# The Sean Payton Coaching Tree

Sean Payton runs one of the most quarterback- and pass-catcher-friendly offenses in football. If you've ever drafted a running back mostly for his receiving work, you're drafting a player type Payton helped make famous.

## Where Payton comes from

Payton got his early NFL break under **Jon Gruden** in Philadelphia, then spent three years as **Bill Parcells'** offensive coordinator in Dallas — Parcells is his main mentor for game and staff management. He became head coach of the **New Orleans Saints (2006–2021)**, built the offense around Drew Brees, and won Super Bowl XLIV. After a year in television he returned to coach the **Denver Broncos** in 2023, where he remains, recently signing an extension through 2030.

## What this offense looks like

- **A complex, high-volume passing attack** built on timing and matchups.
- **Running backs and tight ends are central in the passing game** — "any eligible receiver can run any route." Saints backs caught a huge share of the offense's passes.
- **Motion and matchup-hunting** to find a favorable one-on-one and attack it.
- **Pass-leaning tendencies** — Payton called pass roughly 59% of the time across his Saints years.

## What it means for fantasy

This is the home of the **pass-catching, "satellite" running back**.

- **The receiving back is the signature asset.** Reggie Bush early, then Alvin Kamara — who hit 60-plus targets every single season under Payton and was moved all over the formation. In points-per-reception leagues, that's gold.
- **Slot and underneath receivers produce** (Marques Colston, Michael Thomas in New Orleans).
- **The offense supports a fantasy-relevant quarterback** and multiple pass-catchers thanks to the volume. The durable edge, year in and year out, is the running back's receiving floor. In Denver, his backs have led the league in catches.

## The lineage

Payton's tree includes both offensive disciples and several defensive coaches who came up on his staffs.

**Head coaches**

- **Dan Campbell** — tight ends coach under Payton in New Orleans; now the head coach of the Detroit Lions and one of the most respected coaches in the league.
- **Aaron Glenn** — a defensive back coach under Payton, later the Lions' defensive coordinator, now head coach of the New York Jets. His identity is defensive, so he's a Payton-tree member more by where he grew up than by scheme.
- **Dennis Allen** — Payton's Saints defensive coordinator, then his successor as Saints head coach; now a defensive coordinator in Chicago.

**Coordinators and offensive assistants**

- **Pete Carmichael Jr.** — Payton's longtime Saints offensive coordinator, one of the longest-tenured coordinators in the league.
- **Joe Lombardi** and **Doug Marrone** — longtime Payton assistants who have moved around the league in coordinator and line-coaching roles.

**A cross-tree note:** **Klint Kubiak** spent a year as Saints offensive coordinator and is sometimes filed here, but he really belongs to the Shanahan/Kubiak wide-zone world — see the Shanahan–McVay Coaching Tree. He won a Super Bowl as Seattle's coordinator and is now the Raiders' head coach.

## The 2026 season

Payton's Broncos went 14–3 in 2025 and reached the AFC Championship Game before losing a tight one (7–10) to the eventual conference champion New England Patriots. A very strong year that cemented Denver as a contender.

## Where the tree is today (2026)

- Sean Payton — Denver Broncos head coach (the root)
- Dan Campbell — Detroit Lions Head Coach
- Aaron Glenn — New York Jets Head Coach (defensive branch)
- Dennis Allen — Chicago Bears defensive coordinator

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*Related: Coaching Trees · Belichick Coaching Tree · Shanahan–McVay Coaching Tree · Defensive Coaching Trees*

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Source: https://chatffb.com/concepts/sean-payton-coaching-tree · ChatFFB — fantasy football answers updated from a live news wiki.