Sean Payton's excuse for why he blasted Nathaniel Hackett earlier this week was a weak one.
The October 8th matchup between the Denver Broncos and New York Jets is already gaining incredible amounts of hype. It would have been a hot game on the schedule even without added controversy, but Sean Payton made disparaging comments about Nathaniel Hackett — who coached the Broncos last year and now is the New York Jets' offensive coordinator — that sparked kindling on a heated rivalry between the AFC teams with lots to prove this season.
Payton, with training camp starting up, told the media he felt that the leadership before him allowed bad habits to creep in and take over the Broncos organization. That prompted a response from Jets head coach Robert Saleh.
The comments came off as unwarranted, catching plenty in NFL circles off guard.
Payton walked the comments back later on, but his reasoning for why he said them in the first place was rather weak and proves he's got some rust to shake off to get back up to speed in the head coaching ranks.
Sean Payton gives an excuse for his uncalled for comments about Nathaniel Hackett
Sean Payton admitted he shouldn't have said what he did. But as far as why he said it anyway? Weak excuse.
Here's what the Super Bowl-winning head coach said to the media, per NFL.com:
"Listen, I had one of those moments where I still had my FOX hat on and not my coaching hat on," Payton explained to reporters during his Friday news conference. "I said this to the team in a meeting yesterday, we've had a great offseason relative to that and I've been preaching that message, and here I am, the veteran, stepping in it. It was a learning experience for me, it was a mistake, obviously. I need a little bit more filter."
Payton is still, evidently, not used to being out of the broadcaster career and back into things as a head coach. He shot off at the mouth, clearly, and took the blame for it. Ultimately, though, Payton has to be better than that, and it's a weak excuse for what wound up being a relatively inflammatory comment.
The apology might be appreciated, but it's not something that can be unsaid. And with that, it sets the stage for an exciting October matchup between the teams.
