New Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton has made it clear that he is looking to do the exact opposite of everything Nathaniel Hackett did a year ago. That is starting with the preseason, where he is going to require his starters, including quarterback Russell Wilson, to at least get some playing time, according to NFL.com’s Nick Shook.
Hackett did not require a lot of the Broncos starters to play in last year’s preseason, including Wilson.Â
What followed was the worst season of Wilson’s NFL career and a brutally disappointing 5-12 record for the Broncos that resulted in Hackett being fired before he could even complete his first season in charge of the team.
Wilson and the Broncos starters are probably not going to see significant playing time, but Payton obviously sees some value in getting them out there for at least a few snaps in a real game to prepare for the season.Â
Over the years, NFL teams have dramatically cut down the number of snaps they expect their starters to play in the preseason, and it is not uncommon for teams to sit all of their key players for all of the games to keep them fresh for the start of the regular season. It might cause a little bit of rust in the opening game, but coaches would rather take that trade-off than risk losing a key starter in a game that does not count — especially a starter who really has nothing to prove at the NFL level and already has his job secured.Â
The first preseason game for Denver will take place on Aug. 11 against the Arizona Cardinals. The question will be whether or not Wilson and the rest of the Broncos starters play in the second and third games after that.
