In an interview with USA TODAY‘s Jarrett Bell this summer, new Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton said, “I’m going to be pissed off if this is not a playoff team.” Five games into the 2023 season, Payton probably isn’t a happy camper right now.
The Broncos are 1-4 and the schedule ahead doesn’t get any easier. Denver is about to face the 4-1 Kansas City Chiefs on Thursday Night Football in Week 6. If the Broncos lose that game as expected, Payton would tie the worst start in franchise history with a 1-5 record, as DenverSports.com’s Andrew Mason pointed out on Twitter/X this week.
If the Broncos can’t upset Kansas City on Thursday, they will be 1-5.
And that would be their worst-ever record through six games, tied with 1964, 1966, 1967 and 1994.
— Andrew Mason (@MaseDenver) October 9, 2023
The last four times Denver started 1-5, the team went on to finish with records of 2–11–1 (1964), 4–10 (1966), 3-11 (1967) and 7-9 (1994). Based on that history, a best-case scenario for the Broncos this season would be something in the range of 8-9.
After arriving with big expectations earlier this year, Payton has failed to deliver on-field results. He’s not on the hot seat, but Payton certainly hasn’t endeared himself to fans in Denver five games into his first season.
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