton’s past might be your best guide.

Payton himself said as much to The Denver Gazette’s Chris Tomasson on April 17, referencing his time as the head coach of the New Orleans Saints from 2006 to 2021.

From Tomasson’s X account: “#Broncos coach Sean Payton on taking a running back in the first round: ‘I’ve done it twice (Reggie Bush and Mark Ingram with New Orleans).’ Says it ‘depends upon your vision. Says, ‘if you have a real clear vision on how you want to use him’ is a factor.”

Broncos Desperate to Add Elite RB to Roster

There is no position on Denver’s roster that has come under more scrutiny since the end of the regular season than running back, where the Broncos haven’t had a player rush for over 1,000 yards since Phillip Lindsay in 2019.

The Broncos have the No. 20 overall pick in the first round, where it’s a toss-up as to whether the second of the 2 running backs with first round grades will be available with North Carolina’s Omarion Hampton.

“If the Broncos get running back Omarion Hampton at No. 20, I’m going to write irresponsibly optimistic things about their 2025 season,” ESPN’s Ben Solak wrote on April 16. “I love an offense that returns all five starting offensive linemen, has an emergent WR2 in Marvin Mims Jr. behind Courtland Sutton and mostly kept 101-level schemes on Bo Nix’s plate in his rookie season — imagine what he looks like with another offseason under his belt. They just need a three-down back, and Hampton should make it to their pick. I grade him as a clear Round 1 player and potential Pro Bowler. It would be one of my favorite selections of the entire draft, sight unseen.”

Tracking How Payton Did Drafting First Round Running Backs

Payton established himself as one of the NFL’s best head coaches during his 17 seasons in New Orleans in large part thanks to the brilliance of quarterback Drew Brees — not because of Bush or Ingram. If anything, what happened with those 2 might dissuade him from taking a running back in the first round.

While Payton won a Super Bowl with Bush on the roster in New Orleans in 2009, he was perennially hurt through his 5 seasons in New Orleans and only played in all 16 games once, as a rookie in 2006 after the Saints drafted him No. 2 overall.

While Ingram, the No. 28 overall pick in 2011, was a 3-time Pro Bowler, he didn’t rush for over 1,000 yards or score 10 touchdowns in a single season until his sixth year in the NFL.

If anything, Payton’s past drafting running backs tells us he’s more inclined to take a running back after the first round than anything else. The best running back to ever play for Payton on the Saints was Alvin Kamara, a third round pick (No. 67 overall) in the 2017 NFL draft.

In 8 NFL seasons, Kamara has averaged 1,442 yards of total offense per season, including a career-low 1,160 yards in 2023 when he missed a career-high 4 games, including a 3-game suspension to start the season.