The Broncos hope to keep their brain trust together for the rest of the decade.
Denver and head coach Sean Payton have agreed to a new five-year contract that runs through the 2030 season, the team announced Thursday, matching the five-year deal general manager George Paton inked in May.
ESPN first reported the news.
"Sean Payton has led an impressive turnaround over the past three seasons, instilling a winning culture with high expectations," team owner Greg Penner said in a statement. "I appreciate the close partnership he shares with George Paton along with the alignment and stability across our football operations.
"We're thrilled for Sean to continue leading our team as head coach, building on our progress during such an exciting time for the Broncos."
The Broncos have experienced a night-and-day turnaround since handing the head-coaching reins to Payton in 2023, trading a '23 first-round pick and '24 second-round selection to the Saints in order to hire the Super Bowl XLIV winner.
At the time, Denver had not experienced the playoffs since winning Super Bowl 50 during the 2015 season, and was bogged down by whiffing on the decision to acquire quarterback Russell Wilson. Payton helmed the Broncos to an 8-9 record in his first year, their best win total since 2016. Denver subsequently took on a then-record $85 million in dead cap to move on from Wilson, months later pairing Payton, known as a QB whisperer, with Bo Nix in the first round of the 2024 draft.
The Broncos went 10-7 in Nix's rookie season with an appearance in the Wild Card Round. Then, in 2025, Payton and Co. arrived earlier than even the most optimistic projections, capturing the AFC's No. 1 seed by going 14-3, the second-best regular-season finish in franchise history. Nix suffered a broken ankle in a climactic Divisional Round victory over the Bills, leaving Denver with feelings of what could've been after the team was unable to overcome the Patriots the following week, but there's reason to believe brighter days are ahead to help ease that regret.
Denver recognizes that and rewarded its head coach for the rapid rebuild, locking in the Payton-Paton duo for years to come.
"I think it makes all the sense in the world," Payton said Thursday regarding the team tying him together with Paton. "I'm super appreciative of that opportunity. I said this to you guys earlier, that triangle of ownership, the Walton-Penner group, Carrie and Greg, and then George, working with him, I've been spoiled. Because I had a real good experience in New Orleans with ownership and (Saints GM) Mickey (Loomis), and to go two for two with that is hard in our league. I'm thankful they want me back and we'll do everything we can to continue to keep winning."
Though Paton's time as GM predates Payton, back to 2021, the pair has gone 32-19 together over the past three seasons. They've jumped from eight wins to 10 to 14, also going from the outside looking in to a wild-card game to standing on the doorstep of a Super Bowl berth.
The Broncos have now extended both with the belief they'll soon knock down that door to earn another ring.
