Arguably, the most significant moment in Chase Daniel’s NFL career was his lone Super Bowl win with the New Orleans Saints in 2010. However, recent revelations show that this achievement might not have been possible for the former NFL quarterback if Sean Payton hadn’t called him in time.
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The latest edition of “Scoop City” featured host Dianna Russini sitting down with Daniel for a candid discussion about Payton. During the conversation, Daniel reminded his former head coach of a surreal story of the duo which had host Dianna in awe the whole time.
According to Daniel, he was very close to signing a practice squad deal with the Washington Redskins (now Commanders) in 2009. The deal was so imminent that Chase was next in line outside coach Jim Zorn’s office to finalize it. It was at this moment that he received a call from an unknown number. The caller? Sean Payton.
The then New Orleans head man immediately urged Daniel to “walk out of the office”. The QB was baffled at this moment because, on one hand, he had a contract right in front of him, and on the other, he had a rival coach asking him to leave the building. The call became even stranger when the head coach asked the QB to catch an Uber and get out.
While Daniel didn’t specify why he left the building, that’s exactly what happened. Fortunately for him, this decision was vindicated when Sean later assured him of a two-year practice squad contract, which would convert into a guaranteed spot on the active roster and “a Super Bowl later.”
For a rookie at the time, Coach Payton’s enthusiasm and promises were compelling enough for him to join the Saints. As luck would have it, Daniel, Sean, and the Saints eventually went on to win the Super Bowl.
While this is a crazy story in itself, the story becomes crazier when one realizes that Chase was cut and resigned multiple times from the Saints’ roster before eventually being resigned on the final regular season game of their Super Bowl-winning year. If you don’t believe in fate, this story is enough to reinforce it.
Soon after the Super Bowl victory, Chase left the Saints for the Chiefs and has been a backup QB to a host of teams ever since. Coach Payton, meanwhile, was associated with the Saints till 2022 before joining the Broncos last year.
While his first season in Denver was tumultuous, Payton has much to look forward to this year, especially in maximizing the potential of the highly-rated Bo Nix. Fortunately for him, his job has been made easier thanks to valuable advice from Bill Belichick.
Belichick advises Payton to develop chemistry with Nix first
In his appearance on The Pat McAfee Show, Belichick was asked if he thought Bo Nix was the perfect QB for Sean Payton’s system. In response, the legendary HC agreed with the notion but quickly added that Payton is a skilled enough coach to adapt to his QB, even if the player doesn’t fit perfectly.
“Sean’s a great quarterback coach and he’ll have those guys ready to play. He’ll tailor the offense around whoever the quarterback is.”
Belichick then argued that for Sean, the primary plan of action should be to know Bo inside out. From his strengths to weaknesses, Belichick urged the Broncos HC to get comfortable with the rookie to tailor the best possible system for him.
“I think, for Sean, it’s probably, like, right now, it’s getting to know Bo Nix and feeling comfortable with Bo. What’s he really good at? What maybe do we not want to emphasize quite as much? Keep him away from certain things. Or maybe he feels pretty good about everything, and he just needs a little more time.”
Bill ended by advising Sean to be patient with Bo and not to pull the trigger prematurely, as a mid-season benching can undermine his confidence. However, after the Russell Wilson debacle, Broncos fans will be clamoring to see a QB shine in Denver colors.
Being a highly-rated prospect, Bo has lived up to this reputation by significantly outshining his competition, including Zach Wilson and Jarrett Stidham. This has already fueled excitement among the Broncos faithful.
