Broncos HC Sean Payton Reacts to Courtland Sutton's Contract Resolution

Sean Payton shared his thoughts on the Denver Broncos getting their No. 1 receiver back.

Jun 13, 2022; Englewood, CO, USA; Denver Broncos wide receiver Courtland Sutton (14) during mini camp drills at the UCHealth Training Center. s / Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

The Denver Broncos finally addressed Courtland Sutton's contract restructuring requests. Despite being under contract through 2025, Sutton wanted the opportunity to earn a bit more money, and the Broncos obliged on Thursday as training camp is kicking off.

So far, the Broncos have held firm to not trading the veteran receiver. Now, Sean Payton's No.1 pass catcher gets a contract tweak to keep him happy and in Denver.

Retaining Sutton's wealth of experience in the building makes a great deal of sense for the Broncos' ongoing offensive installation. Furthermore, Payton's preference to assemble physically bigger wideouts has become apparent to everyone connected with the Broncos.

"They've been working," Payton said of Sutton's camp and the Broncos. "Credit [GM] George [Paton] and Courtland's agent. They spent a lot of time in the summer just discussing it. I'm not even sure what the specifics are. It's good to have him back out here. He provides leadership as well as a skill set that we like. Just as we talked about the running back room, that position group is going to be interesting as you guys look at it, try to put it together and piece together. It's a big group, size-wise."

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Earlier this offseason, Payton was also determined that big-bodied veteran receiver Tim Patrick should also be brought back into the fold, that's despite the 30-year-old having missed the past two seasons with injury. Of course, having a group of receivers who can go up in traffic and come down with the ball will prove invaluable to whatever inexperienced quarterback eventually wins the starting job.

Bringing back veterans like Sutton and Patrick has only been part of Payton's big receiver strategy this offseason. Looking further into the future, the Broncos head coach also added Oregon pass catcher Troy Franklin in the fourth round of this year's draft. Franklin is 6-foot-2 and weighs 176 pounds.

Franklin's well-established dynamic with rookie quarterback Bo Nix was also attractive to Payton, but he also fits with the Land of the Giants policy the Broncos head coach has enthusiastically adopted.

"You see outside," Payton said of his explosive rookie on Wednesday. "You see outside, you see speed, you see playmaking down the field. There are certain routes that you see that are strong suits. I do feel [a] good football I.Q. with that player, and that's encouraging. He's continuing to get stronger. It's a big group, if you haven't noticed, if you really look across the board. That's kind of preferred."

Even if Franklin were to make a significant impact as a rookie, much will still rely on how Sutton leads the unit in 2024 — hence that incentive-laden increase the Broncos gave him. While hindsight is indeed the perfect science, Sutton's contract requests never got toxic or overly complicated with his team.

Indeed, there was always a plan for Sutton's individual recovery down in Florida, which never conflicted with what Payton was configuring — efficient lines of communication brought a solution in the end.

"I didn't spend a lot of time—he [Sutton] and I would have talks just relative to what his summer plans were," Payton said on Thursday. "That was really his agent and George [Paton] visiting. I don't think there were a lot of discussions, and I don't think there were a lot of changes to the way it was structured. It's good to have him here."

Now that Sutton and stud right guard Quinn Meinerz have been recompensed, the major focus of the Broncos' front office will likely shift to securing the long-term future of Pro Bowl Patrick Surtain II. Note to the Broncos: it's best to strike while the iron is hot.

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