Denver, CO
Broncos HC Sean Payton not expecting “flowers and warm fuzzies” in return to New Orleans
Sean Payton is glad for the short week.
Not only does the Broncos head coach have less time to dwell on an ugly, 23-16 loss Sunday to the Los Angeles Chargers, but there’s also less time for considering all of the emotion and history that will come with his return to New Orleans when Denver plays there Thursday night.
“It will be unique. One of the things we talk about with our players is trying to handle all this stuff ahead of time,” Payton told reporters Monday. “I have a great wife — (the) tickets are done with, family, my children. I think those around us know how challenging the short week is as compared to as if it was a full week.
“Certainly, there will be emotions going back there. … The amount of time I was there, I understand it.”
The history, of course, barely needs to be revisited. Payton spent 2006-21 coaching the Saints, won a Super Bowl in 2009 and paired with Drew Brees to form one of the most prolific coach-quarterback duos in NFL history.
Thursday night, naturally, includes a celebration of Brees, who is being inducted into the team’s Hall of Fame.
Payton acknowledges all of that but figures most of the adulation will be for the retired quarterback rather than the head coach standing on the visiting sideline.
“I don’t think there’s going to be a lot of flowers and warm fuzzies for yours truly, and I get it,” he said. “Listen, I can’t stand losing. It’s about our team and me as the head coach of the Broncos getting ready to play on an early week and trying to play one of our better games.”
Payton knows that challenge well. The Superdome is one of the louder venues in football. Both Denver and New Orleans are coming off losses and need to win to get back on track.
Then there’s, well, everything else.
“Fortunately it’s a short week because I haven’t had the chance to dive into all the other stuff,” he said. “Drew is going into their Hall of Fame. They also have a ring of honor, so that’s a separate event — (and soon he’ll be inducted to) the Pro Football Hall of Fame. I have already reached out to him, congratulated him and said, ‘This is the first of many.’
“I say this, but it’s about the game. It’s about the win. The significance of us playing our best football on a short week. It’s about our team. I’ll address that with them tomorrow morning. ‘Hey, let’s understand the significance of getting our fourth win.’ I think that’s the No. 1 thing and then go from there.”
This story will be updated.
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Denver, CO
Pedestrian fatally hit by Frontier airplane departing Denver for Los Angeles, flight canceled after
Posted:
Updated:
DENVER (AP) — A Frontier Airlines plane hit a pedestrian on the runway of the Denver International Airport during takeoff, airport authorities said, sparking an engine fire and forcing passengers to evacuate.
The plane, on route from Denver to Los Angeles International Airport, “reported striking a pedestrian during takeoff at DEN at approximately 11:19 p.m. on Friday,” the airport’s official X account wrote.
Neither the airport nor the airline has disclosed the pedestrian’s condition.
“We’re stopping on the runway,” the pilot tells the control tower according to the site ATC.com. “We just hit somebody. We have an engine fire.”
The pilot tells the air traffic controller they have “231 souls” on board and that and “individual was walking across the runway.”
The air traffic controller responds that they are “rolling the trucks now” before the pilot tells the tower they “have smoke in the aircraft. We are going to evacuate on the runway.”
Frontier Airlines said in a statement flight 4345 was the one involved in the collision and that “smoke was reported in the cabin and the pilots aborted takeoff.” It was not clear whether the smoke was linked to the crash with the pedestrian.
“The Airbus A321 was carrying 224 passengers and seven crew members,” the airline said. “We are investigating this incident and gathering more information in coordination with the airport and other safety authorities.”
Passengers were then evacuated via slides and the emergency crew bused them to the terminal.
Denver Airport said the National Transportation Safety Board had been notified and that runway 17L, where the incident took place, will remain closed while an investigation is conducted.
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