After a year-long hiatus from the NFL, Sean Payton had just become the Denver Broncos’ head coach ahead of the 2023 season. But just in his second year leading the Broncos, Payton was ready to step back from his job, not because he failed to lead the Broncos to the playoffs in 2023, but because he wanted his close friend, Bill Belichick, to create NFL history. In his recent report, ESPN’s Seth Wickersham revealed:

“When Belichick and the Patriots divorced in 2024, Payton considered presenting Broncos owner Greg Penner a proposal for the ages: Hire Belichick as head coach until he reached 15 wins, enough to break Don Shula’s career record of 347. Payton would temporarily step down to assistant head coach and run the offense, then move back after Belichick became the all-time leader. In the end, it was too complicated — and maybe too fanciful.”

By the time the New England Patriots and Bill Belichick parted ways following the 2023 season, the legendary head coach had accumulated a record 302 regular-season wins and 31 playoff wins, bringing his total to 333, second only to the former Miami Dolphins head coach Don Shula’s 347.

The record for the most wins remains out of reach for now unless Belichick returns to the NFL, but he has held the postseason record for eleven years. Belichick overtook Shula’s record of 19 on January 10, 2015, when the Patriots beat the Ravens in the Divisional Round. A week later, he claimed the overall record from Tom Landry after the Patriots beat the Colts 45-7 in the AFC Championship game.

Despite Payton’s wish, the scenario of Belichick joining Denver never came to fruition, but one wonders why the Broncos’ head coach made such an offer.

It stems from their mutual respect and one common thread before becoming head coaches in the NFL, i.e., both men were assistant head coaches under Bill Parcells.

Belichick spent over a decade working under Parcells with the New York Giants and later with the New York Jets. Payton, meanwhile, spent three seasons as the Dallas Cowboys’ assistant head coach & quarterbacks coach, with Parcells leading the franchise.

Their first real interaction happened during the 2007 Pro Bowl. Payton was coming after making an NFC Championship appearance in his first year as the New Orleans Saints’ head coach. Belichick, meanwhile, was leading the AFC. Interestingly, both coaches had suffered defeats in their conference championship games.

Ahead of the Broncos’ Week 14 game against the Raiders last season, Payton revealed his first meeting with Belichick in a media interaction.

“So when you’re there 10 days, and you realize the Pro Bowl practice is half an hour, you’re going to have a lot of time. I got to know him. The timing was perfect, and he’s in the AFC; I was in the NFC. He’s very gracious. I think we took both staffs on this three or four boat fishing trip. He’s pretty good with that fishing stuff. I don’t know anything about it. Then we would have these discussions.”

“And then eventually joint practices, and then I think we had four joint practices. And not one time in those four practices was there a scuffle or fight. We got a lot of work done… I was lucky enough as a young coach that that unfolded that way.”

The Pro Bowl saw Belichick come out on top, securing a 31-28 win. However, Payton was not too mad at the result, as he gained a friend from that fixture. The mutual admiration that stemmed from here was evident in the four times they faced off against each other as head coaches.

In 2009, ahead of the first game against each other as head coaches, Payton and Belichick recollected their first meeting.

According to ESPN, Payton said, “For me as a young coach, after my first year, there might be 3 or 4 scheduling questions or things you might want to get a better grasp from. Just to get someone else’s opinion and thoughts, someone as successful as Bill has been … He’s a guy I have a ton of respect for. I really enjoyed the time we had a chance to spend, just that week.”

“We had a chance to spend a whole day out there on a fishing trip and it was a lot of fun,” Belichick said. “I think he’s a really sincere guy that comes from the heart. There’s not a lot of fluff and B.S. on top of it. He’s really down to earth, humble, sincere and a man that I really respect.”

That game in New Orleans saw the Saints beat the Patriots 38-17. Four years later, Belichick required a Brady touchdown with five seconds left to win 30-27. The following two games between the teams in 2017 and 2021 were both won by the road teams, which saw Belichick and Payton split their head-to-head at two wins apiece.

Though Payton did not publicly say anything after Belichick left New England, his offer to temporarily step aside at Mile High for Belichick to cement his name as an NFL great showed the deep respect between the two.

Although it did not materialize, the Broncos’ head coach was optimistic that Belichick will indeed land another NFL job.

Sean Payton missed Bill Belichick not being in the NFL

It’s been a couple of years since Bill Belichick left the NFL. The rumors of his return, however, persist. In fact, just last December, Sean Payton acknowledged that he misses Belichick not being in the NFL and is optimistic that the eight-time Super Bowl champion will land another head coaching role in the league.

“I miss him not being in the league. I wouldn’t be surprised, and I would be somewhat hopeful that he ends up back in the league. We’d all be better for it. He’s something.”

When the Giants fired Brian Daboll last year, Belichick was linked to the head coaching role in New York. However, he eventually denied all the rumors, as the Giants eventually hired John Harbaugh to replace Daboll. Still, if Belichick ever decides to return to the NFL, we can expect him to break Don Shula’s record to become the winningest head coach in the league.