A who's who of NFL royalty is heading to Saudi Arabia next March to compete in a Flag Football tournament. One of those is Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton.
He will join alongside Las Vegas' Pete Carroll and San Francisco's Kyle Shanahan. On Wednesday, Payton explained his intentions to help expand the scope of NFL football, per Chris Tomasson of the Denver Gazette.
“It’s significant when it comes to growing our game,” Payton said. The Flag Football tournament will coincide with Riyadh Season, in which a series of cultural events will unfold from October until March.
Fantatics is sponsoring the Flag Football tournament and will be broadcast on Fox Sports on March 16. Additionally, the festivities will be hosted by comedian Kevin Hart.
Payton is in his third season as head coach of the Broncos. As of now, Denver is off to a 1-1 start to the season.
Over the weekend, Payton said there was an “opportunity” to learn from the 29-28 loss to the Colts. This Sunday, the Broncos will take on the Los Angeles Chargers.
Sean Payton has a whirlwind of a coaching background
Altogether, Payton has coached at every level. Previously, he had assistant coaching stints at San Diego State, Indiana State, Miami (OH), and Illinois.
Later on, he took up NFL positions. Payton was the quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator for the Philadelphia Eagles, New York Giants, and Dallas Cowboys.
In 2006, Payton became the head coach of the New Orleans Saints. Along the way, he led the Saints to a 13-3 win over the Indianapolis Colts in Super Bowl XLIV during the 2009 season.
In 2022, Payton retired from the Saints organization before becoming the coach of the Broncos. Now with Saudi Arabia on the horizon, Payton will be one of a handful of NFL coaches to have a true global experience.
