In the end, it was him, his secret.

Sean Payton was skewered for his outdated offense, criticized for not tailoring plays to a rookie quarterback and criticized for his game management decisions, deciding that the Broncos would get the ball if they won the coin toss.

Bold strategy, Cotton.

The players had no idea. Captains Alex Singleton and Wil Lutz found out just before they went to the halfway line.

When the announcement was made in the press box that the Broncos would score the game-winning goal—the offense had 14 three-and-outs in back-to-back losses—I thought Payton had lost control and gone completely nuts in the 90-degree heat and humidity.

“That says everything you need to know about his attitude. I was like, 'Yeah, damn it!'” tight end Adam Trautman said. “He didn't care how hard we struggled. That was a huge boost to our confidence.”

After putting his stamp on everything in Denver since his arrival – something he compared to a dog peeing on trees – Payton finally scored a win worthy of his name.

The pregame pick was his masterpiece in the 26-7 win over Tampa Bay.

“Every now and then you want to send a message,” Payton explained.

This one arrived in my inbox with the subject line in all caps: I BELIEVE IN YOU.

Payton has tried to lure the Broncos before, but it didn't work out. He botched the 2023 opener with an onside kick early on as his team was unable to feed off his ego. He had a chance against the Jets with the return of Nathaniel Hackett – Payton called his 15-game tenure in Denver one of the “worst coaching jobs in NFL history” – and lapsed into the spotlight. And who can forget the embarrassing loss to the Patriots when playoff hopes were on the line?

In Week 3 of year two, Payton scored a win that can turn a season around and define his tenure in Denver. The contrast cannot be overstated. In Week 3 of last season, the Dolphins beat the Broncos 70-20, the worst loss of Payton's career, or frankly, any career.

A year later, he pushed the right button. Payton sees himself as part coach, part trainer. He pulled off a Jedi mind trick and planted a seed that changed the psychology of his offense.

The Broncos needed just six plays to score a touchdown. Quarterback Bo Nix completed 4 of 4 passes for 70 yards and connected on deep passes with Courtland Sutton and Josh Reynolds. Sutton caught a back-shoulder pass on the first play.

“When we got the ball, I was completely blindsided. I was excited because we had gone through the opening plays the night before and I knew the ball was coming to me,” Sutton said. “It was so encouraging. My mindset changed. I knew we were on to something.”

This is what we expected when the Walton-Penner Ownership Group hired a coach with a Super Bowl win after Hackett's clown car deployed its airbags.

Payton has a history of winning chess games, although it was barely apparent in his first 19 games in Denver. He dominated rookie coaches but couldn't outwit Seattle's Mike Macdonald in the opening game. And last week, Mike Tomlin took him out for a walk with his dog, leaving Denver's season hanging in the balance before the first color change.

The Broncos entered Sunday's game trailing by 6.5 points, and Payton did what he's done so many times before – he humiliated the Buccaneers, improving his record to 21-11 against Tampa Bay and 11-5 at Raymond James Stadium. Finally, a piece of his Saints history that Broncos Country loves to hear about.

The Bucs' secondary admitted it was surprised by the Broncos' opening, which caused players to question their technique and wonder what would happen next. Payton operated as if he had the answers to Todd Bowles' defense – the two worked together years ago – while he operated more smoothly as the voice in Nix's head.

Payton combined aggressiveness with change. The Broncos no longer had more line changes than the Avs, which led to a reduction in personnel groups. And Nix often broke up the group with more than 10 seconds left on the game clock, giving him time to analyze the defense.

This was closer to the offense we saw in the preseason, tailored to Nix rather than the other way around. He was in control, in command, and was mostly on time and accurate.