Rex Ryan dubs the Broncos game as the ‘biggest’ of Nathaniel Hackett’s career after Sean Payton’s harsh comments

Sean Payton signed with the Broncos in January this year.

Rex Ryan dubs the Broncos game as the ‘biggest’ of Nathaniel Hackett’s career after Sean Payton’s harsh comments

Rex Ryan (L - via X), Nathaniel Hackett (M - via Imago) and Sean Payton (R - via Imago)

The New York Jets will play the Denver Broncos in week 5 at the Empower Field at Mile High in Denver. There is a lot of buzz surrounding this game as it is a clash between the Broncos’ current head coach Sean Payton and the team’s former HC Nathaniel Hackett, who is the Jets’ OC this season. Payton and Hackett butted heads this offseason when the current Broncos HC criticized his predecessor for doing a poor job as the Broncos’ HC last season.

Hackett was fired after just one season as the Denver-based team went 5-12 and finished last in their division. He was expected to bring the best out of star QB Russell Wilson as he did with Aaron Rodgers when he was with the Green Bay Packers. Hackett was replaced by Payton at the start of this season and did not waste any time in slamming his predecessor. However, he later apologized for his comments.

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Former Jets head coach and current ESPN analyst Rex Ryan believes that the upcoming Broncos game will be the ‘biggest’ game for Hackett and the Jets. “Make no mistake about it. This one right here, is the biggest game of Nathaniel Hackett’s coaching career.” Ryan said. “I don’t care where he’s been, I am telling you, you can’t take a personal shot like that and not be affected. This is absolutely a personal game.”

Both these teams are 1-3 to begin the season. The Jets won their opener against the Buffalo Bills but lost Rodgers to an Achilles injury. The Broncos on the other hand won their last game against the Chicago Bears and will look to build on that momentum. It will be a tasty matchup indeed.

Related: Emmanuel Acho claims Colorado’s ‘identity’ as a football team under Deion Sanders is at stake against Arizona State

Sean Payton has nothing more to add about Nathaniel Hackett

The Denver Broncos will play the New York Jets on Sunday. It will be a fiery game with Broncos HC Sean Payton blasting former Broncos HC and current Jets OC Nathaniel Hackett for his bad season last year with his employers. Payton, however, has nothing further to add to his comments as the teams prepare to face each other on Sunday.

Nathaniel Hackett (L) and Sean Payton (R)
Nathaniel Hackett (L – via CBS Sports) and Sean Payton (R – via Sky Sports)

“Respectfully, I feel like I’ve addressed it,” Payton told the reporters ahead of the game. “[Jets coach] Robert [Saleh] did a great job of talking about it. Here’s the thing — we have two teams focused on getting their second win. I think that’s where our focus has been.”

Payton signed with the Broncos earlier this year. The team gave up a 2023 first-round pick and a 2024 second-round pick for the head coach and received a third-round pick in next year’s draft.

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