Sean Payton would add Darren Sproles, not Drew Brees or Jimmy Graham, to the Broncos
If he could wave a magic wand and add a former New Orleans Saints player to his Denver Broncos team, Sean Payton's choice might surprise you. Payton appeared on the Scoop City podcast with Dianna Russini and Chase Daniel and discussed a variety of topics -- sitting down with one of his old quarterbacks and a longtime friend in the media seems to have helped him open up.
But back to that question. Payton started by recognizing some of his favorites over the years: "There's so many Jimmy Grahams, (Jeremy) Shockeys, Brees. That's not the answer, I was giving honorable mentions. I'm so happy because (Graham) retired this year. ... I'm trying to apologize because I've had so many good players that I don't want them to see it."
And when it came down to it, Payton's love for running backs won out. He named some of the great ones he coached in New Orleans, and whose game tape he still shows to his current players: Pierre Thomas, Reggie Bush, Alvin Kamara. One name stood out from the rest.
"I think there was something about freakin' Darren Sproles," Payton began. "I'll never forget Drew saying every snap that he played with Darren, and I don't know how many snaps that was, obviously, it was a lot. The Chargers the same way. Drew said 'There wasn't one time on the field he surprised me with what he did.' And his football IQ was off the charts.
"But he would do something every time like, even something you'd never cover (at practice). On a choice route, slip under an end, come up the field and it was always the right thing. And so Sproles is one of those unique guys that then you forget about his talent as a runner."
It's easy to see why Sproles was his pick. While he only spent three years in New Orleans and two with Payton, Sproles was as close to automatic as it gets; he had a 76.3% catch rate across those three seasons while converting 90 first downs on 232 receptions. He averaged 5.7 yards per carry with the Saints and converted 50 first downs on 188 rushes, too. Sproles was chosen for three consecutive Pro Bowls after being traded to the Philadelphia Eagles, and for a while worked in their personnel department as a consultant after retirement.
Payton added that Sproles has taken up coaching and will join the Broncos' staff as an intern next fall, which is a really cool opportunity for him. Plenty of former Saints coaches and staffers have joined Payton in Denver, ranging from Pete Carmichael, Darren Rizzi, Joe Lombardi, Zach Strief, Dan Dalrymple, Zach Line, Joe Vitt and Jim Leonhard to players like Wil Lutz, Lucas Krull, Malcolm Roach, Calvin Throckmorton, A.T. Perry, Michael Burton, and Jordan Jackson. Beau Lowery and Cody Rager work in the front office, too, among others. Payton has seemingly had his pick of personnel out of New Orleans, and soon Sproles will be joining him, too. Just not as a prime-time player.
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