All is not well in the Mile High City. After a disastrous start to the season, the Denver Broncos actually managed to climb out of a deep hole and position themselves to potentially make a surprising postseason appearance, but all of that went out the window on Christmas Eve when the Broncos took an L at the hands of the Are We Sure They're Not Tanking? New England Patriots.

In the days that followed, Sean Payton announced that starting quarterback Russell Wilson would now need to be referred to as “former starting quarterback Russell Wilson” because the Broncos were choosing to start Jarrett Stidham the rest of the way. This ended a brief, disappointing, and super costly marriage between Wilson and the Denver Broncos.

Sean Payton now finds himself under attack for his mishandling of the situation with Russell Wilson. ESPN's Ryan Clark went on a justified two-and-a-half-minute-long tirade, putting Sean Payton on blast for coming to Denver with an agenda to put Russell Wilson in his place, instead of, you know, trying to win football games.

The “Nobody in New Orleans kissed more babies than Drew Brees,” line elicited an audible “Oh Damn!” from yours truly, like I was at The Shelter watching B-Rabbit take down Papa Doc in a rap battle. And even worse news for Sean Payton — now two players who were coached by Payton in Denver but no longer on the team, have chimed in, backing up everything Ryan Clark is saying.

Randy Gregory was traded from Denver to San Francisco earlier this year, and Kareem Jackson was waived by the Broncos on Christmas Day. Apparently, on their way out, they didn't need to sign an NDA or anything of the sort because they didn't hesitate to verify that what Clark was saying was “all facts.”

There hasn't been a great track record recently for coaches who have taken an extended break away from the sideline, went to work in TV, and then came back on big-money deals to coach again. Jon Gruden lasted a season and a half in Las Vegas. Urban Meyer didn't even get a full season in Jacksonville.

I give Sean Payton until the end of the 2024 season before Denver decides to move on. Word to the wise — nobody should hire Bill Cowher, Rex Ryan, or Steve Mariucci anytime soon.