Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton said he is calling plays for the team again.

Payton handed over play-calling duties to young offensive coordinator Davis Webb in the offseason. The Broncos offense has been plagued by the same slow starts as last year.

Payton said at his press conference Thursday that he would take the job back, adding that he still has great expectations for Webb, but was doing what he thought was best for the team.

“I’ve done this long enough, where I know when I have a future head coach, and he’s gonna be one,” he said of Webb.

Payton was hired as the New York Giants’ quarterbacks coach in 1999 and promoted to offensive coordinator in 2000. Midway through the 2002 season, after the Giants struggled to put points on the board, head coach Jim Fassel took over playcalling duties and coached them to a 10–6 record and a Wild Card appearance. Payton later became assistant head coach of the Dallas Cowboys, then head coach of the New Orleans Saints.

The 2026 Broncos are going through similar struggles. They lost their season opener to the Kansas City Chiefs 31–10, beat the Jacksonville Jaguars 20–13, the Los Angeles Rams 30–26, then lost to the San Francisco 49ers 24–14.

Payton compared evaluating his play caller to evaluating a player. In his opinion, the Broncos need to run the football more and balance their play selection. He said he wants the offense to get back to what it does well.

Payton said he met with Webb on Monday to discuss the change, and Webb handled it well. He said Webb will continue to help design the game plan and will be on the sideline with him as has been in the past.

He met with the team later in the week.

One reason he decided to hand the offense over to Webb was that he wondered how many coaches are still good play callers at 62 years old.

“I think I’m still one of them, right?” he joked before admitting it was a storyline he fed the media. In reality, he felt it was best for the team.

“Look, if I’m not worth a hoot, then you know, it’s always what’s best for the team, honestly, and I have to step away and look at it. And so I think we'll do what’s best for the team.”