Denver sent New Orleans a 2023 first-round pick and a 2024…
Denver sent New Orleans a 2023 first-round pick and a 2024 second for the rights to hire Sean Payton, receiving Payton and a 2024 third in return. After an 8-9 debut, Payton led Denver to consecutive playoff berths, a 14-3 record, the 2025 AFC West title and an AFC Championship Game appearance. New Orleans used the first-rounder on Bryan Bresee and leveraged the second-rounder in another trade. Both sides gained value, but Denver’s franchise turnaround now wins.
Denver Broncos Received
- pick Sean Payton and 2024 3rd round pick (81st overall subsequently traded, Christian Haynes)
New Orleans Saints Received
- pick 2023 1st round pick (29th overall, Bryan Bresee )
- pick 2024 2nd round pick (45th overall subsequently traded, Edgerrin Cooper )
Trade Analysis
Denver’s January 2023 trade with New Orleans was unusual because the headline asset was a head coach. The Broncos sent the Saints a 2023 first-round pick and a 2024 second-rounder for the contractual rights to Sean Payton and a 2024 third. Denver was coming off a disastrous season and believed an established Super Bowl-winning coach could stabilize the football operation, especially after the failed first year of the Russell Wilson era.
The first season was transitional. Denver finished 8-9 in 2023 and eventually moved on from Wilson. The next two seasons changed the evaluation. Payton guided the Broncos to 10-7 in 2024 and their first playoff berth since the 2015 championship season. In 2025, Denver went 14-3, won its first AFC West title in a decade and hosted the AFC Championship Game. The Broncos extended Payton through 2030 after he produced consecutive playoff appearances and one of the league’s largest multi-year turnarounds.
New Orleans also received real football value. The 2023 first-round pick, No. 29, became defensive tackle Bryan Bresee. He has appeared in 49 games through three seasons, totaled 14.5 sacks and developed into a full-time starter. The 2024 second-rounder landed at No. 45, but the Saints used that asset in further draft maneuvering rather than simply selecting the player eventually taken at that slot. Their compensation therefore helped replenish a roster with young, inexpensive talent.
The original grades favored New Orleans because draft picks are tangible while coaching value is harder to quantify. The subsequent seasons make that view obsolete. Denver did not merely hire a competent coach; Payton ended a playoff drought, rebuilt the quarterback plan around Bo Nix and produced a 14-win division champion.
New Orleans still deserves a strong B because Bresee has become a productive starter and the additional capital retained value. Denver, however, deserves an A and the verdict should flip. For a franchise that had spent years searching for direction, the coaching acquisition created more value than the picks surrendered.