Jets-Broncos beef explained: How Sean Payton's preseason comments ignited latest NFL feud

On Sunday afternoon, a budding NFL rivalry will get its first chance to play it out on the field. And it all came about over a string of offseason commentary.

In exclusive comments to USA TODAY Sports' Jarrett Bell, new Denver Broncos coach Sean Payton blasted the job of his predecessor, Nathaniel Hackett, who is currently the offensive coordinator of the New York Jets. Though Payton didn't directly use Hackett's name, it became clear and obvious that he was referencing the job Hackett did in 15 games last season as Denver's coach, when he went 4-11 before being fired Dec. 26.

The comments drew widespread criticism against Payton and even lingered into Sunday's 31-28 Broncos victory against the Chicago Bears, Denver's first of the season. While it's rare for NFL coaches to directly address an upcoming opponent in the minutes after a game has concluded, Payton made an exception during his postgame news conference in Chicago.

"These guys can enjoy it," Payton said Sunday of the players celebrating the victory. "Then, we get ready to go next week and we can dive into the whole Jets fiasco stuff."

The Jets (1-3) will head to Denver (1-3) for a 4:25 p.m. ET kickoff at Empower Field at Mile High.

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Here is the Jets-Broncos beef, explained.

What did Broncos coach Sean Payton say about Nathaniel Hackett and the New York Jets?

In a story that published July 27 following an extended conversation with USA TODAY Sports' Jarrett Bell, Payton said Hackett's time in Denver "might have been one of the worst coaching jobs in the history of the NFL. That’s how bad it was."

Payton also added: "Everything I heard about last season, we’re doing the opposite."

Though Payton didn't name Hackett, he did take aim at the Jets, who underwent a small rebuild during the offseason when they traded for veteran quarterback Aaron Rodgers and were the focus of the HBO sports documentary series "Hard Knocks."

"It doesn’t happen often where an NFL team or organization gets embarrassed," Payton said. "And that happened here. Part of it was their own fault, relative to spending so much (expletive) time trying to win the offseason – the PR, the pomp and circumstance, marching people around and all this stuff.

"We’re not doing any of that. The Jets did that this year. You watch. 'Hard Knocks,' all of it. I can see it coming. Remember when (former Washington owner) Dan Snyder put that Dream Team together? I was at the Giants (in 2000). I was a young coach. I thought, 'How are we going to compete with them? Deion’s (Sanders) there now.' That team won eight games or whatever. So, listen … just put the work in."

After his comments were widely circulated, Payton expressed remorse the day after the story published and called them a "mistake."

Did Nathaniel Hackett respond to Sean Payton's comments?

Yes. In his first public comments after the interview published Hackett called the remarks "unfortunate" but said they have brought his new team together.

"I've been involved in this business my whole life, 43 years, as a coach, as a coach's kid," Hackett said Aug. 1 in a news conference. "We live in a glass house. We know that.

"It's one of those things where there’s a code. There’s a way things are done in that house. This past week, it's frustrating and it sucks, but we're all susceptible to it. There are things that you do, mistakes that you make and it costs you time on the field, your job, all those things. I own all that stuff. I got no excuses. It’s unfortunate that that had to happen, the comments that were made, but, hey, they did."

At the time, Hackett said that Payton had not called him to apologize, even though Payton had said he would do so.

"It is what it is," Hackett said. "We move on."

On Sunday, after the Broncos defeated the Bears, Payton deflected when asked whether he had ever reached out to Hackett and said he had already addressed the matter sufficiently in the week after the story published.

What did Aaron Rodgers say about Nathaniel Hackett?

Three days after the story with Payton's comments published, Rodgers, who has had a long relationship with Hackett, defended his coach during an interview with NFL Network.

"Yeah, I love Nathaniel Hackett, and those comments were very surprising, for a coach to do that to another coach," Rodgers said July 30 during the interview.

"I thought it was way out of line, inappropriate, and I think he needs to keep my coach's name out of his mouth."

In January, the Jets hired Hackett, who had been fired from the Broncos after a Week 16 loss last season, as offensive coordinator. Hackett's presence on the New York coaching staff was a key part of Rodgers' decision to play for the Jets. The two had worked together three seasons in Green Bay from 2019-21, when Hackett served as the Packers' offensive coordinator.

"My love for Hack goes deep, you know, we had some great years together in Green Bay," Rodgers continued. "(We) kept in touch, love him and his family, he's an incredible family man and an incredible dad. And on the field, he's arguably my favorite coach I've ever had in the NFL. Just his approach to it, how he makes it fun, how he cares about the guys, just how he goes about his business with respect, with leadership, with honesty, with integrity.

"It made me feel that bad that someone (Payton) who's accomplished a lot in the league is that insecure that they have to take another man down to set themselves up for some sort of easy fall if it doesn't go well for that team this year."

What else did the Jets said about Sean Payton's comments?

The day the Payton story published, Jets offensive tackle Billy Turner, who was a member of the Broncos last season under Hackett, called Payton a "(expletive) bum." Turner ended the social media post with a #BountyGate hashtag, in reference to the scandal with the same name for which Payton was suspended the entire 2012 season.

Jets head coach Robert Saleh also defended Hackett, saying on July 27 that he thought he was doing a "phenomenal job" with the team. Saleh and Hackett had previously been on the same staff in 2015-16, with the Jacksonville Jaguars, when both were assistants there.

"I'm not going to acknowledge Sean," Saleh said then during his news conference. "He's been in the league a while. He can say whatever the hell he wants. But as far as what we have going on here, I kind of live by the saying, 'If you ain't got no haters, you ain't poppin.' So hate away. Obviously, we're doing something right if you gotta talk about us when we don't play you till (Week 5). And I'm good with it. The guys in our locker room, they've earned everything that's coming to them."

How have the Jets and Broncos done so far in the 2023 NFL season?

The Jets season that once had so much promise was dealt a difficult blow during a season-opening victory against the Buffalo Bills, when Rodgers suffered a torn Achilles tendon on the team's first offensive series. Backup Zach Wilson has been inconsistent, though he nearly helped New York pull off an upset Week 4 against the defending Super Bowl champion Chiefs.

Denver has had one of the worst defenses in the entire NFL, highlighted by a Week 3 loss against the Dolphins in which the Broncos allowed Miami to drop 70 points on them. The Broncos appeared to be set to lose their fourth game in a row to start the season before erasing a 21-point deficit Sunday against the Bears. Now, all focus shifts to the Jets and the return of Denver's previous head coach.

"From a coach’s perspective, aside from the summer from whatever was said back in training camp, in football life, that was like 20 years ago," Saleh said Monday during a news conference. "So that is a non-topic.

"But for Hackett, obviously it is going to be a personal feel to go back, but I think he understands just living as a coach’s kid, understanding the process, he will know how to handle himself, he will know exactly how to keep his emotions in check, and make sure we do what is best for this organization and this team as it stands now. I fully expect him to be perfectly fine and levelheaded."