Bills coaches praised by Sean Payton at NFL combine

INDIANAPOLIS - Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton spent a portion of his media session Tuesday at the NFL scouting combine talking about the top three coaches on the new Buffalo Bills’ staff.

Head coach Joe Brady, defensive coordinator Jim Leonhard, and offensive coordinator Pete Carmichael are all part of Payton’s ever-growing coaching tree.

Carmichael spent two decades spanning New Orleans and Denver as Payton’s offensive coordinator or senior assistant. Payton gave Brady his first chance in the NFL, hiring him as an offensive assistant for 2017 and 2018. And Payton gave Leonhard his first NFL job in 2024 when he brought him on to be his defensive backs coach/defensive pass game coordinator for the Broncos.

Sean Payton on the Bills coaches he helped shape

“Start with Jim Leonhard, I think man, first off, he’s played 10 or 11 years (in the NFL),” Payton said. “I can recall competing against him when he was with the Jets, a number of teams (including the Bills). Real sharp. I think a good leader, he has a personality about him that I think is really good.”

Obviously, Payton has a much deeper history with Carmichael, and he thinks he’s the perfect fit in Buffalo because he’ll be serving the same role under Brady that he did under Carmichael. Payton always called the offensive plays while Carmichael worked behind the scenes formulating game plans and coaching techniques, and he’ll be doing that for the Bills as Brady also plans to call plays.

“He has a great presence,” Payton said of Carmichael. “I know Joe has a high trust level in him because Joe sat in those meetings with us (in 2017 and 2018). I think Pete will keep that room moving. This is the challenge for Joe or myself - keep the room moving while you're not in the room. Sometimes you can’t be. I think Pete is really sharp that way. So two good coaches.”

How Joe Brady caught Sean Payton’s attention

Payton was then asked what he saw in Brady early in his career that prompted him to bring him onto his Saints staff.

“He came, again I can’t recall the first year, I just know he was part of that rat pack,” Payton said, lumping Brady in with several other young, up-and-coming coaches. “He had a lot of good ideas, a lot of RPO ideas. He came from the college game and we just hit on a bunch of … we were finding the right guys.

“I think we’ve done the same in Denver with some of our young coaches. For Joe, it was that opportunity to go coach (Joe) Burrow, (Justin) Jefferson, (JaMarr) Chase (at LSU in 2019). It was an unreal season. They won the national championship his first year. He ended up at Carolina. I just saw him in the hallway coming here, I’m excited for him. He still seems super young; he’ll always seem that way to me. He was fantastic. He worked hard to get where he’s at.”

When Brady met with reporters later on Tuesday in Indianapolis, he was asked about his time with Payton.

“Yeah, I joke all the time, and I know I say the same thing all the time, but I got my Master's degree at Penn State (as a grad assistant) and then I got my doctorate in New Orleans, right?” Brady said. “Look, it was everything to me in New Orleans working with Sean, Pete Carmichael.

“Sean Payton, just seeing how one of the game's greatest minds to ever coach come up with plays and not just come up but explain the why and be able to teach and then motivate and reach his football team. I can be on all day talking about how great of a coach I think Sean Payton is. And it helped. I wouldn't have been able to call plays at LSU from being a coaching assistant if I didn't have that experience in New Orleans.”

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