Broncos Talk: How close is coach Sean Payton — with one Super Bowl win, 11 playoff appearances and 184 regular-season wins — to being a lock for induction to the Pro Football Hall of Fame?

Chris Tomasson, Broncos reporter: Payton has had a great career, but it was over the top for Davis Webb to twice call him a “gold jacket” head coach last week in his first press conference since being named offensive coordinator. There is still work to do for a trip to Canton for Payton, who won a Super Bowl with New Orleans in the 2009 season. He probably needs to at least get to another Super Bowl to gain solid Hall of Fame consideration. Heck, Tom Coughlin won two Super Bowls with the Giants and still can’t get in.

Kyle Fredrickson, Broncos reporter: Give credit to Webb for acing his first media session at Broncos Park. Maybe it’s premature to declare Payton is headed to Canton. But the first-year OC understands his role in cementing Payton’s legacy in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. The gold jacket will be waiting if Webb maximizes the potential of quarterback Bo Nix to help win a Super Bowl. Payton’s resume, with a title in New Orleans and Denver, would be undeniable. I’m not saying that it’s all on Webb’s shoulders. But his talent will help determine if Payton will earn that coveted bronze bust.

Tomasson: Assuming Payton does take the Broncos to a Super Bowl, and even if they don’t win, he would be helped by having built up two franchises. I mentioned Coughlin having won two Super Bowls and still being in a Canton parking lot. Yes, he had success with expansion Jacksonville, but the Jaguars never got to a Super Bowl. And San Francisco’s George Seifert won two Super Bowls, but likely never will be enshrined because he inherited Bill Walsh’s team and later was a disaster in Carolina. If Payton wins a Super Bowl with the Broncos, he would become the first coach to hoist the Vince Lombardi Trophy with two different franchises and indeed would be a Hall of Fame lock.

Fredrickson: Can we remove our orange-and-blue colored glasses for a moment? Sure, the Broncos were one win away from reaching the Super Bowl last year. But that’s old news. It’s not going to be easy in 2026 with a more difficult schedule and the league on notice after reaching the AFC title game. The Broncos have gone from the hunter to the hunted. Payton is no stranger to big expectations after a decade of winning in New Orleans. But he also had the benefit of a Hall of Fame quarterback in Drew Brees. Does Nix have that same potential? Let’s save that conversation for another time. But their legacies are forever intertwined.