High Points: On Payton, Paton, and Peyton

At 2:05 p.m., Sunday, Sept. 7, the Denver Broncos will take to the freshly-installed Kentucky Bluegrass turf at Empower Field at Mile High Stadium to kick off their much-anticipated 2025 NFL schedule against the visiting Tennessee Titans. This will be the 10th season since the Broncos won Super Bowl 50, 24-10 over the Carolina Panthers, in Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California, on Feb. 7, 2016. Ironically, if they make it to the final game this year, they will play in that exact same Levi’s Stadium, a decade and a day later, on Feb. 8, 2026.

That’s not the only irony attached to these 2025 Denver Broncos. Other than the players themselves, arguably the three most important people with ties to the Broncos organization share a name. But they all spell it in different ways: Payton, Paton, and Peyton.

Begin with the Head Coach Sean Payton, spelled with a “Pay,” which makes sense as he is scheduled to rake in about $18 million this year in pay. That’s second only to Kansas City Chiefs’ Andy Reid, who tops NFL coaches with a $20 million per-year deal. This is Payton’s third season here in Denver. Last year, he led the team to a 10-7 record and a wild-card playoff appearance behind rookie quarterback Bo Nix. That was a team that was predicted at the beginning of the 2024 season to win just five games. Or less.

Payton has become a beloved figure in a short time here in Denver, and the expectations for the 2025 season are mile high. He already has a Super Bowl ring of his own from Super Bowl XLIV, which he won during his 15-year tenure as the head coach of the New Orleans Saints.

There are ironies attached to that, as well. Payton’s Saints won the Super Bowl on Feb. 7, 2010, the same date as the Broncos’ aforementioned win in 2016. The victory came against the Indianapolis Colts quarterbacked by New Orleans native Peyton Manning. Sean Payton became the second coach who played quarterback for Eastern Illinois University to win the Super Bowl trophy as a coach. The first? Why, the Denver Broncos own Mike Shanahan, who won back-to-back Lombardi trophies in 1998 and 1999, of course.

This brings us to George Paton — he’s the least known of the three Ps. Paton is the Broncos’ general manager, and, in that role, he is responsible for building the team and signing the players. Outside of the head coach, that is perhaps the most significant job in the organization. Paton, who came to the Broncos in 2021, has had a few missteps (think Nathaniel Hackett and Russell Wilson), but this year, there is stability in the trenches, exciting additions at skill positions, and solid returnees like the NFL Defensive Player of the Year Patrick Surtain II and second-year quarterback Bo Nix.

Paton has put a patented stamp on the defense by extending the contract of defensive end Zach Allen and bringing in a pair of solid free agents from the San Francisco 49ers (ironically coached by Mike Shanahan’s son Kyle), safety Talanoa Hufanga, and linebacker Dre Greenlaw.

He also arranged a new four-year contract for the 2024 Broncos’ leading receiver, Courtland Sutton, and signed free agent offensive weapons tight end Evan Engram and running back J.K. Dobbins. And I have it on good authority that a backup tight end named Lucas Krull could make an impact. If the Broncos have the kind of year that many are predicting, the other Paton, George Paton, will be right there in line for significant kudos.

Of course, the most famous Peyton in the Broncos universe is Peyton Manning (spelled “Pey”), who quarterbacked that 2015 team to the Lombardi Trophy. This Peyton no longer has an official role with the team he played with for four seasons, but he is still around as a face of the franchise. Of course, he is the face of many things, as he and his company, Omaha Productions, have become a behemoth in the media business. And his commercial appearances for companies like FanDuel, Bud Light, and Nationwide are prodigious.

Yes, Sunday marks the beginning of a new Bronco season, and you’ll be hearing the names Payton, Paton, and Peyton a lot. No matter how it’s spelled.